From what month do they give complementary foods. The introduction of complementary foods
According to the recommendations of the World Health Organization, it is optimal to give the first complementary foods to a baby at 6 months. It is at this age that the supply of iron in the child’s body is depleted, and this element also becomes insufficient in the mother’s milk. In addition, the baby's digestive system is already ripe for the digestion of fats, proteins and carbohydrates in non-dairy foods, as its own digestive enzymes begin to be produced. The first chewing movements appear in the child, the gag reflex moves from the middle to the posterior third of the tongue, and the baby stops reflexively spitting out thick food from the mouth.
Rule 2. It is better to start feeding your baby with vegetables.
With what product should you start the first complementary foods? The advice of pediatricians and nutritionists boils down to starting complementary foods with vegetable puree. This recommendation is explained simply: cereals are closest in taste to breast milk, so babies like them more. Having become accustomed to such complementary foods, babies may subsequently refuse less tasty (or simply unfamiliar) vegetable puree. Especially green vegetable puree is recommended for children prone to constipation and overweight.
Attention! If a child has loose stools, lack of weight, he suffers from colic, then the introduction of vegetables can aggravate the situation. In this case, choose porridge as the first complementary food.
What vegetables to choose?
Low-allergenic fruits, such as zucchini, cauliflower, squash, broccoli and light varieties of pumpkin, are suitable for the first feeding with vegetables. A little later (from about 7–8 months), you can add potatoes, carrots, white cabbage, and beets to the diet of crumbs. A little later (from about 7–8 months), you can add potatoes, carrots, white cabbage, and beets to the diet of crumbs. The introduction of complementary foods begins with a one-component puree, which does not include salt, sugar, thickeners, from 1–2 teaspoons (10–20 g). Gradually, within 7-10 days, increase the portion to the age norm - 100-150 g.
Rule 3
The next product that can be introduced into the baby's complementary foods will be cereals. According to modern recommendations, porridge is introduced after the child adapts to his first complementary food - vegetable puree. This occurs no earlier than 3 weeks after the start of introducing vegetables into complementary foods.
The first to be introduced into the baby's menu are low-allergenic cereals that do not contain gluten (rice, buckwheat, corn). Gluten (gluten)- vegetable protein, which is part of the shell of the grain of wheat, oats, rye and barley. It is difficult to digest in the immature intestines of babies. As a result, with the early introduction of gluten-containing foods into complementary foods (especially before 6 months), the child may experience abdominal pain, bloating, impaired stool, skin rashes, and other negative reactions. In rare cases, if there is a hereditary predisposition, the baby may develop a severe disease of celiac disease, requiring a gluten-free diet (elimination of all foods containing gluten) for the rest of his life.
- Buckwheat It is gluten-free and an excellent source of highly digestible plant-based protein, making it a great starter to complementary foods. Due to the high content of fiber and a small amount of starch, this porridge perfectly stimulates the intestines, so it is especially useful for babies who have constipation.
- Rice It is considered a hypoallergenic product, so it is better to start with complementary foods for children prone to food allergies. Due to the high starch content, rice porridge is well absorbed and does not irritate the gastrointestinal tract, so it is useful to give it to babies with unstable stools, but children who are constipated and who are overweight should not be offered it too often.
- Corn porridge hypoallergenic and high-calorie. Cooked on its own, it turns out to be too hard to digest, but industrial-made porridge is easier to digest (since corn grains have been specially processed), besides, it is enriched with vitamins and, due to the absence of gluten, is suitable for the first complementary foods.
How to introduce porridge into complementary foods?
The principles of introducing cereals into complementary foods are the same as for other types of complementary foods - start with one type of cereal (from 1 teaspoon), gradually increasing its amount to 120–150 g. A week after the introduction of the first cereal, try another type, even later - you can switch to porridge from a mixture of cereals. Porridge for the first feeding should be dairy-free. They are bred with breast milk or formula fed to the baby. Milk porridge for complementary foods is introduced into the child's diet at 8–9 months, and salt and sugar should not be added until at least 1 year old.
Rule 5. Not all meat is suitable for complementary foods
At 8-9 months, you can introduce meat into complementary foods. What is the most valuable meat for a baby? First of all, it is lean beef, pork, poultry, rabbit. But when introducing meat complementary foods, some features must be taken into account. So, in terms of nutritional properties, beef is a very valuable product, but if a baby is allergic to cow's milk protein, then the same reaction may be to beef. Veal and chicken meat for meat complementary foods, despite their tenderness, ease of digestion, can cause the same problem. Pork is more fatty meat, but if the baby is allergic to beef and chicken, it can be offered as a replacement for these products. Turkey and rabbit meat are hypoallergenic, they are quite suitable to start feeding meat with them. The baby is accustomed to the full volume of meat puree gradually, starting, as usual, with an incomplete teaspoon and slowly bringing the volume of the meat dish to 30-50-70 ml, depending on the age of the crumbs (70 ml by 1 year).
Rule 6. Fruits in complementary foods: not all at once
At 7.5 months, you can offer your baby the first spoonful of fruit puree. Domestic pediatricians recommend starting complementary foods with fruits from a green apple or pear - they are less likely to cause allergic reactions. If the baby has had manifestations of allergies or his stool is unstable, then it is better to introduce him first to less allergenic apples, pears or bananas. And if the baby has constipation, you can first offer prunes or apricots.
How much fruit puree can you give your baby per day?
The daily norm is equal to the child's age in months, multiplied by 10 (for example, the volume of fruit puree per day for a child of 10 months is 100 g).
Based on the same principles, they introduce and fruit juices. The first to give one-component clarified juices without pulp (usually green apple juice), starting with a few milliliters and gradually bringing the volume to the age norm - babies 10-12 months old can be given 80-100 ml per day.
