According to WHO recommendations, at the age of 6 months, a healthy baby is as ready as possible for complementary foods. Although mother's milk continues to be the main source of all substances important for vital activity, the body no longer has enough energy, vitamins and microelements. The baby's digestive system is physiologically ready to digest rougher foods. Moreover, its use can cause the release of special enzymes that have a positive effect on the motility of the gastrointestinal tract.
Age features - why from six months?
Many mothers mistakenly believe that if their milk is not enough to saturate the baby, then it is time to move on to the introduction of complementary foods from 2-3 months. Indeed, how can a couple of teaspoons of applesauce or "so healthy" carrot juice harm? In fact, this is a fundamentally wrong point of view. The baby's digestive system is unable to digest anything other than mother's milk. In case of insufficient lactation, the pediatrician must select an adapted milk formula for the child. The introduction of early complementary foods is fraught with such unpleasant consequences for the crumbs as:
- indigestion;
- diathesis;
- food allergies (which can persist for years);
- the subsequent development of obesity.
On the other hand, late feeding is also harmful: it will lead to:
- lagging behind in mental and physical development;
- the risk of developing deficiency conditions (rickets, malnutrition, anemia, hypovitaminosis);
- protein-calorie deficiency.
The body of a baby up to 5-6 months is not adapted to digest any food, with the exception of breast milk and adapted milk formulas, which are used in cases of insufficient lactation. But 6 months is an average. Only a pediatrician who supervises its development can provide accurate information about whether a baby is ready for the introduction of complementary foods. Babies do not grow according to the exact scheme, each baby is individual: one is ready for complementary foods at 5 months, the other only at 9. The main factors that it is time for your son or daughter to start giving complementary foods are:
- The child is absolutely healthy:
- He takes an interest in food from the diet of the adults around him;
- The baby's weight has doubled since birth;
- The baby does not have enough breast milk: he is increasingly being applied to the breast;
- The baby sits confidently without support;
- The pushing reflex (regurgitation) gradually fades away.
Complementary feeding for breastfeeding - where to start at 6 months
The basic principles that must be followed when introducing complementary foods for a breastfed baby:
- Complementary foods can be introduced only if the baby is completely healthy: there is no disorder of the digestive system (constipation, diarrhea), an increase in body temperature, there was and will not be vaccinated 5-7 days before and after the planned complementary feeding;
- An additional dish must be given to the child when he is hungry, then breastfeed;
- The consistency of the dish should be as homogeneous and liquid as possible, the temperature should be moderately warm. It is especially useful to steam vegetables and then grind them in a blender (or rub through a strainer). With this method of cooking, vitamins and nutrients are better preserved in vegetables;
- The baby should be fed from a spoon and always in a sitting position;
- A new product can be given to a child only once a day. You should start with 0.25 - 0.5 teaspoons. Within two weeks, the portion should be increased to 150 g, which will replace one breastfeeding;
- New dishes are being introduced gradually. The next product can be used in the diet after the body has adapted to the previous one;
- Constantly monitor the child's condition, his reaction to new foods;
- Simultaneously with the introduction of complementary foods, accustom the baby to a 5-meal meal at intervals of 4 hours between feedings.
Products for the first menu
The choice of the first courses for complementary foods depends on the characteristics of the body and the condition of the baby: if there is a problem of underweight, then it is better to start with gluten-free cereals: corn, buckwheat or rice. If the child has a tendency to constipation, then with vegetable and fruit purees.
In the first stages, the dish should consist of one type of product: you should not mix two types of vegetables, fruits or berries in one puree or juice.
The best foods for your first vegetable feed - cabbage of all varieties, the most useful of which are cauliflower and broccoli, potatoes and zucchini (especially if the baby has constipation). Then you can introduce green peas. Painted fruits and vegetables (red apple, dark grapes, carrots, beets, pumpkin) are offered to the baby a little later.
You do not need to add sugar to fruit puree, and salt to vegetable puree. Add half the yolk, vegetable oils (olive or sunflower) to the vegetable puree, starting with 1 drop and bringing to 1 tsp. for a full serving of puree (150 g).
Since the kidneys of a child under one year old are not fully formed, in no case do not give the baby meat broths, which contain a large number of purine bases. It is better to use vegetable broth for soup.
The healthiest way to cook vegetables is to steam and chop them in a blender or through a strainer. With this heat treatment, a greater amount of vitamins and other nutrients are retained. Mashed potatoes must be made liquid, the baby is not yet adapted to swallow thick food.
