Top Tips for Weaning Your Baby
By Lucy-Ann Prideaux

Weaning can be one of the most exciting times for a Mum, and of course for baby too! New tastes, new sensations and new expressions… you will begin to appreciate the saying, “Variety is the spice of life!”
However it can be a little stressful, and there is no doubt that if you want your baby to have the best possible and most nutritious start in life – you DO have to be organised. SO…

My Top Tips

1 – Think a day ahead!

2 – Keep a diary – this is vital to monitor food reactions, baby’s mood which may be linked to upsets in blood sugar levels, and of course it will be something to refer to years down the line or for when number 2 comes along!

3 – Introduce ONE food at a time. This is important to note down any unusual reactions (especially if there are signs of allergy or a history of allergy in the family).

4 – When you are introducing any new food to your baby, leave 3 days before starting any new foods. Signs of an allergic reaction include sneezing, runny nose, diarrhoea, vomiting, a rash, or ear infection.

5 – Rotate foods from day to day as much as possible.

6 – Be patient – mealtimes shouldn’t be rushed. Your baby will decide when he-she is full.

7 – Persevere with a food, if at first your baby doesn’t seem to like it. Try it again the next day, or in a few days or weeks.

8 – Try not to worry too much during the weaning process!

9 – When you are “out and about” the best foods to carry with you are bananas and ripe avocados. Both can be mashed together easily and will be tasty, nutritious and satisfying for your baby!

10 – If your baby gets a little constipated when you first introduce solids… don’t panic. It may take a while for the bowels to “wake-up” to solid food. Try giving kiwi fruit!

When a baby reaches the age of 6 months (usually having doubled his or her birth weight), the energy (calorie) requirements as well as the requirements for nutrients such as protein, iron (see below), selenium, zinc, vitamin A and D, & essential fatty acids, exceeds that which can be supplied by mother’s breast milk. Breast or quality follow-on milk should ideally be carried on until the age of one at least. DO NOT give cow’s milk to a baby until they are AT LEAST one year old. Some believe it should be nearer to 2 years old – I would say definitely 2 if there is any history of allergy in the family.

Build up foods over the next 4 months “loosely” in the following order…

Vegetables and fruits – see note below but generally enjoy introducing a whole variety! Fruits are easy to introduce as babies love the sweetness, and of course they learn what NATURAL sweetness is. Avoid fruit juices. Fruits also mix well with veggies, but try not to rely too heavily on fruit, just because you think your baby is more likely to want something sweet! Just watch some fruits with large pips such as raspberries – kiwis should be fine. Frozen fruits and veg such as peas are fine for your baby and can be very handy to use!

Pulses and beans – well cooked and well blended – try chickpeas, white beans, and puy lentils. These mash well and combine with savoury or sweet ingredients and add bulk to satisfy.

Cooked brown rice, quinoa, millet and tapioca – homemade porridges or purees using these grains are superior to shop-bought baby rice. If you need to use baby rice, make sure you buy organic and one that is FREE of fillers, e.g. Organix.

Lamb, poultry, and fish (especially oily fish such as wild trout and sea bass which have the lowest PCB and mercury levels) – introduce in small quantities at first, concentrating on organic meats if possible. You may find after introducing meat such as lamb or chicken, your baby’s mood and energy levels will soar!

At 6-9 months, iron requirements are thought to be 7-8mg/day.
To give you an idea of how to reach this, mix and match the following foods that are good sources of iron…

More thoughts…

Concentrate on vegetables as much as fruits in the first few weeks if you can. Try the “sweeter” veggies such as carrot, parsnip, peas, and sweet potato, butternut squash, asparagus, cauliflower and broccoli

Shop seasonally and locally whenever you can. Don’t avoid introducing a food that you don’t like or didn’t like as a child! Remember, with a baby – you are starting with clean palate, and NO understanding or experience of likes and dislikes. SO go ahead with Brussels sprouts, broccoli, pumpkin, leeks, swede or mushrooms – they may well surprise you! ALL these veggies are fantastically healthy in their own right!

