Can we add jaggery to baby food
Is Jaggery Good For Babies? 8 Benefits And 4 Side Effects
Jaggery can enhance the taste of your baby’s food, but moderation is the key.
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Jaggery is a healthier alternative to refined or white sugar as it contains trace minerals and certain bioactive compoundsiXChemicals found in plants and food items in small amounts that are beneficial for health that may benefit health in the long run. However, as it is a sweetener, you might want to know about the safety of jaggery for babies.
Offering jaggery to your baby at the right age and in age-appropriate amounts is essential to ensure the baby’s safety. Besides, it can help prevent the baby from developing a sweet preference.
Jaggery is often made with concentrated sugarcane juice, date palm sap, or coconut sap. Keep reading as we tell you more about the safety of jaggery for babies, the right age to feed it, its possible health benefits and side effects, and the right way to include jaggery in your baby’s diet.
Is Jaggery Good For Babies?
Jaggery is usually preferred to white sugar (1). Pediatricians recommend avoiding sugar for babies under 12 months of age (2). Jaggery can be considered an alternative but should be fed in moderation.
Be watchful
Although jaggery isn’t too sweet, its overuse might cause babies to develop a preference for sweet foods and drinks over time (10).
When Can Babies Start Having Jaggery?
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Babies can have jaggery as soon as they start eating solids, which is around the age of six months. However, the appropriate age may vary for each baby.
Therefore, consult a doctor or pediatric nutritionist to know the right age to introduce jaggery to your baby. Once you have the doctor’s approval, you may introduce powdered jaggery by adding it to infant foods, such as porridge and purees.
However, before introducing jaggery, do ask your doctor about the ideal amount you can use for your baby.
Related: Top 10 Food Ideas For Your 4 Months Baby
Health Benefits Of Jaggery For Infants
The nutritional composition of jaggery changes depending on the source – sugarcane, date palm, or coconut. However, there are some general benefits of jaggery, irrespective of the source.
- Energy-dense: Jaggery can provide instant energy and intensify the total energy value of traditional foods given to the babies while weaningiXProcess of gradually transforming a baby’s diet from breast milk to solids and other fluids (3).
Point to consider
Adding a teaspoon of jaggery powder to infant foods can help increase meal’s energy density (3).
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- Nutrient supply: Jaggery contains some amount of minerals, such as iron, calcium, sodium, and potassium. It also has traces of a few vital vitamins that could be beneficial for your baby (4). Moderate consumption of jaggery could contribute to the recommended dietary allowance (RDA) of the baby.
- Iron deficiency: When consumed with a well-balanced diet, jaggery could help supplement iron (5). In the long run, this could help manage iron-deficiency anemiaiXA health condition caused due to low levels of iron in the body .
- Bone health: Calcium, phosphorus, and magnesium are some of the vital minerals that are crucial for maintaining bone health. Jaggery contains all these trace minerals and thus may support bone health. However, there are better sources for these nutrients, and you do not have to use jaggery exclusively for these minerals.
- Digestive health: As per traditional practice in India, jaggery is consumed after a meal since it is believed to aid in digestion. However, there are no scientific studies to back this belief. You may give jaggery water or syrup once in a while to your young infant to help support digestion.
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- Immunity: The use of jaggery in Ayurveda to treat various ailments and boost immunity is well-documented. However, clinical trials on the same are lacking. Nevertheless, the presence of trace minerals and vitamins in jaggery may help babies combat infections in the long run.
- Liver detoxification: The use of jaggery with ginger for liver detoxification is documented in traditional medicine (6). Alternative medicine believes that jaggery is an unrefined sugar rich in antioxidants and thus could clean or detox the liver. However, there are no clinical studies to back this theory.
- Overall health: Jaggery is often used for the treatment of cold, cough, and flu in traditional medicine. Besides, it is also believed to cure intestinal worms and prevent constipation. However, clinical studies to validate these uses are limited.
Did you know?
Jaggery takes longer to digest than sugar due to its long chains of sucroseiXA natural component of sugar present in jaggery . This slow digestion results in a slow release of energy (11).
Consuming jaggery can have some health benefits. However, its consumption in infants and toddlers must be limited due to some probable side-effects.
Remember that jaggery is considered better when compared to white sugar. But it is still a form of sugar and cannot be overconsumed.
Related: Ginger For Babies: When To Start, Benefits And Precautions
Possible Side-Effects Of Jaggery In Infants
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Excess consumption may lead to the following unwanted effects.
