Food Guide for Infant

8/6/2019 Food Guide for Infant

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Principles for Feeding Infants

Keywords:Baby | Breast Milk|Food | Diet |Nutrition | Growth | Healthy | Infant foods

In the first few months, the baby only needs mother's milk but as he grows he needs outside food

also for the new tissue development. A balanced diet is to be given to cope up with the demands ofbaby's growth. Here is a guideline on baby's food. Read on.

Infancy is a period of rapid growth. Plenty of energy and nutrients are needed for the new tissuedevelopment. When it comes to feeding infants, parents universally agree that breast milk is the best. Notonly is breast milk superior nutritionally, it also contains all the immunological properties that formulas cannever contain. Breastfeeding ideally should continue for at least 12 months and thereafter for as long asmutually desired. But for some reason if breastfeeding is not possible for medical, psychological or practicalreasons, it is of paramount importance to ensure sufficient nourishment for your baby by respondingappropriately to the nutritional guidelines and also understanding the trick of translating nutritional advice intoinfant foods on the table. An appropriate diet for infants under the age of one should provide all the essentialenergy and nutrients needed for normal growth and development, whilst including a variety of foods andtastes.

During the early months, concern about the well being of the child is acute, so the anxiety (specially forfirsttime parents) reigns supreme. Confusion over what is suitable forchildren has been fuelled by a heightenedawareness of the need fora healthy diet.

Following guidelines can be applied while choosing infant foods -

Pediatricians recommend using prepared infant formulae containing iron and vitaminsforthe first year. Infant formulae are considered as nutritionally complete meals forbabies until about six months of age so it is recommended to wait till then to start solidfoods. If pureed foods are started earlier, a baby is likely to spit it out, as they are notneurologically ready to accept solids by then.

0-6 months - Infant formula or cow's milk or goat's milk. 6 months onwards - Dal water, diluted rice water, mashed banana, fruit juice etc.

Home cooked foods can provide variety of tastes and textures when started. Milk products, yoghurtand custard can be introduced. Gluten containing cereals should be delayed till the infant is sixmonths of age. Single grain cereal is often the first one added. New foods should be added one at atime to allow them to get used to the flavour of the food and also get him to agree with it. The mostimportant thing to remember when starting solid foods is to use your common sense.

A few children may have food intolerances like milk intolerance. Alternative products like soy basedinfant formula can be used for them.

Avoid These - Some foods like nuts are unsuitable for children as they might lead to choking. Also itwould be wise not to include honey as it contains microorganisms to which small infants are

particularly sensitive. Do Not Compare - Infant appetites vary. No two babies would require to be fed the same amount of

food. Their feeding pattern would vary considerably so comparing your child's intake with another willnot give you any accurate indications. As long as your child's growth is as per the schedule and he isnot cranky, there is no reason for you to worry about his intake even if small amounts are beingeaten.

Reference body weights and heights of infants according to National council of health statistics(NCHS) are as below-

AGE BOYS GIRLS

(yrs) HEIGHT WEIGHT HEIGHT WEIGHT

(cm) (kg.) (cm) (kg.)

0 50.5 3.3 49.9 3.2

3months 61.1 6 60.2 5.4
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6months 67.8 7.8 66.6 7.2

9months 72.3 9.2 71.1 8.6

1 76.1 10.2 75.0 9.5

Source - ICMR

Focus should be on food quality. Emphasis should be on preparing infant foods with adequatecalories, fat and other nutrients. Because their digestive and excretory systems are immature, easilyaccessible energy sources like fat and sugars are important. Fat is necessary for proper cognitiveand behavioural development and babies need up to 50% of energy from fat because of their largeenergy requirements and small stomach capacity. Sugars are also an easily digestible source ofcalories so do not unnecessarily curb on these.

Following are the Energy and Protein requirement of infants -

AGE KCAL/KG G/KG

0-3months 116 2.3

3-6months 99 1.85

6-9months 95 1.65

9-12months 101 1.5

Avg. during 1st year 103 kcal/kg.

