By the age of 4-5 months of a baby's life, most young mothers begin to think about introducing solid foods into their diet. It is very difficult to make a choice in favor of this or that product, because store shelves are lined with numerous jars and boxes with a wide variety of baby food. This is fruit or vegetable puree, and dairy-free or milk-based cereals, cookies, etc.
What cereals to start with
Experts do not recommend starting the acquaintance of crumbs with adult food with fruit purees, in their opinion, vegetable purees are much more useful. Porridge is in no way inferior to them in this, because they are one of the main sources of carbohydrates, iron, dietary fiber, selenium, various vitamins, fats and proteins.
First meal porridge should be gluten-free, i.e. protein of food gluten in cereals, because it is not always well tolerated by children. Rice, buckwheat and corn are gluten free.
The most useful of these cereals is rice. It contains a lot of dietary fiber. Its only drawback is its tendency to cause constipation. You can avoid this if you choose industrial-made rice porridge for the first feeding - it is made from rice flour, which does not use crushed rice in the preparation.
Corn contains slightly less dietary fiber, but much richer in protein, iron and fiber than rice. Buckwheat is considered one of the safest cereals for complementary foods. It is easily digested, energizes the body, is rich in B vitamins, does not cause allergies, contains many proteins, minerals, and is especially indicated for children suffering from anemia.
How to cook and when to give
In industrial cereals, complex carbohydrates are broken down into simpler ones to facilitate assimilation, in addition, this allows you to preserve the sweetness of the grain. When purchasing such cereals, you can not be afraid that pesticides or heavy metal salts are present in them. However, they can cause an unexpected reaction in the child's body, especially for cereals with the addition of milk and fruits.
It is best to cook porridge in water, without adding salt and sugar. If the child is breastfed, you can add a little mother's milk to it, if artificial - then his favorite formula.
It is best to introduce your baby to new food in the morning - after all, the time for activity is ahead, and cereals are energizing. In addition, it makes it possible to observe the reaction of the child's body to a new product. It is best to offer complementary foods to the baby at the end of the feed, so as not to stress him by giving him milk or formula to drink.
"Dangerous" porridge
Porridge, like any other food, can cause allergies. Rye, oats and wheat are considered the most allergenic. Proteins like gluten, found in wheat and rye, hordein in barley, and avenin in oats, can cause similar reactions.
Allergies can also be caused by milk powder and various fruit additives in industrial cereals, therefore, for the first complementary feeding, cereals should be purchased on a dairy-free basis and without additives.
In addition, you should not cook porridge for children under one year old with cow's milk. Milk contains sodium, which is hardly absorbed by the child's body, loading the kidneys. Cow's milk porridge can contribute to the development of anemia in a child, and sometimes cause a slight bleeding in the intestines.