Rule 7. Only special cottage cheese is suitable for feeding a child
Cottage cheese is one of the first fermented milk products that can be offered to a baby. Offer the first spoonful of cottage cheese to a child when he is 8-9 months old. Unlike kefir, this product has low acidity and does not irritate the delicate intestinal mucosa of the crumbs. Remember that in the diet of children under 1 year old, you can use only special types of cottage cheese that are intended for this age. Children's cottage cheese is produced using a special technology, thanks to which all useful properties are preserved in it and it has a more delicate texture compared to the usual "adult" product.
In the absence of negative reactions to cottage cheese, its amount is adjusted to 40 g within 5–7 days, and up to 50 g by 9 months. This amount should not be exceeded, since with an excess of protein, the burden on the kidneys of the crumbs increases, which can lead to violations in their work.
Rule 8. Fish menu for kids
Every mother thinks about what kind of fish to start complementary foods with. Despite the beneficial properties, fish appears on the baby’s menu only by 9-10 months, and if the baby suffers from allergies, then acquaintance with this product should be postponed until 1.5 years. The fact is that fish protein is a strong allergen, and this type of complementary food should be treated with extreme caution. In the first year of life, fish can only be given to healthy babies who are not allergic to other foods.
What fish to start with?
Hake, cod, haddock, pollock, flounder are considered suitable for a first acquaintance. They are dietary and less allergenic, in addition, they have very few small bones. A baby up to a year old can be given about 30-60 g of fish puree per day and no more than 1-2 times a week.
Attention!
Complementary feeding means feeding babies foods in addition to breast milk. But during the entire period of introduction of complementary foods, breast milk should remain the main food of the child.
The introduction of complementary foods is an important period in the first year of a child's life. But you shouldn't rush into it. There are indicators of the baby's readiness for the introduction of new food. The danger of early complementary foods, the timing of the introduction of new food and nutritional recommendations - we are studying!
The beginning of complementary foods for a child: important indicators
An important indicator for starting the introduction of complementary foods is the readiness of the baby. This is not only the achievement of a certain age, but also the presence of certain physiological indicators:
- baby's weight: by the time the first complementary foods are introduced, it should be at least 2 times more than birth weight (see weight and height standards);
- ability to sit independently;
- lack of a pushing reflex of the tongue: the baby does not push the offered spoonful of food out of the mouth;
- feeling of hunger: the baby does not have enough milk or an artificial mixture;
- Showed interest in adult food (stretches, wants to try the food that parents eat).
An important fact for the timing of the introduction of the first complementary foods is the type of feeding: breastfeeding or artificial. The recommended periods are different: when breastfeeding, pediatricians are not recommended to rush with complementary foods and not introduce new food before 6 months - until this age, the baby has enough mother's milk.
For artificers, earlier complementary foods are possible.
The "golden rule" in the case of the introduction of the first complementary foods: it is better to be a little late than to hurry.
From what month to start feeding a child
The time when, symbolizes that the baby has already grown up and is ready to get acquainted with "adult" food. But when do you start doing it?
It is no coincidence that young mothers actively ask the question: “From what month should we start feeding a child?”. After all, if you start it ahead of time, the child will not only not eat the food offered, but may also refuse it later.
Breastfed and bottle-fed is different. "Grudnichkov" pediatricians recommend introducing new foods from the age of six months. Those who eat mixtures a little earlier - from five months. The difference is explained by the fact that the digestive system of babies who eat adapted milk formulas will more easily “accept” the new food.
Why is early feeding dangerous?
- Disruption of the digestive system. The child's body is not physiologically ready to digest new food. If you introduce the first complementary foods at 3-4 months, it threatens with frequent colic, abdominal pain, vomiting and stool disorder. The main danger is a complete disruption of the digestive system, requiring serious medical treatment.
- For a weak immune system and immature digestive enzymes, new foods can be a dangerous source of allergies. In the future, this can lead to frequent infectious and chronic diseases.
- Load on the liver, kidneys and intestinal system. Food offered to the child ahead of time (when the mechanism of chewing and swallowing is not formed) can provoke diseases of the digestive organs. In addition, the baby may choke.
- Decreased lactation. Early first complementary foods reduce lactation due to reduced breastfeeding.
The appearance of at least one of these signs can cause the child to reject food, which will lead to malnutrition in general and a lack of interest in food.
What foods to start feeding a baby with
The baby's first complementary foods should include foods that will not cause an allergic reaction and are easily digested. Most often, young mothers who are faced with a choice - with which foods to start complementary foods for a child, prefer zucchini, broccoli and cauliflower.
The decision is explained by the fact that the structure of these vegetables is unusually delicate. And, therefore, the texture of the cooked puree will be light. And this is very important - after all, the children's stomach, which previously "saw" only milk or an adapted milk formula, should not actively work to digest a new product.
The choice of zucchini, broccoli and cauliflower as foods for the first feeding is also explained by hypoallergenicity: soft and green vegetables, as a rule, do not cause rashes on baby skin.
Baby's first feeding
Basic rules for the first complementary foods:
- start with liquid and semi-liquid foods (juices, purees);
- start with one-component dishes, gradually adding a low-allergenic product;
- introduce the child to new food gradually, introducing a new product into the diet once a week, observing the reaction of the body. Start with half a teaspoon (5-10 grams), gradually increasing the rate to 80-100 g.
Breastfeeding does not stop with the first feeding. A growing body needs proteins, fats and carbohydrates - the nutritional value of milk is not able to provide it in the right amount. The purpose of complementary foods is to supplement breast milk or formula.
Complementary foods during breastfeeding differ in the timing of the introduction of new foods:
How to prepare baby food for the first time
Many young mothers, whose children have already grown up to the age when it is time to introduce the first complementary foods, are faced with a choice: cook it yourself or give preference to vegetable purees from numerous baby food brands.
