Читать книгу Truly Scrumptious Baby: My complete feeding and weaning plan for 6 months and beyond - Holly Willoughby, Holly Willoughby - Страница 6
ОглавлениеTHE IMPORTANCE OF GOOD NUTRITION FROM THE WORD GO
As parents, I think we have a responsibility to give our children the best possible dietary start in life. Right from the very first spoonful of purée, it’s never too early to instil healthy eating habits. Indeed, the more key nutrients your baby consumes, the better equipped he’ll be for all the growth spurts to come. Our diet affects our immune system, our metabolism and our cognitive function, and it has a measurable effect on our physical development. What we eat has a direct impact on energy levels, sleep, hair, skin and oral health – and that’s just for starters. It doesn’t take long before the quality of our diet, at whatever age, begins to show in our well-being. It’s amazing, really, how something we are completely in control of, in terms of the choices we make, can affect us so tangibly.
Encouraging your child to have a positive relationship with food extends beyond what he’s eating, though. Helping him to develop a healthy attitude towards mealtimes is essential for when he’s older, and there are a few simple things you can do to encourage this when weaning, such as not using food as a bribe (tempting though this may be!). You’ll find more about this here.
MOVING FROM MILK TO SOLIDS
In the first few months of your baby’s life, what to feed him has never been an issue. Whether breast or formula, milk has been his sole form of nourishment, providing him with complete nutrition. And, according to NHS guidelines, milk should remain your baby’s sole source of nutrition until six months of age. He simply isn’t ready physiologically to take in solid food before four months, in fact, and while you might offer simple purées alongside his usual milk from four months, there is no advantage in doing so. After six months, whether in the form of purées or mashed meals or finger foods, your baby can start to take in nutrients from solid food. For the first few months of weaning, milk is still king when it comes to nutrition, however, as he will only really be exploring and playing with food; it won’t be sustaining him yet. Then, as he consumes more than he drops, and the more balanced his diet of solid foods becomes, food will gradually over time become more dominant and milk less so. But when it comes to taking that first step from milk to solids, where do you begin?
WHERE TO START?
The world of solids can be a minefield, especially with so much conflicting advice out there.
‘Babies and children need fats’ – but not too many of the bad ones.
‘Sugar is the route of all evil’ – but it’s in everything!
‘Carbs are great for energy’ – but too many of the wrong ones make you sluggish.
Where do you even start without signing up for a degree in nutrition? That’s how it can seem to a new parent. In reality, it’s not so complicated, however. It’s all about tapping into the basics of what you already know about eating healthily to help you make the right food choices for your baby. If someone offers you an apple or a chocolate biscuit and asks you to pick the healthy option, it’s a no-brainer. But if they offered you two bowls of mashed potato, which looked identical but contained different ingredients, which would you choose? You would have no idea unless you’d cooked it yourself and knew what was in it – and that’s the bottom line. When it comes to eating healthily, a homemade dish gives you the control to make the right choices for your baby. ‘But that’s obvious!’ I hear you cry. ‘And I just don’t have time to start mashing potato, when the kids are hollering for their dinner!’ In today’s busy world, is it any wonder that we are drawn to the convenience of pre-packed supermarket mashed potato? And no one can blame us for that. But when you make your own, you know it’s not packed full of salt and additives – you have complete control. That said, not all supermarket convenience foods need to be avoided. I’m all for things like frozen vegetables and pre-chopped onions or other pre-prepared veggies if they make home cooking that little bit speedier when time is short.
If you strip everything back and think about what we take from food, it’s easy to understand why we need a balanced diet. Different food groups contain different nutrients, so we need to eat a good cross-section in order to obtain all the necessary goodness to perform at our best.
FOOD GROUPS AND GETTING THE BALANCE RIGHT
Fruits and Vegetables
(e.g. apples, bananas, oranges, carrots and tomatoes) Fruits and vegetables contain vitamins and minerals that keep our bodies healthy and help us fight illness.
Starchy carbohydrates
(e.g. bread, rice, potatoes and pasta) These give us energy.
Protein
(e.g. meat, fish, eggs, nuts, legumes and tofu) Protein helps our bodies to grow and repair.
Dairy
(e.g. milk, cheese, yoghurt and alternatives) Dairy contains calcium and vitamin D, which help to keep our bones and teeth healthy and strong.
Fats and sugary foods
(e.g. butter, oil and sweets) We need a small amount of fat to help us to grow and to protect our organs. Too much fat and sugar can be very bad for your health.
