Baby Formula Feed

Guide for baby feed

Appropriate feeding of your baby during the first year of life is extremely vital. The healthy growth of the baby occurs during the first year is most vital than at any other time in your child’s life.

For the first few months, breast feeding is recommended,  as breast milk or formula that is needed for babies.  As your baby grows, feeding with a variety of healthy foods is vital for baby’s proper growth and development.  As to set for the baby’s healthy eating patterns for life, start a excellent eating habits at the early stage for your baby will be the most helpful.

Do not feed your baby solid food in the first four month. The following are the reasons for not to feed your baby with solid foods during the first 4 months.

1. Breast milk or formula provides all the nutrients for your baby that needed during growing.
2. Your baby is not physically developed enough to take solid food from a spoon.
3. The chance that your baby may develop food allergy if starting feeding solid food to your baby too early.
4. Your baby if feeding with solid food too early may lead to overfeeding and being overweight.
5. For your baby may not has excellent digestive system at the time.

Guide for formula feeding from 0 to 5 months

-          First month 2 to 4 ounces, 6 to 8 times for one full day

-          2^nd month 5 to 6 ounces, 5 to 6 times for one full day

-          3^rd to 5^th month 6 to 7 ounces, 5 to 6 times for one full day

Feeding tips for your child:

Feed all foods with a spoon. Your baby needs to learn to eat from a spoon. Do not use an infant feeder. Only formula and water should go into the bottle.

Healthy babies usually require small or no extra water, except in very hot weather. When solid food is first fed to your baby, extra water is often needed.

• When starting solid foods, give your baby one new food at a time – not mixtures (like cereal and fruit or meat dinners). Give the new food for five to seven days before adding another new food. As some babies are sensitive to certain food and may have allergic.  This way you can tell what foods your baby may be allergic to or cannot tolerate.  Then you may continue feeding with the food. Egg whites are more likely than yolks to cause an allergic reaction. Most physicians recommend that you wait until after one year to introduce whole eggs.
• The first solid foods are dry infant cereals, mixed as directed. Once your baby adjusts to these, you can add vegetables. Then add fruits, then add meats. Start with small amounts of new solid foods – a teaspoon at first and slowly increase to a tablespoon.
• Do not use salt or sugar when making homemade baby foods. Canned foods may contain large amounts of salt and sugar and should not be used for baby food. Always wash and peel fruits and vegetables and remove seeds or pits. Take special care with fruits and vegetables that come into contact with the ground. They may contain botulism spores that cause food poisoning.
• Cow’s milk should not be added to the diet until the baby is 12 months of age. Cow’s milk does not provide the right nutrients for your baby.
• Iron-fortified infant cereals should be fed until the baby is 18 months ancient.
• Fruit juice without sugar can be started when the baby is able to drink from a cup (around 6 months or older).
• Avoid honey in any form for the first year because it can cause a type of botulism.
• Do not place your baby in bed with a bottle propped in his/her mouth. Propping the bottle is linked to ear infections and choking. Once your baby’s teeth are present, propping the bottle can cause tooth decay.
• Your baby’s physician can advise you on how to wean a baby off the bottle.
• Avoid the “clean plate syndrome.” Forcing your child to eat all the food on his/her plate even when he/she is not hungry is not a excellent habit. It teaches your child to eat just because the food is there, not because he/she is hungry. Expect a smaller and pickier appetite as the baby’s growth rate slows around 1 year of age.
• Healthy babies usually require small or no extra water, except in very hot weather. When solid food is first fed to your baby, extra water is often needed.
• Do not limit your baby’s food choices to the ones you like. Offering a wide variety of foods early will pave the way for excellent eating habits later.
• Stout and cholesterol should not be restricted in the diets of babies and very young children, unless advised to by your baby’s physician. Children need calories, stout, and cholesterol for the development of their brains and nervous systems and for general growth.