Which cereal to feed baby first
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See moreKid-Friendly Healthy Summer-Salad-Stuffed Yorkshire Puddings
Easy
Preheat the oven to 200°C. Spray a 12-cup muffin tin generously with baking spray; set aside.For the popovers: Whisk the milk, flour, eggs, vanilla and 1/2 teaspoon salt in a medium bowl until combined. Drizzle in the melted butter while whisking
Prep Time
15 mins
Cook Time
25 mins
Serves
6
Crystal: Kibbe recipe
Easy
1) In large bowl combine all the kibbe ingredients, using only half of the pureed green pepper and onion, and set aside. Reserve the remainder of green pepper and onion mix for the stuffing. 2) For the stuffing, saute the 225g of silverside beef
Prep Time
15 mins
Cook Time
20 mins
Serves
4
Yakima Valley polenta recipe
Medium
Cherry reduction:
Place all of the ingredients, except the cherries, in a medium saucepan. Bring to a boil, lower the heat and simmer until the mixture is slightly viscous and coats the spoon. Add the pitted cherries and heat briefly. Set aside.
Prep Time
30 mins
Cook Time
30 mins
Serves
6
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By: Michelle Baricevic
How to Get Started – The Baby's Brew
I will always remember feeding each of my babies their first foods. After months of only breastfeeding and bottles, my husband and I couldn’t wait to introduce the next milestone to each of our babies. But with the first baby at least, there was also apprehension. Our pediatrician had recommended we start with a single-grain baby cereal such as rice cereal, but I didn’t know which one to get and I wanted to make sure I fed my baby the right way!
So to get you started off on the right food with baby feeding 101, I’ve put together this guide to giving your baby cereal for the first time.
And it will only get more exciting as you introduce other foods to your little one.
Before you actually feed your baby, you have to choose what you want to give them from the array of cereals and other options available.
Most parents reach for the rice cereal to give their baby as their first food. I know I did as a new mom! It’s an easy choice and one that doctors suggest due to its benefits. It's easy to such as its digest, won’t trigger an allergic reaction and is tolerated well by babies who’ve only been fed breastmilk or formula. It’s also iron-fortified, which babies need as their iron stores start to deplete around 6 months of age.
Though rice cereal has traditionally been suggested as the best first food for your baby, even many doctors may still give this recommendation, it has gotten a bit of a bad rap in recent years due to the arsenic that’s found in rice - causing parents to look at other options. (This article from Healthy Children explains how you can ensure rice cereal can be used in a healthy diet for your baby.
)
If you do choose rice cereal, you’ll want to start introducing other solids to your baby shortly so that’s not all that they are getting, as recommended by the FDA.
Other Cereal Options Besides RiceFortunately, if you want to skip the rice cereal completely, you can! There is no need to feel like this is the only first food for your baby. Many experts share that any iron-fortified single-grain baby cereal is a great choice, such as baby oatmeal or barley. You can even start with other pureed foods which we discuss later on in this article.
When to Start Feeding Your Baby CerealSeveral years ago the recommendation was that parents could feed their babies at four months if they showed readiness signs. But medical advice evolves and this is a guideline that medical experts have changed to give babies the healthiest start possible.
It’s now suggested that it’s best to wait til closer to your baby’s ½ birthday to introduce solids, especially if he is breastfed.
There’s really no reason to rush it!
But it’s not just age you want to pay attention to as we know that all babies develop at different rates.
Here are signs to look for that will let you know your baby is ready for solid foods:
- able to sit up supported in a high chair
- has proper head control
- no more tongue thrust
- eager to take a spoon
- are interested in the food that you are eating
If your baby isn’t yet showing these signs, you’ll want to wait a bit longer before starting baby cereal or other solid foods. No need to worry - all babies are ready in their own time! Your baby will continue to get the nutrition they need from their breastmilk or formula so you don’t need to be concerned that they are missing out on important nutrients. If you do have concerns, it’s always best to talk to your pediatrician.
Can you give your baby cereal in a bottle?Even though your well-meaning grandma may suggest that you mix cereal into your baby’s bottle to help fill them up so they can sleep better, this practice is actually not safe according to the CDC.
In fact, they share that it won’t help your baby sleep better anyway. This practice puts your baby at risk for choking or overfeeding and also may encourage parents to start solid foods long before they are ready.
Instead, follow the guideline to not feed your baby solid foods until he or she is at least 5-6 months in age and watch for the other readiness signs mentioned above. At this point you can feed your baby with a spoon and introduce finger foods as they are ready.
