Weaning: what is it
The term weaning, or weaning, refers to the process by which the child moves from a diet based exclusively on milk to a varied and complete diet. We start by introducing semi-solid foods (first of all fruit) and then, slowly, to those that are completely solid.
Diet during weaning is a fundamental experience for the young child as it represents a great change in their eating habits and allows them to make new and interesting sensory experiences through different flavors, smells and textures.
Weaning: practical advice
The ideal period in which to start weaning varies from child to child and must be evaluated together with the pediatrician, based on some factors:
- type of breastfeeding ; according to the indications of the World Health Organization, exclusive breastfeeding can be continued up to 6 months of age. As for infants breastfed with formulated milk, it is more often that the first semi-solid foods are introduced starting from 4/5 months;
- weight gain;
- family needs.
In all cases, weaning should be started no earlier than the fourth month and not after the sixth month of age .
Foods should be introduced into the diet one at a time, 4-7 days apart, in order to assess tolerance, but also the liking of the child.
The first foods introduced into the diet during weaning must be the least allergenic: the very first foods introduced include, for example, apples. To obtain the precise scheme the most suitable person is obviously the pediatrician.
It is also necessary to vary the food frequently to get the child used to different flavors . Finally, it is important not to add salt to the baby food .
Natural weaning: how is it done?
A book to help in the delicate phase of weaning
Doubts? Help can come from books. To all jelly: diary, recipe tips from weaning to three years, published by Red! is a text written with simple language and also reassuring that dissolves several doubts related to the delicate phase of weaning but, more generally, to the feeding of the child from 0 to 3 years .
To all jelly try to answer the most common questions among parents about the diet of their small children: how to best face weaning and accustom the child to the different flavors? What are the "forbidden" foods by age? Which, instead, those to be necessarily introduced in the diet? Which cooking methods allow you to best preserve the nutritional characteristics of food? Are there "tricks" to whet the appetite of the most demanding children?
The book also contains a rich proposal of healthy and tasty recipes suitable for the various stages of growth and can be customized; it is in fact designed like a diary and allows you to write down your own recipes, personal variations to those proposed and even the reactions of the child.