- Sweet addiction: Avoid feeding excess jaggery since it may cause the baby to become addicted to it (7).
- Adverse reactions: Jaggery, in general, is considered as anti-allergic. However, it might cause sensitivity or intolerance in some cases. Thus, if you observe any signs of sensitivity or intolerance like mild rashes on your baby, then discontinue feeding and consult a pediatrician.
- Childhood obesity: Traditionally, jaggery is used to increase the weight of an infant. However, excessive consumption can significantly increase the risk of obesity in children because jaggery is still a form of sugar.
- Tooth decay: Jaggery is about 80% simple sugar, which can cause cavities and tooth decay when consumed in excess. Thus, make sure you rinse the baby’s mouth with water after feeding jaggery.
Related: Are Fat Babies Healthy And When Is It A Concern?
Ways To Include Jaggery In Your Infant and Toddler’s Diet
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Try to access organic jaggery because standard non-organic jaggery could contain compounds such as sulfur dioxide that may not be good for the baby’s health.
Here are some of the age-appropriate ways to add jaggery to baby food recipes.
- For young infants who have just started solids, jaggery water can be given along with other weaning foods.
- For babies of about seven months of age, you may try giving jaggery syrup mixed with nut powder (only if the baby is not allergic to nuts). It is one of the Indian food ideas that several pediatricians recommend. Feed it in small quantities.
- Jaggery water or jaggery syrup can be added to homemade Cerelac, or it can also be added to the commercial baby food mix. Do not add more than half a teaspoon in one serving.
- You may add powdered jaggery or jaggery syrup to porridge, breakfast cereals like quinoa, and vegetable preparation like sambhar.
- Prepare simple finger food or sweet dishes with jaggery. You may consider adding ingredients like sprouted ragi health mix, wheat flour, and ginger powder to intensify the nutritional value of the final recipe.
1. Can we add jaggery in hot milk for babies?
Yes, you may add grated or powdered jaggery to milk to enhance its flavor.
2. Is jaggery better than honey for babies?
Honey is not safe for babies under one year of age as it carries the risk of infant botulismiXA severe but rare food poisoning caused due to toxins produced by the bacteria, Clostridium botulinum (8). However, jaggery can be used to sweeten food instead of honey as it is not only safe but is rich in iron, minerals, and vitamins.
3. Does jaggery remove mucus?
In Ayurveda, palm jaggery is used to treat colds and dry coughs. It is also known to help dissolve mucus and clear it in the respiratory tract (12). However, more clinical studies and trials are needed to validate jaggery’s use for respiratory issues, especially in babies.
4. Does jaggery cause kidney stones?
Research shows that jaggery may help reduce renal damage and act as an alternative medicine in treating renal etiologies (13).
How jaggery can cause renal stones is not clearly known.
5. Should jaggery be refrigerated?
Jaggery does not have an expiration date, but storing it in the fridge can help its shelf life. Generally, you can store jaggery in the refrigerator for two months after opening the packet. Also, it is advisable to thaw the refrigerated jaggery before feeding it to the babies (1).
Jaggery for babies is a healthier alternative to white sugar. You may include jaggery in your child’s food when they start eating solids; however, it is better to consult a doctor before doing so. Moderate amounts of jaggery, when added to the babies’ food, can provide energy, manage iron deficiency, and detoxify the liver. However, excess jaggery may cause sweet addiction, mild rashes, or tooth decay. Always use organic jaggery for infants as they are safer. You may also try palm jaggery syrup and palm sugar as an alternative. Small quantities of jaggery and a balanced diet help keep your baby healthy.
References:
MomJunction's articles are written after analyzing the research works of expert authors and institutions. Our references consist of resources established by authorities in their respective fields. You can learn more about the authenticity of the information we present in our editorial policy.
1. GhanendraGartaula and MahendraBhattarai; Replacement of sugar in the product formulation of “Bomboyson” by jaggery; National Center For Biotechnology Information
2. Infant Food and Feeding; American Academy of Pediatrics
3. Complementary Feeding Guidelines; The Mother and Child Health and Education Trust
4. Nath A et al.; Review on Recent Advances in Value Addition of Jaggery based Products; Longdom Publishing
5. Sood M and Sharada D; Iron Food Supplement; National Center for Biotechnology Information
6. An Ayurvedic Pragmatic Approach to Non-Alcoholic Steatohepatitisvis-a-visYakritodara; Journal of Ayurveda And Integrated Medica7 Sciences
7.
