Topic

Breastfeeding and feeding

Up to six months old, breast milk is all the baby needs to stay well fed. After that age, it is necessary to continue giving breast milk and other foods. Little by little, the baby learns to experience new flavors, temperatures, shapes, and textures: soft, firm, thin, or thick. This contributes to their development.

 Giving the baby new foods requires attention, care, and patience from the mother or caregiver. The baby should be part of the meal with the family. The more pleasurable this moment is, the more interested he will be in food.

 What to give the baby:

The first foods to be offered are fruits and family foods.

Fruits are an important source of vitamins. Give preference to regional and seasonal fruits, which are fresher and cheaper. They can be offered mashed with a fork, scraped, boiled, or baked, or even offered in pieces so that the baby can hold them with their own hands. Seeds or pits must be removed, and small fruits such as grapes must be cut in half to prevent choking.

It is necessary to wash fruits very well before offering them to the baby.

Warning: Juices, whether artificial or natural, should not be offered to babies under one year of age. To quench thirst, the preference should be for water and, for snacks, fresh fruit.

The food offered to the baby can be the same as the family's if it is healthy. If not, this is a good time for changes to be made to the family's menu and shopping plans so that everyone starts eating better. Remember that a healthy diet is mostly composed of natural foods (such as fruits, vegetables, meats, etc.), contains little salt and fat, and should not contain processed foods.

 Food Consistency

It is important that the food served to the baby has a pasty consistency; thus, whenever necessary, parents should mash the food with a fork until it forms a firm porridge. This consistency helps the baby learn to chew and swallow and strengthens the muscles of the face, which are important for speech and breathing. That's why you shouldn't use a blender or sieve, even if you're preparing food for babies who don't have teeth yet.

 Meat should be served finely chopped. Food should be served separately on the plate so that the baby can feel the different flavors and textures.

Over the months, it is necessary to improve the consistency of the preparations, that is, to mash a little less, leaving soft and small pieces, until, around one year, the child can already eat food in the consistency of family food in smaller pieces.

 

Food preparation

The meal should be prepared with vegetable oil in small amounts, natural seasonings (onion, garlic, herbs such as parsley, coriander, and other spices preferred by the family), and salt in minimal amounts. The taste for salt is an acquired habit. If the baby is fed too much salt, he will be an adult who will want to eat very salty foods, and in the future, he may have high blood pressure. Ready-made powdered, cubed, or liquid seasonings should not be used.

 Variety

Examples of foods to compose the family and child's diet:

  • cereals: rice, corn, and oats;
  • legumes: beans, peas, chickpeas, lentils, and soybeans;
  • meat or eggs: beef, chicken, offal, egg, or fish;
  • roots or tubercles: cassava, potatoes, yams, carrots, beets, pumpkins (jerimum);
  • vegetables: lettuce, gherkin;
  • seasonings: onion, parsley, and garlic. In addition to giving flavor, spices are important sources of vitamins.

 

A very varied and colorful dish, in addition to drawing more attention from the baby, allows him to know more flavors and provides more vitamins and nutrients he needs.

A good talk with the mother about the variety of foods that exist in the region can help her choose a healthier diet.

It is important to watch out that feeding time does not become a source of blackmail and anxiety. Do not force or hit the baby to make it eat, as a good part of babies can refuse food. It doesn't mean he didn't like it; he is finding something strange he doesn't know. At another time, he will be able to accept the same food he refused. It is necessary to offer again, but without forcing the baby to eat.

 The amount

Every new food, whether fruit or porridge, should be started little by little, one at a time, in small amounts, from one to three tablespoons per meal, respecting the child's acceptance. Increase a little each day, observing the baby's acceptance with no hurry, until he is satisfied.

There are signs that show that children are already satisfied, such as turning their heads, losing interest in food, pushing the hand of the person who is giving them food, closing their mouth, keeping the food in their mouth without swallowing, playing with the food, throwing it on the ground, or crying.

At the stage he is in, the baby likes to pick up and move everything, this contributes to his development and will help him better accept new foods and encourage him to eat alone, although he cannot yet. It is important that the baby eats the amount he wants and that he can explore the food with his hands. Try to use the spoon and cup if you want, even if they make a mess. At the same time, the adult gives him most of the food from another dish.

 Meals

At the beginning of the sixth month, parents should start offering lunch or dinner. Fruits can be offered as a snack in the morning and in the afternoon. The interval between meals is different for each baby, but the average is two to three hours.

From the 7th month on, the baby should be receiving four meals a day: lunch, dinner, and two snacks with fruits, in addition to breast milk. This schedule should be maintained at this stage, from 9 to 11 months. If he is no longer breastfed, he needs six meals a day.

Breast milk should be maintained until at least two years of age, even after introducing new foods. Offer it at least twice a day.

Other foods are important for the baby.

  • Liver (beef or chicken) must be offered from six months on. It is a great source of iron and vitamin A. It should be very fresh, odorless, brightly colored, and cooked well. Chicken liver can be added to the porridge two or three times a week. Cattle liver can be served with puree, polenta, etc. It is necessary to test the forms of preparation that are best accepted by the baby.
  • The egg (white and yolk) is rich in protein and vitamins A and D. It can be offered cooked, starting with a quarter of it (half a band), until it is the whole egg. If there is no sign of intolerance, such as diarrhea, vomiting, or roughness (allergy) on the skin, up to two eggs can be offered a week, well smashed, and always mixed with another food (porridge or mashed food).
  • Polenta, or angu, is a dish made with cornmeal (corn flour). It is usually well accepted by the baby, especially with bean broth or meat sauce.

Ties of Love Card 15B provides guidelines on the introduction of foods for children over 6 months of age. You can find it in the "Learn more" question of the home visit, "The baby is breastfed," or in the question of ties of love, so it will be possible to share it with the mother. It is also found in the complementary content of the 3rd stage.

 

 

 

 

 

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