Consult your pediatrician, and, if you get the go - ahead, start introducing
fortified baby cereals with milk into your baby's diet, and later pureed meat, vegetables and fruit.
The inclusion of iron
fortified baby cereals in the recommendation for first complementary foods is not a nutrient rich complementary food and should be deleted,
Iron - laden foods such as fish, meat and poultry are also excellent to use in place of iron -
fortified baby cereal as they contain heme iron which is more efficiently absorbed by the body.
Begin with foods high in iron and protein such as pureed meats (turkey, chicken, beef), and iron -
fortified baby cereal followed by soft pureed vegetable and fruits, and age - appropriate snacks.
Fortified baby cereal can fit the bill easily, and additional iron can come from iron - rich foods such as meat, egg yolks, wheat germ, whole - grain breads and cereals, and cooked dried peas and other legumes as they are introduced into the diet.
A similar amount of
fortified baby cereal contains about 6 mg iron, giving your baby 0.36 mg absorbed iron (actually meeting about half of her requirement).
Not exact matches
On Friday, the FDA reported that although rice
cereal fortified with iron is a good source of nutrients for your
baby, it shouldn't be
baby's only source and does not need to be the first source.
When offering your
baby cereals, make sure they are iron -
fortified for extra benefit.
Choosing the Right
Baby Cereal Baby cereals may be
fortified with iron, vitamins, minerals, and in...
Baby cereals may be
fortified with iron, vitamins, minerals, and in some cases, formula.
But avoiding
cereals because of the gluten - free movement or because you're told that
babies can not digest grains — this is potentially dangerous because usually, nothing takes the place of these
fortified cereals.
The best way to introduce solid foods to
babies is to mix four teaspoons of breast milk with one teaspoon of iron -
fortified cereal.
Here are some signs to look for that will tell you if your
baby is ready to start solid foods, with the first solid
baby food usually being an iron -
fortified rice
cereal:
Mothers were told that their
babies would become anemic (and potentially brain damaged) if they didn't start on iron -
fortified infant
cereal by six weeks.
Rice
cereal is generally
fortified with iron, vitamins and other minerals which make them optimum
baby food.
Plus
babies absorb iron more easily from meat than from iron -
fortified cereals, another common first food.
Keep in mind that experts usually recommend that an iron -
fortified rice
cereal is the first food that you give to your
baby.
Infant
cereals have typically been recommended as a first food by many pediatricians because commercial
baby cereals are
fortified with iron.
Iron -
fortified infant
cereal has been a traditional first food, but the American Academy of Pediatrics now recommends pureed meat instead, because
babies absorb the iron in meat more easily.
To ensure your
baby is receiving enough nutrients, you might want to look into
cereals that are iron
fortified and single grain.
Traditional first foods, such as iron -
fortified infant
cereal, pureed veggies, fruits, and meats, don't typically cause allergic reactions, but observe your
baby for signs of allergy, just in case.
In this instance, you should use a
fortified commercial infant
cereal and consult with your pediatrician on the best foods to offer as «first» foods; you may be surprised to hear your pediatrician recommend adding meat to
baby's diet!
This is something that you should discuss with your
baby's pediatrician as there may be a medical need for iron
fortified cereals and / or iron supplements.
Iron -
fortified cereal or puréed meats can be introduced when your
baby is ready for solid foods at about 6 months of age.
It is usually recommended that you start a
baby on solid foods between 4 - 6 months, classically beginning with an iron
fortified rice
cereal.
Now there certainly are reasons why
baby cereal is a logical choice for first food; it's generally easy to digest, iron -
fortified which most
babies need; and is considered to be a low - allergen food (particularly rice
cereal).
While continuing to give 4 - 5 feedings of breast milk or an iron -
fortified infant formula (24 - 32 ounces) and 4 or more tablespoons of an iron -
fortified cereal each day, you can now start to give well - cooked, strained, or mashed vegetables or commercially prepared
baby foods.
It is an iron -
fortified rice
cereal with the right proportion of calcium and other nutrients vital for the development of the
baby.
Rice
cereal and other highly processed
fortified cereals are commonly recommended first foods due to their high iron content, low - allergen potential, and palatability (
babies tolerate it well).
And what did
babies do for iron before
fortified cereal and formula came on the scene?
In a study that compared
babies who ate pureed meat as a first food to those who ate iron -
fortified infant
cereal, the meat - fed
babies had an increased rate of head growth but there weren't significant differences in blood chemistry including iron levels.
Commercial iron -
fortified baby rice
cereal is the first choice of the American Academy of Pediatrics.
Whichever type of
cereal you use, make sure that it is made for
babies and iron
fortified.
Most
babies» first food is a little iron -
fortified infant single - grain
cereal mixed with breast milk or formula.
In the wee stages of her foodie foray, your
baby should be eating single - grain
cereal since it is
fortified with iron, which your
baby needs.
Commercial
baby cereals are iron -
fortified which is good for breastfed
babies.
This reserve came from mom during the last trimester of pregnancy, so without an adequate supply of dietary iron (whether through a combination of breastmilk, iron -
fortified formula and
cereals, or foods naturally high in iron),
babies can be at risk for iron - deficiency anemia.
Some
baby foods, for example
cereals, are also
fortified with iron and often one serving is already 100 % of the recommended daily intake.
Babies lack the digestive enzymes to break down
cereals, so it's essentially vitamin
fortified nutritional fluff.
It contains probiotics and is also
fortified with choline which aids in brain and eye development, making it the best organic
baby cereal for your
baby if you're just starting out with solid food.
6 to 8 ounces of breast milk or formula 1 to 4 tablespoons of fruit or vegetables 2 to 4 tablespoons of iron -
fortified infant
cereal (A 5 - tablespoon serving of iron -
fortified barley
cereal provides almost half of a
baby's daily iron needs.)
The
baby does not need to start on a
fortified cereal if he / she is anemic, but a supplemental source of iron like Ferinsol drops would be needed.
Finally, infant
cereals are unlikely to cause an allergic reaction, and they're
fortified with iron (something
babies start needing more of around 6 months of age).
Cereals are
fortified with vitamins and minerals that are important to a
baby's health and development.
Cereal needs to be
fortified to provide
baby with the nutrients she needs, particularly iron.
When the
baby reaches 4 - 6 months of age, you may introduce iron -
fortified baby rice
cereals by mixing the formula or breast milk in it.
Amylase is the enzyme needed to break down most carbohydrates found in
fortified rice
cereals, but
babies don't make enough of it at the age of 4 - 6 months.
Babies can usually get plenty of iron from breastmilk and formula, and then from
fortified cereals.
But rice
cereal is also
fortified with nutrients, such as iron, that are important to your
baby's development.
You can limit your
baby's exposure by offering iron -
fortified cereals made from other grains, like oats, barley, and wheat.