The first feeding of a child is a very responsible matter, due to the tender age of the crumbs. Therefore, if you decide to make your own puree, make sure the vegetables are of high quality. Be sure to check them for nitrate content.
How to prepare the first complementary foods for a child: so that vegetables do not lose their vitamin value, steam them. This way you save all the "usefulness". Then, using a blender, bring the vegetables to a puree state. The texture should be soft, without a single lump. Remember that the child will swallow puree - I would not want the baby to accidentally choke.
- It is better to start complementary foods with low-allergenic vegetables: zucchini, cauliflower, broccoli.
- You can add a few drops of vegetable oil or pounded yolk to vegetable puree.
- Starting from 6 months and later, one milk feeding is replaced with complementary foods in the form of vegetable puree (150-200 g).
- The first porridge for feeding should be rice, buckwheat or corn, cooked on your own (the cereal is first ground in a blender) or purchased.
- From 7 months and later, one breastfeeding is replaced by porridge (150 gr)
- Meat is a source of protein, iron and vitamins. You can start with turkey, rabbit and veal (if you are not allergic to cow protein). Up to a year, you should not offer meat broths, it is better to chop the meat (1-3 teaspoons) and add it to vegetable soup or mashed potatoes.
- Fish is a rich source of amino acids, but also in some cases an allergen. You should start with white fish (cod, hake).
With the appearance of the first teeth, the child can be offered finely chopped fruits and vegetables or with the help of a feeding strainer. Instead of meat, include meatballs and meatballs in the first feeding diet, and replace vegetable purees with soups with finely chopped vegetables.
There are many in the world complementary feeding schemes for children in their first year of life. It depends on the national characteristics of nutrition and the availability of specialized children's. Even in our country there are regional peculiarities on recommendations from pediatricians.
This article will propose the approach of the St. Petersburg school of pediatricians of the step-by-step introduction of complementary foods, proposed by Professor Vorontsov I.M. taking into account modern positions.
Feeding steps:
1 step - porridge or puree from above-ground vegetables
Step 2 - underground vegetable puree or porridge
Step 3 - meat puree
Step 4 - vegetable oil
5 step - fermented milk product
step 6 - butter
7 step - cottage cheese
Step 8 - egg yolk
Step 9 - fish puree
10 step - fruit puree
11 step - bakery products
To take the first step, the child needs to be ready for it.
Signs of readiness for the introduction of the first complementary foods:
- age 4 months and older, but optimal from 6 months
- weight gain per month less than 500 grams
- showing the child's interest in food other than breast milk/formula
- lack of ejection of the spoon with the tongue
- a sharp increase in physical activity
- a stable requirement for food at the same hours at least once a day
The presence of only one sign of readiness is not the basis for the introduction of complementary foods. If all signs are present, complementary foods should be introduced. If there are several, seek advice from your pediatrician.
After deciding to introduce complementary foods, you should choose the first product. First, let's define the type. It can be porridge or a vegetable.
Reasons for the first feeding with porridge:
- small weight gain
- frequent regurgitation
- frequent stool
- restless sleep
Reasons for the first feeding with vegetables:
- big weight gain
- rare chair
It is not advisable to start with dairy products and fruits due to the high risk of allergies, food intolerances and eating disorders.
After choosing the type of product, we determine the type and shape.
Kashi for the first meal: buckwheat, corn, rice
The form: liquid, dairy-free, no additives, hypoallergenic
Cooking: on breast milk or basic formula
Vegetables for the first meal: zucchini, cauliflower, broccoli, pumpkin
The form: puree without additives, hypoallergenic
Choose only one product by type, look and shape. For example, buckwheat hypoallergenic porridge in breast milk.
According to modern requirements for the safety of baby food, preference is given to specialized products: "boxes" and "jars" with indications of "hypoallergenic" and / or "for the first feeding". Study the composition so that there is nothing else but a vegetable or cereal. However, if parents are confident in the quality and safety of those foods that they eat themselves, then it is acceptable to use them to prepare baby food at home.
Further choose the time when we give the first complementary foods. This is usually after the first walk or an extended night/day nap without feeding. We remember strategically that cereals are given for breakfast, and vegetables for lunch.
Then we decide on the dishes, we need individual two spoons and a plate. Remember about safety and purchase high-quality children's dishes. Do not feed directly from cans or other baby food containers. This forms the wrong eating behavior, because you yourself eat from the plate. Give the child his spoon while feeding and let him imitate the actions of adults at the table. Be sure to eat at the same time as the child so that he reinforces his food interest.
We prepare a complementary meal immediately before feeding. The quantity is not more than 150 grams. The temperature should not be higher than body temperature, and the density should be such that it does not drip from the spoon when tilted. The child removes food from the spoon with his lips and by itself almost immediately swallows.
AT first day Give one or two scoops to assess primary skill and tolerance. Then supplement with the main food - breast milk or formula. Do not store cooked food until tomorrow.
On the the next day around the same time, offer to eat twice as much, that is, two to four spoons. And every day, double the previous serving size in the plate. The child does not have to eat everything, we just offer ever larger portions of the new food.
1 - 2 - 4 - 8 - 16 - 32 - 64 ...
When introducing complementary foods, evaluate the following points:
1) the number of regurgitations
2) the presence of skin changes - rash and / or redness
3) stool frequency
4) type of feces
5) behavior
If there are deviations from the usual state, call the pediatrician or go to the reception, temporarily stopping the introduction of complementary foods.
When the proposed volume of 150 grams is reached, the introduction of the first complementary foods can be considered completed.
Very important point- We are talking about the amount of food offered, and not about what is eaten. If a child of 150 grams eats a few spoons, then you should not try to force him to eat the rest.