N.B.

It is generally advisable to avoid the “deadly nightshade family” of vegetables as they contain substances that a baby may be sensitive to. These include aubergines, tomatoes, potatoes and peppers. Wait until the first year is up!

After introducing these as single foods, try these “mashed” or “pureed” combinations…

Other foods that will form your baby’s “diet”…
Suitably fortified foods – e.g Nanny Goat’s milk, organic baby rice, cooked brown rice, tapioca, millet and quinoa porridge. These cereals have very low allergenic potential, as well as being excellent sources of protein and carbohydrate – see above.

* Spinach is a good source of iron (as well as calcium and vitamin A), but is best left until the baby is 1 year old.

Blue-green algae and spirulina are green “superfoods” widely available in supplement form, and are useful additions for vegan/vegetarian babies, “atopic” babies, especially those not being introduced to cereals of any sorts until the ages of 1-2 years.

(N.B 10g of dried spirulina provides nearly 3mg of iron).
For these babies, the best cereals to begin introducing are millet and quinoa, highly nutritious, gluten-free and excellent sources of protein and iron. Both can be cooked and served as porridge, with interesting additions, such as banana or papaya.

How much food should I give?

The following is a guide to the first 3 months of weaning – e.g. from 6-9 months of age.

Weeks 1 and 2 – Try 1-2 teaspoons during the lunchtime feed, halfway through the breast or bottle-feed.

Weeks 3 and 4 – As above + 1-2 teaspoons at breakfast halfway through bottle or breast feed. Increase lunchtime feed to 3-4 teaspoons.

Weeks 5 and 6 – 1-2 tsp at breakfast. Introduce 2 courses at lunchtime with 5-6 tsp, and introduce a teatime feed of 2-3 tsp.

Weeks 7 and 8 – As above + offer solids FIRST at lunchtime feed and then top-up with milk.

Weeks 9 and 10 – As above + solids only for lunch + water from a beaker – offer solids FIRST at teatime.

Weeks 11 and 12 – Solids only for lunch and tea. Give a beaker of water after lunch and tea.

Lucy-Ann Prideaux MSc BSc RNutr
Registered Nutritionist

Simply Nutrition
E-mail: lucy@simply-nutrition.co.uk
Website: http://www.simply-nutrition.co.uk
Weblog: http://www.simplynutritionblog.typepad.com/

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Tips To Get Your Child To Stop Using A Pacifier
By Shelley Borle

Limit the time you allow your child to use a pacifier.

Use it only for sleep time and comfort until about 12 months old and then plan to give it up.

Never use punishment or humiliation to force your child to give up using a pacifier.

Involve your child in the decision to stop using it by giving him the choice of throwing it away, putting it away or leaving it under the pillow for the ‘tooth fairy’.

Start a reward chart to mark your child’s progress.

Praise your child when your child has given up the pacifier and tell her you are proud that she is growing up.

Allow your child to express his feelings and if your child is upset or angry, give him special cuddles to help him cope.

If your child asks for the pacifier again (and she probably will), don’t give in. Remind her that the pacifier is gone and that she is grown up now.

Limit the time you allow your child to use a pacifier.

Use it only for sleep time and comfort until about 12 months old and then plan to give it up.

Never use punishment or humiliation to force your child to give up using a pacifier.

Involve your child in the decision to stop using it by giving him the choice of throwing it away, putting it away or leaving it under the pillow for the ‘tooth fairy’.

Start a reward chart to mark your child’s progress.

Praise your child when your child has given up the pacifier and tell her you are proud that she is growing up.

Allow your child to express his feelings and if your child is upset or angry, give him special cuddles to help him cope.

If your child asks for the pacifier again (and she probably will), don’t give in. Remind her that the pacifier is gone and that she is grown up now.