RELATED: Starting Solid Foods With Your Baby
How to Introduce Cereal to Your BabyBreastmilk and formula will continue to be your baby’s primary source of nutrition until the age of one, but cereal is a great way to get them started with supplemental nutrition and transition them to solid foods. So how do you go about it?
Here are the steps to follow to give your baby her first single-grain cereal:
- Make sure they meet the recommended readiness signs. This will not only make for a safe feeding experience for your little guy or gal, but it will also be a lot more enjoyable for you.
- Plan to feed your little one after they’ve had a full feeding of breastmilk or formula. This way their tummy will mostly be full which means they’ll likely be happy to try a little cereal. (If you try to introduce solids to a hungry baby they will most likely be uncooperative!) Initially you’ll only feed your baby once per day, and it’s up to you when you want that time to be. We recommend choosing a time that your baby is usually in good spirits!
- Follow the directions on the label of your chosen baby cereal. You don’t need much to start! 1 tablespoon of cereal mixed with breastmilk or formula until it’s a runny consistency will be plenty for those first couple of feedings. If your baby is used to drinking warm milk or formula, you’ll want to use that same temperature of milk to mix with your baby’s food. (This is why we love the Baby’s Brew portable bottle warmer...you can choose your baby’s milk temperature with the push of a button!)
- Be sure your baby is sitting upright.
Ideally this would be in a highchair, but they could also be sitting on your lap. You’ll want them to be wearing a bib as a lot your little one’s food won’t make it into their mouth initially. - Use an infant spoon to feed your baby. Do your best to get the spoon into their open mouth, but just know it’s going to be a bit messy at first as they get the hang of what’s going on. It won’t be long before they are opening wide at mealtime!
- Watch for cues from your baby that show that they are full (or are just are no longer interested). If your baby turns their head, is fussy or won’t open their mouth to eat, it’s time to be “all done!”
And that’s it! You can do another feeding the next day (or you can just do every other day) with the same type of cereal. Be sure to wait three - five days before introducing another food so you can keep an eye out for any allergic reactions. This is the recommendation given by the CDC.
After a couple weeks to a month of successfully feeding your baby once per day you can move to twice per day.
Some parents choose to start with a different food or may take baby cereal out of their little one’s diet altogether. Starting with other pureed foods instead is totally fine and may even work better for some babies. WebMD shares that both pureed vegetables or fruits are good starter foods and that there’s no rule saying that baby cereals must be first.
Some great first foods, if you want to skip the cereal route, include:
- Avocados
- Bananas
- Blended Red Meat (great source of iron)
- Squash
- Sweet Potatoes
- Pears
Just remember that these all need to be pureed and made into a runny consistency that’s easy for your baby to eat. Mixing with your baby’s warmed breastmilk or formula will help to bring this to a consistency that your baby can manage. You’ll also want to avoid giving your baby any of the top allergen foods such as the ones listed here unless you’ve been given different advice from your doctor.
These are best introduced when your baby gets a little older.
Still not sure which food to start with? It can be a bit overwhelming! This is a great conversation to have with your doctor before your baby turns 6 months and they can help guide you on what would be the best option. Whatever you choose, it is sure to be an exciting time for your family as your little guy or gal begins his journey of eating "real" food!
What kind of porridge to choose for the first feeding | How to introduce porridge: how to cook, properly breed porridge for the first feeding
Your baby is growing up, getting stronger, gaining weight, and now there comes a moment when feeding only breast milk or formula is not enough for the full development of the crumbs. It's time to introduce complementary foods into your baby's diet. The question arises - where to start? Your pediatrician should answer it.
Today we’ll talk about how to properly introduce complementary foods with cereals.
Let's talk about how to breed porridge, which one is better to choose for the first feeding, and how homemade porridge differs from store-bought.
Cereals for children up to one year old
Porridge contains all the necessary set of trace elements, is perfectly absorbed, and has a beneficial effect on the digestive system.
Usually, cereals begin to be introduced into the diet of a baby at the age of six months. If the child is bottle-fed, it is permissible to start earlier, at 4-5 months. These are only approximate dates, in fact, everything is individual. It is necessary to take into account the pace of development of the child, his readiness for adult food and the tendency to allergic reactions.
Complementary foods with cereals are recommended for children who are not gaining weight well. Most likely, the baby simply does not have enough calories. In any case, before starting complementary foods, a pediatrician should be consulted. He will help you choose porridge, tell you in what quantities and how often to feed her child.
It is important that the first porridge be:
- Industrial production . Not only because the raw materials are sterilized and undergo rigorous quality control. But also because at home it is difficult to achieve such a degree of grinding cereals, as cereal manufacturers do. For example, Materna porridges consist of delicate cereal flakes, which form an absolutely homogeneous mass when brewed. If desired, they can be diluted to a thick mixture and offered to the baby to drink from a bottle.
