Starting Solids - The Meat Question?
How to introduce meat to babies is something that I see a lot of parents unsure about and there is not a lot of information on why this is really important.
In my previous blog on starting solids, I discussed some crucial reasons why I do not recommend starting babies on baby rice (or variation of infant cereal). I also spoke about starting off on a staple vegetable such as pumpkin or kumara, quickly followed by a meat source.
The key reason for this is due to babies iron levels. Breast milk contains only low (or little levels) of iron, and to compensate babies are born with sufficient iron stores to last up until approximately six months of age, after which it drastically drops off. This is why the recommendation is for babies to start complimentary feeding at six months of age.
Adding to the current whirlpool of information we are seeing some research to suggest (as well as guidelines from some health care providers) starting babies at four months on solids. Babies develop at different times, so there will be some variation on when they are ready. I personally recommend the World Health Organisation Guidelines of around six months of age, however I believe what is a more important concern is what they start on.
As previously mentioned in my other blog, baby rice can cause a lot of digestion discomfit for babies especially to their GI tract. There are currently very little store brought baby foods that do not contain rice or wheat flour especially available at a local supermarket. Starting a baby off on infant cereal especially at four months will significantly increase the potential impact on the GI tract as it is less matured.
Iron, is crucial for the production of hemoglobin in our blood, which carries oxygen around our body. In addition iron plays an important role in keeping our immune systems strong. It is primarily absorbed in the upper intestine which means if the gut is irritated, there is a high risk the maximum amount of iron will not be absorbed.
The reason that introducing meat early on is important is because it is a haem source of iron – the most easily absorbed source of iron AND all meat sources are significantly higher in iron than plant based sources. In addition it will also provide important sources of dietary fat (babies need high amounts of fat) and B-vitamins. While you do get iron from other sources than meat, it is not as high as you can see in some examples below. I also recently spoke on Paul Henry about this (you can check out my interview here).
Babies require approximately 10-11mg or iron/day. This is actually more than a child aged 1-3 who require 9mg a day. This is due to the huge growth babies experience in the first year. Some examples of haem iron sources are and beef, lamb, fish, chicken and liver - I have a great liver recipe in my cook book Healthy Easy Dinners for Busy Mums and in a baby puree here). Examples of non-haem sources for infants are spinach, legumes, chickpeas and tofu.
Another helpful guide on the iron content of certain foods is on the Nutrition Society of New Zealand Website here.
Exactly How to Introduce Meat?
You can introduce meat in two ways:
1. A more ‘baby-led weaning’ approach,
2. Through a puree.
3. Do both!
Baby led weaning has existed for generations and done safety can contribute to the feeding experience. You can give a baby a nice firm piece of meat to suck on - which you can do either free-form or in a food feeder. I would suggest just watching them as they do this. While babies are not ‘eating’ this meat they are still absorbing the all nutrients through sucking.
Option two is to include meat into a vegetable puree which I find easiest done as part of the family meal. You will find that meat adds a lot of flavour and texture to food which will become increasingly important and babies get older (even more so with a fussy toddler!)
Giving your baby both a puree AND letting them explore meat in a baby-led weaning approach is option three. This I recommend the most as you get the best of both and allows your baby to choose what they like while still getting in some nutrients with the help of co-feeding together.
I have a great recipe below to show you to how easy this is to do with the amazing Avent 2-1 Healthy Baby Food Maker. This is one baby item that you want to get your hands on, it is literally how I made both my boys homemade baby food from scratch (and still use today!).
Easy Rib Roast – Family Meal to Homemade Baby Food
The Nourished Baby
To help navigate you through all these steps my new book - The Nourished Baby - is out now!!. This is packed full of expert information, stepping you through week-by-week plus recipes, example meal plans and more.
Baby & Toddler Tour!
Our 2018 National Baby & Toddler tour kicks off in Auckland soon!. Proudly presented to you by Philips Avent I will be shining the spotlight on the most recent research on starting solids, do a live demonstration making homemade baby food with the Avent 2-1 Healthy Baby Food Maker and answer questions one-on-one! I will be doing a separate toddler session as well. All locations and ticket information on Event Finder
P.S Keep watch on Facebook for LIVE Q and As to help answer any starting solids questions!
xxx Dr Julie Bhosale
In my previous blog on starting solids, I discussed some crucial reasons why I do not recommend starting babies on baby rice (or variation of infant cereal). I also spoke about starting off on a staple vegetable such as pumpkin or kumara, quickly followed by a meat source.