Danielle R and Amanda H McDaniel; The Human Sweet Tooth; National Center for Biotechnology Information
8. C O Abdulla, et al. Infant botulism following honey ingestion; National Center for Biotechnology Information
9. All About Infant Nutrition; WIC Nutrition Program
10. Diep H. Ha et al.; Factors Influencing Early Feeding of Foods and Drinks Containing Free Sugars—A Birth Cohort Study; International journal of environmental research and public health
11. Abhai Kumar and Smita Singh; The benefit of Indian jaggery over sugar on human health; Researchgate
12. Upadhyaya, Ashwini, and Sachin K. Sonawane. Palmyrah palm and its products (Neera, Jaggery And Candy)–A Review on Chemistry and Technology.
13. Sharma, C. K., and Sharma, V; Nephroprotective effect of jaggery against acute and subchronic toxicity of acetaminophen in Wistar rats; PubMed
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Jaggery (Gur) for Babies - Health Benefits, Recipes & Risks
Jaggery, called gur in Hindi, is unrefined sugar made from sugarcane juice or a date palm sap. It is made by boiling the sugarcane juice or date palm sap until it becomes a thick syrup, and then cooling it until it solidifies. It is used in both sweet and savoury dishes in several South-Asian countries, including India. Jaggery is used in India as a sweetener in baby food. This article explains in detail the benefits and risks of feeding your baby jaggery.
Can You Add Jaggery to Baby Food?
You must be wondering if jaggery is good for babies or not. The answer is yes, but it must be used with caution. In rural India, doctors may recommend the inclusion of jaggery in moderate quantities in the food for babies who are less than a year old. Jaggery is a good source of iron, hence it may help a baby fight anaemia. However, you must check with your baby’s doctor before including jaggery or gur in your baby’s diet.
Including jaggery in your baby’s diet will also depend on feeding methods and your lifestyle
When Can You Introduce Jaggery to a Baby?
Jaggery should be introduced to a baby’s diet only after the age of one year. However, this may vary based on the baby’s health and your doctor’s advice. Paediatricians recommend that babies should not be given any form of sugar until they turn one.
Amazing Health Benefits of Jaggery for Infants
Jaggery has several health benefits for babies – however, it is not recommended for babies less than a year old. Babies older than one year can be given jaggery. The health benefits of jaggery are:
1. Prevents Anaemia
Jaggery is a good source of iron. 10g of jaggery contains 0.3mg of iron, which is 3% or the daily recommended dietary allowance (RDA). Including jaggery in your baby’s diet can prevent anaemia, which is caused due to iron deficiency in the blood.
2. Strengthens the Bones
Jaggery contains phosphorous and calcium, which are minerals essential for the development of strong, healthy bones.
Hence, consuming jaggery can help strengthen your baby’s bones.
3. Detoxifies the Liver
Jaggery is an unrefined sugar that can help flush out toxins from the body. It cleanses and detoxifies the liver.
4. Increases Immunity
Jaggery is rich in antioxidants and minerals like calcium, phosphorus, magnesium, selenium, and zinc. It also contains vitamins B4, B5, B6, and choline. All of these together help in increasing your baby’s immunity.
5. Treats Symptoms of Flu, Cough, and Cold
Jaggery has traditionally been used as a home remedy to treat symptoms of cold, cough and flu in India. Warm water mixed with a bit of jaggery is given to babies suffering from cold, cough, or flu. This gives the baby an immediate relief. Jaggery has the ability to cool the body down. Having warm water with jaggery brings down body temperature when your baby has the flu.
6. Prevents Constipation
Jaggery stimulates regular bowel movements, thus preventing constipation.
It also aids in digestion by activating digestive enzymes in the stomach and intestine.
7. Provides Instant Energy
As it is 97% sugar and is made of complex carbohydrates, jaggery takes more time to get absorbed by the body. It provides your baby with greater energy for a longer duration.
8. Good for Intestinal Health
The magnesium in jaggery promotes good intestinal health and aids digestion. 10g of jaggery contains nearly 4% of the daily RDA of magnesium.
Risks of Giving Jaggery to Babies
Jaggery contains about 97% sugar. Therefore, excessive use can be harmful to your baby. The risks of giving jaggery to babies are:
1. Too Many Calories
Jaggery contains about 38 calories per 10 g. As a result, excessive consumption of jaggery can result in the baby getting too many calories, causing an increased risk of high blood pressure, heart disease and diabetes later in life.
2. Sugar Addiction
Jaggery can cause babies to become addicted to sugary foods later, leading to diabetes.