About The Author: Shelley Borle is a Virtual Assistant, Writer & Expert On Boys. Visit Her Country Variety Lifestyle Magazine http://www.countryvariety.com/CVL.htm as well as her CountryVariety.com Professional Virtual Services site http://www.countryvariety.com. Email shelley@countryvariety.com

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Fostering Healthy Eating Habits in Your Baby
By Sarah Veda

If you’re concerned about your baby’s health, you want to be certain to start healthy eating habits early. The first year of solid foods is a very important time for establishing your child’s eating habits. What your child eats, and more importantly, does not eat, during this time can impact their habits for life. Here are some tips for starting out right with your child’s first menu.

Watch the sugar

This is a biggie. Eliminating refined sugar from your child’s diet in the early days can help the child develop a taste for savory flavors, which in the long run, can help them enjoy a wider variety of foods, without having such a sweet tooth. In addition, a low sugar diet can help ensure that your child maintains a proper weight. So, keep the cookies and candies away. Use fruit and yogurt as dessert. Remember, if your child has not been exposed to sugar, she won’t miss it.

Feed whole grains

Stay away from white flour. Most American diets are painfully low in whole grains, because we are a “white bread” society. Try using wheat breads, oats and other whole grains instead.

Keep the beverages simple

Milk, water and juice are enough. Soda and sweetened drinks will work their way in eventually, but put it off as long as you can. In addition, watering the juice down a bit can help reduce the calories and sugar content. Plus, it minimizes the risk of your child having a stomach ache from too much juice.

If at first you don’t succeed, try again

Keep reintroducing healthy foods, even if they are not met with applause the first time around. The rule in our house is that you have to try any food you don’t like every six months. Children’s tastes change, and what they didn’t like a few months ago might just taste better, so keep trying.

Evaluate the family eating habits

As your child grows, she will be spending more time eating what the rest of the family eats, so it’s important that your eating habits be good, too. Are you serving a wide variety of foods? Think color – too much white food has a lot of calories, and not a lot of nutrition. Green, yellow, red and orange foods should be on your table on a regular basis.

Establishing good eating habits for your child is one of the best gifts you can give her. It will set her off on a lifetime of health and well being. Remember, the best way to get your children to eat well is to be a role model. They will eat the way you eat, so set a good example.

Sarah is a 41 year old wife and mother of two boys and one girl. She spent many years as a manager in the corporate world, and gave it up to be a stay at home mom.

Go to http://www.infantresources.com now and get her incredible baby minicourse – absolutely free.

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The Scoop on Giving Your Baby Juice
By Cassandra Germsheid

Many moms like to think that as soon as their baby turns 6 months of age, they should start giving them juice. But this couldn’t be further from the truth. In fact, juice is NOT necessary for an infant. Here’s why:

- Because of the sugars in juice, it can cause diarrhea.

- Too much juice can cause a child to be overweight or obese.

- Juice contains sugars and acids that can cause tooth decay.

- Giving your baby too much juice can hinder growth and development, and can cause malnutrition and anemia due to lack of nutrients like proteins and complex carbohydrates.

- If you are still breastfeeding, juice can cause your baby to nurse less.

Although juice contains Vitamin C, you don’t want to give them too much. It should never be considered a supplement. If you must give your baby juice, consider these guidelines.

- Wait until your baby is at least 6 months old. But even then, babies at this age still do not require it.

- Dilute juice by at least half and half. Most grocery stores have a baby aisle with juice specially diluted for babies. These juices also contain more Vitamin C than regular juices, but are also more expensive.

- Never give your baby juice from a bottle. And never give them juice from a cup to suck on all day. This can cause tooth decay.

- Don’t give your baby juice at bedtime.

- Babies shouldn’t have more than 150ml (one half cup) of juice a day.

- Instead of giving fruits in liquid form, try giving them real fruit!

- If your baby is thirsty, give them water instead. If your baby doesn’t like water, try flavoring the water with a little bit of juice.

- If you start feeding your baby water from the beginning, they won’t naturally prefer juice instead of water.

I hope these tips will help you in your decision to feed your baby juice. If you are concerned about your baby’s health, contact your physician.