A baby’s diet varies slightly from an adult’s in terms of the weighting between each of these food groups. For example, where an adult’s diet should be high in fibre and lower in fat, babies need more fat but less fibre as it’s very filling. Crucially, babies also need a wide selection of vitamins and minerals to support healthy development. Largely these are found naturally in the foods we eat, although some parents choose to bolster their baby’s intake of these nutrients with supplements (see here); others are recommended to all children in the UK.
NUTRIENTS FOUND IN GREAT ‘STARTER’ FRUIT AND VEG/EARLY WEANING STAPLES
avocado
Avocado is a source of vitamin E, which helps to protect our cells (the tiny building blocks of our body) against damage so we can stay healthy and strong.
banana
Bananas are a source of a mineral called potassium. Our muscles need potassium in order to work and contract properly.
broccoli
Broccoli is a source of vitamin C, folic acid, potassium and fibre. Potassium helps our nervous system to keep working efficiently.
butternut squash
Squash is a source of vitamins A, E and C. Vitamin E helps protect our cells against damage.
carrot
Carrots are a great source of beta carotene, which our body converts to vitamin A. Vitamin A helps us to be able to see properly. Without enough vitamin A we wouldn’t be able to see very well in the dark.
courgette
Courgettes are a source of potassium. Potassium keeps our muscles working efficiently.
green bean
Grean beans are a great source of a mineral called magnesium, which helps us to build muscle so we can become strong and healthy.
peach
Peaches are a good source of vitamin C, which helps to keep our bones, teeth and skin healthy.
papaya
Papayas are one of the fruits with the highest vitamin C content. They are also a good source of vitamin A and fibre.
pea
Peas are a source of thiamin (vitamin B1), vitamin C, folic acid and fibre. Vitamin C helps to keep our immune system healthy and protects our cells against damage.
sweet potato
Sweet potato is a source of vitamins A, E and C, as well as potassium and copper. Copper aids our metabolism and is vital for the production of red and white blood cells.
KEY VITAMINS AND MINERALS
Here are some of the key vitamins and minerals babies need at various stages of their development, and what they’re needed for. When weaning my little ones, I found it incredibly helpful to know a bit about the nutritional content of the ingredients I was using.
Vitamin A
Vitamin A (also known as retinol) is important for keeping eyes and skin healthy. There are two forms of vitamin A: retinol, found in animal sources, and beta-carotene, found in plant sources, which are converted to vitamin A in the body. Vitamin A aids the immune system, so it’s vital for keeping little bodies healthy and warding off illness, and it’s also important for healthy vision. It’s found in lots of foods that can be introduced from six months, including eggs, cheese, yoghurt, carrot, butternut squash, sweet potato, kale, spinach, apricot and mango. Liver and liver products are also very high in vitamin A and can be given to children once a week from 12 months.
Vitamin C
Vitamin C is really important to our immune system. It helps protect our cells from stress and aids iron absorption. It also contributes to healthy teeth and skin, and it helps with psychological function and the reduction of tiredness and fatigue. Vitamin C is found in a wide range of foods, all of which may be introduced from six months onwards, including especially tomatoes, peppers, broccoli, potatoes, cauliflower, cabbage, peaches, papaya, blueberries, raspberries, strawberries, oranges and kiwi fruit.
Vitamin D
Vitamin D is crucial for healthy bones, teeth and muscles. It helps our bodies absorb calcium, which in turn promotes bone growth and strength. Most vitamin D is obtained from exposure to sunlight. Just make sure your little ones have plenty of UV protection on if they’re out enjoying the sunshine! Vitamin D is also found in eggs, oily fish (as long as it’s not smoked) and red meat, which can be given to babies from six months, and liver and liver products, which can be given to children once a week from 12 months (this is due to the very high vitamin A content of liver).
Calcium
Calcium is one of the main minerals for building strong bones and healthy teeth. It’s important to give your little one’s body strong foundations so that it will support him well throughout life. Calcium works with vitamin D to help children’s bones grow and develop healthily. It’s also important for a host of bodily functions including digestion, muscle contraction and metabolism.
Calcium is found in yoghurt, cheese, broccoli and leafy green vegetables. It’s also found in cow’s milk, which can be included in meals from six months but not given as a main milk feed to babies under a year.
Iron
Iron is a must for babies. It plays a vital role in cognitive development in children and therefore can affect intellectual performance. It also helps to make haemoglobin, found in red blood cells – the little fellas that carry oxygen around the blood. If you don’t have enough iron, you can feel really tired and dizzy. Up to six months in age, babies get all the iron they need from breast milk or formula, so when you start to reduce that source, you need to introduce iron-rich foods. These include most dark leafy greens, red meat, ground nuts and pulses. And also liver and liver products, which you can give to children once a week from 12 months (this is due to the very high vitamin A content of liver).