Source - ICMR

Give a highly varied diet to ensure enough fibre in the diet. A diet excessively high in fibre may be toolow in calories and may also interfere with the absorption of minerals. Fruits and vegetables can beintroduced gradually in the first year of life provided they do not replace energy dense foods butcompliment them.

Infants are born with enough stored iron for four to six months. After that iron is more likely than anynutrient to be lacking in the infant's diet. The early use of cows milk (Cow's milk should not be used

as a main drink before the age of one year because it has low iron content), early weaning andweaning onto a diet low in iron have all been implicated as causes of iron deficiency in children.Foods that contain easily absorbed sources of iron and zinc (meat and poultry and manufacturedinfant cereals) should be provided to rule out potential deficiencies.

During the latter half of infancy adequate vitamin D and calcium are also important for attainment ofan optimal bone mass. Good sources are butter, margarine, adequate exposure to sunlight and oilyfish. In case of doubt about vitamin D status supplements can be started from one month of age.Other vitamin supplements can be delayed till one year for bottle fed infants consuming at least500ml of infant milk per day.

Moderate salt intake by choosing low salt foods and avoiding addition of extra salt during foodpreparation should be ensured.

Apart from meeting the nutritional requirements, emphasis should be placed on learning to enjoyfood. Mealtime for them should be an interesting occasion, a time they look forward to. This can be

achieved by keeping the atmosphere relaxed and easy during meals.

All parents want to give their children the best start in life.So if you help your child start on the right track, it will pave the way for a healthy attitude to food aswell as a healthy diet later in life.


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India

Home India Resources Complementary Feeding Guidelines

Nutrition & Malnutrition Resources for India

Complementary Feeding Guidelines

Home Healthy Nutrition About Essential Nutrition Actions Complementary Feeding

Guidelines

First food for the baby

The staple cereal of the family should be used to make the first food for an infant. Porridge can be

made with suji (semolina), broken wheat, atta (wheat flour) ground rice, ragi, millet etc, by using a

little water or milk, if available. Roasted flour of any cereal can be mixed with boiled water, sugar

and a little fat to make the first complementary food for the baby and could be started after

completion of 6 months of age.

Adding sugar orjaggery and ghee or oil is important as it increases the energy value of the food. In

the beginning the porridge could be made a little thinner but as the child grows older the

consistency has to be thicker. A thick porridge is more nutritious than a thin one. In case a family

can not prepare the porridge for the infant separately, pieces of half chapatti could be soaked in half

a cup of milk or boiled water, mashed properly and fed to the baby after adding sugar and fat.

Soaked and mashed chapatti could be passed through a sieve so as to get a soft semi-solid food for

the infant.

Fruits like banana, papaya, chikoo, mango etc. could be given at this age in a mashed form.

Infants could also be given reconstituted instant infant foods (see below for preparation) at this age.

Traditional foods for infantsOnce the child is eating cereal porridge well, mixed foods including cooked cereal, pulse and

vegetable(s) could be given. Most traditional foods given to infants in different parts of the country

are examples of mixed foods like khichidi, dalia, suji kheer, upma, idli, dokhla, bhaat-bhaji.

Sometimes traditional foods are given after a little modification so as to make the food more

suitable for the child. For instance, mashed idli with a little oil and sugar is a good complementary

food for the infant. Similarly bhaat can be made more nutritious by adding some cooked dal or

vegetable to it. Khichidi can be made more nutritious by adding one or two vegetables in it while

cooking.

Modified family food

In most families there is a cereal preparation in the form of roti or rice and a pulse or a vegetable

preparation. For preparing a complementary food for the infant from the foods cooked for the

family, a small amount of dal or vegetable preparation should be separated before adding spices to

it. Pieces of chapatti could be soaked in half a katori of dal and some vegetable, if available. The

mixed food could be mashed well and fed to the baby after adding a little oil. If necessary the

mixture could be passed through a sieve to get a semi-solid paste. Thus, rice or wheat preparation

could be mixed with pulse and/or vegetable to make a nutritious complementary food for the infant.

