Nutrition and the baby’s foods

The Baby’s foods.

Every parents wants their child to get the best possible good nutrition and healthy. Whether to breast-feed or bottle-feed your baby that is your personal choice. You and your partner can make the right decision for it.

In an ideal world “BREAST MILK” is the perfect food  for your baby. It is easy to digest and meet all of the healthy infant’s nutritional requirements for the first 4 to 6 months of life. The only exception is vitamin D, which may need to be given as a supplements.

 

Benefits for breastfeeding.   

  • Enhanced Immunity – Breast milk provides immunities that help infants to fight infection, like respiratory tract infection and diarrhea.
  • Convenience and economy – Breastfeeding is convenient, it is always fresh and costs nothing and can be possible to breastfeed anytime, anywhere. But in realities of life often makes this impossible in some any occasion, it is important to have a supply of milk that has been expressed from the breast and available for whenever the baby is hungry.
  • Clean and safe – Breast milk does not require preparation and sterilization technique that needed to use a clean water supply.
  • Good for the mother’s too – Breastfeeding it helps the uterus to return to its normal size. Research has shown that breastfeeding may reduce the risk of breast cancer in later life, and it will develop the mother and the baby to have a special relationship with each other.

Steps for breast milk express.

  1. Wash  your hands and equipment thoroughly.
  2. Pump approximately 10 to 15 minutes per breast until empty.
  3. Collect the milk in a sterilized container, label with date and time.
  4. Freeze or refrigerate for later use.
  5. Defrost frozen milk overnight in the refrigerator or under warm running water. Do not microwave or place breast milk in hot water. Test temperature before using.
  6. Discard any breast milk remaining after feeding.

While breast milk is generally the best food for the newborns, there are some cases where breastfeeding is not recommended. More common example are when the breast milk may pose a danger to the baby because of the mother’s health and lifestyle. For example: If the mother is HIV positive, has untreated active tuberculosis or using illegal drugs.

Bottle-Feed.

Bottle Feeding for Baby

If you have chosen to BOTTLE-FEED you and your baby can still have close times during feeding. As we know there are many different types of formula in the market, some parents may find it difficult which is the most appropriate for their child. But the composition of infant formula is subject to strict regulation that will provide nutrition. Your doctor too can help you choose the best one and will tell you when to change to cow’s milk.

There are three types of formula:

  • Ready to serve – This is the expensive kind, ready to use just as it comes out of the can or bottle.
  • Concentrated liquid – Mix it half and half with boiled and cooled water before feeding the baby.
  • Powder – This is the cheapest kind of formula, mix the powder with boiled and cooled water or follow the directions on the package.

No matter what kind of formula you use, It is important to measure exactly and follow the directions carefully. And must keep everything safe and clean. The baby will not get enough calories if you add too much water to the powder or if you add too much powder it will be too rich and may make the baby sick. And it does not matter too if it is powder, liquid concentrate or ready to use, these choices must be made based on affordability and lifestyle.

If ever your baby develops some rashes, cries a lot or throws up the whole meals, talk to his or her doctor. The doctor may suggest you to change the formula.

Preparing the formula:

  1. Wash – It is very important to wash your hands first, then wash everything well, the ring on the bottles, the nipples, caps and rinse everything with hot water.
  2. Sterilize – All bottles, nipples caps and other baby’s equipment that will be used in preparing the formula should be boiled for 5 minutes.
  3. Mix the formula – Most domestic water supplies contain some bacteria that may be harmful to an infant. To ensure that the water is sterile it should be boiled for 2 minutes, then allowed to cool until lukewarm before preparing the formula according to the package instructions.
  4. Store – Formula can be stored in the refrigerator for up to 24 hours, after which any unused formula should be discarded. Don’t let them sit out, because germs grow quickly in warm formula. keep them in the fridge until you are ready to use them.

Warming the bottle.

By using an electric bottle-warmer for a few minutes or you can use hot water in a pan to warm the bottle. It is very important before feeding the baby to check the bottle formula temperature, it should feel neither hot nor cold. You can try a few drops on the inside of your wrist to test the formula temperature.

Microwaves are not good for warming bottles. It may get too hot and sometimes it does not heat the milk evenly. And if you use too much heat, vitamins will be lost.

Feeding the baby.

There are some reasons why you should always hold your baby to feed him.

  • Mother and baby miss out on the special relationship if you don’t hold your baby while feeding.
  • The baby may choke on the formula if he is lying down.
  • Studies show that ear infections are possible when putting the baby to sleep with a propped bottle.
  • Or he may develop dental problem if the baby goes to sleep with a propped bottle of formula.

Ways to hold the baby while burping.

Burping is to let the air out of the baby stomach after feeding. There are several ways how to burp your baby. You can hold him against your shoulder supporting his head, then pat or rub his back. You can sit him up on your lap supporting his head. Or you can lay him on his stomach across your lap.

When to begin the solid foods ?

Each child grows and develops at a different rate. All the baby’s need for the first 3 to 4 months of breastmilk or formula. Before then, an infant’s digestive system is not yet ready to handle anything else. But after this period, it is important to start introducing the solid foods that will provide the nutrients for their proper growth and development.