If you want to diversify the dish of the first feeding, then we add a new product to the introduced one. For example, before buckwheat porridge, we offer 2-4 tablespoons of rice. The next day 4-8 spoons. And so on up to a volume of 150 grams. At the same time, the amount of buckwheat will decrease so as not to increase the portion.
If variety is not very important, but you want to feed more often, then go to second step.
The second step follows the same principles as the first. We form the second meal. We choose a different time for eating and a different product. If we introduced porridge for breakfast first, then we introduce vegetable puree for lunch. If vegetable puree was introduced first, then we introduce porridge for breakfast or puree from underground vegetables: potatoes, beets, carrots. Please note that underground vegetables do not replace above-ground vegetables, but they may well replace porridge.
If at the time of the second step the child is 7 months old, then we offer him no more than 170 grams per appointment. He can eat both all 170 and 10 grams. There is nothing special about this. Our task is to offer complementary foods, not to force him to eat.
If you want a variety of the second meal, then we offer new cereals or new vegetables from the listed 10 products (rice, buckwheat, corn, zucchini, cauliflower, broccoli, pumpkin, potatoes, beets, carrots).
If you want to feed meat faster, then go to the third step. Add meat to vegetable puree for lunch.
View meat for the first acquaintance, one of the three most hypoallergenic: rabbit, turkey, horse meat
Submission form: meat puree.
Cooking: children's canned food or self-brewed and rubbed in the old fashioned way through a sieve (passed through the coolest blender in the modern world).
We increase the amount very slowly - 1-2 tablespoons a day.
1 - 2 - 3 - 4 - 5 - 6 - 7 - 8 - 9 - 10 ...
We bring to the ratio to vegetable 1: 3. For example, if a child eats 150 grams of vegetable puree, then we can put no more than 50 grams of meat puree.
And again, if we want different meats, then after entering one, we try the next of the three listed above.
If you want a variety of vegetables and cereals, then at the fourth step we can do this completely. Additive vegetable oil just produced along with the introduction of new cereals and vegetables to form the third meal. We choose the oil that mom and dad love. Sunflower, olive or rapeseed - it doesn't matter. Quantity - no more than a teaspoon per serving of porridge or vegetable puree.
I remind you that by this step we have breakfast and lunch. Now you can be puzzled by dinner. The principle of choice is the same as for the first complementary foods. If the child is 8 months old by this step, then we can offer cereal porridges: oatmeal, wheat, pearl barley. If it has not yet turned out, then millet. As for vegetables, we can offer tomatoes, cucumbers, sweet peppers, white cabbage or Brussels sprouts.
From 8 months, you can already put up to 180 grams of vegetables / porridge on a plate. And this is no longer mashed potatoes and liquid cereals, but blended vegetables and thick cereals to form the beginning of chewing. And for lunch, cook soup with pieces of boiled vegetables and with the addition of new meat: lean pork or pig meat, beef, chicken.
From this moment, the child gets acquainted with allergenic products in our region and is ready for the fifth step. This time fermented milk supplements.
For formula-fed babies, this may be a fermented milk formula. The child must be at least 8 months old and learn to drink from a cup / cup to introduce kefir or yogurt. Usually these products are offered for an afternoon snack or a second dinner, depending on the regimen of a particular child.
Dairy products can be bought ready-made or you can make your own with the help of starter cultures.
Remember that we start with 1-2 teaspoons and double every day like cereals / vegetables. The amount of the final proposed liquid fermented milk product should not be more than 200 ml.
If milk complementary foods passed without allergies, then we can cook cereals in milk and add butter, no more than a teaspoon per serving of 200 grams from 9 months. This is the sixth step , where you can try new cereals and their combinations. Or move on.
The seventh step introduces the child to cottage cheese. We buy in a children's store or cook it ourselves with the help of starter cultures. These can be given daily. Precipitated with calcium chloride or purchased, without marking "children's" from the store, we can give in one or two days.
Time for cottage cheese - second breakfast or afternoon snack. We increase as slowly as meat - 1-2 teaspoons per day. The maximum quantity offered is no more than 50 grams. And eaten, as always, according to the baby's appetite.
At the eighth step, we introduce another allergenic product - egg yolk. We use those that the family eats - chicken or quail, or maybe turkeys or guinea fowl - it does not matter. We start with 1/4 chicken (turkey, guinea fowl) or 1/2 quail. Add to ready-made vegetable dishes or just as a snack for lunch. You can give daily for 10-14 days, evaluating the reaction. If it has not arisen, then you can either expand the range of cereals, vegetables, meat, or move on.
The ninth step introduces fish. If the family does not eat it, then you can skip it. If he eats, we choose white first and give instead of mashed meat twice a week. The ratio to vegetables is 1:4. That is, if we already eat 200 grams of vegetables from 9 months, then no more than 50 grams of fish can be put.
A slow increase in the product is not required, since the reactions do not depend on the amount, and the body will digest the fish well after the introduction of meat. If there was no reaction in two weeks of acquaintance, then you can offer a red one in the next two weeks. Or move on.
Tenth step - fruit. Yes, the time has come for them only now, because this is the most delicious product. And tasty is given for dessert or second breakfast. For the first acquaintance, we choose: an apple, a pear, a banana. The amount is from 1-2 teaspoons, but after the complementary foods already introduced, doubling daily.
The form: puree, mashed fruit, nibbler, compote.
Time to offer fruit to your child: second breakfast, as a dessert for lunch or dinner, an afternoon snack with cottage cheese.
1 - 2 - 4 - 8 - 16 - 32 ...
The maximum number per appointment is determined by the number of months multiplied by ten. That is, at 9 months it is 90 ml of compote or 90 grams of puree. The number of meals of fruit can reach up to five, but not instead of porridge, vegetables, meat and dairy, but as a dessert.
Do not use compotes as a drink between meals. No need to use fruit as a snack between meals. The simple sugars contained in them change the eating behavior of children, and also threaten the development of caries.
