Children Baby Food

[Kasandra]

I am making my own baby food for my 8 month old girl - buy the fruit but make the veggies meals.

Which veggies are good for protein and also iron.
Try to make a mixture of different veg but always include a green one.

This week was sweet potato, brocolli and pumpkin.

 

[Second Summer]

My daughter likes to eat plain, uncooked tofu, which is perhaps weird, and may not be available or affordable some places, but it's got plenty of protein. She also tolerates a little refried beans on tortilla wraps. And she has been known to swallow peas if they're in tomato soup.

To be honest, I don't know too much about the subject... I would think babies, once they start eating solids, can eat the same protein-rich and iron-rich foods that adults eat. One thing though, there is a sort of hierarchy of foods to which babies are likely to react badly (as in food intolerances or allergies). So it's a good idea to start with the ones that are less likely and to not introduce too many new foods at a time, so that if she has a bad reaction to something, then it's easier to tell which food is the culprit. I think if she does have a bad reaction to something, it's possible that it's something temporary, so you can try to introduce the same food in small quantities at a later time and watch closely.

 

[thefadedone]

I am making my own baby food for my 8 month old girl - buy the fruit but make the veggies meals.

Which veggies are good for protein and also iron.
Try to make a mixture of different veg but always include a green one.

This week was sweet potato, brocolli and pumpkin.

My best friend does this as well. All vegan foods of course. Her son loves tofu, beans, veggies and whole grains. Black beans, lentils, and chickpeas are his favorite. She often makes homemade hummus and other types of bean dips/spreads. Beans mixed with grains like farro, kasha, brown rice, millet and barley are also some of his favorites.

 

[ledboots]

I agree with all of Indian Summer's great post. ↑ I'm sure there are a million new ways to do this, but when my kids were babies I used this to make our foods edible for baby. I brought it everywhere, so easy. http://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B0030AHK5A/ref=mp_s_a_1?qid=1358357200&sr=8-2&pi=SL75

 

[IamJen]

Aw...new profile pic! Cute!

As IS mentioned, our bean is really fond of cold tofu. In fact, she just had some tonight. She'll eat it slightly cooked too, but prefers it "raw", so I just chopped off about 10 pieces before sauteeing ours. She's pretty picky about beans so far. She really liked butter beans, just plain but warmed when she was smaller, but has gone off them now. If I'm creative, she gets legumes in her though. She likes baked beans, beans in tomato soup, red lentils disguised in couscous, lentils in spaghetti sauce. She is a big fan of seitan as well. She also likes these tofu hot dogs that we get here and has just started getting interested in some nut burgers (though we have to be careful because they have pieces of cashew in them)

Some other ideas:
Whole grain pasta/rice/couscous/breads all contain protein.
Oatmeal. Your munckin is probably a bit young for dried fruits, but soon you could add them and add an iron punch that way.
Nut butters. If you spread it very thinly, she can have these on bread, etc. Freya's kind of hit and miss as to whether she likes them.
Soya yogurt and small amounts of soya milk (only because you want her to mostly be drinking breastmilk/formula)
hummus..Freya loves this on a tortilla particularly, also some good fat in there

We did baby-led weaning with Freya. It's become sort of trendy these days, but honestly, it is so wonderful! She was every so happy to try those first chunks of sweet potato and avocado. After weeks of trying to grab my food, I think she thought "finally". I am also convinced that it helps babies' pincer grasp and hand-eye coordination. I have this video of Freya wolfing down whole blueberries at 7 months old, picking them up herself and shaking with glee. (Oi, I just had to go and watch it now). Anyway, I'm absolutely a fan of baby-led.

 

[KLS52]

I never think of vegetables as being a good source of protein but I found this when I did a google search.

Vegetables

Although neither celery, green onions nor radishes contain protein, most vegetables do contain small amounts. One medium bell pepper, carrot, onion or tomato provides 1 g of protein. Other vegetables containing 1 g of protein include 1/3 cucumber, 3/4 cup green beans, 1.5 cups leaf lettuce, 1/2 medium summer squash, 1/6 head of iceberg lettuce and 1/12 head of green cabbage, according to the FDA. Five spears of asparagus, 1/6 head of cauliflower and one medium sweet potato each contain 2 g protein. A medium white potato or five medium mushrooms provides 3 g protein. Vegetable portions containing 4 g protein include one medium stalk of broccoli or the kernels from a medium ear of sweet corn.