Zinc
Zinc is needed for the functioning of every organ in the body. It plays a major role in the metabolism of macronutrients and wound healing, and it helps to keep our hair, nails and skin healthy. It’s found in foods such as eggs, poultry, beans, lentils, ground nuts, sesame seeds and tofu. And also liver and liver products, which can be given to children once a week from 12 months (this is due to the very high vitamin A content of liver).
SUPPLEMENTS
Even if you’re mindful of nutrition and aware of how to source all the crucial vitamins and minerals your baby needs from different types of food, it’s still advisable to boost his diet with a few supplements. According to NHS guidelines, children between six months and five years will benefit from daily supplements of vitamins A, C and D. Vitamin D is particularly important and the NHS advice suggests that breastfed babies should receive supplements containing 8.5 to 10mcg of vitamin D from birth. For formula-fed babies, it isn’t necessary until they’re having less than 500ml/18fl oz of infant formula a day. Between the ages of one and four, children should be given a daily supplement of 10mcg of vitamin D.
Your health visitor can give advice on where to buy vitamin drops and who is eligible to receive them free of charge. It’s crucial to remember, though, that overdoing the vitamins can be harmful, so make sure you keep to the recommended daily doses. (Foods that contain too much of a particular vitamin should be avoided in your baby’s first year too – see here.)
ALLERGIES
I know that many new parents are concerned about allergies. Common allergy trigger foods include nuts and seeds; cow’s milk; fish and shellfish; wheat and eggs. Your baby could have a higher risk if you have a significant family history of food allergies or of atopic illnesses such as eczema, asthma and hay fever. If you think this genetic disposition applies to you, I would definitely advise having a discussion with your GP about how carefully to tread when beginning the weaning process with your little one with regards to introducing known allergens, especially peanuts, if there is a known allergy to other nuts or a family history of peanut allergy. It won’t necessarily follow that your baby will be allergic to these foods, but it is worth being extra careful. At six months, not before, you should introduce allergens slowly and one at a time until you are happy there’s no kind of reaction. On the bright side breastfeeding can help reduce the risk of allergies and babies often grow out of an allergy, although a peanut allergy is usually for life. Try to avoid experimenting by cutting out whole food groups unless advised by a medical professional such as a dietician.
FOOD-SPECIFIC DIETS
Vegetarian
I know many vegetarians who have successfully weaned their babies on a vegetarian diet. There are just a few things you need to keep in mind if you’re planning to do so. A vegetarian diet is often higher in fibre and contains less energy-dense foods. This means that young children may not have the appetite to eat enough to provide all the nutrients they need and so a little bit more planning can be required. To keep everything in check nutritionally, focus on giving your baby lots of variety, so things like dark green vegetables (e.g. Blueberry, Apple and Spinach purée – see here), beans and lentils (e.g. Squash and Red Lentil purée – see here) dairy and eggs (e.g. Tomato Quinoa Bowl – see here) and some dried fruit, too, such as apricots, figs and dates. It’s also helpful to know that vitamin C helps the body to absorb iron, so try to regularly include some fruit or veggies, in which it’s found in abundance.
Vegan
Weaning a baby on a vegan diet does require a little more planning but many of the points above still stand, and it is possible for a baby to get all the nutrients he needs from a balanced and varied diet. Energy density of food can be a concern as vegan food is often high in fibre but not very energy dense. Foods such as hummus, tahini, bananas, nut or seed butters (see here) dried fruit, nutritional yeast and fortified (unsweetened) milk make great additions but it does all come back to balance and variety. It is worth being aware of the key micronutrients mentioned here as well as vitamin B12 and iodine, and perhaps considering the supplements mentioned here, as well as seeking advice from a qualified dietician.
INTRODUCING FOODS GRADUALLY
According to NHS guidelines, there are some foods that should be avoided altogether for the first year of life for different reasons.
FOODS TO AVOID IN THE FIRST YEAR
Cow’s milk as a main milk feed
While cow’s milk can be given during weaning as part of a meal, it shouldn’t take the place of your baby’s usual milk during the first year as it doesn’t contain all the essential nutrients your baby needs for this important stage of development and for protection against illness. So stick to breast milk or formula for the first year. They contain all the essential nutrients your baby needs to grow properly. Should you choose to stop breast feeding, there is no advantage to moving to follow-on milks. From 12 months infants, provided they are healthy, should be eating a wide variety of foods and this will be their main source of nutrients. They should also be drinking around 400ml/14fl oz of whole animal milk (either cow, goat or sheep’s milk), or a suitable substitute.