3. Unfavourable Reactions
Some babies may have unfavourable reactions to jaggery, such as rashes or stomach problems. If the jaggery has not been prepared properly and has impurities, it can increase your risk of getting intestinal parasites and worms.
4. Cavities
Excessive consumption of jaggery can cause cavities in your baby’s teeth.
5. Obesity and Diabetes
Too much jaggery can cause obesity and diabetes in babies when they grow up.
Healthy Jaggery Recipes for Babies
Here are some healthy jaggery recipes for babies:
1.
Sooji HalwaSooji or semolina is used to make a sweet dish along with jaggery.
Ingredients:
Sooji or semolina, jaggery, water, and cardamom powder.
How to Make:
Boil water with some jaggery in it. Roast the sooji in a pan until golden brown. Add it to the boiling jaggery water, stirring continuously until it thickens into a porridge-like solid form.
Next, add cardamom powder. Stir well and your sooji halwa is ready.
2. Jaggery Syrup
Jaggery syrup recipe for babies is simple and easy to make. It can be stored for up to 2 months in the refrigerator and used to sweeten the baby’s porridge.
Ingredients:
Jaggery and water.
How to Make:
Melt some jaggery with one tablespoon of water in a pan on a low flame. Sieve this into another pan and discard the lumps. Add 1 cup water to this, and bring it to a boil. Keep it on the heat for another couple of minutes, and allow it to cool. After cooling, it should look like a thick, golden brown syrup. Store this syrup in the refrigerator and use for sweetening the baby’s porridge.
Jaggery has many health benefits for babies, but it is best to check with your paediatrician before including it in your baby’s diet. Giving your baby jaggery also has some risks, so it is usually not recommended for babies less than a year old.
You can sweeten infant food using fruit purees like mashed banana, pureed dates, or applesauce.
Also Read: Salt and Sugar for Babies – Reasons to Avoid Them
benefits and harms for children
Published: 10/20/2020
Reading time: min.
Number of reads: 3
Author of the article: Osipenko Oksana Vladimirovna
Pediatrician, Candidate of Medical Sciences, pediatric allergist-immunologist
pathology. But the problem of nutritional deficiencies requires the attention of doctors and parents. The development of a lack of protein and energy in the diet of children forces us to analyze this situation and clarify the recommendations of children's nutritionists.
Contents: Hide
- Where do mistakes happen?
- Carbohydrates. Scary or useful?
- Types of carbohydrates
- Add or remove sugar to the children's menu?
The harmonious development of a child is reflected not only in weight and height indicators, but also in the state of the endocrine and immune systems, the functioning of the gastrointestinal tract, the balance of nervous regulation and other organs and tissues.
Nutrient deficiency does no less damage than its excess. In early childhood, a significant part of the energy is spent on growth and development, which is different from adult metabolism. And with a prolonged deficiency of nutrients, conditions such as anemia, rickets, osteopenia develop, the rate of intellectual development sharply decreases, and the basis for chronic digestive pathology is formed.
Children with underweight rarely attract the attention of a doctor, and the diagnosis of "protein-energy malnutrition" (PEM) is made only in severe illnesses. Let's try to understand the causes and methods of correction.
Mild degrees of PEU most often have a reason - an early transition to an "adult" diet, unreasonable use of diets, late introduction of complementary foods. In cases where a child with a deficient status is identified, the pediatrician should analyze the menu of his patient and find out the peculiarities of eating behavior in the family in order to help parents adjust the diet.
So what if he's thin?
PEI is not only weight loss and growth retardation in a child. Unfortunately, the consequences of PEU are quite difficult to correct, because the peculiarities of metabolism in early childhood determine not only the current physical status, but leave an imprint on the intellectual potential and the development of chronic diseases in the future. Therefore, deliberate restrictions in the child's diet are a risk factor for the development of obesity, metabolic syndrome, allergic diseases, frequent infections and endocrine pathology.
Where do mistakes happen?
When analyzing the diet of young children, according to international communities (ESPGHAN, BNF), it was found that, along with an excess of fast carbohydrates, salt, extractives, fats, the children's menu also contains deficiencies of the main nutrients - proteins (reduced consumption of milk, red meat), dietary fiber and complex carbohydrates (insufficient consumption of cereals and pasta, fruits and vegetables).
