Baby Nutrition

Breast Feeding

Breast feeding is a necessity for the newborns. Rich in fat, water, protein and sugar, a mother's milk helps in the proper growth and development of the baby. Containing antibodies, breast milk increases the increases the resistance power of the babies, thus helping them to fight various diseases and infections. Moreover, babies can very easily digest breast milk than formula milk. Organizations like American Academy of Pediatrics and WHO emphasize on breastfeeding. A report of the World Health Organization says that at least 2 years of breastfeeding is good for your baby's health. Exclusive breastfeeding for the first 6 months is also recommended by WHO. According to American Academy of Pediatrics, exclusive breastfeeding in the firs 6 months offers a continual protection against respiratory tract infection. It also prevents diarrhea.

Substitutes of Breastfeeding

The World Health organization ( WHO) recommends the following alternatives to breastfeeding:

* Breast milk bought from a human-milk bank. Milk from a wet-nurse can also do well.
* Extracted breast milk from the baby's own mother.
* Substitute of Breast milk fed with a cup. According to the World Health Organization, it is better to use cups than feeding bottle.

Breastfeeding Advantages for the Babies

Breastfeeding has several advantages. The benefits of breastfeeding are enumerated below:

* Breast milk contains many anti-infective factors like lactoferrin, immunoglobulin and bile salt stimulated lipase which increase immunity, thus aiding in fighting diseases.
* Breast milk also reduces the risk of obesity.
* Research tells that the breastfed babies are more intelligent.
* Breastfeeding also trims down the risk of diseases like Diarrhea, Celiac disease and Diabetes mellitus.

Breastfeeding: Beneficial for Mothers

Breastfeeding is also beneficial for the mothers. Women feeding their babies also benefit a lot for breastfeeding. Essential hormones are released into the body of the mother while feeding her baby. Mother regularly feeding their babies also have lesser chance of developing breast and ovarian cancer. Constant breastfeeding for 6 months can aid mothers in losing their weight. Breastfeeding mothers also have less chances of Arhritis.

Bottle Feeding

Breastfeeding is ideal for the child. But working mothers have to resort to bottle feeding because it is not always possible to find out time for breastfeeding. Bottle feeding has certain advantages over breastfeeding.

Benefits of Bottle Feeding

The bottle-fed infants are required to be fed at intervals. The mother bottle feeding their babies know how much milk their babies can digest a a time. More than that, the mothers need not be present while bottle feeding their babies. Bottle feeding babies can be fed by anyone and everyone.

Breastfeeding mothers are required to put on dresses that can accommodate a hungry infant. But bottle feeding mothers do not have to face such a problem. They can easily dress herself up according to her wish. Bottle feeding is easier and less embarrassing in public place.

Bottle feeding Precautions

Here are certain guidelines for the mother bottle feeding their babies.

* The mothers must check the expiry date on the bottle.
* The bottle must be thoroughly washed and sterilized after every use. This should be done to keep away from germs.
* Wash away the leftover milk because it can result in the breeding of bacteria.
* Place the baby in a semi-upright position before bottle feeding.
* Stop feeding babies in their sleep because it may cause tooth decay.

Nipple Care

As far as bottle feeding is concerned, one must care proper care of the nipples. The hole of the nipple mus be perfect. Nipples with bigger hole can lead to the spurting of milk. Spurting of milk in large amount may choke the bay and can prove detrimental. Boiling the nipple are, at times, found to reduce The size of the hole. But if it does not help, simple discard the nipple and replace it with a new one.

A nipple with a small hole should also be discarded. In case of a nipple with small hole, milk does not come out easily. The baby, in such instances, swallow air which cause him or her to vomit after feeds. In order to avoid such instances, ensure that the teat you are using for your baby has the right size.

Feeding Schedules

There is hardly any mother who is not worried about her baby's feeding schedules. The new parents have lots and lots of questions regarding the feeding schedules of their babies. They are always looking for guides, consulting the paediatrician, and seeking the right advice to settle a perfect baby feeding schedule for their little ones. If you are a first-time mother, and wondering how to make right feeding schedules for your baby, just go through the following guidelines.

