When to start complementary feeding?
When it is appropriate to start complementary feeding varies from child to child. Some children are already ready for complementary feeding at five months. This is when mothers should really start giving their offspring their first porridge – even though they may have wanted to exclusively breastfeed for the first six months. The child’s needs are more important than any plans the mothers may have.
There are also babies who are content with milk for longer. But by six months at the latest, every baby needs more than its milk meals.
With the introduction of complementary foods, milk meals are gradually replaced. However, this does not necessarily mean that breastfeeding is over: even if you are already feeding complementary foods, you can continue to breastfeed your child for as long as you both wish.
The right time to introduce complementary foods
Signals from your child will tell you when you can start feeding baby food:
The baby food stays in the mouth
Interest in solid food
Your child is suddenly enormously interested in your food? This is another indication that you should introduce complementary foods soon.
Drooling, swallowing, smacking sounds
Does your baby drool, swallow and smack at the sight of solid food? Then his mouth is really watering. The child discovers his interest in solid food exactly when he is ready for complementary food. Surprise him with his first baby food!
Feeding complementary food – this is how it works!
Supplementary food is everything that the child eats – apart from breast milk or ready-made infant milk: Vegetables, fruit, potatoes, cereals, meat or fish. Here are the most important tips:
- Initially, the various ingredients are mashed or finely pureed. Later, the child can also eat bite-sized soft morsels on its own.
- Unlike with breastfeeding and bottle-feeding, your child should sit upright when eating baby food. Otherwise, he or she will choke too easily. You can put your child on your lap for feeding.
- Plastic spoons are better for feeding than metal ones, which can feel uncomfortably cold in the mouth.
- Do not load the spoon too full!
- Make sure that the porridge is not too hot.
Which complementary food is the right one?
Grains or vegetables? From a health perspective, it doesn’t matter. Contrary to earlier assumptions, cereals introduced at an early age are more likely to protect your child from gluten intolerance than to promote it. It doesn’t matter whether carrots or parsnips are used first to make baby food.
Baby food from a jar
Of course, baby food from a jar is practical: there’s no need for cleaning, cooking or pureeing. In addition, ready-made complementary foods are prepared very gently today, and the ingredients are well controlled.
The disadvantages: Baby food from a jar is comparatively expensive. And the battle of the materials is not good for the environment either.
Preparing baby food yourself
Some parents want to know exactly what they are feeding their child. Then it’s time to cook it yourself! It’s best to use organic products that are free of pesticides. Process the vegetables as fresh as possible: otherwise vitamins are quickly lost. Or use frozen vegetables. They are shock-frozen immediately after harvesting. Therefore, they contain more vitamins than some fresh vegetables that have been stored for a longer period of time.
It is practical to prepare larger quantities and then freeze them in portions. You can read about what you should bear in mind in the article “Freezing baby food”.
By the way, salt and other spices are not taboo for babies. However, you should not season the baby food too generously: The aroma is exciting enough for your baby. You should also avoid spicy seasonings, sugar and artificial sweeteners.
Caution: Honey is taboo in the first year of life! It can contain dangerous germs that cause the dreaded infant botulism.
From the seventh month of life, you can also feed meat, fish and eggs in pureed or mashed form. Beef in particular is a good source of iron during this period.
Vegetarian baby food
Parents who are vegetarians themselves may also want to feed their child accordingly. But children are not small adults. Vegetarian nutrition must be planned especially carefully for them.
Vegetarian complementary food
If you want to feed your child a vegetarian diet, you must be well informed so that he or she does not develop a nutrient deficiency. Above all, the adequate supply of iron must be planned carefully for vegetarian diets. Good suppliers are, for example, legumes and some types of cereals.
Supplementary food vegan
If your child lacks certain nutrients, it cannot develop properly. In the worst case, lifelong impairments remain.
Supplementary food – allergies and intolerances
Gluten, histamine or milk: allergies and intolerances to foods are on the rise. For a long time, it was believed that the later a child came into contact with common triggers of allergies and intolerances, the lower the risk. Today, we know that just the opposite is true: with early contact, your child’s immune system learns to tolerate the potential problem makers in food.
Feeding finger food instead of porridge
Children don’t learn to eat independently with a spoon until the second year of life. Snacking with your fingers works earlier – and is great fun for your child. They can pick pieces of bread and put them in their mouths, eat soft slices of banana or softly cooked vegetables. However, your child will not be able to chew properly even when the first teeth are already showing.
Baby-led weaning
Baby-led weaning is popular with many mothers. You offer your child a variety of soft foods to choose from. This is said to offer the following advantages:
- The child should instinctively reach for foods whose nutrients he or she needs at the moment.
To ensure that the child is safely full, you should always offer him additional milk during the transition phase.
Criticism of baby-led weaning
Critics are concerned about baby-led weaning:
- malnutrition of the child, especially iron deficiency, since small children cannot yet chew meat
- @ dangerous swallowing of too large chunks
Read more on the topic in the article: Baby-led Weaning
When the child eats very little
Help, my child eats like a bird! Whether it’s classic porridge or finger food, most parents are concerned when their child eats very little. However, the amount of complementary food required varies greatly from child to child and can also fluctuate greatly from day to day. If your child is active and growing and thriving normally, there is no need to worry.