Читать книгу Eat Up: Food for Children of All Ages - Mark Hix - Страница 18

The consistency of the food you give your baby is important. At first they should have very smooth, semi-liquid purées. To make these, cook vegetables or fruit until very soft, then purée in a blender and strain through a sieve. Dilute with a little cooled boiled water if necessary. From six to seven months you can introduce foods with a little more texture – potatoes, for example, can be mashed rather than puréed. Check that there are no large lumps by running a fork through before serving. Babies can’t chew or spit things out, so if they find a big lump in their mouth they will try and swallow it, and may choke. As they grow, textured foods allow a baby to develop chewing skills in anticipation of the arrival of teeth.

For the first couple of months you should sterilise all the bowls, spoons and cups you use for feeding your baby, and after that be scrupulously hygienic when preparing food. Food for babies should always be properly cooked and then allowed to cool before serving. Don’t reheat any food and, if your baby doesn’t finish something, throw it away. If you are warming food in a microwave you need to make sure it is evenly heated. Microwaves cook from the inside out, so the surface may be the right temperature while the inside is boiling hot. Always stir well and taste it yourself before giving it to your child. Food stays warmer for longer in plastic and cools quicker in china.

At about eight or nine months old, your baby will be trying finger foods such as crusty bread, pieces of banana, soft fruits such as peaches, and lightly cooked vegetable sticks. Although they are very keen to feed themselves at this stage, they are not very experienced, so you need to keep an eye on them to make sure they don’t choke. Poking, smearing and squidging food helps them to learn about it. Not much gets into their mouth but the process of exploration is important. You don’t need to worry too much about a balanced diet at this stage as their nutritional needs are still being met by milk. The more food they eat, the less milk they will need, but they should still have a high fluid intake. Introducing drinks of cooled boiled water will keep them hydrated without interfering with their appetite.