At the moment, the use of fruit juices in the nutrition of children of the first year of life has been recognized as inappropriate. As a drink between main meals, use water or just breastfeed.
It takes 7-10 days to introduce one fruit, then we offer the next one if we want variety. You can already offer fruits in pieces to form biting skills and continue chewing. Or we move on.
The eleventh step introduces the latest allergen and the most common food in our region - wheat. The choice here is huge, but first we will offer a bakery product as an addition to our five meals: bread, crackers, dryers, simple cookies. The amount is not more than 5-10 grams per reception. The number of receptions can also reach up to five.
We evaluate the reaction for two weeks, then we can diversify or start introducing all other wheat products that dad and mom love.
This completes the complementary feeding steps and all new products are simply added to the existing ones once every 7-10 days.
The child eats according to the regimen
breakfast: milk porridge + butter + compote
2 breakfast: fruits and yogurt/kefir
dinner: vegetables+meat+butter+yolk+bread+/- compote
afternoon tea: fruits and cottage cheese + drying / cookies
dinner: vegetables +/- fish + bread +/- fruits
The baby continues to receive breast milk in a way that is convenient for the mother. On artificial feeding, the bottle is completely replaced and the mixture is transferred from a cup to drinking.
Discuss any nutritional problems with your pediatrician.
Breast milk is considered the best food for a newborn. However, as the baby's body grows, it requires more nutrients, so he no longer has enough of such food. The first feeding of the child should consist of vegetables and fermented milk products for children. Moreover, new elements should be introduced gradually to prevent allergies.
When can complementary foods be introduced?
According to the norms of world pediatrics, the first complementary foods should be offered to a child at the age of not earlier than six months. Until that time, breast milk or a properly selected mixture completely satisfies all the needs of a growing body. However, some babies develop faster than their peers, so for a certain group of babies, the introduction of complementary foods may be shown a little earlier, starting from 4-5 months.
You can determine the readiness of your crumbs to receive adult products by the following signs:
- the baby has learned to sit and can hold small objects in his hands. These skills are necessary for confident sitting at a high chair, and developed hand motor skills will allow the child to independently hold a spoon or fork;
- the baby knows how to refuse inappropriate objects and toys, which means that he will be able to protest if he does not like the food;
- the child independently shows interest in adult plates and tries to taste food from your dishes;
- the newborn has at least doubled its weight and needs to eat much more often than before;
- the baby literally hangs on the mother's breast, and the intervals between feedings have been reduced to 30-40 minutes.
All these indicators mean that your child can and should be introduced complementary foods. But what products and in what volumes the baby needs should be calculated by months. Of course, you can deviate somewhat from the established norm. However, in general terms, the recommended indicators should be followed.
How much should a newborn eat?
The amount of food eaten at a time depends on several indicators:
- Body weight - the larger the child, the more food he needs, and vice versa;
- Health condition - a sick baby is not in the mood to eat a lot, so you should not captivate him;
- Breast milk volume - the more often you breastfeed your baby, the less he needs to feed. Accordingly, starting the introduction of regular food into the diet, you have the opportunity to gradually stop breastfeeding, removing one feeding after another over and over again.
On average, a baby from six months to 1 year should eat 1/10 of its own weight per day. For example, if a baby weighs 7 kg, its daily share of products is about 700 grams. Considering that meals are usually 4-5, then feeding a child at a time should be about 150 grams of food.
These are general recommendations, so if your baby is not full, the amount of complementary foods should be slightly increased. And vice versa, when the baby refuses additional products, you should not force him. Maybe he just doesn't like the food you offer. Try to change the composition and increase the single dose gradually.
Products for complementary foods for newborns
As the child grows, his diet also expands, and therefore, a special feeding schedule has been developed for months:
- 5-6 months - vegetables, cereals, a little oil (for porridge - butter, for vegetables - vegetable, olive or sunflower);
- 6-7 months - cottage cheese, lean meat, chicken yolk, dry biscuits, fruit juice;
- 7-8 months - low-fat fish, dairy products: kefir, cottage cheese, cheese mass;
- 8-12 months - bread, pasta.
Vegetables
According to the traditional monthly feeding scheme, the introduction of adult foods into the baby's diet begins with vegetables. As a first introductory dish, you can offer your baby mashed potatoes:
- squash;
- carrot;
- cauliflower puree;
- potato - introduced along with cereals.
It is best to cook vegetable purees for a child on your own, resorting to store-bought ready meals as a last resort. For example, on the road or on a long walk. Vegetables should be boiled in boiled water, then rub through a fine sieve or beat with a mixer.
Kashi
The next step will be the introduction of complementary foods in the form of cereals. The fragile body of a newborn will perfectly perceive such cereals as:
- buckwheat;
- corn.
Choose sifted and unprocessed additional cereals, they have more useful minerals and vitamins. Instant porridges are very simple and convenient, however, most of them contain gluten. It is not recommended for babies under 10 months of age. You can use ready-made compositions from the “Baby Nutrition” series, but it is better to accustom the baby to natural ordinary cereals from the very beginning.
The first complementary foods should be prepared without milk. Let the porridge be on the water. Rinse the groats, pour boiled water over them and cook over low heat until the liquid evaporates. Then grind with a blender and season a little with vegetable oil. If necessary, put in a water bath and steam for another 4-5 minutes.
The second option for preparing baby porridge - prepared cereals should first be ground in a coffee grinder. After that, the required amount of the product is cooked in the usual way. This method does not require final grinding of porridge.
Dairy
A month after the successful introduction, it is time for dairy products. You can offer a little gourmet:
- cottage cheese and thick cheese mass;
- kefir;
- fresh cow's milk (can be used to make milk porridges).
Today there are many manufacturers of children's products. As complementary foods, you can use the products of any of them. Just check the expiration date carefully.