However, some babies may be developmentally advanced enough to start solid foods at the age of four months, while some babies may not be ready until 5 months. Ultimately the decision to start must be individualized.

The Solid Foods.

It is important that solid foods must be introduced gradually. During this transition period, breast milk or formula will continue to be your baby’s primary source of nutrition. The transition to solid foods is intended to satisfy hunger and to provide a nutritional complement to the baby’s liquid diet. As more solid foods are introduced, the intake of breastmilk or formula will decrease accordingly.

While some parents recognize the importance of not starting solids too soon, they may not realize that it’s also possible to start too late. Research has show that if a child is not introduced to solid foods before 9 months, He  or she may have difficulty accepting texture later.

After all, good food and nutrition are essential to a baby’s healthy growth and development. And to be sure if your child is gaining weight and growing normally the best way is to ask your doctor to see his growth chat. This is the data of extensive research on the growth of children overtime and will determine the child weight is appropriate in relation to their length.

In my background in nutrition and personal experienced as a parent of a young child, I encourage you to have the amazing development of your child-feeding, growing in a healthy way.

Thank you for reading my article ” NUTRITION AND THE BABY’S FOODS ” And hopefully you will enjoy more reading in my next topic: Introduction of solid foods and simple healthy recipes that will help you feed your children and can be enjoyed by the whole family.

 Any recommendation, questions or comments please you are welcome to write in the comments section below. Thank you so much and enjoy reading.

 

Author: Grace

Grace is a health care worker. A wife and a mother of one amazing seven years old boy. lived in Ontario Canada. I am originally from Philippines whom I was trained and graduated as a Nutritionist Dietitian. More than ten years experienced working as a dietitian. I love helping people in my own ways, reading is my favorite thing and most importantly spending time with my family and friends.

8 Replies to “Nutrition and the baby’s foods”

  1. Ann says:

    I have been reading a lot about breast feeding. And my mom and aunts have been giving me advice. But there were many things I learnt through your post. Thank you very much. It seems we never stop learning. But when it comes to feeding our children, learning is the only option. I am glad I found your site.

    Reply
    1. Grace says:

      Hello  Ann,

      I’m  glad  you  learned some  new  ideas  about  breastfeeding. Yes  I  agree with  you, we never  stop  learning …thank’s  so  much and  I  really  appreciate  for  visiting and  reading  my post. 

      grace 

      Reply
  2. Apersinger says:

    As a mom of 2 amazing adult children and now a grandma to an adorable 3 yr old I have found your article to be very educational and helpful for those that are becoming new mommies. I was never able to breast-feed my children due to complications so I had to go the formula route. Due to that I found it very interesting to learn more about the breast-feeding process. My lovely daughter was able to breast-feed her first baby and loved every minute of it.

    Thank you for sharing your knowledge on these subjects and it brought back some memories of when mine were babies.

    Reply
    1. Grace says:

      Hi Apersinger,

      Thank  you  so  much for  your  wonderful  experienced  as a mother. Even though  you  didn’t  had the chance  to breast-feed, I’m  glad  you  found  my post  as a helpful tools to learn. Thank’s  again and  God  bless…Enjoy  with  your  little  ones ❤

      grace 

      Reply
  3. Kelvin says:

    Thanks a lot for writing this article to treat a very important topic. This is a very rich, educating, informative and instructive article that deals on all there is about food and nutrition for babies. Though, I am not a woman, I find this article to be interesting and of great value. I have indeed learnt a lot with regards to: benefits for breastfeeding, how to breastfeed, types of formula and how to make a choice, how to prepare the formula, how to warm the feeding bottle, how to feed the baby and hold the baby when burping, and when to start solid foods. It’s a whole lot of information, but I am glad I learnt them all from reading this article.

    Reply
    1. Grace says:

      Hello  Kelvin,

      I’m  so  grateful  and  happy  to  read  your  comment’s.  Yes, as a parents we wanted  always  to  have  a healthy  and happy family. And  it  will  always  begin in good  nutrition  from  conception to  adulthood. Either breast-feeding  or bottle-feeding the importance we learn the benefits and  the proper  way to feed our babies. Thank  you  so  much  Kelvin. 

      grace 

      Reply
  4. Parameter says:

    Proper feeding is essential for growth. I had this experience with my last born. My self and my wife decided we were going on exclusive breast feeding. When he turned three months, we observed he was having constant temperature. We gave drugs but no significant changes. We decided to supplement the breast feeding with baby food. He changed and temperature disappeared 

    Reply
    1. Grace says:

      Hi Parameter,

      Thank  you  and  I  agree  with  you  Proper feeding  is essential for  growth  and  development  of  a child. Sometimes  there  are reason’s  we need  to  consider  while  choosing  breastfeeding. If the mother  is not  supplying  enough  milk or not physically  well , It will  affect  also to the baby’s  health .But  I’m  glad you  found  out the solution and  he got better. Thank’s  again  and  I  really  appreciate  your  comment. 

      Reply

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