Feeding Schedule for a newborn baby


It is not much difficult to make feeding schedules for the newborn babies. Infants usually they subsist on breast or formula milk. Brest milk is the best option for the babies during first four to six months. Apart from breast or formula milk, baby products like Cerelac or Lactogen can also be given. But consult your paediatrician before you choose any particular food product for your baby.

Feeding Schedule after 6 months

Expand your baby's diet after 6 months. Pediatricians generally suggest fresh fruits and vegetables for a six month baby. Give a new food at a time and wait for some days before you introduce another new item. This will certainly help you in making a allergic test of your child. Avoid giving the items to which your child is allergic. As your baby grows, start adding cereals in his/her diet.

Protein and vitamin are also a must in baby's diet chart. Once your baby becomes one year old, he should be eating anything that suits his taste. But see that he does not take high-calorie and deep-fried fruit detrimental to health.


Weaning

Weaning means introduction of substitute food for a breast feeding baby. During the course of upbringing new born babies, there comes a stage when their dependence on breast milk is gradually cut short. As the toddlers grow, the new mothers try substitute food to provide them basic requirements of their body metabolism. Generally the babies are introduced juices and pureed food when weaning starts and later they are fed solid food.

The process of weaning the toddlers often proves to be a traumatic experience for the nurturing mothers. It is quite natural that your babies react to your embarrassment when you start making a substitution for breast milk. The babies might refuse to accept the substitution you are trying. The babies might also start weeping and relent unless they are breast-fed. At this point the new mothers are required to give their best performance. They can win over their kids slowly with love and care.

What is the perfect time to wean your babies? It is a question of much concern for a large number of new mothers all over the world. Most pediatricians agree that there is no perfect time to start substituting breast-feeding. The process of weaning can be started any time between 4 to 6 months. Much of the decision to initiate the process depends on the mothers. If the nurturing mothers get insufficient breast milk or they want to get back to work soon, they can start weaning their babies form the age 4 months.

There are certain guidelines to be followed while starting the process of weaning. Some of them are as follows:

* Always start weaning after consulting a pediatrician.
* To know the likes and dislikes of you toddlers, try one taste at a time.
* Continue one substitution for at least 4 to 5 days.
* If you are feeding your babies solid food, try it once in a day and gradually increase the frequency.
* Always give fresh food to your toddler and make sure it is hygienically prepared.

The guidelines mentioned above can help your toddlers effectively in adapting alternative food to the breast milk.


Supplementary Baby Food


Breast milk is no doubt the best food for a baby. But as the baby grows and the process of weaning starts, the need of supplementary baby food also gets importance. An average baby starts getting supplementary food from the age of 4 months. The transition in the food habits of the toddlers continues till one year. During this period, the baby is given different supplementary recipes. The second year sees the transition period over when the baby adapts the food habit practiced by the family members.

Each baby is characterized by his own individual behavior which dominates his energy requirements and the desire for meal. Some babies happen to be lively and thus they require more energy than the ones who are rather passive. The food supplements which are given to the toddlers during different phases of their infancy must contain nutrients which can compensate their overall needs.

There is lot of supplementary baby food available in the market. These foods are manufactured by reputed brands. Many of the supplementary infant foods on sale are also organic and they are very high in hygiene and nutrients. But there is an option for the new mothers to show their babies that they care them. They can prepare the organic baby foods themselves at home.

You can feed your baby cow milk as the first supplementary food at the age of 4 months. As your kid attains infancy and enters fifth month you can feed the following supplement for best result.

* Banana Smoothie
* Rice Mash
* Barley Water
* Papaya Juice
* Muskmelon juice
* Beetroot and carrot soup


You can prepare innovative supplementary baby food for your toddler who is between 7 to 9 months. The recipes include:

* Spinach Pasta Puree
* Fruity Cream Cheese
* Fruit smoothie

As your baby completes one year, you can feed supplementary foods containing corn and fruits. Ideal recipes for your kids at this stage are as follows:

* Muskmelon and Watermelon Juice
* Plum and Banana Purée
* Corn and Peas with Cottage Cheese


At this stage encourage your baby to eat from pots with the help of spoons.


