How easy it is to make a baby’s diet in the first months of his life. There are few options here: breast milk and mixtures.
But when the child gets a little older, mom usually has a lot of questions. Moreover, every year the recommendations concerning the first complementary food for a child change. In addition, in different countries, you can observe different variations of the first «solid» baby menu. But something still remains indisputable.
Products that are useful for babies
Avocado
Ripe avocado has an almost creamy consistency, does not contain seeds and has a mild taste. On top of that, it contains Omega-3 fatty acids, which are beneficial for brain development.
Meat
Iron-rich foods are recommended by doctors as the first foods of a child. And even if your baby doesn’t like beef, for example, try just giving him another meat — chicken or rabbit. The choice is great today.
Fish
Many experts suggest giving babies fish (for example, salmon, which contains less mercury than many other types of fish), as an introduction to solid food.
Fish is rich in omega-3 fatty acids, contains vitamin D and is a natural source of protein. It can be boiled or baked. When the fish is fully cooked, just mash it with a fork and make sure that there are no bones in it.
Peanut butter
The researchers found that children who were given the equivalent of four teaspoons of peanut butter a week between the ages of four and 11 months were 80 percent less likely to show signs of allergies in the future. This alone can already be considered a reason to include nut paste in the child’s diet. Well, we won’t even talk about other useful and nutritious properties of peanuts — there are a lot of them.
Eggs
Previously, it was believed that eggs should be given to a baby only after a year. Now this restriction is maintained for those who have a family history of allergies to this food.
Eggs are an ideal and affordable first food item for your child. They can be cooked or made into a chatterbox, and even prepared in advance.
Vegetables
Potatoes, zucchini, peas and carrots are usually included in the list of the first products for babies. These vegetables are easy to cook or steam at home and either mash them well or use a blender to make mashed potatoes.
Fruit
In addition to traditional bananas, pears and apples, think about offering your baby other fruits: apricots, melon, peaches — everything that is easy to swallow and that contains useful enzymes that promote digestion.
Products to be careful with
Rice cereals
Many parents often use rice and rice flakes as the first food for babies. However, new research has shown that rice may contain arsenic, and children who often ate rice porridge had a higher concentration of arsenic in their urine compared to children who did not eat rice-based dishes. Therefore, pediatricians now advise replacing rice in the first year of life with other cereals.
Honey
In some types of honey, you can find C. botulinum spores, which, as the name implies, can cause botulism. This is a rare but serious disease because the toxin affects the nervous system, causing muscle weakness and difficulty breathing. Therefore, parents are advised to wait until the child’s first birthday to introduce honey into the diet.
The American Academy of Pediatrics has taken a rather categorical position against juices. For some time they dissuaded parents from giving juice to children up to six months old, but recently increased this age to one year in their recommendations.
Juice contains few nutrients, but it has a lot of sugar. When an infant is thirsty, the AAP recommends giving him breast milk or formula.
Water
Many parents may be surprised, but watering babies is not recommended for several reasons. The World Health Organization explains that even in developed regions, water may not be clean enough for a child’s developing immune system.
Another serious problem is water intoxication. Doctors at the Johns Hopkins Children’s Center emphasize that water should not be given to children aged six months and younger, because their kidneys are not yet ripe for its processing. As a result, their bodies will release sodium to compensate, which can affect brain activity and lead to a potentially life-threatening situation.
Sausages
Despite the popularity of this food, it is not recommended to give sausages to children under 3 years old. Firstly, a child can easily choke on them. Researchers have determined that children under the age of three choke on sausages more than any other food. Then there are lollipops, grapes and nuts in the list. Well, the fact that there are a lot of harmful ingredients in sausages is not even worth talking about — everyone already knows about it.
Cow’s milk
Many parents look at cow’s milk as a substitute for breast milk or formula. But, according to pediatricians, young children have difficulty digesting it completely. In addition, the high content of protein and minerals can cause stress on the growing kidneys of the child and lead to illness. In addition, cow’s milk lacks the nutrients, iron and vitamin C necessary for the youngest.
Therefore, it is recommended to wait until the child is at least 12 months old, and then they have already started to give him milk.
Popcorn
Doctors from the American Academy of Pediatrics recommend not giving popcorn to children under 4 years of age due to the fact that it can easily get stuck in the respiratory tract. And there is no benefit in terms of nutrients in it.