Modifying your family's food is one of the most effective ways of ensuring complementary feeding

of infants.

Instant Infant FoodsInfant food mixes can be made at home from food grains available in the household. These mixes

can be stored for at least a month and enable frequent feeding of infants.
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These are sattu-like preparations which are quite familiar in the Indian community. Take three parts

of any cereal (rice/wheat) or millet (ragi, bajra jowar), one part of any pulse

( moong/channa/ arhar) and half part of groundnuts or white til, if available. The food items

should be roasted separately, ground, mixed properly and stored in airtight containers.

For feeding, take two tablespoons of this infant food mix, add boiled hot water or milk, sugar or

jaggery and oil/ghee and mix well. Cooked and mashed carrot, pumpkin or green leafy vegetables

could be added to the porridge, if available. The infant can be fed with this food whenever freshlycooked food is not available in the family. The infant food mix could also be made into preparations

like halwa, burfi, upma, dalia, and given to the child.

Protective foods

Besides modified family food and reconstituted infant food mixes, protective foods like milk, curd,

lassi, egg, fish and fruits and vegetables are also important to help in the healthy growth of infants.

Green leafy vegetables, carrots, pumpkin and seasonal fruits like papaya, mango, chikoo, banana,

are important to ensure good vitamin A and iron status of the child.

Baby needs all foods after completion of 6 months of age namely cereals, pulses, vegetables.

particularly green leafy vegetables, fruits, milk and milk products, egg, meat and fish if non-vegetarian, oil/ghee, sugar and iodised salt in addition to breastfeeding. In addition to breastfeeding,

a diversified diet will also improve the micronutrients status of the child.

Energy Density of Infant Foods

Low energy density complementary foods given to young children and the low frequency of

feeding can result in an inadequate intake of calories. Most of the foods are bulky and a child

cannot eat more at a time. Hence it is important to give small energy dense feeds at frequent

intervals with a view to ensure adequate energy intake by the child.

Energy density in foods given to infants and young children can be increased in four different

ways:

1. By adding a teaspoonful of oil or ghee to the child's food. Fat is a concentrated source of

energy and substantially increases energy content of food without increasing the bulk. There

is no reason to feel that a child can not digest visible fat when added to food.

2. By adding a teaspoonful of sugar or jaggery to the child's food . Children need more

energy and hence adequate amounts of sugar or jaggery can be added to their food.

3. By giving malted foods. Malting reduces the viscosity of foods and hence a child can eat

more at a time. Malting is germinating whole grain cereals or pulses, drying it after

germination and grinding. Infant Food Mixes prepared after malting the cereal or pulse will

provide more energy. Flours of malted food when mixed with other foods help in reducingthe viscosity of that food. Amylase Rich Flour(ARF) is the scientific name given to flours

of malted foods and must be utilized in infant foods.

4. By feeding thick but smooth mixtures. Thin gruels do not provide enough energy. A young

infant particularly during 6-9 months requires thick but smooth mixtures as hard pieces in

the semi-solid food may cause difficulty if swallowed. Semi-solid foods for young infants

can be passed through a sieve by pressing with a ladle to ensure that the mixed food is

smooth and uniform without any big pieces or lumps.
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Introducing Solid Foods to Infants

by J. Anderson 1 (8/08)

Quick Facts...

Mother's milk or an iron-fortified formula supplies all the nutrients a baby needs during thefirst six months.

An infant's developmental readiness should determine when to feed solid foods.

Introduce single-ingredient foods one at a time at weekly intervals.

Avoid sweetened foods because they can promote tooth decay and may cause a preference

for sweets.

The introduction of semisolid and solid foods to an infant's diet has changed since 1920, when these

foods were seldom offered before 12 months. During the 1960s and 1970s, solid foods often were

fed to infants in the first three months and viewed as a milestone achievement. Many people also

believe that feeding solid foods (such as cereal) before four months will make an infant sleep

through the night. This is not true.