If desired, you can cook cottage cheese for a child at home. To do this, you need to add a tablespoon of fat sour cream to ½ liter of boiled milk and leave the resulting composition in a warm place for souring. The sour mass should be put on a slow fire and brought to a boil, immediately removed and cooled. If desired, you can supplement the resulting curd mass with grated fruits or a small amount of honey.
The introduction of meat and fish is allowed from the 7-8th month. At first, these products should be offered to the child in the form of puree. Be sure to carefully cook the pieces of meat, and steam the fish in a water bath or in a double boiler. Gradually, the feeding of the child should be somewhat modified. With the appearance of the first teeth, it is already possible to give pieces of vegetables in the form of straws or cubes. Tear meat and fish into thin fibers.
At 9 months, try to introduce your baby to pasta, it is better to choose horns and noodles from durum wheat, but cook them for a long time. At this age, the baby is already able to chew on its own, so there is no need to grind food. In general, the faster you move from mashed food to regular food, the better for the baby. In addition, chewing will help not only develop basic reflexes, but also eliminate pain during teething.
An additional type of food of animal or vegetable origin. In composition, taste, form of administration, it differs sharply from breast milk, promotes the development of the chewing apparatus, stimulates the enzyme systems of the gastrointestinal tract and prepares the child for weaning.
Rules for the introduction of complementary foods:
Complementary foods are introduced only to a healthy child
Complementary foods are given before breastfeeding (in contrast to juices that are given after feeding), starting with 5 g and gradually (over 2-4 weeks) bringing the volume of complementary foods to 150 g. In the second half of the child's life, complementary foods should not exceed 180 g.
Complementary foods should be homogeneous in consistency and not cause the child to have difficulty swallowing. With age, you need to move on to thicker, then denser food.
Complementary foods are given in a warm form, with a spoon, in the position of the child sitting. It is not advisable to give 2 dense or 2 liquid complementary foods in one feeding.
Do not give the same type of complementary foods 2 times a day.
The basic rule of complementary foods is the gradual and consistent introduction of new products. A new type of complementary food is introduced after complete adaptation to the previous one.
When introducing complementary foods, watch the baby's stool; if it remains normal, then the next day the amount of complementary foods can be increased.
It is impossible to combine the introduction of complementary foods and new complementary foods with preventive vaccinations.
It is necessary to start the introduction of vegetable puree as a complementary food with one type of vegetable, gradually moving to a mixture of them. Pay attention to the degree of their grinding. As the first vegetable supplement, we can recommend mashed zucchini, potatoes, as the least allergic and do not cause increased gas formation.
When introducing cereals as complementary foods, use gluten-free cereals - rice, buckwheat and corn flour, so as not to induce the development of gluten enteropathy in children in the first months of life (do not start complementary foods with semolina).
Cottage cheese (at a dose of 3-5 g/kg of body weight) and yolk (1/4-1/2 part) should be prescribed no earlier than 6 months of life, since the early introduction of a foreign protein leads to allergization, damage to functionally immature kidneys, metabolic acidosis and dysmetabolic nephropathy.
From 7-8 months, raw ripe fruits and meat in the form of minced meat (from rabbit, turkey, beef, veal, lean pork) are introduced into the child's diet - 3-5 g / kg of body weight. At 9 months, meatballs are given in the same volume, by the year - steam cutlets. It is recommended to use canned meat for baby food of industrial production, produced in glassware. Canned meat can be divided into purely meat and meat-vegetable. Canned meat is produced with different degrees of grinding: homogenized (from 8 months), puree (from 8-9 months) and coarsely ground (from 10-12 months). The last two types differ from homogenized canned food not only in the degree of grinding, but also in the presence of spices in them, as well as the possible replacement of water with meat broth. Most canned food is fortified with iron.
Meat broths are withdrawn from complementary foods, as they contain a lot of purine bases, which leads to damage to functionally immature kidneys.
Puree soups are prepared on vegetable broths. Food should be lightly salted: the kidneys of an infant do not remove sodium salt from the body. In industrially produced puree, the sodium content should not exceed 150 mg/100 g in vegetables and 200 mg/100 g in mixtures of meat and vegetables.
From 8 months, kefir or another fermented milk mixture can be prescribed as complementary foods. The unreasonable widespread use of kefir as complementary foods in the first months of life can cause a child to have an acid-base imbalance, acidosis and create an additional burden on the kidneys. It is not recommended to dilute cottage cheese with kefir, as this dramatically increases the amount of protein consumed. Cottage cheese should be used with fruit or vegetable puree.
From 9 months, a child can be given low-fat varieties of fish 1-2 times a week instead of meat: cod, flounder, saury, pike perch. In the intervals between meals, the child can be offered fruit juices that do not contain sugar. Lightly salted cheeses can be given to a child from one year old (they are rich in proteins, calcium, vitamins A and B).
When to start feeding?
By 4-6 months, the baby's need for additional energy, vitamins and minerals increases, and breast milk or its artificial substitute does not meet the baby's increased needs for vitamins, calories and trace elements. In addition, complementary foods accustom the child to the perception of more dense food, develops chewing. at this age, it is necessary to introduce the child to additional nutrition. Before 4 months, the child's body is not physiologically prepared for the perception of new dense food. And later than six months it is undesirable to start, as there may be problems with adapting to food of a denser consistency than milk. Therefore, according to most experts in the field of baby nutrition, the first complementary foods should be introduced in the period from 4 to 6 months of life. With artificial feeding, you can start complementary foods from 4.5 months, with breastfeeding - from 5-6 months. Remember that the timing of the introduction of complementary foods is individual.
Insufficient supply of energy and nutrients from breast milk alone can lead to stunted growth and malnutrition;
due to the inability of breast milk to meet the needs of the child, micronutrient deficiencies, especially iron and zinc, may develop;
Optimal development of motor skills, such as chewing, and the child's positive perception of the new taste and texture of food may not be ensured.
