Introducing solid foods into your child's diet is an important step, and knowing how much to mix them is essential. At the beginning, cereals should be more liquid than solid, thickening them little by little until adding fruit, vegetable and meat purée to stimulate the baby's taste buds and provide him with the right nutrients.
Ingrediants
- Single cereals
- Breast milk or powder
- Baby food for babies
Steps
Part 1 of 3: Mixing Single Cereals
Step 1. Introduce solid foods between the fourth and sixth month of life
The child is likely to start showing signs of a predisposition to solid foods, for example: he starts to hold his head up, sits securely with a support, moves his mouth as if to chew, is interested in food and is still hungry 40 minutes after drinking 1,250 ml of powdered milk or breast milk per day.
Step 2. Put 15ml of dry creams in a bowl
Choose single grains. Since your baby's immune and digestive systems have just begun to develop, it is advisable to start with easily digestible foods. Also, it is best to enter only one food at a time; in this way, if the child suffers from food allergies, you can easily identify the food to which he is allergic and stop giving it to him. The best cereals to start with are: rice, barley and oats.
Step 3. Add 60-75ml of liquid
Use the milk the baby is used to (maternal or powdered).
Step 4. Mix the cereals and milk carefully
The consistency must be very watery. If it's not liquid enough, add another 15ml of milk.
Step 5. Serve the cereals at room temperature
For now, there is no need to reheat the cereals.
Step 6. Gradually thicken the grains
After a few weeks, when your baby is able to swallow better, reduce the amount of liquid. Every two weeks or so, reduce the amount of milk by 15ml until you get the same amount of milk and cereals.
Step 7. Gradually increase the amount of grain
By about eight months of age, the baby should eat between 45 and 135 ml of cereals, divided into two to three meals a day.
Part 2 of 3: Mixing Fruits and Vegetables
Step 1. Add fruits and vegetables immediately after the grains
Common sense suggests that it is better to get the child accustomed to cereals first, even if many enjoy fruit and vegetables a few weeks after adding the cereals.
You can mix fruit and vegetable purees with grains to flavor them, especially if your child starts getting fed up with the taste of grains after trying more flavorful foods. Since cereals are rich in nutrients your baby needs, mixing them with fruits and vegetables is a better alternative than completely eliminating them from his diet
Step 2. Mix the grains as usual
For example, a five month old baby can consume 30ml of cereal with 45ml of breast milk or powder.
Step 3. Add 5ml of fruit or vegetable puree
Gradually increase the doses as you see that the baby is able to swallow better and is more willing to accept new foods.
- Start with light orange and yellow vegetables, such as sweet potatoes and carrots, then move on to green vegetables, such as peas and green beans.
- Try some simple fruit, such as pureed apples, peaches, and pears before moving on to more exotic fruits.
- Insert one new food at a time. As mentioned before, it is easier to identify any allergies by entering only a new type of food.
Step 4. Wait three days before adding new food
If there is no allergic reaction after three days, it can be assumed that the child is not allergic to any of the foods tested. Switch to the new food by mixing it with the cereals respecting the same proportions and without adding another type of fruit or vegetable.
Step 5. Slowly blend multiple fruits and vegetables into the grains
When the child is able to eat a plate of cereals (60 ml) mixed with 60-120 ml of liquid and after checking for the absence of allergic reactions to fruit and vegetables, you can start experimenting with different food combinations.
At first, prefer simple foods, such as sweet potatoes and squash, apples and sweet potatoes or green beans and pears. Add 15-30ml of each homogenized grain food and mix thoroughly
Part 3 of 3: Mix the Meat
Step 1. Wait at least the eighth month of life
Many children have a hard time digesting protein-rich foods such as meat. Talk to your pediatrician to decide when to introduce the meat.
Step 2. Insert one type of meat at a time
Wait at least three days before offering other types of meat to allow the immune system to develop any allergic reactions.
Step 3. Mix 60ml of cereal with 60ml of liquid
Use the same grains and liquid you've used up until now.
Step 4. Blend 15-30ml of homogenized meat
Turkey, chicken, and beef are the best meats to start with.
Step 5. Gradually mix the fruits and vegetables as well
You can make a whole meal in puree. Mix 60 ml of cereal, 60 ml of breast milk or powder, 45 ml of mashed meat and 45 ml of fruit or vegetable puree, such as apple, carrot, zucchini or pear puree.
