When the time for breastfeeding is over, the baby's first solid food begins. The industry now offers numerous variations of porridge, so parents are often not clear about what is actually good for their child.
Start slowly with baby porridge
According to recommendations from doctors and midwives, babies should receive their first porridge between the 4th and 6th month of life. Now, however, the baby is not faced with the accomplished fact that the bottle is no longer needed, but rather the milk is reduced each month and a porridge fills the gap instead. First, the midday bottle is replaced by a carrot or parsnip porridge. These porridges are naturally sweet and usually taste very good to the little gourmets – the addition of spices, sugar, and salt is not yet necessary. After one month, the evening porridge is used instead of the evening bottle, and finally, the afternoon porridge.
Extra tip: Due to the risk of allergies, we did not start with carrots, but with pumpkin.
Cook porridge yourself or jars?
Many parents now wonder whether to use the jars and ready-made porridges from the package or prefer to cook the porridges themselves.
The answer is: both are correct and nothing is wrong. The industry only has the advantage that it can perhaps better determine one or the other vitamin content under certain cooking times – but parents have the clear advantage when making their own porridge that only they know exactly what is really in the porridge. As a rule, you cannot go wrong: start with light porridges, which consist of potatoes, carrots, and parsnips.
Do not make the mistake of trying to offer your child a new type of fruit or vegetable every day – the child's palate does not need the enormous variety we are used to at the beginning. In addition, a possible allergy to the food can be filtered out more easily this way.
Can I do anything wrong when feeding porridge?
Also, don't worry that you are doing something wrong when feeding porridge: the first porridges are accompanied by a lot of effort and little tears. Usually, not only the babies' nerves are frayed, but also those of the parents. But since no master has ever fallen from the sky, the motto is: have courage and never give up.
Do not try to force the porridge on your child – that would only trigger a negative effect. Try it again and again; if it doesn't work, the milk bottle will have to do. However, do not get your child used to the porridge with the bottle – this spoils your child and also does no favors for their growing teeth.
Especially the beginning will be difficult for the first porridges – for you and for the child. Why is that? Your child has the so-called sucking reflex from birth; if a spoon suddenly comes towards the child, it tries to suck, possibly also to adopt the sucking reflex, and the tongue pushes the porridge back out. However, this does not mean that your child does not want to eat anything – it just takes some practice.
Small tip: the first meals (especially the entire first year) are a bit of a tightrope walk – your child has so much to learn, and hand-mouth-eye coordination rarely works right away. If the porridge has landed more outside the mouth again, one should be indulgent and not choose the best wardrobe for the offspring in advance.
Photo by Sabine, meinhaushalt.at
Read also: How do you feed twins alone?