Cassandra Germsheid is the owner of Baby Tips Online (http://www.babytipsonline.com). She is a stay at home mother but sometimes works part time for her local newspaper.

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Breastfeeding Questions And Answers
By Barbara King

Q. How often should a newborn be nursed?

A. You should nurse a newborn no less than 8 times a day, depending upon how long he sleeps between feedings at night. If he can go four hours between feedings, then you will probably feed him twice between 11pm and 7am. If you feed him right before he goes to bed, then you may only have to get up one time during the night.

Q. How often should an older baby be nursed?

A. Depending upon the age of your child, you should be feeding him every 3-4 hours during the day. As your child gets older, they will nurse less, but they will be eating more during each nursing. If you are going to nurse after your child is over 6 months old, you should not nurse less than 5 times a day. If your milk supply is decreasing, then you may need to add a nursing or two to your day to help increase your milk supply.

Q. How do I go about dropping a feeding as my baby gets older?

A. The most common change that moms need to make is going from a every 3 hour to every 4 hour routine, dropping a feeding in the middle of the night, or dropping a late-night feeding.

Most of the time you will know when your baby is ready to change their eating habits by a change in their sleep patterns. A baby that has been on an every 3 hour routine normally takes 3 naps a day and if they eat every 3 ½ to 4 hours then they may drop the last nap of the nap or shorten one of the other naps considerably. Babies are usually ready to do this at around 3 months of age.

Most babies drop the feeding in the middle of night by themselves at around 6-14 weeks old. You will know that they are ready when you awake in a panic in the morning wondering why your baby did not get you for a feeding. The baby will require more food during the day though, and if you are breastfeeding, your breasts may feel full for a few days, but it is well worth it!

The late night feeding is usually the hardest to let go of. Some parents think that if they do not feed the baby right before bed that the baby will awake in the middle of the night. If you don’t think your child can do without the late night feeding, then push it back in 15-minute increments until you are feeding him at the time you would like to. If the last two feedings of the day seem too close

Author: Barbara King
Owner of: A Moms Shop Online Shopping Mall
Everything you need for your care and well being of your baby.

You might also like the following sites:

Baby-Gear-USA.com

Baby-Stroller-USA.com We care about babies!

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Breastfeeding Is About More Than Food
By Melanie Beingessner

While the breastfeeding process exists to nourish a newborn and to provide
everything that it needs to grow, breastfeeding is much more than food for a baby. The entire breastfeeding process provides significant benefits for
both the baby and the mother.

1. Breast Milk Is A Living Substance

Babies do not have a fully functioning immune system until they are one year
old. For the first year of life, a breastfeeding mother actually provides
the immune response for a baby who is exposed to a cold or flu. If a baby
were to suffer a cold, his mother would immediately start to increase her
white blood cell production to counteract the bacteria or virus whether or
not she experiences the baby’s symptoms. The baby would get these doses of
immunity through breast milk. Breast milk contains many white blood cells
(the blood cells that fight bacteria, viruses and parasites) and because of
them, breast milk can actually sit on a countertop for 8 hours and be
perfectly safe to drink.

2. Breastfeeding Improves Health

The proteins, carbohydrates and fatty acids in breast milk provide
everything that a baby needs to grow strong bones, muscles and tissues. All
of these components of breast milk exist in perfect proportion to a growing
baby’s needs. Breast milk proteins are easily digested and breastfed babies
feed often to build up their mother’s milk supply. The fatty acids found in
breast milk help to support the growth of the baby’s brain and nervous
system. The carbohydrates (or sugars) found in breast milk provide energy
for the baby to play and interact with her world.

Breastfeeding provides great health benefits for the mother after birth, it
helps to contract the uterus back to its pre-pregnant state. Mothers who
breastfeed for longer periods of time experience less breast or uterine
cancer later on in life.