Porridge for a child of 6 months (we are starting to give one-component porridge, gluten-free. Such types include buckwheat, rice and corn porridge) are first cooked from one type of cereal. After three weeks, you can start mixing the cereals. Previously, it is recommended to grind them in a coffee grinder and only then cook. Both water and breast milk are suitable for cooking. It is useful to add melted butter to the finished porridge.
Child's taste preferences
Be very attentive to the desires and taste preferences of the baby itself. If a dish is unpleasant for him and he turns away from the spoon, in no case insist. Give up this product for a while. It can be re-offered after 3 or 4 weeks.
Do not force your child to eat all of the complementary foods. In this case, the baby will suck less milk from the breast, which will lead to a decrease in its production and the extinction of lactation. It can also cause aversion to the new dish and poor appetite in the future.
It is necessary to supplement the baby with breast milk as long as possible. It remains the main food for up to a year, a source of growth hormones and antibodies that form the child's immunity. Remember that the main task of complementary foods is not transferring to the general table, but the formation of natural eating behavior. Therefore, it is not so important whether the products and their quantity correspond to the recommendations. It is necessary to take into account the desire of the crumbs. If parents do not pursue the goal of observing a quantitative portion of baby food, then an active interest in food will remain, and breastfeeding will not be supplanted. In this case, the transition to eating from a common table will be gradual.
We read in detail: breastfeeding complementary foods
Complementary feeding recommendations for artificial feeding
For babies who, for one reason or another, eat adapted artificial mixtures, complementary foods are introduced a little earlier: from 4 to 5 months. This should be done on the prior recommendation of the supervising pediatrician and taking into account his advice. The introduction of complementary foods at such early stages is due to the fact that for the full development of a growing body, there are not enough nutrients obtained from the mixtures.
The feeding regimen corresponds to that of a breastfed infant. First, vegetable and fruit purees are also introduced into the diet. At the age of 6 months, artificial people move on to the second stage of complementary feeding - dairy (depending on milk tolerance) and dairy-free cereals with the addition of butter, juices diluted with water, cottage cheese, yolk, meat and fish purees.
Artists can be obese, so don't overuse semolina. In addition to high nutritional value, it is essentially not useful in anything. With frequent use of this cereal, the possibility of the appearance of conditions such as anemia or rickets increases significantly.
When adding meat and fish dishes to the menu, you can use ready-made canned foods (meat purees) intended for children, but mashed potatoes or mashed potatoes prepared in a blender at home will be more useful. The first mashed potatoes are made from rabbit, turkey, veal or chicken. (when to give meat to a child - rules for introducing meat complementary foods)
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An approximate menu for a day for a 6-month-old baby, taking into account the introduction of complementary foods. Feeding regimen for 6 month old baby
This regime is followed by European nutritionists and pediatricians:
For a breastfed baby:
- 06:00 - Breast milk.
- 10:00 - Vegetable puree - 25 - 30 g. Breastfeeding.
- 14:00 - Porridge or vegetable puree + supplementary feeding with mother's milk.
- 18:00 - Fruit puree - 25 - 30 g + breastfeeding.
- 22:00 - Breast milk.
For an artificial child:
- 06:00 - Adapted formula (milk or sour milk).
- 10:00 - porridge in milk with butter and mashed vegetables or fruits
- 14:00 - soup (vegetable), vegetable puree with vegetable oil and yolk halves, freshly squeezed fruit juice
- 18:00 - milk mixture or cottage cheese, cookies
- 22:00 - kefir or an adapted mixture.
Meal time may vary depending on the daily routine for the baby, but the interval of 4 hours between meals must be observed.
Summary
Despite the fact that breast milk is undeniably the best food for an infant under one year old, complementary foods should be introduced into the diet from 6 months, and for artificial people - from 4 - 5. It is not necessary to feed the baby before the prescribed time. It seems to many mothers that by doing this they will provide the body with a large amount of useful substances, although in fact, the baby's digestive system on HB is not yet ready for the use of new products for up to six months.
From 6 months, complementary foods are introduced gradually, without stopping breastfeeding. New products are given in small portions, thereby accustoming and adapting the child's gastrointestinal tract to the adult menu. From 6 months, the baby is transferred to 5 meals a day at 4-hour intervals.
When introducing the baby to the common table, it is important to strictly follow the feeding regimen and the basic principles of introducing complementary foods. Reasonable recommendations, taking into account the characteristics of the development and health of a particular child, can be given by a doctor observing the baby.