Many pediatric health care professionals were concerned that an early introduction of solid foods

increases the risk of overfeeding and food allergies. An infant's developmental readiness should

determine when to feed semisolid foods. In fact, breast milk or iron-fortified formula supplies all

the nutrition an infant needs in the first few months.

When to Start

The child's age, appetite and growth rate are factors that help determine when to feed solid foods.

Before feeding solid foods, the baby should be able to:

swallow and digest solid foods, sit with support and have neck and head control, and

close their lips over a spoon.

Semisolid foods and juices are a significant change and should not be started until four to six

months. This age usually coincides with the neuro-muscular development necessary to eat solid

foods.

Introduce single-ingredient foods one at a time at weekly intervals. This process helps identify any

food sensitivities the child might have. The sequence of new foods is not critical, but rice cereal

mixed with breastmilk or formula is a good first choice. Add vegetables, fruits and meats to the

infant's diet one at a time. Serving mixed foods is not recommended in the beginning. (See Table 1.)

Food can be homemade or commercially prepared, depending on the mother's needs. Choose plain,

strained fruit such as applesauce, peaches or mashed ripe bananas. Do not offer fruit desserts that

contain unnecessary sugar. They provide unneeded calories and may cause a preference for sweets

as the child gets older. Introduce juices when your baby learns to drink from a cup, around six to

nine months. Dilute adult juices half and half with water or strain them before giving to a baby.

Avoid sweet drinks; they can promote tooth decay.

To make baby food, boil the vegetables and fruits until tender. Cool. Blend until there are no lumps.

If it is too thick, add breast milk, baby formula or a little water.

Remember:

Begin with single-ingredient foods (such as rice cereal).

Wait five days between new foods.

Feed the baby when he or she is hungry, but do not overfeed.


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Make meal time a happy time.

Never force your child to finish bottles or food. This can cause the baby to ignore what his

or her body says and may lead to poor eating habits later. Watch for cues from your baby.

Starting Solids

Offer new food when your baby is in a good mood, not too tired and not too hungry. Servesolids after the baby has had a little breast milk or formula.

Hold the baby on your lap or use an infant seat or feeding chair if the baby can sit.

Use a baby spoon and place a small amount (about 1/2 teaspoon) of food on the baby's

tongue.

Give the baby time to learn to swallow these foods and get used to the new tastes.

Never use a bottle or other feeding device for semisolid food.

Do not feed baby directly from the jar; use a clean dish. Heat only the amount baby will eat

and throw leftovers away.

Make meal time fun for your infant.

Table 1: Calendar for feeding your baby for the first year of life.

Foods Birth 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 months

Breast milk or

iron-fortified

formula

Breast milk or

formula

Continue breast milk or

iron fortified formula Start whole

cow's milk from

cup.

Cereals and

grain products Iron-fortified plain infant

cereal (no fruit flavor or

mixed grains). Start with

rice, then oatmeal or

barley.

Teething

biscuits.

Mixed grain cereals. Noodles, rice. Bread

and toast strips.

Vegetables Strained, single vegetables Cookedvegetables,mashed or

chopped.

Sliced cookedvegetables for finger-

feeding.

Fruit & fruit

juices Strained, single

fruits.

Unsweetened

fruit juices

Cooked, canned,

or soft fresh fruits,

mashed or

chopped.

Sliced soft fruit for

finger feeding.

Meat and other

protein foods Strained single meats. Pureed

dried beans, peas. Plain yogurt.

Same foods,

chopped or

mashed. Cottage

cheese, mashed

egg yolk.

Same foods, bite-sized

pieces for finger

feeding. Creamy

peanut butter.

Egg white and

fish Egg white. Tender,

flaked boneless fish.

SPECIAL NOTE: Some foods may cause choking. Because of this, avoid raw carrots, nuts, seeds, raisins, grapes,

popcorn and pieces of hot dogs during baby's first year.


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Food Guide for Infant