3. Breastfeeding Promotes The Bonding and Attachment Process.

The hormone oxytocin stimulates the let down reflex when a baby starts to
breastfeed; however, the role of oxytocin is not just for breastfeeding. In
fact, oxytocin is called the hormone of love. Our bodies release high doses
of oxytocin during the infatuation stage of love which creates the wonderful
high that we experience when we first fall for someone. Breastfeeding
creates this same feeling of infatuation every time a mother breastfeeds her
baby. These continual doses of oxytocin enhance the bonding and attachment
process to securely attach the mother/baby pair.

A Critical Period to Establish Breastfeeding

We all know that breast milk is best for babies. However, there is a
vulnerable time for both the mother and the baby for the first month after
birth as they learn to breastfeed. Some babies learn easily, others take
their time. If a baby is continually fussy during this process a new mother
can interpret the fussiness to mean that the baby has a specific problem
with her, and that can influence her decision whether or not to keep trying.

With a calmer baby, there is a greater chance that the mother will continue
to breastfeed, which helps to create a more bonded mother and infant and a
relatively peaceful home life. With the reduction of crying and fussiness,
the relationship between the mother and father is less strained in the
transitional year to becoming a family, and that helps to bond the family
unit more easily.

The Reason Behind The Baby’s Crying

When a baby fusses or cries, especially in the evening, the problem is
usually that the baby is experiencing an adverse reaction to something that
the mother is eating. If a breastfeeding mother can alter her diet on a
short-term basis, the baby usually calms down and the breastfeeding process
becomes easier for both mother and baby.

The main food source that a breastfeeding mother eats that causes babies
discomfort are cow’s milk proteins. Small amounts of cow’s milk proteins
end up in breast milk and can cause the baby to experience either food
hypersensitivities or food intolerances. The resulting symptoms are gas,
bloating, discomfort and crying. (Sound familiar?)

There are other foods that consistently cause a baby to experience
discomfort. For more information, please visit Dr. Melanie’s website.

About the Author:

Dr. Melanie Beingessner is a chiropractor, a breastfeeding
counsellor, an infant massage instructor and the mother of three.

She is the author of The Calm Baby Cookbook and offers additional
information about pregnancy and breastfeeding on her website:
http://www.drmelaniebee.com

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How Much Water For Baby?
By Marilyn Pokorney

While drinking more water is a good idea for everyone,
especially during hot summer months, too much water can be
harmful to infants 6 months old and younger. According to a
study in Clinicians Reviews a 1997 survey of new mothers
found that nearly 25 percent give their babies water at
least 3 times per week in the first month of life.

Water intoxication is rare in children and adults who are
able to judge their own water needs by thirst and activity.
But babies are not able to do this. Also, the kidneys of
newborns filter more slowly than those of older infants,
causing sodium levels in the blood to be diluted.

According to doctors, 24 cases of water intoxication were
reported at the St. Louis Children’s Hospital in the years
1989 to 1991. The problem seems to be increasing since only
10 cases were reported from 1985 to 1988. In the cases
reported the otherwise healthy babies were 4 to 5 months old
and drank three 8-oz. bottles of water within 6 to 12 hours.

Symptoms of water intoxication include pale urine, using
more than 8 diapers a day, and baby sleeping more than usual
and being difficult to wake up.

Mothers should be advised that healthy infants get all the
water they need in breast milk or formula.

A baby can get water intoxication as a result of drinking
several bottles of water a day or from drinking infant
formula that has been diluted too much.

Water fills baby without adding calories, so water
supplementation can result in weight loss or insufficient
weight gain for the baby.

Pediatricians advise feeding babies 2 to 3 oz. more than
their age in months at each feeding. For example, babies 4
months old would be fed 6 to 7 oz. three times a day. More
than 8 oz. at any one feeding rarely necessary. The usual
proportions of milk to water should be about two-thirds milk
to one-third water. With these proportions, the baby
receives about 8 oz of water equally spaced over a 24 hour
period. If the formula is diluted, mild should not be less
than 50 percent.

Only around seven months of age, when baby has started
eating solid foods, should a little water be introduced in a
cup.

Water intoxication can be prevented by following your
physicians instructions.

