A balanced diet is a diet that contains the right nutrients in the right proportion. Nutrients are the food components that are necessary to sustain life. These act as building blocks for various biological structures.
Infancy is a very critical period in terms of growth and development. Proper food and nutrition are very important during this time. USDA guidelines instruct that parents must add multiple foods to their infants’ diet plan. This, on one hand, will improve their health and will help prevent food allergies as well.
On the other hand, it is equally important to pay attention to the amount of sugar that certain food contains, as it can sometimes be a hidden ingredient. The most common types of sugar are Glucose, Sucrose, Fructose, and Lactose, and are contained in different types of food that cause sugar allergy in babies sometimes. You can pay attention to the reaction of your kid and if there are allergic symptoms consider sugar as an allergen.
Importance of breastfeeding for infants
Breastmilk is a natural food supply for a baby. It is a gift from nature with unmatched value. USDA guidelines suggest feeding the infants with breast milk for at least the first six months of life. It has the following advantages:
- Breast milk is rich in antibodies. Hence, it helps the infant body fighting against infections
- Breastfed infants have low chances of suffering from respiratory tract infections.
- Breast milk doesn’t irritate the gastrointestinal tract. So, it prevents intestinal colic, diarrhoea, vomiting and constipation.
- Breast milk is sterile, economical and is available on demand.
- It helps in bonding with the baby.
Weaning your infant
Weaning is a process by which a human baby is gradually introduced to solid foods. During this phase, breastfeeding decreases gradually and semisolid food is added, instead.
Age for weaning:
It started at the age of around 6 months.
How to tell that the baby is ready for weaning:
Your baby is ready for weaning if he shows the following signs:
- He can hold his neck steady.
- Baby can stay in the sitting position.
- He can swallow.
- He can coordinate his hands and mouth and can pick food and put it into his mouth.
Importance of weaning in infants
In the first few months, breast milk or formula milk is sufficient to provide all the necessary nutrients in the first few months. However, with advancing age, the reserves of certain nutrients in the body decrease. Hence, it is necessary to replenish those nutrients with complementary foods.
It is the best time to introduce allergens to your baby. This can help to prevent food allergies later in life.
What should I feed my infant?
This is the best time to introduce your baby to all types of food. As he has not developed any taste yet, you can easily experiment with different foods.
There are the following 3 stages of weaning:
Stage 1:
At around 4 to 6 months of age, feed your baby with finely blended semisolid foods. It is also advised to introduce them to finger feeding.
Stage 2:
It lasts from 6 months to 9 months of his age. At this stage, you can give mashed food with soft lumps. Soft finger foods are also a must. It is the best time to buy a training cup for your baby to help him with liquid intake. It is also recommended to introduce allergens at 4-12 months of age. Introducing allergens using these recipes to introduce peanuts can help reduce your baby’s risk of developing a food allergy.
Stage 3:
The age of 9 months to one year is the time when you can give hard finger foods to your infant. Moreover, you can also feed them minced and chopped family foods. It is good to make them sit with the rest of the family and share a meal together.
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