- Single component . To track down the cause of an allergic reaction if it occurs.
Dairy or non-dairy: with which cereals does the first weaning start
Pediatricians recommend starting complementary foods with dairy-free gluten-free cereals. Gluten is a fairly heavy vegetable protein for digestion by a child's body. Its use can lead to allergies. Dairy-free cereals can be diluted with breast milk or your own milk formula to make them more nutritious and taste more familiar to the baby.
The first gluten-free cereals include: corn, rice and buckwheat.
How to switch from dairy-free to milk porridge
If no allergic reactions occur within 4-7 weeks from the start of complementary foods and dairy-free cereals are well absorbed, you can start offering milk cereals for children up to a year old to the baby, their energy value is much higher.
How to properly organize feeding with cereals
For the first acquaintance, you need to cook a five percent porridge, which means that for five grams of dry porridge there should be 100 mg of water. The resulting consistency will be ideal for a child who is not yet able to chew and swallow thick food.
The best time to feed is the morning meal. So you will have time to track the baby's reaction to a new product: if there are any allergies or stool disorders.
For feeding, a baby spoon made of safe material for the baby's delicate gums or a regular teaspoon is used.
As a first test, it is enough to give the child about half a tablespoon of liquid porridge. The kid should try out a new product, get used to the change in texture and taste.
Make sure the porridge is not too cold or hot, and does not contain lumps.
After porridge feeding, feed your baby his usual food - breast milk or formula.
Increase the volume of a serving of porridge only when you are sure that the baby eats it with pleasure, and he does not experience unwanted reactions.
Every day, increase the amount of porridge per spoon until the serving is 150 g for a six-month-old baby, 160-170 g for a child aged 7-8 months and 170-180 g for an age of 8-9months. Closer to the year, the serving volume will be about 200 g. And the five percent porridge is replaced by a thicker, ten percent one.
We remind you that these are only general recommendations, and the development of each child is individual and the dosage may differ from that described above.
It is important not to change cereals at the beginning of complementary foods, your baby should get used to one cereal, and only after a successful debut, you can offer the next one - not earlier than in two weeks.
If you start experimenting ahead of time and give your child a different porridge every day, in case of an allergy, it will be very difficult for you to understand what exactly the child's body reacted to.
The child does not eat porridge
Toddlers refuse porridge for various reasons.
- Don't like the taste or texture.
It happens that children who started complementary foods with fruits and vegetables do not eat porridge, because their taste is very different and not so bright. Try adding an already familiar apple or broccoli to a new porridge. In addition, a child may not like the taste of some cereal today, but in a couple of weeks he will eat it with pleasure. Set this mess aside for a while and try again later.
- The porridge is too hot or too cold.
Check food temperature on the inside of your wrist. If you do not feel cold or hot, then the temperature is optimal. - The child is not yet hungry. Set the plate aside for half an hour and then try again.
The main advice to parents is not to despair, and offer the same porridge many times in different combinations.
What kind of porridge to introduce first into complementary foods
Be sure to ask your pediatrician for advice on which cereal to give your baby first. After all, all kids are different.
The main types of cereals recommended for consistent introduction into the child's diet:
- Buckwheat porridge . It is considered indispensable in the diet of the child. Contains vitamins B1 and B2, iron, magnesium, protein.
- Rice porridge . Contrary to the common misconception of many parents, baby rice porridge will not cause constipation because it does not contain crushed rice.
For the manufacture of these cereals, rice flour is used, which has a beneficial effect on the digestion of the child and is rich in healthy dietary fiber. - Corn porridge . Such porridge is a leader among other cereals in terms of the content of potassium in its composition. Also contains a large amount of protein, iron and fiber.
- Oatmeal . No other cereal compares to oatmeal in terms of fat and fiber content. In addition, oatmeal is rich in vegetable protein and calcium, iron, magnesium, vitamins B1, B2, PP. Oatmeal is introduced last of all the described cereals, because it is very rare, but there is an allergy.
The Materna product line includes dairy-free and milk porridges for children from 6 months. All cereals do not contain salt and sugar and are made from cereals and fruits grown in Israel specifically for baby food.
porridge. Steps to health. Social project for children and parents, pediatricians
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Gastroenterology. > The introduction of complementary foods >
When the child is 6 months old and breast milk is no longer enough to meet all the needs of a growing body, it's time to introduce complementary foods. It is also important for the child to properly develop the gastrointestinal tract and form the production of digestive enzymes.