Raw eggs and other uncooked foods
You can give your baby eggs, but ensure that both the white and yolk are cooked solid. Don’t forget, too, that some pre-packed foods contain raw eggs, so do read any labels carefully to avoid these. In general, any unpasteurized food should be avoided during the first year as it can cause food poisoning. Meat and fish should always be well cooked.
Low-fat foods
Low-fat products should be avoided during the first year as they will probably not be energy dense enough for your baby’s nutritional needs.
Fibrous foods
Foods that are too fibrous and limit the absorption of some minerals, such as bran-based cereals and breads, should be avoided during the first year. High-fibre foods, such as whole grains, should only be given in small quantities.
Whole nuts and seeds and other hard foods
The latest NHS advice is to avoid giving a baby under five any whole nuts to avoid choking. It’s also best to avoid giving young children chunks of hard food, such as apple or cheese, as these are also a potential choking hazard. Once your baby is six months old and you are sure there is no immediate family history of food allergies, or eczema, asthma or hay fever, then you can introduce some ground nuts or nut products like peanut butter into your baby’s diet, one by one, but take medical advice if you’re unsure.
Shellfish and certain other fish
The super omega-3 fats found in fish are very beneficial to health. But be wary of some fish. Shark, marlin and swordfish contain high traces of mercury, which can damage an immature nervous system, so avoid those completely. And shellfish carry a higher risk of food poisoning, so it’s best to steer clear of those, too, for the first year. There are plenty of other, safer fish options to try for the moment – just make sure to remove any bones!
Liver and liver products
Liver and liver products such as liver pâté should not be given during the first year as they contain high levels of vitamin A, which can be harmful to your baby. Once your baby is 12 months old you can give them up to once a week.
Early weaning
If parents choose to introduce food before six months, then they should also exclude wheat and gluten in cereal foods such as bread and pasta, as well as eggs, nuts, seeds, liver, fish, shellfish and cow’s milk or other dairy foods.
FOODS TO AVOID IN THE FIRST YEAR AND BEYOND
Rice milk
Traces of arsenic have been found to exist naturally in rice milk. The official advice is not to give it to children under the age of five. If your child has a dairy intolerance, other milk alternatives are available after your child is a year old. Just be sure that whatever milk you give your little one is fortified with the relevant vitamins and minerals his growing body needs. And check that it is unsweetened and not rice based.
Salt
Too much salt is detrimental at any age, but particularly for babies and small children as their underdeveloped kidneys can’t process an excess of salt. As a rule, the family chef should leave seasoning out of home-cooked meals. Adults can always add their own at the table. Be aware that there are some everyday store-cupboard ingredients that are very high in salt but which may not be immediately obvious, such as stock cubes, gravy granules and soy sauce. Supermarkets do low-salt, baby-friendly alternatives to a lot of these, so have a look. And have a go at making your own salt-free stock! (See here.)
Processed foods
Meat products such as sausages, burgers and chicken nuggets are standard fare for family meals, but unless you get these foods direct from a reputable butcher and can be sure the meat content is high, you have no idea what’s really in them. As with other processed foods, there is a high chance that they will be full of salt, sugar and a myriad other detrimental additives and food colourings. Where possible, steer clear!
Refined sugar and artificial sweeteners
Sugar seems to be the number-one enemy today and there’s no doubt in my mind that it can spark a change in children’s behaviour. An excess of sugar, whether in the form of ‘natural’ sugar or artificial sweeteners, is linked to obesity, diabetes and heart problems. There are two types of sugars: naturally occurring ones found in whole fruit, vegetables and milk-based products, and free sugars, which are added to things like honey, syrups and fruit juices. The naturally occurring sugars are a good source of vitamins, minerals and fibre for your little one but just remember that habits are formed at a young age – if you’re feeding them lots of sugary things, they’ll develop a sweet tooth. There’s nothing wrong with a little chocolate now and again, but moderation is key! And make sure to watch out for drinks such as fruit juices and squashes, which often contain huge quantities of sugar.
Artificial sweeteners should be avoided altogether – partly because there’s lots of contradictory evidence around them and partly because they’re extremely sweet! They’ll give your little one a taste for sugar and it’s best to avoid this at all costs!
Honey
Honey can contain spores, which can lead to infant botulism. Although the disease is fairly rare, it can be fatal, so it’s best to leave honey out of your baby’s diet for the first year. And try to limit your child’s consumption of it after that. Honey might seem like a natural, healthy sweetener, but it has the same effect as sugar.
Caffeine
Be mindful that caffeine isn’t just in tea and coffee – it’s found in chocolate and also in some drinks made with sugar substitutes, so be careful to limit those. Too much caffeine can cause hyperactivity in children – not to mention anxiety, tummy problems and lack of sleep. No child – or parent, for that matter – needs that!