Baby Food Recipes

The best way to care your baby is to go extra miles for feeding and preparing the right recipes. As your baby grows, he needs extra nutrients to be supplied in his food. The food supplements for your babies also keep changing with each passing month. The healthy option to feed your toddlers the right kind of supplement is to give them home made baby food recipes.

But before you introduce any recipe to your baby, make it a point to consult your pediatrician for proper guidance. Some babies are allergic to particular types of food. Again, there are some kids who cannot tolerate the newly introduced supplementary food and they develop indigestion as a result of it. The pediatrician can provide you a complete chart containing the perfect supplementary diet menu for your kids according to his or her age.

Some of the best practiced baby food recipes include:

* Pumpkin baby food recipes
* Sweet potato baby food recipes
* Winter squash baby food recipes
* Avocado baby food recipes

Pumpkin baby food recipes:

Pumpkin is very high in Vitamin A, C and beta carotene. A baby who attains the age of 6 months can be fed pumpkin for better results. Plain pumpkin in pureed form or mixed with cereals, chicken and yogurts can be given to the kids for wonderful taste.

Sweet potato baby food recipes

The yams or sweet potatoes are very rich in Vitamin A, beta carotene and potassium. It is also very high in Vitamin E, potassium and carotene. The vegetable is held in esteem for a great first baby food all over world. It is full of nutrients and fiber, as well.

Apart from these, there are a lot of other nutritious recipes which can boost up the health and growth of your babies in the best way.

Nutrition after 6 months

As soon as you baby steps into 6th month, your responsibilities to feed him proper solid diet also gets increased many folds. Various sources of nutrition after 6 months are very necessary for your growing child. According to a recent recommendation from The American Academy of Pediatrics, a baby who steps into 6th months of his age should be gradually introduced to solid foods which are full of nutrients. Some of the common nutrients given to a child after 6 months are as follows:

* Spinach pasta puree
* Fruity cream cheese
* Fruit smoothie
* Muskmelon and watermelon juice
* Plum and banana puree
* Corn and peas with cheese


To expand the recipe of your 6 month old child, you can also include the menu given below:

* Baby rice
* Baby porridge
* Puree fruit
* Mashed potato
* Pureed vegetables
* Pureed chicken
* Yoghurt and custard

The nutrients for your 6 month-old baby should not contain such food which may cause allergy to him or her. Eggs can also serve as a wonderful nutrition but before you feed it to your kids, make sure it is well cooked.

If you find any sign of food allergy in your infants or there is an instance of food reaction in your family never give them eggs until they reach one year. You can also improve the nutrition level of your 6 months old baby feeding them a wide variety of fruits like apricots, peaches, plums, prunes, avocados, mangoes and pumpkin.

Nutrition after 1 Year

Nutrition after 1 year may include some innovative recipes for your babies. In fact, this later stage of infancy is the most important phase of your baby's life. It is during this period that your child starts enjoying a variety of cereals, meats, vegetables, fruits and eggs.

It is also the right time to introduce meat to your toddlers. A moderate intake of chicken is highly advisable for your kids who have stepped into the second year of his life. Meat contributes highly in increasing the protein and iron levels in the body.

The nurturing mothers can well include eggs in the baby food after 12 months. The toddlers are introduced to egg-yolk before they reach the end of first year but it is highly advisable to the mothers that they should feed the whole of egg not before the baby attains the age of one year.

The egg whites are supposed to have allergic effect on the toddlers. So, pediatricians recommend feeding the babies complete egg once they complete one year. By the time a child completes one year, breast milk is almost replaced with formula milk. Contrary to general belief, a child needs much fat which helps him in growth.

So, feed the child formula milk which is very high in fat and never resort to skimmed milk. At this stage, you can supplement the nutrients of your child with a variety of fruits, vegetables and breads. Always make it a point to include dairy products and grains as part of the dietary habits of your one year old toddler.

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