It is necessary to start complementary foods with one product, and, making sure that it is well tolerated, add the next product. The first products can be cereals, vegetables or fruits. The choice of complementary foods depends on the preferences of the parents and the characteristics of the child.
It is advisable to choose cereals as a first complementary food product if the child is
- gaining weight poorly,
- has a tendency to allergies,
- the baby's stool is prone to diarrhea.
What porridge to start with
There are several recommendations for choosing the first porridge:
1. Choose cereals without gluten (gluten): buckwheat, rice. Gluten is a type of vegetable protein. It is poorly absorbed by the child's digestive system, and can cause abdominal pain and bloating. Gluten is found in wheat, rye, barley, and oats.
2. The first porridge - from one type of grain . It is not recommended to use cereal mixtures as a product of the first complementary foods, since the child may develop an allergic reaction or intolerance to any component. Before eating porridge from different cereals, the child gradually gets used to each ingredient separately.
3. The first porridge - without seasonings . Salt, spices, especially any flavor enhancers or dyes should not be added to the first cereals.
Buckwheat
Buckwheat porridge is very well digested and absorbed by the child's body.
It is nutritious, healthy and low allergenic. Buckwheat porridge is rich in iron, protein, magnesium, vitamins B1 and B2. There is a lot of fiber in buckwheat porridge, so it is recommended to give it to children with a tendency to constipation.
Rice
Rice porridge is a source of protein, potassium, phosphorus, calcium. It contains a lot of carbohydrates, is well absorbed, therefore it is recommended for children who gain little weight and have loose stools.
Which cereals to choose: special children's cereals or regular "adult" cereals?
The first complementary foods are recommended to start with cereals of industrial production. They are manufactured under special conditions with a high level of quality control. Groats of children's cereals undergo a special treatment, after which it is easily absorbed by the fragile digestive system of a small child. At the same time, they are balanced and all useful substances are preserved in them.
Industrial-made baby cereals are easy to prepare, and you can choose the best option for your child: gluten-free, hypoallergenic, dairy-free cereals and others.
Therefore, it is advisable to start the first complementary foods with these cereals.
If it is not possible to purchase ready-made baby cereals, home-made cereals from whole grains can also be used as the first complementary foods. In this case, before cooking, the cereal must be carefully sorted, washed and ground into flour using a coffee grinder or in another way (the device for grinding cereals must be clean, without coffee or other product residues!). However, you should be aware that ordinary cereals do not undergo such careful production control as "baby cereals" and may contain substances that adversely affect the condition of the gastrointestinal tract of a six-month-old baby.
How to cook porridge for a child
1. Industrial porridges are prepared according to the instructions on the packaging. Pay special attention to the shelf life of porridge and the way it is stored.
2. Porridge can be diluted with breast milk.
3.
For home-made regular cereals, you can use milk formula or diluted cow's milk.
How to make diluted cow's milk:
Proportions: 200 ml of diluted milk = 130 ml of milk + 70 ml of water + 1 teaspoon of sugar without top
Boil water and add boiled milk and sugar to it. Let cool.
4. It is not recommended to give whole undiluted milk to children under 1 year of age.
5. Ordinary cereals are initially ground into flour and then simmered.
Proportions of porridge:
First week 5% porridge: 5 g of porridge per 100 ml of water / milk (diluted or breastfeeding).
Second and subsequent weeks 10% porridge: 10 g of porridge per 100 ml of water / milk (diluted or breastfeeding).
How to start complementary foods
Any new product, including cereals, begins to be given little by little (0.5 - 1 teaspoon). Gradually, the portion volume is increased, and the consistency of the porridge becomes thicker.
Approximate scheme for introducing complementary foods with cereals
1 day: 0.
5-1 (5 gr) teaspoon of porridge;
Day 2: 1-2 (10 gr) tsp;
Day 3: 6-7 (40 gr) tsp;
Day 7: 18-20 (100 gr) tsp
For about two more weeks, the child continues to receive complementary foods with the selected porridge. This is done to get the baby used to the new food and exclude a possible allergic reaction.
Two to three weeks after the start of the introduction of complementary foods, and provided that the child has not shown any disturbances in the functioning of the body, you can begin to give the next cereal or other type of complementary foods.
It is better to start feeding in the morning.
After taking the porridge, you can put the baby to the chest.
Over time, the portion of complementary foods increases all the time until it can fully replace one feeding. Serving size depends on the age and weight of the child:
at 7 months the serving volume will be about 150 ml,
at 8 months – approx. 180 ml,
at 9 months - about 200 ml.
