10 key words for children's daily diet

Parents often overlook the development of eating habits in infants and young children, thinking that good or bad eating habits are not important and that they can be corrected as they grow up. In fact, the eating habits developed between the ages of zero and one will affect the eating habits of children and even continue to affect the eating habits of adults. So, how can babies develop healthy eating habits from an early age? Let’s find out through the following key words questions and answers about children’s daily healthy diet.

1. Keyword: Drink water

Q: My baby is one and a half years old. She was weaned half a month ago. Recently, she likes to drink water very much. I wonder if this is good? A: There is a lot of water in breast milk, especially foremilk, so for young babies, they can only eat breast milk without drinking water. It is also for the same reason that babies will show a love of drinking water after weaning. After weaning, the baby's gastrointestinal tract needs an adaptation process, and constipation is prone to occur. You should pay attention to drinking more water and eating more vegetables and fruits.

2. Key words: anorexia

Q: My baby is one year old. He has been weaned for three days and has developed anorexia. He doesn’t like any food I have tried. He is also constipated and has not had a bowel movement for two days. What should I do? A: From what you described, it seems that your baby is constipated because he eats too little and there is no food to form bowel movements. This may be caused by sudden weaning. Weaning means stopping breast milk, not stopping dairy products. Before the age of 2, the baby's diet is still mainly milk. Weaning is actually the process of gradually replacing breast milk with formula milk. It should be replaced gradually, meal by meal, and not too hasty. It has only been 3 days since weaning. It is recommended that the baby continue to eat breast milk and then gradually replace it with formula milk.

In addition, when replacing, you should reduce the daytime feeding first and then the night feeding, because there are many things during the day that can divert the baby's attention, while the baby will be more dependent on the mother at night, and stopping the night feeding first will have a greater psychological impact on the baby.

3. Keywords: formula milk powder

Q: My baby is 1 year and 4 months old and is exclusively breastfed. After weaning, he doesn’t like to drink milk powder and refuses the bottle. What should I do? A: Not liking to drink milk powder and not liking the bottle are two different things. Babies are very sensitive. They are already sad because they cannot drink their mother's breast milk. If you trick them with something that looks like their mother's nipple, they will be even more unwilling to accept it. For such babies, you can use a small spoon to feed them. You should still hold the baby while feeding him, or always look at him with a kind look, so that the baby realizes that although he can no longer drink his mother's milk, his mother still loves him. This way your baby will accept formula as a new food. In addition, the flavors of various formula milk powders are different, so you can try a few different ones.

4. Keyword: Yogurt

Q: My baby is almost 2 years old now. She was breastfed for 18 months. After weaning, she wants yogurt before going to bed every day. She will fall asleep quickly after drinking it, but will cry and make a fuss if she doesn’t drink it. I wonder if drinking yogurt is good for you? A: Yogurt has a special fragrance and is loved by many babies. Yogurt is a product of fermented fresh milk. The rich calcium in milk will not change after fermentation, and the lactic acid produced after fermentation can effectively improve the utilization rate of calcium and phosphorus in the body. Yogurt also contains probiotics and is a good snack for babies. If your baby is currently drinking mainly formula milk and the only meal at night is yogurt, it is still okay.

However, yogurt cannot completely replace breast milk, because formula milk contains more complete nutrients and is more suitable for babies. When purchasing, be sure to buy plain yogurt for your baby. Although yogurts flavored with fruit ingredients have a richer taste, they reduce the milk content, resulting in lower nutritional value.

5. Keyword: Juice

Q: My baby is 1 year and 2 months old. Is it better to give her juice or fruit? A: Eating fruit can exercise the chewing ability of the baby's teeth and increase dietary fiber, which is beneficial for the baby's smooth bowel movements. Therefore, eating fruit is more appropriate than juice. But after all, the baby is still young and it is difficult for him to eat fruit by himself. You can cut the fruit into cubes or strips for the baby to eat. When you take your baby out, you can drink some freshly squeezed juice to supplement vitamins, but be careful not to give your baby fruit juice drinks, which contain a lot of sugar and affect the baby's health.

6. Keyword: apple peel

Q: My baby is almost 2 years old. I usually peel the apples before feeding them to him. But I heard that the apple peel is very nutritious. Should I peel the apples? A: Apple peel not only contains a lot of dietary fiber, but also has a high vitamin content. But it is still recommended to peel it before eating. The first reason is that there may be pesticide residues on the surface of the apple peel, and the second reason is the problem of fruit wax. If it is in accordance with national standards, apples preserved with edible wax are still safe, but it is difficult to distinguish edible wax from industrial wax when purchasing, so it is safer to peel the apples before eating.

7. Keyword: oyster sauce

Q: My baby doesn't like to eat vegetables, but he especially likes lettuce with oyster sauce. I wonder if I can use oyster sauce to cook for him? A: Oyster sauce, a common condiment in the south, tastes similar to soy sauce, but oyster sauce is made from concentrated oyster juice, while soy sauce is made from fermented soybeans. Oyster sauce tastes delicious and contains more zinc than soy sauce, so it can be given to babies. However, because oyster sauce is derived from seafood, it may become an allergen and cause allergies in babies, so babies with allergies should be cautious when eating oyster sauce.

8. Key words: Autumn dryness

Q: My baby is 1 year and 9 months old. Recently, he has dry stools, nosebleeds, and coughs. He is obviously getting angry, but he dare not take medicine to clear the fire. What food can be used to regulate autumn dryness? A: After the humid summer, the air suddenly becomes dry. The water content in the baby's body is high, and the water lost through the skin, lungs and kidneys is more than that of adults. If the baby does not drink enough water and has an improper diet, especially if he puts on too much weight in autumn, he is prone to symptoms of "getting angry", which is "autumn dryness". You can give your baby more boiled water, rock sugar pear water, lotus root water, etc., and let your baby eat more foods that nourish yin and moisten dryness. Don't deliberately put on weight in autumn. Just make sure your baby has meat every day, but don't feed your baby a lot of meat at every meal.

9. Key words: constipation

Q: My baby is 1 year and 3 months old and is ready to be weaned. After adding formula milk, his stools become dry and hard. What should I do if my baby becomes constipated during weaning? A: The baby's gastrointestinal tract is in the transition stage from adapting to breast milk to formula milk, so constipation, or even alternating constipation and diarrhea, is likely to occur. Don't worry at this time. The number of times the baby changes formula milk can be reduced, and the transition period of weaning can be appropriately extended. You can start by adding formula milk once, and when your baby's bowel movements become normal, gradually increase to two doses of formula milk. In this way, you can observe your baby's bowel movements and gradually replace breast milk with formula milk. In addition, your baby should eat more vegetables every day to increase dietary fiber, help form stools, and promote defecation.

10. Key words: diarrhea

Q: My baby is 1 year and 5 months old and has been weaned for ten days. He is fed with rice and formula milk during the day and drinks formula milk at night. However, his stool is loose, 5 to 6 times a day. Does he need to see a doctor? A: The baby has just been weaned and needs a period of adaptation. Judging from the information you provided, your baby may have developed gastrointestinal dysfunction during the adaptation process, so there is no need to worry too much. However, the baby's gastrointestinal function is relatively weak during this period, so you need to pay attention to dietary hygiene to avoid infectious diarrhea. If your bowel movements suddenly increase or your stools become watery, or you have a fever, you should seek medical attention immediately.