Complementary feeding at 4 months: scheme and rules

What can be given as a first complementary food?

The list of dishes recommended for the first feeding is very limited - these are vegetable and fruit purees, cottage cheese, as well as porridge (but doctors advise giving them first of all to children who do not gain weight).

Buckwheat and rice cereals do not contain gluten, therefore they are great for complementary foods.

Complementary foods and allergies

Many mothers are wondering whether it is possible to give a child already at 4 months of age foods that can cause an allergic reaction?

The answer to this question is not just possible, but even necessary. Indeed, at 4-5 months, the child develops immune tolerance to the allergen, and doctors in the course of numerous studies could not prove that the timing of the introduction of complementary foods affects the occurrence of allergies and immunological diseases.

But some restrictions are still worth observing, for example, do not add salt and sugar to the first feeding.

What to make vegetable puree for complementary foods?

Choose healthy foods that contain protein, vitamins and minerals.

There are not very many such products and it will be easy for mom to remember them:

• Cauliflower,
• Zucchini,
• Pumpkin,
• Broccoli.

Do not be afraid to give your child puree that has a specific smell, this is normal. Another thing is that children, as a rule, eat bitter foods much less willingly than sweet ones. Monitor your baby's reactions to different tastes and, if necessary, give preference to fruit purees.

You can cook such mashed potatoes from apples, bananas, sweet pears.

Fruits are also healthy, you will find the same minerals and vitamins in them, in addition, apples are rich in iron, a very important trace element for children.

Prune puree helps kids get rid of constipation.

Porridge for the first feeding

Doctors call buckwheat and rice porridges the best for feeding. They can be cooked with or without milk.

These cereals themselves are useful for the growing body, and their nutritional value is much higher than that of mashed potatoes. Rice protects the intestines due to its ability to envelop its walls, and buckwheat provides the body with useful fibers.

If you add cereal to complementary foods, you will help the entire gastrointestinal system to work optimally.

And, of course, we note the importance of cereals for children who have not gained weight.

General rules for the introduction of complementary foods at 4 months

1. Complementary feeding time

It is more convenient to give your baby a new product during the morning feeding (from 9 to 11 o'clock). This will make it easier for you to track how the complementary foods were received.

2. Child's condition

Remember that it is not only what you give your baby that matters, but also how ready he is for new food. Therefore, pediatricians do not advise giving complementary foods if the child is tired or capricious. Choose the right moment.

3. Volume

Start with ½ teaspoon of complementary foods, gradually bringing the amount of food to 2 tablespoons. But don't take this advice as a rule of thumb. If the child has only eaten one spoon of the two, do not force him, try offering food at a different moment during the day.

4. The norm for a 4-year-old child is the amount of food from 80 to 200 grams. But only for foods that are not allergic.

But what if an allergy appears?

According to pediatricians, a mother should stop giving her child a product that has developed intolerance for 3 days.

Then you should try to give the baby the product again. If the adverse reaction recurs, consultation with a pediatrician is necessary.

5. Introduce a new product without any extraneous components. First, make a simple squash puree, and then mix it with the other ingredients.

Give a dish of mixed products when the child has already become acquainted with all the products separately.

It is not advisable to introduce new products three days before and after vaccinations.

Recall

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