Read more: http://www.livestrong.com/article/277947-what-fruit-and-vegetables-contain-protein/#ixzz2IBCerXcA

 

[Kasandra]

thanks everyone, i am going to blend some butter beans into her baby food to begin with.

my baby girl also struggles on and off from constipation. sometimes it gets really bad so i avoid cereals, rice, patato, cooked carrots etc - did google a bit and just try to avoid the foods they mention that can lead to constipation.

i buy her fruit purees but was thinking of making it myself as well. any ideas there?

she also gets a little bit of flax seed oil a day to help releave constipation.

 

[thefadedone]

homemade applesauce
pureed pears
pureed bananas
pureed/strained prunes

 

[shyvas]

thanks everyone, i am going to blend some butter beans into her baby food to begin with.

my baby girl also struggles on and off from constipation. sometimes it gets really bad so i avoid cereals, rice, patato, cooked carrots etc - did google a bit and just try to avoid the foods they mention that can lead to constipation.

i buy her fruit purees but was thinking of making it myself as well. any ideas there?

she also gets a little bit of flax seed oil a day to help releave constipation.

Your daughter is very lucky to be bought up on a veg* diet.

Tha above foods that you mention i.e. carrots, cereal, rice ( cooked rice water does contipate) and potatoes don't cause constipation.
They are essential for a healthy balanced diet. You should avoid processed food including cereal and sugar. Is she getting enought liquid as this may cause constipation.
Have you tried making her a simple vegetable soup with carrots, leeks and courgettes with some couscous, millet, brown rice or small wholemeal pasta ? Add pureed fruit to a yogurt.

All vegetables and fruit and wholemeal cereal are high in fiber and should be eaten on a daily basis. She is at the right age to be given these food and certainly will like them at a later age and not be such a difficult eater, like so many children today.

 

[thefadedone]

Your daughter is very lucky to be bought up on a veg* diet.

Tha above foods that you mention i.e. carrots, cereal, rice ( cooked rice water does contipate) and potatoes don't cause constipation.
They are essential for a healthy balanced diet. You should avoid processed food including cereal and sugar. Is she getting enought liquid as this may cause constipation.

I was under the impression that white rice constipates, but brown rice does not since it's full of fiber. Same with potatoes. Sweet potatoes are better than white. Carrots and high fiber/whole grain cereals are also foods that are recommended to prevent or relieve constipation not cause it from what I've read.

 

[IamJen]

The key with fiber/constipation is the amount of water you drink. This was part of the problem with Freya when she struggled as we switched to solids. You can eat fiber until it's coming out of your ears, but if you're not drinking enough, it just sits there in your gut. Ow. There are however, foods that are likely to cause constipation in children (though not always), such as bananas or applesauce.

Also, it's important to note that whole grains are generally recommended to be introduced later than fruits/veg. No longer is it recommended that babies avoid them, just that they take it slow, as some whole grains (particularly wheat) can be hard for immature tummies to digest.

Kassandra, we used flax oil with much success too; I was relieved after having a couple of turns with suppositories before that. There are lots of food items that can help with constipation too, they just work to varying degrees. Peaches still show up on the menu here, even at a year, if we're having trouble. Dr. Sears has a good page about natural rememdies: http://www.askdrsears.com/topics/childhood-illnesses/constipation. I know this thread's about baby food, but just wanted to put in two pence, since F struggled for awhile too.

On the fruit purees, she should be able to have anything except citrus at this age, but if she's only had purees so far, be sure to strain peaches, etc. very well. You might try giving her small bites of cut banana to try as well.

 

[shyvas]

The key with fiber/constipation is the amount of water you drink. This was part of the problem with Freya when she struggled as we switched to solids. You can eat fiber until it's coming out of your ears, but if you're not drinking enough, it just sits there in your gut. Ow. There are however, foods that are likely to cause constipation in children (though not always), such as bananas or applesauce.

