Infant Feeding Guide for 6 - 12 months

As an infant reaches 4 – 6 months of age, nutrient needs become greater than human milk or formula can provide. Supplemental food will need to be introduced to satisfy your infant's appetite and for growth. Two indicators that your infant is ready for solid foods include the ability to hold his head up without support and disappearance of the reflex that causes him/her to automatically push solid food out of his mouth. Commercial infant rice cereal is generally recommended as an infant's first food, as it is easy to digest, high in iron and an unlikely allergen. 

Feeding Tips:

• Begin with infant rice cereal first, followed by vegetables, fruits, and meats. 
• Give your baby one new food at a time - not mixtures. Give the new food for 3-5 days before adding another new food. Adding new foods individually and gradually is important so that symptoms of an allergy or food intolerance (skin rashes, vomiting, diarrhea, or wheezing) can be easily identified and the offending food avoided. 
• Begin with small amounts of new solid foods - a teaspoon at first and slowly increase to a tablespoon. 
• Do not use salt or sugar when making homemade infant foods. Canned foods may contain large amounts of salt and sugar and should not be used for baby food. Always wash and peel fruits and vegetables and remove seeds or pits. Take special care with fruits and vegetables that come into contact with the ground as they may contain botulism spores that can cause food poisoning. 
• Infant cereals with iron should be fed until the infant is eighteen months old. 
• Whole cow's milk should not be added to the diet until the infant is twelve months of age. Cow's milk does not provide enough nutrients for your baby. Early introduction of cow's milk is associated with an increased risk of milk protein allergy, poor growth, and iron deficiency. 
• Children under one year old should not be given reduced fat diets. 
• Fruit juice without sugar can be started after 6 months, when the baby is able to drink from a cup. Limit fruit juice to 4 ounces per day or less. 
• Feed all food with a spoon. Your baby needs to learn to eat from a spoon. Do not use an infant feeder. Only formula and water should go in a bottle. 
• Do not use honey in any form for the first year because honey has bacteria spores that can cause infant botulism. 
• Do not put your baby in bed with a bottle propped in his mouth. Propping the bottle is linked to choking, ear infections, and tooth decay. 
• Help your baby to give up the bottle by his first birthday. 
• Do not force your child to eat all the food on his plate when he is not hungry. Forcing a child to eat teaches them to eat just because the food is there and can lead to excessive weight gain. Expect a smaller and pickier appetite as the infant's growth rate slows around one year of age. 
• Infants and young children should not eat the following foods which may cause them to choke: 

               hot dogs 

               nuts or seeds 

               round candies 

               popcorn 

               hard or raw fruits and vegetables 

               grapes 

               peanut butter. 

Most doctors suggest that the foods in the list above should not be offered to children until they are at least three or four years of age. Always watch young children while they eat. Insist that your children sit down to eat or drink. 

An Expectant Dad's Guide to Pregnancy

No matter ho many times you read What to Expect When You're Excepting, no one can tell you how it really is for us guys when baby arrives except for another dad. Between swaddling,diaper duty and her breastfeeding, fatherhood feels like a whole new world with all things beer,sleep and sex-related put on hold. What to be better prepared?

 

1.Go with your partner to her prenatal visits. The baby's heart starts beating 22 days after conception, or the fifth week of pregnancy, and you can hear it with an ultrasound anywhere between the seventh and twelfth weeks.During the second trimester, go with your partner if she needs an ultrasound. You can see the baby's head, arms, hands, legs, and feet. You may even find out the sex of the baby. During the third trimester, ask how you can help during the delivery.

2.Watch videotapes, listen to audiotapes, check out the Internet, or read books about prenatal development, birthing, and becoming a parent.Go to classes that will teach you and your partner about childbirth.

3.Help plan for the baby. Talk with your partner about what you both want for your baby. Ask friends and family members if you can borrow a crib, changing table, or baby clothes. Many people are glad to let you use their things. Save a little money each week. It will make it easier once the baby arrives.

4.Help your partner stay healthy during pregnancy. Help her eat many different foods. Watch what you eat too. If you eat right, you will make it easier for her. Help your partner stay away from alcohol. Alcohol can cause birth defects. Encourage her to drink juice or milk.Help your partner stay away from street drugs. If you use illegal drugs, stop now, and if your partner uses them, get help for her. Also, encourage her to check with the doctor before taking any over-the-counter drugs or prescription drugs.

5.Make sure your partner stays away from dangerous household products. Strong cleansers, paint products, and insecticides can all harm your baby. Do not let her empty the cat litter box.

6.Exercise during pregnancy. Walk or swim together. Both are safe exercises and provide time together.Be sure your partner gets enough rest. Help with the household chores. Encourage her to use relaxation exercises and join in. Stress can be very harmful to both mother and baby. Talk out differences in a supportive way. If you find yourself becoming angry and having difficulty controlling negative feelings, seek out counseling. Never use physical force, intimidation, belittling comments, or other abusive behaviors. These are not productive for any relationship and are especially harmful during pregnancy.

7.Understand the different changes both you and your partner are going through as you prepare for parenthood. Pregnancy causes many changes in how a woman feels about how her body is changing. You can still have sex. Talk to each other about what feels good.

8.Support your partner's choice on how to feed the baby. Breast milk is best for the baby. If mom chooses bottle feeding, you can often take over the feeding of the baby and give mom a rest. Even if breast feeding, mom can pump milk into a bottle, which will allow your participation in the feeding of the baby.

9.To attach with your baby, take time to learn about the developmental stages and how nutrition, lifestyles, and stress can affect prenatal growth. Listen to your child's heartbeat, feel the kicks. From the second trimester on, you can play the "tapping" game. Each time the mother feels the unborn baby kick, you can respond by tapping her stomach in the same area. The unborn baby quickly learns this "call and response" game. Talk and sing to your baby. Direct positive thoughts and loving feelings to your unborn child. Visualize yourself holding, touching, rocking, or talking to your child. Think about the kind of father you want to be to your child.Find an infant massage class and attend with your partner. Infant massage is a wonderful way to soothe a baby.

10.Learn how to bathe, feed, diaper, hold, and comfort a baby. All of these activities will build a father's confidence and enhance bonding with the child.

11.Find a "New Fathers" support group or talk to other men who have had or are going to have new babies. Share feelings, ideas on supporting the pregnant mom, and tips to make sure you are taking care of yourself.

12.As soon as the baby is born, hold the baby and look into the baby's eyes. If you talked to the baby before he or she was born, speak to him or her at birth, then he or she will probably recognize your voice.