Some children are forced to follow baseless dairy-free and gluten-free diets (according to the international community of allergists EAACI) in order to prevent and treat ghost allergies. Some parents are very addicted to reading baby food packages and avoid foods fortified with vitamins, minerals and sugars, believing that a healthy baby product should be without additives. It is easy to conclude that an incorrect interpretation of the recommendations of pediatricians and nutritionists can lead to serious consequences in the life of a baby.
Carbohydrates. Scary or useful?
Carbohydrates, along with proteins and fats, are indispensable and main sources of nutrients. Studies of their role in human life do not end. We call carbohydrates sugar and sweets, pasta and vegetables, cereals and bread. We rewarded them with terrible and useful properties. But it is absolutely known that these substances should be in our diet every day. Carbohydrates are divided into three classes: monosaccharides, oligosaccharides and polysaccharides (see table), and they are also divided into digestible (fast, light) and indigestible (slow, complex) forms.
Types of carbohydrates
Fast carbohydrates (sugar, fructose, lactose) . They are found not only in added sugar, but also in fruits, vegetables and milk. They almost immediately dissolve in liquids and are absorbed into the bloodstream, supplying the body with energy. There is definitely a benefit in this, which is to stimulate mental and physical activity, improve the psycho-emotional status by increasing the level of endorphins in the blood.
Slow carbohydrates (starch, pectin, cellulose) . Found in cereals, vegetables and fruits. These carbohydrates do not dissolve in water and are slowly utilized by the body, which means that the energy output is longer, which is important for maintaining a long-term feeling of satiety and good health. Dietary fibers (indigestible carbohydrates) are of great benefit to humans: normalization of intestinal motility, participation in detoxification processes by removing heavy metals and putrefactive substances from the body, stimulating the growth of microflora, normalizing metabolism, reducing the risk of colon tumors.
Read also: When to give cookies to a child?
At the moment, absolutely all recommendations talk about reducing the share of simple sugars in the children's menu, but energy deficiency is also dangerous for a child. You should not be afraid of sugar in baby food products, as their composition is fully optimized and complies with domestic regulatory documents on baby food standards. Much more attention should be paid to added sugars in the child's menu and try to avoid treats in the form of sweets, sweet bakery and confectionery products. With the correct preparation of the diet of a child of the second half of life and older, porridge with a permitted added sugar level will be the best source of both fast and slow carbohydrates. The table presents the main, proven by numerous studies, the consequences of a deficiency and excess of these substances in the diet, illustrating the harm of both.
| Excess 9000 9000 9000 | |
| Violation of carbohydrate and fat exchanges, which lead to the development of obesity, early cardiovascular pathology, atroscalerosis and sugar of diata. | Violation of energy metabolism with subsequent protein deficiency (PEI). |
| Displacement by simple carbohydrates from the diet of children of dairy products, fruits and vegetables, the deficiency of which is also associated with the appearance of chronic pathology of the gastrointestinal tract and a violation of the formation of healthy eating habits. | Deceleration of neuropsychic development, emotional fatigue, delay in physical development. |
Sugar MAY be present in baby food, but complex carbohydrates MUST be present daily. The level of added sugar cannot exceed 10% of the daily caloric intake of the children's diet (see table).
| | Age of children | - 2 years | 2-3 years | ||
| 203 | |||
| Sugar, % | | <10 % of the daily norm of kcal | |
Switching to baby food in the hope that it will help you lose weight is not worth it. Why a diet of products for babies is not suitable for a healthy lifestyle, Arina Skoromnaya, the leading fitness column on the Friday TV channel, explained to radio Sputnik. Of course, baby food is safer than "adult" food in the sense that it does not contain GMOs, flavorings , preservatives and dyes. But it does have sugar. And this is one of the reasons why nutritionists do not advise adults to switch to food for babies, says Arina Skoromnaya. The second obstacle is the volume of servings and the content of useful elements. Yes, there are many useful substances in baby food, but there are not those that are vital for the normal functioning of the adult human body. For example, it does not contain coarse fiber, without which digestive problems and constipation are guaranteed. There are very few proteins and fats in such a diet. "An adult does not really eat up baby food and then quickly wants to eat again.
This is not a product for an adult. I would not recommend using baby food as a diet. As a diet, it is a crime to sit on such products. This is not an option, "says Arina Skoromnaya. But from time to time, baby food can be consumed. This is a good alternative to unhealthy snacks, the nutritionist noted. , — the nutritionist concluded in an interview with Sputnik radio. 
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But it does have sugar. And this is one of the reasons why nutritionists do not advise adults to switch to food for babies, says Arina Skoromnaya. 