Also, it's important to note that whole grains are generally recommended to be introduced later than fruits/veg. No longer is it recommended that babies avoid them, just that they take it slow, as some whole grains (particularly wheat) can be hard for immature tummies to digest.

Kassandra, we used flax oil with much success too; I was relieved after having a couple of turns with suppositories before that. There are lots of food items that can help with constipation too, they just work to varying degrees. Peaches still show up on the menu here, even at a year, if we're having trouble. Dr. Sears has a good page about natural rememdies: http://www.askdrsears.com/topics/childhood-illnesses/constipation. I know this thread's about baby food, but just wanted to put in two pence, since F struggled for awhile too.

On the fruit purees, she should be able to have anything except citrus at this age, but if she's only had purees so far, be sure to strain peaches, etc. very well. You might try giving her small bites of cut banana to try as well.

I strongly disagree and apples are one of the healthiest fruit that can be consumed. There is a saying 'An Apple a Day Keeps the Doctor Away' which I have always found true to this day.
Eating apples and bananas as well as having a healthy balanced diet with plenty of fluids should be beneficial.

'Perhaps the most obvious benefits from eating apples is that they are low in calories (about 95 for an average apple) yet are high in soluble fibre (about four grams per average apple),’ says Dr Tim Kenny.
‘Soluble fibre helps to prevent gut conditions such as constipation, piles and bowel cancer, and may help to lower your cholesterol level. Regular apple eaters seem to have a reduced risk of developing some cancers and heart disease, too. This is attributed to the rich source of chemicals, called antioxidants, in apples. They are also a good source of vitamin C.’

As for bananas only green banans constipate if eaten in large quantites. Ripe bananas are full of fibre and potassium which will stop diarrhea.**

• According to Buydominica.com, the ripeness of a banana will determine whether it makes you constipated. Unripened, green bananas can make you constipated. These bananas are full of heavy starches, which can exacerbate constipation.
  On the other hand, a ripe banana, because of its fiber content, can help move the bowels through the intestinal tract so, in that respect, bananas are good for relieving constipation.

The potassium that is found in ripe bananas will help stop diarrhea. The potassium content will replace needed electrolytes in your body. An enzyme called fructooligosaccharide is in bananas, and it hinders the fermentation of bananas once they are in your intestinal track, which helps prevent constipation for some people. This enzyme also assists in natural digestion.​

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[ledboots]

Babies digest things differently, and often foods react differently with babies than they do with adults.

"Bananas are a great finger-food for babies, who often love their sweet taste. But bananas may also cause constipation for your baby if he isn't getting enough liquids and fiber to balance his diet, DrGreene.com says. If you give your baby some bananas, be sure to also feed him other fruits like peaches and pears that contain more fiber, and have your baby drink either apple juice or prune juice twice each day to soften your infant's stools, recommends DrGreene.com. You should avoid giving your baby bananas when he is constipated, University of California San Francisco states, and you can give your infant one to two ounces of diluted prune juice every time you notice that he is constipated. MayoClinic.com suggests adding pureed prunes or pears to your baby's cereal to increase fiber and try to decrease constipation.

APPLESAUCE

Your baby may suffer constipation from eating too much applesauce, states University of California San Francisco. If that happens, you may be able to clear up the problem by simply substituting another fruit with more fiber, such as plums, for the applesauce. DrGreene.com suggests giving your baby high-fiber fruits like plums, apricots, prunes, pears and peaches if applesauce or another low-fiber food is causing him to struggle with constipation. Be sure to contact your baby's pediatrician if dietary changes don't clear up his constipation, or if the constipation is accompanied by irritability or vomiting, MayoClinic.com advises."
http://www.livestrong.com/article/350712-baby-foods-that-cause-constipation/

 

[IamJen]

Re: apples/applesauce, it's only applesauce that tends to be problematic sometimes.

 

[Kasandra]

thanks everyone - much appreciate all the help.

You all rule )

Think I should up her daily in take of water / juice, maybe she is not getting in enough fluids.

 

[Kasandra]

sorry wrong icon