Your baby needs excellent nutrition to help her body function, repair and grow. She is still developing her immune and digestive systems and growing enormously over the next several years. Also, building health in her as a baby helps to create health for her entire life by setting up good eating habits and creating a strong foundation that will support her for a long time. Babies require so much energy and nutrients that you need to ensure she is getting food that is full of goodness. And because no one food provides a baby with everything she needs, a varied diet is important, with lots of colours, flavours and textures. Make every mouthful count when you are feeding your little one.
Babies need carbohydrates, protein, fat, fibre, vitamins and minerals so they have energy and can grow and development. Every day you should include foods from the following groups: milk and dairy, meat, fish, beans and legumes, cereals and grains, fruits and vegetables. As they get older, their diet should include nuts and seeds. The more variety you have in your baby’s diet means she has the greatest chance of receiving all of the nutrients that she needs.
Your baby doesn’t need (actually no one does) junk food like highly processed foods, fizzy drinks, crisps and sweets. She also doesn’t need and shouldn’t have artificial colours, flavours, additives or preservatives. Don’t give her hydrogenated fat or monosodium glutamate either. Babies also don’t the pesticide residues that linger on conventional foods after harvesting. Look at the list of ingredients when you buy something for your baby. You should understand the ingredients that are in food. Food should be made with food. If you don’t know what something is, you probably shouldn’t be feeding it to your baby.
Although it’s best to wait until 6 months to start your baby on solids, some children have a full set of teeth, are grabbing your fork and don’t seem satisfied by breast mild or formula at 4 months. If that is the case with your baby, then it’s time to start introducing foods that are gentle on your baby’s developing system. You can create a wonderful range of meals by cooking, pureeing and freezing foods in ice cube trays that you can simply defrost each day. This is an easy way to ensure that your baby has eats a wide range of food – without you having to cook all day! Carry on with breast milk or formula, and introduce fruits (skins removed), vegetables, grains and some pulses.
I wait to introduce milk and dairy products, meat and fish, eggs, mushrooms, deadly nightshade, gluten and certain foods which are harder to digest in order to go gently on their little stomachs. There is plenty of time to introduce all sorts of foods – and no need to rush. There are so many foods to choose from. Starting with fruits is easy, but don’t rely on it too much because it is sweet and your baby needs to get used to a wide range of flavours.
It doesn’t really matter how much she eats to start out with. For some babies, one or two spoonfuls once a day is enough. Others will gobble up a whole mashed banana. Don’t worry – babies will generally take what they need. And she is still getting most of her nutritional needs from breast milk or formula. Start with one meal a day, gradually building up to two and then three. Try different foods and don’t throw something out because she doesn’t seem to like it. She may love it 3 days later, so keep trying.
Making your own baby food is so easy. Have a look at the recipes that follow:
Mango Puree
Peel a mango and put it in a blender. Blend until smooth and the consistency of applesauce, adding a little water if it is too thick.
Sweet Potato Puree
Peel a sweet potato, cut into chunks and steam over boiling water until completely soft. Blend until smooth, adding a little of the steam water to thin it if necessary.
White Rice Puree
Put 1 cup white rice and 1 ½ cup water (no salt) in a small saucepan. Bring to the boil, cover, reduce to a simmer and cook for 30 minutes until the rice is completely soft. Blend until smooth.
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