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The infant nutrition regimen is an aid in planning the feeding of a child from the first day of his life, prepared by specialists in this field, including doctors, nutritionists and behaviorists. It is worth getting acquainted with their opinion and applying the guidelines in the toddler’s menu.
The infant nutrition regimen, tables containing precise information about the calendar of introducing new products to the child’s diet, are always prepared in accordance with the latest knowledge. Both medical aspects and knowledge of products and their effects on the human body are taken into account, which changes from time to time with the development of various fields of science.
A very important message of this document is also making adults aware that it is the parent or guardian of the toddler who decides what dishes and products will be served to the child and at what times. However, even an infant decides whether to eat a given meal, and if so, in what amounts. So parents and guardians should stop worrying if the baby does not eat carrots, for example, because maybe he simply does not like it. The same is true of the portion size. The child will eat as much as he wants and this should be respected.
Infant nutrition scheme and breastfeeding and artificial feeding
As experts invariably claim, breastfeeding should be the basis of infant nutrition, at least until the age of six months. During this period, the toddler should not receive other foods, including water and juices. The only exception are children who, despite breastfeeding, have an unmet need for iron. Then other products should be included in the diet much sooner than after 6 months of life. Experts also believe that breastfeeding should be used in the first 12 months of life. If the baby and mother want to continue this type of feeding, they can make an individual decision, but the diet of a one-year-old baby must be supplemented with other products.
Specialists who deal with the development of the nutrition regimen also emphasize that the formula also fully meets all the nutritional requirements of infants. The basis of the modified milk is properly modified cow or soy milk. Experts developing the recipe of such products, of course, follow the mother’s milk and the finally modified milk perfectly resembles breast milk.
Infant nutrition scheme – follow-up products
For parents and caregivers of toddlers, the infant nutrition scheme provides, in principle, all the necessary information in the field of nutrition. Complementary foods are also included in it. As a rule, when an infant turns XNUMX weeks old, it is ready to accept food of a non-liquid consistency. Therefore, the next products listed in the tables should be included in his diet. Introducing new elements of the menu should not start later than in the twenty-sixth week of life. Then the child’s unconditional reflex to remove all foreign bodies from the mouth, which occurs in the period of newborns and infants, disappears. In addition, the toddler grows and gains weight, and therefore also increases his need for other nutrients that are simply not present in mother’s milk or ready-made formula.
However, the makers of the infant nutrition regimen make it clear that introducing new products must be carried out slowly and with great care. The rule that applies in this respect is to administer one new product at a specified time and in quantities not greater than three or four teaspoons. The child should then be carefully monitored and checked for any adverse reaction in the body.
Many doubts are raised by the number of meals and the child’s portion size. The infant nutrition regimen clearly states that a six-month-old toddler who is breastfed or bottle fed should also receive two or three complementary meals, depending on his appetite. Older infants from nine months of age should eat three or four complementary meals, and in between they may receive one or two snacks in the form of a piece of fruit or bread. Specialists also point out that bottle-fed babies may have a greater appetite for other foods.