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And also find the best food for 6 month old baby
When it comes to a baby, 6 months is a very long time. By the time a baby is 6 months old, he or she may be able to roll over, sit unsupported and may even slide around on his/her tummy.
This is also the time you can start introducing solid foods to your baby.
Here is where it can get a little tricky for new mothers. After all, babies are fickle and what they like one day, maybe something they dislike the next. You also need to watch out for allergic reactions. Thus, it is always best to start with home-cooked foods.
Every baby grows at a different rate. Hence, just because your neighbour is feeding her child solid food, does not mean you have to do so too.
Firstly, your baby should be able to sit upright to be able to eat solid food. Do not feed your child while he/she is lying down. The baby should also be able to hold his/her head upright without any support.
Next, your baby should be able to open and close his/her mouth around a spoon. You should not need to physically open and close the baby’s mouth. He/she should also show signs of being hungry after being breastfed. Every mother likes her baby to have chubby cheeks but overfeeding your baby is not a good idea.
At six months, your baby is growing at a fast pace. Thus, you must ensure that all their nutritional needs are being met. Let’s take a look at how the different food groups affect your baby’s development.
As your baby grows, the amount of food he/she needs increases. For a six-month-old baby, one teaspoon or 5-10ml of pureed vegetables or porridge is a good amount to start with. Your baby may even start with just half a teaspoon of food at a time.
The best time to introduce new foods to a baby is in the morning or during lunch. Ideally, you should introduce only one food at a time. See how your baby reacts to it for a few days and only then introduce something different.
Make every bite count with our Baby Foods(By Age)
Do not even think about giving your baby a spoon of your own food. Your baby has a very delicate digestive system and cannot handle even the mildest of spices. In addition, salt and sugar should be avoided until the baby is at least 1 year old. This is because salt and sugar increase stress on the kidneys.
A simple porridge made of mashed rice is the ideal first food for your baby. Rice is easy to digest and is an excellent source of carbohydrates and vitamins. This porridge may be made in water of in breast milk.
If you don’t feel up to making fresh porridge every day, you could consider natural, homemade porridges like ByGrandma’s Rice Porridge
Once your child can eat more than a spoon of rice porridge, you may introduce pureed fruits to their diet. Bananas, apples, chikoos and pear are popular fruits for babies. While bananas can be mashed and fed as is, apples and pears may be steamed and then mashed or pureed.
Like fruits, you can also give your baby mashed or pureed vegetables. Carrots, potatoes, pumpkin, beans et car packed with vitamins and minerals that can help your baby grow stronger. These may also be steamed before being pureed.
You could even mix a little mashed fruit or vegetable with porridge.
You could also try giving your baby boiled and mashed lentils or dal. The water used to boil the dals is also very nutritious for your baby.
Alternatively, you could make a porridge of mixed rice and dal. A porridge can also be made with other grains such as wheat, barley, oats and millets. To make a gruel with these cereals, the must first be ground and then cooked with water or milk.
ByGrandma has a number of different types of cereal-based porridges for your little one. These have no preservative and artificial flavouring added and hence are as good as your homemade porridge.
No two babies are the same. It is not abnormal for a baby to develop an allergy to certain foods. An allergic reaction could be in the form of a rash, a tummy ache, vomiting or diarrhoea. If your baby shows signs of an allergic reaction, stop whatever you are feeding your baby immediately and consult a doctor as soon as possible.
Feeding a baby is not an easy task. Here are a few tips that could help.
Don’t be in a hurry to get your baby to eat solid food. Start with a teaspoon at a time and gradually increase the quantity. If your baby likes it, he/she will ask for more on their own.
That said, introduce your baby to one food at a time. This helps you understand how your baby reacts to different foods, which ones they like and which ones they don’t and helps identify foods they may be allergic to.
When you puree food for your little one, make sure there are no lumps in them. Lumps can make your baby gag or even choke.
Lastly, establish a feeding routine with your little one. Always feed your baby in a quiet place where you have no distractions.
Happy Feeding!