GETTING READY TO START
STOCKING THE WEANING KITCHEN
There are only a handful of fresh ingredients that I’d advise getting when you’re preparing to embark on weaning. Plain full-fat live yoghurt, butter, cream cheese and hard cheese are really useful and have a slightly longer shelf life, but other than that, I’d urge you NOT to go out and buy every ingredient under the sun. Your baby can’t possibly consume loads of fresh fruit and veg before it goes off, so unless you have a big family who will pick up the consumption slack, don’t go overboard initially. Think of it rather like that enormous list your best friend gave you when you were pregnant, with a million and one things you supposedly need to buy for your baby’s arrival. Remember, when your little one finally arrived, how many of those items were completely unnecessary, or you didn’t need them until a bit further down the line.
STORE-CUPBOARD BASICS
Dry ingredients, on the other hand, are really useful to have in your cupboards from the off. It makes planning meals and batch cooking so much easier. If you have the space in your kitchen, you can bulk-buy these because they’ll definitely get used and it’s so much more cost effective.
Rice, Dried pasta, Couscous, Quinoa, Rolled porridge oats, Dried lentils, Tinned tomatoes, Tinned sweetcorn, Tinned tuna and Tinned beans
FREEZER
A freezer is not a complete necessity – if you don’t have one, it doesn’t take too long to cook and whizz up fresh meals – but it really can make life a whole lot easier in the weaning kitchen. Having a freezer is a real bonus, especially when it comes to making batches of food for your baby, allowing you to store them safely in individual portions to defrost as and when she needs a meal. Where you can freeze a recipe in this book, it is labelled ‘suitable for freezing’, and this applies to most of the purées and many of the other dishes that are suitable for serving to your baby with the rest of the family when she’s a bit older.
Making space in the freezer
At some point – particularly if you are going down the classic purées route – you will need to set aside some freezer space for your lovingly made, single-ingredient purées. The key is to label everything. I keep a marker pen and a pack of labels on top of the freezer to mark up the date the food went in – and what it is! You’d be surprised how everything looks the same when frozen. I shouldn’t out my mum, but she’s served up an apple pie thinking it was a chicken pie on more than one occasion.
Silicone ice-cube trays/freezer bags
I’ve found that the best and most convenient way to store baby purées/mashes in an easily accessible way is to make up large batches of different individual vegetable and fruit purées, spoon them into ice-cube trays, cover with cling film and then freeze. As soon as it’s frozen, pop the cubes of purée out into a freezer bag and add a label with the type of food and the date of freezing.
Once you’ve done a few different types of individual purée, and your baby is ready to move on from single-ingredient purées, you can defrost two or three and mix them together. By doing this, your baby is getting a variety of flavours and you’re not having to start from scratch every day. One day she might have sweet potato and carrot. The next carrot and apple. If you count each cube as 20ml/3/4fl oz in size, you can work out how many cubes to defrost according and there’s minimal waste (compared with a shop-bought pouch that, once you open it, has to go in the bin if your baby can’t finish it).
How long to keep things
If you do have a freezer and you’re anything like me, it will be jam-packed full of foods you shove in and keep forgetting to use up! Anything containing meat can be stored in the freezer for a pretty long time and still be safe to eat, but the quality will deteriorate so it’s best to eat it within 3–6 months. Remember, you should never refreeze raw meat or fish that has already been defrosted. You can safely refreeze meat that has been defrosted and cooked, and you can also do this with fish, though I find it changes the texture so I don’t recommend it.
FOOD-STORAGE SAFETY
Once you’ve got going with weaning and stocked your freezer with batches of purée, there are a few more rules to follow to keep your little one safe from an upset tummy or worse.
Make sure you don’t reheat any purées more than once after defrosting.
If you’ve made a purée and put it straight into the fridge, that’s fine, but make sure it’s in a pot with a lid or covered with cling film, and it absolutely has to be used within 24 hours from when you made it.
Frustrating though this might be, if you’ve only managed to dip the spoon into a bowl of purée a couple of times, and it’s been in your baby’s mouth – but she’s not interested – don’t keep it. Saliva transfer from your baby’s mouth to the spoon, then to the purée, will have contaminated the food so it’s just not safe to keep. Sorry!
As a precautionary measure during weaning, I don’t recommend keeping or freezing leftover cooked rice as it’s important to be incredibly careful when reheating it, due to the slight risk of food poisoning. Cooked rice should not be allowed to sit at room temperature for any length of time for the same reason.
