Parents worry for their kids regardless of age. They worry about their kids sleeping enough or too much. They worry about spending enough time with their kids and encouraging autonomous play. They wonder whether that sneeze was airborne or if they should contact the doctor.
Is Your Child Getting Enough Nutrient-Dense Foods?
One of the most prevalent concerns is whether their kid consumes enough nutrient-dense meals. From the time they introduce solid meals, parents think about what to give and how to serve it, so their kid enjoys it. They may fear how their kid will survive the all-too-common finicky eating period.
RELATED: New Parents’ Guide To Feeding Your Baby The First Year
Setting The Stage For Healthy Eating Habits (6-12 Months)
After growing on breastmilk, formula, or both, newborns start eating solid food during complementary feeding. It encourages subsequent experimentation with new foods and healthy eating.
Continue To Offer Breastmilk Or Formula First
Breastmilk and formula will provide most of a baby’s nutrients until around one year old. Parents may relax knowing their kids are receiving enough nourishment while trying new meals.
Consider Implementing Baby-Led Weaning
Baby-Led Weaning (BLW) teaches a variety of meals, including solids, to newborns without caregivers. Instead of spoon-feeding, parents safely prepare meals to encourage self-feeding, discovery, and autonomy.
Research demonstrates that introducing most foods early on may minimize fussy eating, acknowledge inborn skills, allow for self-paced feeding, enhance skill development, eliminate nutritional gaps, and even lower the risk of obesity. No worries if BLW is new to you or your carer! BLW materials are abundant online.
Skip Rice & Wheat Cereal, Choose Vegetables, Fruits, & Legumes
Babies start with bland grain-based cereals. These cereals are nutrient-poor but may be supplemented as infants eat various meals. They are primarily carbohydrates and lack iron, vitamin A, vitamin D, vitamin C, and zinc, which newborns need to start supplementing at this age.
Don’t Add Salt Or Sugar To Foods
Adults find saltless and sugarless dishes tasteless. All foods are novel and intriguing to newborns. Babies, whose brains are growing rapidly, are more vulnerable to the effects of added sugar and salt, making them more prone to seek out high-sodium and high-sugar diets. Salt and sugar may also harm young kidneys.
Strategies For Introducing Nutrient-Dense Foods – Children
Toddlers grow rapidly. Growth requires healthy diets. After a year, youngsters should eat most of their nourishment. After the toddler years, children are increasingly autonomous. They have a strong sense of self, which typically includes a definite list of foods they enjoy and don’t like, leaving little opportunity to try new things. This period is marked by picky eating, which may stress and worry parents.
RELATED: 4 Tricks to Turn Your Fussy Eater Around
Prioritize Food Exposure
Many parents make the mistake of not giving their kids a dish they previously disliked. Even if they refuse to eat it, they may