For more information on water and it’s healthy benefits for
old and young alike: http://www.apluswriting.net/health/babywater.htm

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Author: Marilyn Pokorney
Freelance writer of science, nature, animals and the
environment.
Also loves crafts, gardening, and reading.
Website: http://www.apluswriting.net

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Dinnertime Tips and Rituals
By Jyotsna Sreenivasan

We all know that eating dinner as a family is an important way to make children feel nurtured. However, shopping for, cooking and serving a meal every night can sometimes seem like a superhuman task!

Here are some tips and rituals to make shopping, cooking and eating easier and more pleasant when kids are part of the picture. A lot of these tips are things I would have resisted or laughed at before I had children. I have a strong aversion to routine. But when you have kids, if you, the adult, don’t establish a routine, the kids will take over and life will descend into chaos really fast.

Create a master shopping list. How many times have you come home from the grocery store after a big shopping trip and realized that you were down to your last drop of ketchup and forgot to get more? Or that you had only half a roll of toilet paper in the entire house? A master shopping list will help prevent this kind of disaster.

On your computer, make a list of all the things you want to have in the house. Take your time and make it as complete as you can. When you get ready to go shopping, just print out a copy of your list, go through your kitchen cabinets, and circle what you are low on.

Of course, even though I do this, I still somehow forget one thing or the other! Nevertheless, this method has helped me to cut out at least some extra trips to the store.

Make a “meal rotation” schedule or a master list of meals. A meal schedule is supposed to be a great way to stay on top of dinner: you make a schedule for two or three weeks and write down which meals will happen on which days. When you get to the end of your schedule, you just start over. This way, you don’t have to stand in the kitchen at 4:30 scratching your head and wondering what to fix for dinner. Unfortunately, I have not yet been able to implement this at my house, probably due to lack of discipline on my part. Maybe you will have better luck.

I have, however, combed through my cookbooks and come up with a list of easy meals that I can glance at before I go grocery shopping. I pick out several meals, write them in my daily planner, and make sure to buy the ingredients for those meals. This method works most of the time – except when my family eats the ingredients before I get to cook the meal!

Dinnertime rituals. Sometimes my kids are “not hungry” at dinnertime, and refuse to join us at the table. Of course, shortly after dinner is over, they are so hungry that they have to have a bowl of cereal. So we came up with two dinnertime rituals. One is saying grace before meals. The kids know they have to join us at the table for grace. We make up our own informal blessings each time, and the kids can have a turn saying grace.

Then, in order to keep them at the table for a reasonable amount of time in the hope that some good food will enter their mouths, we came up with a second ritual: “One Good Thing.” Everyone at the table says at least one good thing that happened that day. This has worked very well for us because it allows the children to be part of the dinnertime conversation if they wish to be. (Sometimes my older son likes to say “one bad thing” that happened in his day, and that’s fine too, because it’s usually good for a laugh.)

I hope these tips and rituals will help you enjoy your family meals!

Jyotsna “Jo” Sreenivasan is the mother of two boys, ages 7 and 3. She is the author of two novels for children: The Moon Over Crete and Aruna’s Journeys. For a list of over 80 books that help kids break out of gender stereotypes, see her site: Brave Girls and Strong Women Books, http://members.aol.com/brvgirls. She also helps individuals and businesses with writing needs: http://members.aol.com/writebook64.

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Baby Feeding
By Yana Mikheeva

UNDER 3 MONTHS

As a rule, a healthy baby under 3 months us put to breast 6 times a day, every 3,5 hours with 6,5 hours night break, i.e. – at 6.00, 9.30, 13.00, 16.30, 20.00 and 23.30.

Daily quantity of baby’s food should come to: from 2 weeks to 2 months – 1/5 of baby’s weight, from 2 to 3 months – 1/6.

To determine quantity of milk imbibed (if this is necessary, for example when a baby’s weight increases not enough), a baby is weighed before and after feeding. As quantity of milk imbibed varies during different processes of feeding, a daily control or, at least, calculation of quantity for 2-3 processes of feeding with normal quantity calculation are necessary. Besides breast milk, you should give water to your baby – boiled, unsweetened, of room temperature. Give 1-2 tea-spoons of water a day to your baby, altogether – up to 50 millilitres.

