When To Start Baby Food For Your Infant

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WHEN TO START BABY FOOD FOR YOUR INFANT?
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What the health experts have to say?

• Your baby should be breastfed for the first six
  months before you offer him solid food.
• Post six months has been chosen as the ideal time
  to introduce solid food to the baby because
  solids readiness depends on the maturity of
  babys digestive tract and babys developmental
  readiness for solids.
• Most babies are developmentally ready for solids
  somewhere between six and eight months.

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Signs that indicate your baby is ready for solid
food

• Your baby becomes more curious about your food
  and tries to grab it off of your plate or watch
  you eagerly as you eat your dinner.
• He has lost the tongue-thrust reflex and doesn't
  automatically push solids out of his mouth with
  his tongue.
• Your baby becomes dissatisfied with breast milk
  and becomes hungrier more frequently than usual.
• Your baby can exert more control over his body
  and can sit up well without support.

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Appropriate food for your baby

• Start out with simple, pureed or well-mashed
  foods like cooked carrot, parsnip, potato, apple,
  ripe pear or mango.
• Nutritional and medical researchers recommend
  that parents start out with single grain
  carbohydrates, such as baby oatmeal.
• Iron-fortified cereals like Cerelac, contain
  vitamins and minerals along with essential fatty
  acids.
• Small portions of well cooked meat, poultry,
  fish, yoghurt, lentils or cheese can also be
  given but, at later stages.

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Points to note

• Baby's appetite will start to vary from one feed
  to the next.
• If he keeps his mouth shut, turns away, or starts
  playing with his food, that means he is full.
• Quantity and quality of Baby food he eats over
  the whole week is more important than what he
  eats in a day.
• Continue giving your baby breastmilk or in
  between mealtimes.
• As he gradually eats more solids, the number of
  milk feeds will start to decrease.

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THANK YOU