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nutrition question on year old
I'm new at this, so I'm reading some books. The consensus seems that
after a year of age you change from formula to milk. When reading about iron, the books say "use iron fortified cereal". The baby cereal and the formula are both iron fortified. However, I'd rather start moving into whole grains rather than the precooked, prechewed Gerber baby rice or mixed grain cereal. Tastes like cardboard! If I do that I'm switching away from both iron fortified formula and cereal. What whole grain iron fortified cereals are out there? I don't care if it is too 'big grained', as I can grind it finer. Food after food says "0% iron" on the RDA. Baby is being raised veggie, so I can't just feed beef and assume he's getting enough. Another question. FOB (father of baby) is hot to get him away from cow's milk, but is willing to allow goat's milk. I know my ex hub was raised a veggie on goat's milk (in India) and grew up healthy, and the carton doesn't have a warning about human kids. Anyone know of a problem with goat's milk specifically related to babies? TIA blacksalt |
#2
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nutrition question on year old
In article ,
blacksalt wrote: I'm new at this, so I'm reading some books. The consensus seems that after a year of age you change from formula to milk. When reading about iron, the books say "use iron fortified cereal". The baby cereal and the formula are both iron fortified. However, I'd rather start moving into whole grains rather than the precooked, prechewed Gerber baby rice or mixed grain cereal. Tastes like cardboard! If I do that I'm switching away from both iron fortified formula and cereal. What whole grain iron fortified cereals are out there? I don't care if it is too 'big grained', as I can grind it finer. Food after food says "0% iron" on the RDA. Baby is being raised veggie, so I can't just feed beef and assume he's getting enough. Another question. FOB (father of baby) is hot to get him away from cow's milk, but is willing to allow goat's milk. I know my ex hub was raised a veggie on goat's milk (in India) and grew up healthy, and the carton doesn't have a warning about human kids. Anyone know of a problem with goat's milk specifically related to babies? TIA blacksalt I know of no problems with goats' milk, and knew several families that sought it out because they had family members with problems with cows' milk. I fed my children almost no "baby food" at all; mostly they went straight from breast milk to table food; I occassionally used a food mill, but mosly just cooked stuff till it was soft, and mashed it with a fork. Gerber has a good thing going, as they seem to have convinced people that baby foods (and now special "toddler" foods) are necessary. They aren't. They may be more convenient under some circumstances, but many, many generations were raised without special baby foods! As far as the iron goes, you might want to consider suplimental iron (ie, mineral tablets) if you are concerned that your baby isn't getting enough iron in their diet. However, another way to "fortify" the baby's diet is to do the majority of your cooking in cast iron pots and pans. (The old fashioned kind, not the ones that have some sort of enamel coating.) It adds a surprising amount of iron to your diet. (Plus, I think it's better for cooking in in general, but that's another issue.) meh -- Children won't care how much you know until they know how much you care |
#3
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nutrition question on year old
dragonlady wrote:
As far as the iron goes, you might want to consider suplimental iron (ie, mineral tablets) How do you get a baby to eat a tablet. The liquid can stain teeth (I've seen this), and, a minisule iron supplement constipates me **terribly**. I'd prefer to put it in something with fiber. if you are concerned that your baby isn't getting enough iron in their diet. However, another way to "fortify" the baby's diet is to do the majority of your cooking in cast iron pots and pans. For myself I do cook tomato sauce to add iron. I suspect all that acid would make his little behind a little red. I recall that the tomato acidity is especially helpful in leaching the iron out of the pan. If I were feeding him the diet my mother fed us (omnivore with fresh veggies and whole grains) I wouldn't worry, but no meat makes me concerned about iron. I wasn't given a single vitamin my entire childhood (only 3 asprin and no MMR, so I got very bad measles at 27) because of my mother's "natural" leanings, and I'm all for that, but I'd rather skip the meat these days. Things are alittle tough because I'm the cook and the person with education, but FOB is the homedaddy. I have to leave clear, basic intructions, like "today feed him A,B, and C" because I work so many hours. I actually sometimes line the food up. blacksalt |
#4
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nutrition question on year old
"blacksalt" wrote in message ... dragonlady wrote: As far as the iron goes, you might want to consider suplimental iron (ie, mineral tablets) How do you get a baby to eat a tablet. The liquid can stain teeth (I've seen this), and, a minisule iron supplement constipates me **terribly**. I'd prefer to put it in something with fiber. The stain is temporary. It goes away when you stop supplementing. As for the tablets, I used to crush multivitamin tablets with a mortar and pestle and mix it in with DS's food. |
#5
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nutrition question on year old
In article ,
blacksalt wrote: dragonlady wrote: As far as the iron goes, you might want to consider suplimental iron (ie, mineral tablets) How do you get a baby to eat a tablet. The liquid can stain teeth (I've seen this), and, a minisule iron supplement constipates me **terribly**. I'd prefer to put it in something with fiber. Sorry -- I can't help with that. if you are concerned that your baby isn't getting enough iron in their diet. However, another way to "fortify" the baby's diet is to do the majority of your cooking in cast iron pots and pans. For myself I do cook tomato sauce to add iron. I suspect all that acid would make his little behind a little red. I recall that the tomato acidity is especially helpful in leaching the iron out of the pan. If I were feeding him the diet my mother fed us (omnivore with fresh veggies and whole grains) I wouldn't worry, but no meat makes me concerned about iron. I wasn't given a single vitamin my entire childhood (only 3 asprin and no MMR, so I got very bad measles at 27) because of my mother's "natural" leanings, and I'm all for that, but I'd rather skip the meat these days. Things are alittle tough because I'm the cook and the person with education, but FOB is the homedaddy. I have to leave clear, basic intructions, like "today feed him A,B, and C" because I work so many hours. I actually sometimes line the food up. blacksalt When I was having a problem with anemia (pregnant with twins) I cooked everything in cast iron, even boiling potatoes or making oatmeal. I know the acidic stuff is supposed to get even more iron, but I think even just scrambling eggs or cooking veggies gets at least some. I don't think I'd worry excessively about the iron, however; once the baby starts eating table foods, just make sure you include the foods that have lots of iron. I know a lot of vegetarians -- including folks who are raising their kids vegetarian -- and none of them seem to have had any real problems with iron. Even the handful who have gone all the way to vegan eating seem to do just fine, as long as they learn how to do it properly. meh -- Children won't care how much you know until they know how much you care |