Since 1 month you should provide your baby with vitamins (especially in autumn-winter period). With this purpose, a baby is given a juice every day – fruit, berry or vegetable. Juices are included in a ration little by little: beginning from a very small dose – several drops – a day, then increasing this quantity up to 30 millilitres a day (for 2 doses). It is better to start with apple juice.

Since 2 months include apple sauce in a baby’s ration (fresh grated apple or canned puree for baby’s feeding). Firstly give him ½ of tea-spoon a day, then, little by little, during 7-10 days, increase quantity of fruit puree up to 50 g.

IN THE AGE FROM 3 TO 5 MONTHS

Babies of this age are feed 6 times a day, every 3,5 hours, with 6,5 hour night break.
Daily quantity of baby’s food comes to: from 3 to 4 months – 1/6 of baby’s weight, from 4 to 6 months – 1/7.

In this age, increase quantity of fruit and vegetable juices given to your baby – from 30 to 50 millilitres a day (in 2 doses).

Since 4 months include a yolk of a hard-boiled egg, which is a valuable product – it contains vitamins, easy digestible protein, calcium salts, iron, phosphorus. Smear yolk and give it with breast milk, when you include supplemental feeding in your baby’s ration – add yolk to dishes. Since 4 months you can start giving cotton cheese to your baby – beginning with 5 g and increasing quantity to 30 g by 5 months.

On 4-5 months of life a baby already needs another feeding, as mother’s milk cannot already meet the demands of a baby’s organism in various food substances, particularly in vitamins and mineral salts. So, since 4 months include supplemental feeding in your baby’s ration. Start with 1-2 tea-spoons and increase up to 150 g little by little. The first procedure of breast feeding is replaced by a procedure of supplemental feeding.

IN THE AGE FROM 5 TO 1 YEAR

In the age of 5 months, a baby should be given pap, besides breast milk. Firstly they give babies 5-8 %-pap of semolina or cereals (buckwheat, oatmeal, boiled rice), in small quantity (1-2 tea-spoons), increasing portion up to 150 g for one procedure of feeding little by little. 7-10 days after including pap in a baby’s ration, you should proceed from 5-8% pap to 10% pap, cooked on whole milk. It is better to give pap to your baby at 10 am. The second procedure of breast-feeding is replaced by pap.

A baby of this age should be feed 5 times a day, every 4 hours and with 8-hour night break.
Daily quantity of food for a baby from 6 to 9 months should come to 1/8 of his weight.

Since 6,5 – 7 months a baby begins to eat lean meat broth. Start with 1-2 tea-spoons, increasing portion little by little. Give meat broth to your baby in small amounts – 30 millilitres (since 8 months – 50 millilitres), once a day, before you feed him with vegetable puree. Give him a small white bread cracker with broth. So, the second procedure of supplemental feeding is like a dinner: broth, vegetable and fruit puree or juice. Sometimes, you can give him a potage, instead of broth and vegetable puree.

Since 7 months, you can give your baby meat in the form of crushed puree, and also liver puree. It is good to combine meat puree with vegetable one. You should start giving your baby supplemental feeding from 5 g and increase to 20-30 g (liver puree – 10 – 20 g) little by little.

At the same age another procedure of breast feeding should be replaced by the third procedure of supplemental feeding: yoghurt or whole milk with a cookie.

In the last quarter of year (9-12 months) you can give your baby meat not only in the form of puree, but in the form of meat-balls, and then of steamed cutlets. In this age you can replace meat by fish, cooked in the form of puree or pudding, 1-2 times a week. Include in your baby’s ration vegetable salad (grated or minced), a pan-fried apple.

As a rule, breast feeding takes place until your baby is 10-12 months old. By the end of the first year of life, a baby is put on 4-time feeding.

Yana Mikheeva is the creator of the Baby-Health.Net at http://www.baby-health.net
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