GENERAL HYGIENE IN THE KITCHEN
You’ll be used to keeping everything clean since the arrival of your little one, especially if you feel like you’ve spent more time with your sterilizer in the last six months than with friends and family! But, just in case, here’s a quick checklist:
Wash hands and dry with a clean tea towel. If you use one you’ve had lying around the kitchen for ages, there’s literally no point in having washed your hands in the first place.
Wipe down your kitchen work space with disinfectant every time you use it.
Make sure all weaning equipment has been washed in hot soapy water/put through the dishwasher/sterilized, though you don’t have to sterilize anything other than bottles after six months.
COOKING EQUIPMENT
As with fresh ingredients, there is really no need to go mad when it comes to stocking up on cooking equipment. You’ll find you most likely can get by on what you have already. I had one of those purée cooker gadgets to which you add food and water, push a button, and it steams and purées in about 15 minutes. It was great, and they’ve probably come on a lot since I bought mine, but considering how quickly your baby will move on from super-smooth purées, I think it’s a lot of money to spend for the short amount of time you use it. Here are a few things that I wouldn’t be without, though.
Food processor/blender
You’ll need some sort of food processor or blender to make purées for your baby in the early months, though again, there’s no need to spend a huge amount of money as this stage is relatively short, and you’ll soon be on to mashing. That said, unless you’re going to be making quite big batches of purée with a view to stocking up the freezer, a mini food processor or blender is the best size for the small amounts of each ingredient you’re going to cook and whizz up. You can otherwise pick up a hand blender relatively cheaply and that will more than suffice for whizzing up small amounts. In the recipes, you’ll find that I try to give different options wherever possible.
Saucepan/steamer
A basic saucepan with a lid is great for boiling vegetables and poaching fruit for purées – and that is how they have been cooked in the recipes here, with some of the cooking water then being used to thin purées in the early stages – but I’d highly recommend you invest in a steamer. This doesn’t have to be an expensive stand-alone steaming gadget; just one of those little metal baskets that sit inside a lidded saucepan will suffice. Steaming is a good way to preserve certain nutrients, and the minimal cooking water will be easily absorbed into your meal, retaining more of the goodness of the ingredients.
Microwave
There’s no doubt about it – a microwave is a wonderful modern convenience when it comes to speedy reheating or defrosting. It’s a super-easy way to steam vegetables too. Just make sure that you are well versed in how your own microwave works, so that you know how to use it safely in terms of having it on the correct cook and defrost settings. If you’re reheating food, be careful about ‘hotspots’. Pause it and stir once or twice during cooking to make sure the heat is evenly dispersed. And, as with everything, make sure the temperature is just right before you offer it to your baby.
Potato masher
Once you’ve moved on from smooth purées, you’ll need something to mash the cooked food so it retains more texture. Depending on how much you’ve made, a potato masher is handy, or just use the back of a fork!
FEEDING EQUIPMENT
I think the bottom line when it comes to purchasing anything baby related is to try making do without it and if you feel you absolutely can’t, then pop out to buy or order it. The biggest budget-busting mistake all new parents make – and I’m no exception – is to rush out and buy everything on ‘the list’, thinking they’ll fail without it, when every baby’s needs are different and some just pass certain stages altogether and suddenly you’re left with a load of gadgets that haven’t even seen the light of day! But here are a few trusty basics that I couldn’t have managed without.
Baby chair
You don’t need to spend a fortune on a baby chair! In my experience, the more expensive they are and the more space age they look, the trickier they are to clean and the less supportive they are. There are plenty of chair options on the market, at a range of prices to suit your budget. Whatever you decide to go for, it must be supportive. If your baby is at the weaning stage, she should be strong enough to sit up straight and have good head control. The Bumbo-type seats are suitable for really early stages and some even come with detachable trays. If you are putting your baby straight into a high chair, make sure she’s comfortable, well supported and strapped in. Ones with detachable trays have the advantage of flexibility, in that your child can either eat on her own or the chair can be pulled up to the table. If you’re opting for a chair that either attaches to or pulls up to your own table, without a detachable tray, make sure it’s safe. Chairs that can be clipped onto the table or fold up are especially good if you’re short on space.
I used a Bumbo, followed by a Tripp Trapp high chair that pulled straight up to the table –with a baby harness for when my kids were really little. But that’s just what worked for me, allowing me to sit and eat with them. The chair, which can be adjusted as your child gets bigger, was particularly handy when the second and third children came along as they could then eat with the older ones. It’s no coincidence that Chester is my best eater. He’s learned by example from watching the other two with their ever-maturing taste buds, and, at two years old, I can honestly say there’s nothing that child won’t eat. (Except mashed potato, that is. He hates mashed potato!)