Therefore, it is necessary to introduce complementary foods at the right time, at the appropriate stages of development.
Much controversy remains over exactly when to start introducing complementary foods. And while everyone agrees that the optimal age is individual for each individual child, the question of whether to recommend the introduction of complementary foods at the age of “4 to 6 months” or “at about 6 months” remains open. It should be clarified that "6 months" is defined as the end of the first six months of a child's life when he is 26 weeks old, and not the beginning of the sixth month, i.e. 21–22 weeks. Similarly, "4 months" refers to the end, not the beginning, of the fourth month of life.
There is near universal agreement that complementary foods should not be started before 4 months of age and should not be delayed beyond 6 months of age. Several WHO and UNICEF publications use language recommending complementary foods at "4-6 months" or "at about 6 months". But the scientific substantiation of the recommendation for a period of 4–6 months does not have sufficient documentary evidence. In a published WHO/UNICEF report on complementary feeding in developing countries, the authors recommended that full-term infants be exclusively breastfed until about 6 months of age.
When introducing complementary foods before 6 months of age, consideration should be given to factors such as body weight and fetal age at birth, clinical condition and general growth and nutritional status of the child. A study in Honduras found that feeding breastfed infants with birth weights between 1500 and 2500 g high-quality complementary foods from 4 months of age did not provide any benefits for physical development. These results support the recommendation to exclusively breastfeed for about 6 months, even for small babies.
What and how to give in the first complementary foods?
The first dishes of complementary foods are vegetable purees or cereals. If the child is underweight or has an unstable stool, it is best to start with cereals. Conversely, with excess weight, normal weight or a tendency to constipation, it is recommended to introduce complementary foods with vegetable puree.
If your baby is devoid of such troubles and is absolutely healthy, then the advice of pediatricians and nutritionists is currently reduced to starting complementary foods with vegetable puree.
Food - vegetables.
Vegetable puree is rich in mineral salts (potassium, iron), organic acids, pectins and plant fibers that normalize stool. It is better to start with foods such as zucchini, all types of cabbage, potatoes, they are the least likely to cause allergies. Later, you can try carrots, beets and tomatoes. The modern children's industry offers a wide range of different types of purees. According to the degree of grinding, they are divided into homogenized, which are offered to children from 4.5 months, puree for children 6–9 months and coarsely ground (9–12 months).
Canned vegetables for children are prepared with a small amount of salt, and some manufacturers leave the taste of vegetables natural without adding salt at all. No need to additionally salt them and add vegetable oil.
Puree from legumes, tomatoes, with spices should not be given as complementary foods to babies aged 4-6 months, since tomatoes, which are among the vegetables that cause allergies in children, can be introduced into the diet no earlier than six months. Tomato paste containing salt is best introduced from 6-7 months. Legumes, which contain a high level of plant fibers and special types of sugars that can cause irritation of the intestinal mucosa and increased gas formation no earlier than 7–8 months. Onions and garlic containing essential oils that irritate the mucous membrane of the stomach, intestines, kidneys - only from 8-9 months, while spices - from 9 months and older, better after a year and a half.
How to feed a child?
You should offer a new dish not once, but at least 10-12 times, and only after the baby stubbornly refuses it, move on to another type of vegetable. After the child has not accepted this or that vegetable, do not immediately switch to cereals, try another, sweeter vegetable.
How to prepare mashed potatoes?
You can prepare vegetable complementary foods yourself, using both fresh and frozen vegetables. To do this, they must be boiled, then mashed (in a blender or using a regular crush). Add a little vegetable or melted butter (in a volume of no more than 3-4 grams).
Butter is another new complementary food that children have been introduced to since the introduction of vegetable puree or porridge. It is a source of nutrients, energy, and fat-soluble vitamins (A, D, E). Vegetable oil is allowed to be introduced from 4.5 months, butter - not earlier than 5-6 months.
Complementary foods - porridge
Two weeks after the baby gets used to the vegetable puree, you can begin the introduction of cereal complementary foods. Dry instant cereals are the most convenient. To prepare them, you only need to mix the dry powder with warm boiled water and mix. The advantage of these products (as well as canned baby food) is their guaranteed chemical composition, safety and saturation with essential vitamins, calcium, iron and minerals. You can also use dry milk porridges that require cooking, flour for baby food, as well as ordinary cereals, previously ground in a coffee grinder. It is important to emphasize that gluten-free cereals - rice, also buckwheat and corn flour should be used as the first cereal; other cereals - rye, wheat, barley, oats - contain gluten. This is the main protein of cereals, in babies it can cause such unpleasant phenomena as pain and bloating. The principles of introducing cereals are the same as for other types of complementary foods - start with one type of cereal, gradually, a week after the introduction of the first cereal, try another type, even later - you can switch to cereal from a mixture of cereals.
Do not sweeten commercially produced cereals
It should be borne in mind that the child is only getting used to new tastes, and his future eating habits depend on how well he is taught to eat in the family. As a consequence, the habit of sugary foods can lead to obesity and related diseases.
How to introduce a new complementary food?
You need to start with one type of the least allergenic product. The interval between the introduction of various complementary foods should be at least 5-7 days. While the baby begins to try something new, you should carefully examine the skin daily for the appearance of any rash, and also monitor the stool. If rashes appear or the nature of the stool changes (frequent and liquid), it is necessary to cancel the complementary food dish and consult a doctor.
A new product should not be introduced if the child is unwell or during preventive vaccinations, it is undesirable to start in hot weather.
It is recommended to give a "novelty" before breastfeeding - then a hungry child is likely to react positively to food. In addition, it is better to offer a new dish in the morning in order to monitor the baby's condition throughout the day.
Complementary foods are given to the baby only with a spoon, and not through the nipple.