The key reason for this is due to babies iron levels. Breast milk contains only low (or little levels) of iron, and to compensate babies are born with sufficient iron stores to last up until approximately six months of age, after which it drastically drops off. This is why the recommendation is for babies to start complimentary feeding at six months of age.
Adding to the current whirlpool of information we are seeing some research to suggest (as well as guidelines from some health care providers) starting babies at four months on solids. Babies develop at different times, so there will be some variation on when they are ready. I personally recommend the World Health Organisation Guidelines of around six months of age, however I believe what is a more important concern is what they start on.
As previously mentioned in my other blog, baby rice can cause a lot of digestion discomfit for babies especially to their GI tract. There are currently very little store brought baby foods that do not contain rice or wheat flour especially available at a local supermarket. Starting a baby off on infant cereal especially at four months will significantly increase the potential impact on the GI tract as it is less matured.
Iron, is crucial for the production of hemoglobin in our blood, which carries oxygen around our body. In addition iron plays an important role in keeping our immune systems strong. It is primarily absorbed in the upper intestine which means if the gut is irritated, there is a high risk the maximum amount of iron will not be absorbed.
The reason that introducing meat early on is important is because it is a haem source of iron – the most easily absorbed source of iron AND all meat sources are significantly higher in iron than plant based sources. In addition it will also provide important sources of dietary fat (babies need high amounts of fat) and B-vitamins. While you do get iron from other sources than meat, it is not as high as you can see in some examples below. I also recently spoke on Paul Henry about this (you can check out my interview here).
Babies require approximately 10-11mg or iron/day. This is actually more than a child aged 1-3 who require 9mg a day. This is due to the huge growth babies experience in the first year. Some examples of haem iron sources are and beef, lamb, fish, chicken and liver - I have a great liver recipe in my cook book Healthy Easy Dinners for Busy Mums and in a baby puree here). Examples of non-haem sources for infants are spinach, legumes, chickpeas and tofu.
Another helpful guide on the iron content of certain foods is on the Nutrition Society of New Zealand Website here.
Exactly How to Introduce Meat?
You can introduce meat in two ways:
1. A more ‘baby-led weaning’ approach,
2. Through a puree.
3. Do both!
Baby led weaning has existed for generations and done safety can contribute to the feeding experience. You can give a baby a nice firm piece of meat to suck on - which you can do either free-form or in a food feeder. I would suggest just watching them as they do this. While babies are not ‘eating’ this meat they are still absorbing the all nutrients through sucking.
Option two is to include meat into a vegetable puree which I find easiest done as part of the family meal. You will find that meat adds a lot of flavour and texture to food which will become increasingly important and babies get older (even more so with a fussy toddler!)
Giving your baby both a puree AND letting them explore meat in a baby-led weaning approach is option three. This I recommend the most as you get the best of both and allows your baby to choose what they like while still getting in some nutrients with the help of co-feeding together.
I have a great recipe below to show you to how easy this is to do with the amazing Avent 2-1 Healthy Baby Food Maker. This is one baby item that you want to get your hands on, it is literally how I made both my boys homemade baby food from scratch (and still use today!).
Easy Rib Roast – Family Meal to Homemade Baby Food
The Nourished Baby
To help navigate you through all these steps my new book - The Nourished Baby - is out now!!. This is packed full of expert information, stepping you through week-by-week plus recipes, example meal plans and more.
Baby & Toddler Tour!
Our 2018 National Baby & Toddler tour kicks off in Auckland soon!. Proudly presented to you by Philips Avent I will be shining the spotlight on the most recent research on starting solids, do a live demonstration making homemade baby food with the Avent 2-1 Healthy Baby Food Maker and answer questions one-on-one! I will be doing a separate toddler session as well. All locations and ticket information on Event Finder
P.S Keep watch on Facebook for LIVE Q and As to help answer any starting solids questions!
xxx Dr Julie Bhosale
[…] This is a great meal for the whole family, baby included, which is very high in iron, fat and B-vitamins. It honestly takes all of five minutes preparation in the slow cooker and then a quick pulse in the Philips Avent combined steamer blender when you get home! The puree is so good even the big people of the house will love it! You can read more about the importance of adding meat into your babies diet when starting solids in my earlier blog here. […]
ReplyDelete[…] I am asked a lot about how and when to introduce meat into a baby. You can read more about this over my previous blog here and this is a great high iron puree to try with your […]
ReplyDelete