It’s quite a good idea to let your baby become acclimatized to her new high chair in the week running up to starting weaning. Giving her a weaning spoon to play with, along with a plastic bowl, plate or cup, while you eat your dinner, is a good way of introducing her to sitting down to a family meal and getting used to it before you add food to the party! Babies don’t miss a trick. They’ll be taking it all in, watching and learning, so by the time their turn comes, it won’t feel so foreign.
Bowls and spoons
There are all sorts of brilliant feeding products on the market. You can now buy silicone bowls and spoons in heat-sensitive materials that change colour if the food’s too hot, and I think that’s a terrific idea. If I was going to go out again now and buy a set for a first baby, I think I would definitely go for the bowls with suckers that attach to the table so that they can’t be knocked sideways! But any bowl that won’t smash if it ends up on the floor is fine.
The only must with weaning spoons is that they need to be made from soft plastic or silicone. This is to protect your baby’s gums as she eats. It’s worth having a couple of spoons as babies often respond better to being fed if they are also holding a spoon and feel like they’re doing it themselves. Giving them this sense of independence helps them develop their motor skills, too, and it won’t be long before they’re scooping up their own spoonfuls and accurately popping them into their mouths.
Sippy cup
From six months, you can encourage your baby to take a few sips of water from a spout beaker or ‘sippy’ alongside her new ‘solid’ meal. You can get ones with handles, to make it easier for little hands to control, and she’ll love the feeling of independence that comes with this new experience. I would advise investing in a cup with a lid, but one that allows the water to flow freely rather than the non-spill type. This teaches your baby how to sip and drink properly, and it will stand her in good stead for when it’s time to lose the lid and start drinking from an open cup with the sipping control they’ve unwittingly learned. Teaching your child how to use a straw early on is also a godsend. Once they master this, it makes things so much easier when you’re out and about. Mine learned by watching me and Dan. I’d suck liquid through the straw and then let it go and blow a few bubbles. I know this sounds as though you’d be teaching your children bad habits, but it’s enough to spark their interest and show them how to draw up liquid and watch how it moves up and down the straw. All of mine learned really quickly and it definitely helped with learning to sip and drink properly.
Bibs
When my babies were at the milk-only stage, I used those super-soft milk-feeding bibs with the padded ridge around the neck, which soaked up all the drips and leaks, helping to prevent rashes. But bibs for weaning are a totally different ball game. Essentially, you still want one to catch the excess – but this time you’ll want one you can wipe clean, or you’ll be spending a fortune on stain remover! You can get silicone ones with inbuilt trays. Inevitably they don’t catch everything – but I’ve always been glad it’s there.
Face cloth/muslin/wipes
You’ll need something to wipe your baby down once they’ve finished eating. Just make sure it’s something clean – and not the kitchen J-cloth! Equally, if you’re using baby wipes, try them on your own face first. Some are fine to use on little hands, but quite scratchy on their sensitive faces and you won’t know until you try it yourself. As a rule, try not to wipe your baby’s face too much mid-feed, even if she is covered in goo. You risk aggravating and distracting her before she’s full.
Sterilizer
You only need to sterilize your feeding equipment if you’re weaning a baby under six months old. Any work-surface or microwave-bottle sterilizer will work. After that, it’s fine to hand wash or put everything through the dishwasher.
HAPPY MEALTIMES AS A FUNDAMENTAL PART OF HAPPY FAMILIES
The first few weeks of weaning aren’t really conducive to the conventional family meal, given the mess and your baby’s short attention span. Nevertheless, if you can, it’s still important to seat your baby at the table and let her experience the whole family coming together. The early days of weaning are more exploratory for babies in terms of food, but even if you just give them an empty bowl and a spoon to practise with while you eat, they can start to copy how you use the tableware and they’ll begin to feel part of the mealtime experience.
I guess every parent’s dream is to have the whole family seated around the dining table, all happily tucking into the same meal you’ve lovingly (albeit somewhat frantically!) prepared. Basically, not having to create half a dozen different dishes to please everyone! I was really lucky growing up to have both of my parents around a lot of the time. My dad was, and still is, a salesman. His working hours used to revolve around when his customers were at home, so most days it was he who would collect me and my sister from school. We’d then all have an early dinner together as a family before he had to go out to his evening appointments.
As with so many of the good things in your own childhood, I think you only properly appreciate them when you become a parent yourself. If I’m honest, it’s only since becoming a mum that I realize how lucky we were to have as much time with both our parents as we did, which is what I try to replicate for my own children. Sitting down together for a family meal is part of this. So even though Dan and my working days can be lengthy at times, we both make every effort to sit down to a family meal as often as we can and have tried to do so even during the earliest stages of weaning.