You should not strive for excessive diversity in the diet of a small child; for a start, 2-3 types of vegetables introduced progressively (one per week) are enough. It is necessary to adhere to certain schemes for introducing new foods into the baby's diet.
An example of the introduction of cereals and vegetable purees:
Day 1 - 1 teaspoon (5g)
2nd day - 2 tsp (10g)
3rd day - 3 tsp (15 g)
4th day - 4 tsp (20 g)
5th day - 50 ml (50g)
6th day - 100ml (100g)
7th day - 150 ml (150g).
An example of the introduction of vegetable and melted butter:
if a child eats cereals of industrial production, they already have oil and should not be added additionally.
1st day -1 drop
2nd day - 2 drops
3rd day - 5 drops
4th day - ¼ tsp
5th day - ½ tsp. (3g)
Nutrition for a 6-month-old child (volume of porridge and puree up to 150 ml, feeding frequency 5-6 times a day)
First feeding. Formula or breast milk
160–200 ml
Second feeding. Porridge
150 ml
Third feeding. vegetable puree
150 ml
Fourth feeding. Formula or breast milk
160–200 ml
Fifth feeding. Formula or breast milk
160–200 ml
Sixth feeding. Formula or breast milk
160–200 ml
An approximate scheme for the introduction of complementary foods and dishes for natural feeding of children in the first year of life:
| Child's age, months | Note | |||||||
| 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9-12 | ||
| Fruit juices, ml | 5-30 | 40-50 | 50-60 | 60 | 70 | 80 | 90-100 | from 3 months |
| Fruit puree, g | 5-30 | 40-50 | 50-60 | 60 | 70 | 80 | 90-100 | from 3.5 months |
| Curd, g | 10-30 | 40 | 40 | 40 | 50 | from 5 months | ||
| Yolk, piece | 0,25 | 0,5 | 0,5 | 0,5 | from 6 months | |||
| Vegetable puree, g | 10-100 | 150 | 150 | 170 | 180 | 200 | from 4.5-5.5 months | |
| Milk porridge, g | 50-100 | 150 | 150 | 180 | 200 | from 5.5-6.5 months | ||
| Meat puree, g | 5-30 | 50 | 60-70 | from 7 months | ||||
| Fish puree, g | 5-30 | 30-60 | from 8 months | |||||
| 200 | 200 | 400-500 | from 7.5-8 months | |||||
| 5 | 5 | 10 | from 7 months | |||||
| Crackers, cookies, g | 3-5 | 5 | 5 | 10-15 | from 6 months | |||
| 1-3 | 3 | 3 | 5 | 5 | 6 | from 4.5-5 months | ||
| Butter | 1-4 | 4 | 4 | 5 | 6 | from 5 months | ||
| Whole milk | 100 | 200 | 200 | 200 | 200 | 200 | from 4 months | |
An approximate scheme for the introduction of foods and complementary foods for artificial feeding of children in the first year of life:
| Name of products and dishes of complementary foods | Child's age, months | |||||||||
| 0-1 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9-12 | |
| Adapted milk formula or "follow-up" milk formulas, ml | 700-800 | 800-900 | 800-900 | 800-900 | 700 | 400 | 300-400 | 350 | 200-400 | 200-400 |
| Fruit juices, ml | 5-30 | 40-50 | 50-60 | 60 | 70 | 80 | 80-100 | |||
| Fruit puree, g | 5-30 | 40-50 | 50-60 | 60 | 70 | 80 | 80-100 | |||
| Curd, g | 40 | 40 | 40 | 40 | 40-50 | |||||
| Yolk, piece | 0,25 | 0,5 | 0,5 | 0,5 | ||||||
| Vegetable puree, g | 10-100 | 150 | 150 | 170 | 180 | 180-200 | ||||
| Milk porridge, g | 50-100 | 150 | 170 | 180 | 180-200 | |||||
| Meat puree, g | 5-30 | 50 | 50 | 60-70 | ||||||
| Fish puree, g | 5-30 | 30-60 | ||||||||
| Kefir and other fermented milk products or "following" mixtures, ml | 200 | 200-400 | 200-400 | |||||||
| Bread (wheat, top quality), g | 5 | 5 | 10 | |||||||
| Crackers, cookies, g | 3-5 | 5 | 5 | 10-15 | ||||||
| Vegetable oil (sunflower, corn) | 1-3 | 3 | 3 | 5 | 5 | 6 | ||||
| Butter | 1-4 | 4 | 4 | 5 | 6 | |||||
| Whole milk | 100 | 200 | 200 | 200 | 200 | 200 | ||||
Keep in mind that the schemes are approximate and if the child is fully breastfed and develops normally (this should be decided by the pediatrician), all the timing of the introduction of complementary foods can be shifted by 2-3 months. The table indicates that a child of his age can already eat.
Notes on the introduction of complementary foods:
- Whole milk is used to prepare complementary foods (vegetable puree and cereals).
- The amount of yogurt depends on the amount of adapted or "following" mixture received by the child.
Fruit juices are given little by little, first diluted 1: 1 with boiled water. Fruit puree is introduced only 2-3 weeks after the juice. It is better to start with apple juice and puree. Berries are excluded up to 6 months.
Recently, with natural feeding, the introduction of complementary foods is recommended with a good weight gain from 6 months of age, so the tables are approximate. Check with your pediatrician before introducing complementary foods.
The tables were developed in accordance with guidelines No. 225 (1999) "Modern principles and methods of feeding children in the first year of life" of the Ministry of Health of the Russian Federation and the Research Institute of Nutrition of the Russian Academy of Medical Sciences.
The proposed recommendations for feeding children in the first year of life are based on the results of an analysis of modern world scientific literature and our own research. Their legitimacy is also confirmed by the clinical experience of observing children in the first year of life.