#6
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nutrition question on year old
dragonlady wrote:
I don't think I'd worry excessively about the iron, however; once the baby starts eating table foods, just make sure you include the foods that have lots of iron. I know a lot of vegetarians -- including folks who are raising their kids vegetarian -- and none of them seem to have had any real problems with iron. Some reversible anemia I can cope with, but the developmental aspects have me concerned. Even the handful who have gone all the way to vegan eating seem to do just fine, as long as they learn how to do it properly. Around here, everybody seems to be put on supplements..vit. and iron...even the meat-eaters. (I was at a first birthday party last night and two mothers told me baby is so constipated they have taken to suppositories or oil enemas!!) I was looking at the jars of baby food that FOB uses when I'm not home to cook. Everything is either 0 or 2 or 4% (the latter on spinach only) of MDR (I'm assuming of babies, not adults, but the jars don't say!). He's been eating table food since 3 months (teeth and demanding), but since I'm about to stop the formula with iron supplement and the cereal with iron supplement, I'm trying to find out more. I have not seen a nutritional table book that addresses children. I suppose I'll have to get a regular one and try to tease out what he'll eat and what has what in it and how this fits in his MDR and leave it all in block writing for the SAHPapa whose only nutritional opinion is that edamame fixes everything. Thanks! blacksalt |
#7
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nutrition question on year old
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#8
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nutrition question on year old
HI - The truth is, you don't wean from formula (or breastmilk) to cow's milk. YOu wean your child to a varied, healthy diet. Once your child is eating a good variety of solids, ANY milk becomes completely unnecessary. In the Western diet, however, milk is relied upon as a source for calcium, protein and fat. So when you wean your child from formula, make sure that those three things (especially the calcium, which is the hardest to deliver to kids) are sufficiently in your child's diet. The reason babies consume formula (or breastmilk) in the beginning is that it is a "complete" food (and continues to be for well over a year, so use it if you need it). But babies start to eat solids, and so rely less and less on formula for their nutritional needs. If you're breastfeeding, it's a good idea to continue to nurse for well over a year. It's not the nutrition that matters after about 12 months (although you'll be very grateful that you're nursing when your child comes down with his or her first stomach virus) but the breastmilk actually boosts the child's immune system, providing antibodies to everything that YOUR body encounters. (The immune system isn't fully developed until about age 5, which is the age that children self-wean in non-industrialized societies.) But I digress. In short, don't fret about milk. Wean to a varied diet, and see if you can get your child to drink WATER as a primary fluid. --Beth Kevles http://web.mit.edu/kevles/www/nomilk.html -- a page for the milk-allergic Disclaimer: Nothing in this message should be construed as medical advice. Please consult with your own medical practicioner. |
#9
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nutrition question on year old
blacksalt wrote:
I'm new at this, so I'm reading some books. The consensus seems that after a year of age you change from formula to milk. When reading about iron, the books say "use iron fortified cereal". Browse the cereal section. I think many are iron fortified. Cheerios are and I think Cream of Wheat is as well. Cream of Wheat was a favorite for both mine when they were young. Raisons have iron don't they? Good luck -- Nikki Mama to Hunter (4) and Luke (2) |
#10
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If you are raising a young child without meat it will be important to make sure he or she is getting adequate protein, iron, calcium and vitamin B12. You may know of other children raised on a vegetarian diet without vitamin/mineral supplements, but do you really want to take a chance with your child? It can be difficult to calculate out the adequacy of your child's daily diet and it may help you rest a little easier.
Non-heme iron (heme is iron from meat sources) is a little more difficult to absorb so it is beneficial to have a vitamin C source with it. This could mean you offer a little juice with a fortified cereal or offer broccoli or potato at dinner with a fortified rice or noddle dish. Try to frequently offer beans and enriched cereals these are really 2 of the best sources of iron other than meat. Other foods to include are tofu, peas, spinach and enriched breads, tortillas, rice and pasta. You should be checking the labels as a lot of foods can be enriched. It is true that some of the iron from cast iron cookware is leached out into the food during cooking. It is okay to continue on formula past a year. I would actually recommend it if you will be offering a vegetarian diet. Please note that between 1 year and 2 years it is important for a child to have more fat in their diet. This is usually done by offering 2 cups of whole cow's milk. The extra fat is critical during this time for brain/neural development. After 2 it is okay to switch to lower fat. If using goat's, rice or soy milk look for the higher fat and also look at the percentages of vitamins A and D and calcium. You want to make sure you are getting a similar amount of nutrition (as compared to whole cow's milk). I hope this information is helpful for you. This is an important time in your child's development. I would recommend meeting with a Registered Dietitian just to make sure your child's diet is adequate if you are restricting any food groups. [/quote] |
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