DEVELOPING GOOD EATING HABITS
In an ideal world, children will develop positive associations with everything they eat, and sharing family mealtimes as much as possible from the word go certainly helps. If you can establish this attitude from an early age, they’ll by more likely to enjoy a balanced, healthy diet as they grow up. Here are a few other suggestions to encourage a good approach to eating.
VARIETY
Variety is key – the spice of life, as they say. The wider the range of different flavours, colours and textures you can introduce to children when they are young, the healthier and happier they’ll be in life. Encouraging your children to be open-minded from the earliest age will help get them off to the best start nutritionally. Most babies begin with basic vegetable and fruit purées, but don’t be afraid to introduce herbs, garlic and spices to widen their palate. (Not hot spices! And remember that chilli should only be introduced once your baby reaches one year old). I feel so proud of Harry and Belle now in restaurants with how receptive they are to new foods, willing to a bit more adventurous and try out other dishes rather than sticking with chicken nuggets on the kids’ menu. Even when we’re abroad, they always try local foods and are as partial to a seafood paella as a (not too spicy!) Thai curry.
FUSSINESS
At some point during the weaning process, you’ll feel like you’ve got a fussy little person on your hands, and it can be frustrating, especially when the toddler stage is reached and your child suddenly realizes she can exercise control over her life. There are many reasons why this might be happening, depending on the age of your child, so before you fling some butternut squash at the kitchen wall yourself, ask yourself a few key questions:
Babies
• Is my baby hungry enough?
• Has she had too much milk at around the same time as solid feeds?
• Is she too distracted by other things at mealtime, such as the TV, toys or a busy household?
• Is she coming down with an illness?
• Is she teething?
• Is she bored of me offering the same flavours?
• Is the purée too thick for first tastes?
• Should I try mixing some of her familiar milk into the solids?
Toddlers
• Is the portion size too big and overwhelming?
• Should I try including her in meal preparation and cooking?
• Shall I try making up a meal by mixing a food I know she loves with a completely new food?
• As she rejected broccoli purée last week, should I try it a few more times? Remember that it can take up to ten goes before any given food is finally deemed acceptable!
• Shall I sit down to eat with her and let her see me eat what I’m offering her, to build up trust?
Older children
• Should I let her serve herself?
• Shall I give her the opportunity to do some cooking?
• Should I get her input for the week’s meal planning?
• Shall I involve her in choosing different foods at the supermarket?
Bribery
In the same way that one plonks the kids in front of the TV for entertainment in order to get some chores done, it’s all too easy to offer something sweet as a bribe for eating a healthy main course. It’s really tempting, especially if it works and gets them to eat all their veggies, and indeed needs must sometimes. But if you introduce your little one to the concept that sweet things are a reward, she might start getting the wrong attitude towards food. I regularly reward myself with junk food, for example. I think, Ooh, I’ve worked really hard today – I deserve a nice piece of cake! And I’m sure that attitude must stem from when I was a child, so I’m quite wary about doing the same with my kids. Somehow, I’ve managed to convince them that any kind of fruit or raw veg are a real treat when they’re chopped up. Mango, for example, chopped-up cucumber or a peeled, sliced apple are particular favourites. They really do like those things, and not just because we don’t have some fruit, such as mangoes, all the time. So, when a little bowl is offered, I can say truthfully that they find it an exciting prospect!
This is not to say my children are devoid of treats! (Indeed, Chapter 7 is all about a bit of indulgence for a special occasion.) A hot summer’s day or trip to the beach needs ice cream. A cinema visit isn’t the same without a tub of popcorn, and Christmas and birthdays go hand in hand with a few sweets and chocolates. But everything in moderation. If children aren’t completely deprived of this sort of thing, they won’t crave it and then binge once they’re in the driving seat. A little bit of what you fancy does you good!
DON’T FORGET TO FEED YOURSELF HEALTHILY TOO!
Throughout the messy, time-consuming and often tiring process of weaning your baby, it can be easy to forget to look after yourself. It’s crucial to remember that if you’re not eating nutritionally balanced meals yourself, then you won’t be getting all the energy you need.
The recipes in this book are all nutritionally balanced and, from Chapter 3 onwards, can be made for the whole family. If you’re able (as much as possible) to enjoy meals together, then you can be certain that every member of your family (including yourself!) is getting what they need. Snacking is a slightly different matter – in times of need, when my little ones were causing havoc and it was only mid-morning – I’d sometimes be tempted by whatever cake or leftover crisps were lying around. Just try to remember that your children learn by example, so if they see you snaffling doughnuts on the sly, they might be less inclined to wolf down those veggie sticks you’re offering them. You’ll feel much better and more energy-filled for not turning to the high-sugar or high-salt options in times of need (although understandably it will happen now and again!)
