Feeding your baby: 1–2 years

Your child can now eat the same food as the rest of the family.

Your child is starting to feed on her own at 1 year of age. She can chew as much of her food as she can, so that she can consume the same food as the rest of her family.

At 1 year, solid foods are now the primary source of energy and nutrition for your infant, including healthy snacks.

Three to four times a day, he will take between three quarters and one cup of food, plus one to two snacks between meals.

As much as your child likes, continue breastfeeding until he is at least 2 years old.

Junk food and soft drinks should be avoided.

Breastmilk still offers substantial nutrition and disease defense at this age, but other foods are her primary source of nutrition and energy. If she is ever hungry, feed her other foods first and then breastfeed afterward.

What to feed your baby

So give her some of all the food your family eats and make every bite count. Your child can eat everything. There is a need to pack meals with nutritious food.

Make sure that every day she has a portion of animal food (milk, dairy, eggs, meat, fish, and poultry), plus legumes (such as chickpeas, lentils, or peas) or nuts, and fruits and orange or green vegetables. Add a little oil or fat for energy to her meal.

Make sure that your child’s snacks, such as fresh fruit, are safe.

How much nutrition and how long

Your child can eat three to four times a day for three quarters to one cup of food, plus one to two snacks between meals.

He’ll need to eat more frequently if you’re not breastfeeding. Your child’s eating plan should include four to five meals a day, plus two healthy snacks, at 1 year, around the time he starts to walk. A very important part of your child’s diet is milk products-give him one or two cups of milk a day.

Food to be avoided

Junk food and soft drinks should be avoided. Factory-made foods are unhealthy, such as crisps, cookies, cakes, soda, and candy. They have high levels of sugar, salt, fat, and chemicals, and take up room in your child’s stomach that should be filled with healthy foods.

 Mealtime tips:

It’ll help your child learn to feed himself by getting his own bowl of food. Start as quickly as he wishes. Give him everything he wants for food and plenty of time to eat.

He’ll be sluggish and messy at first. Support him (instead of on himself or the floor!) to get most of the food in his mouth. Encourage him to complete it and make sure that he’s got enough.

Give plenty of love and motivation to your child to eat at mealtimes.

Sit and make eye contact in front of him. Talk to your boy, smile at him, speak with him, and thank him for feeding.

Make the meal a joyous moment!

When your kid refuses to eat solid food, what to do?

At mealtimes, make sure she’s hungry and not just have a snack. And if your child’s breastfeeding appears to be safe, breastfeed her only after her meal. She ought to eat solid food at this age first. Give nutritious food to your child that she likes or mix the food she likes with food that she doesn’t like as much. Try various varieties and textures of foods.

Do not push or pressure her to eat if she still refuses, and do not be tempted to offer her fast food instead.

Be cool and appreciative. Give positive attention to your child when she eats, but don’t make it an issue when she’s not eating. Only take the food away, cover it, and a little later give it to her again.

Allergies and Avoidance of Food

In recent years, research and opinion on food allergies and prevention have improved. New studies show that delayed peanut introduction raises the risk of peanut allergy growth. With the bulk of children,

it is now recommended that foods containing peanuts be introduced, along with other varieties of solid foods, between 4 and 11 months. If there is a strong family history of food allergies or your baby has severe eczema or an egg allergy, he or she should be tested for a peanut allergy first. Most other babies, even those with mild to moderate eczema, are encouraged to start foods containing peanuts.

Adding peanut powder to cereal is one way to add foods containing peanuts. Pureed fruit (like applesauce) or baby cereal may also be combined with peanut butter. If you experience symptoms of a food allergy, such as vomiting, diarrhea, or rash, after consuming new food, talk to your pediatrician. If, after having a meal, your baby has ever had facial swelling or difficulty breathing, call 9-1-1 immediately. And note, for children under the age of 4, whole peanuts are a choking hazard.

More Tips  for Starting Solids

• To feed your infant, use a baby spoon and a cup. In a glass, do not bring the cereal. Your baby needs to learn to eat, not drink, his or her food.

• Only take out a tiny amount at a time of the baby food. At room temperature, you can leave it or warm it slightly. The open container can then be refrigerated and used over the next two days.

• If you’d like, you can make your own baby food. Steam the vegetables or berries, then mix them together.
• With the microwave, use caution as it can unevenly heat food. Always mix food well before feeding your infant, and check the temperature.

• There is no need to add to your baby’s food some extra salt or sugar. This has been discouraged.

• Before feeding him or her honey, wait until your baby is 1 year of age. There is a form of bacteria in honey that can be very dangerous and cause paralysis in babies (clostridium botulinum).

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