How to feed a baby at 4 months
The nutrition of a child under one year old is based on breastfeeding or artificial feeding with adapted formulas that replace breast milk.
However, the needs of a growing body for vitamins and nutrients change every day. In the first 3 months of life, both breast milk and formula completely replenish the balance of essential vitamins and minerals for the healthy development of the baby. How to feed a 4 month old baby? The nutrition of a baby at a given age is determined by his physical development, changes in the daily routine, and activity. Should I introduce complementary foods from 4 months? What foods are introduced into the child's diet first?
How to feed a baby 4 months old: the basics of a balanced diet
At the age of 4 months, the baby's day regimen changes significantly. The period of his wakefulness increases, the number of meals is reduced to 6, regardless of the type of feeding (breastfeeding, artificial or mixed). The correct daily routine at this age helps to stimulate a good appetite in the child. How to feed a 4 month old baby?
The basis of the diet of a 4 month old baby is breast milk, which is recognized as the only physiologically adequate type of nutrition for a baby of the first year of life. Natural feeding is recommended by the World Health Organization due to the exceptional benefits of breast milk and breastfeeding for the physical and mental development of the child. At the age of 4 months, the need for a growing child's body for vitamins, nutrients and trace elements increases, which determines the need to introduce additional products into the diet. In addition, at the age of 4 months, the child already matures its own digestive enzymes, forms local immunity of the gastrointestinal tract, and also develops mechanisms of swallowing. When determining what to feed a 4 month old baby,parents should be guided exclusively by the individual needs of the baby.
To determine whether a baby needs complementary foods, it is necessary to track:
- The development of the baby and its compliance with age standards (dynamics of growth and weight gain);
- Psycho-emotional readiness of a child to consume new products (interest in products consumed by adults);
- Lactation of a young mother (is the amount of breast milk sufficient for the baby);
- The general condition of the child.
If a baby is 4 months active, he has enough breast milk to satisfy his thirst and hunger, his height and weight correspond to the norms, then additional products should not be introduced. The introduction of complementary foods with breastfeeding is recommended to start at 5 months, while with artificial feeding, it is recommended to introduce new products from exactly 4 months, since breast milk contains more nutrients, and an adapted mixture can never become an adequate full-fledged substitute for breast milk. When deciding what to feed a 4-month-old baby, you must remember the basic rules for introducing complementary foods. It is also necessary to take into account the fact that even a slight change in the diet presents both mental and physical stress for the baby, since his stomach may not be ready to assimilate food,different in composition and consistency from the adapted formula or breast milk.
How to feed a baby at 4 months breastfeeding
Breastfeeding is not just about getting food for your baby. In the process of breastfeeding, an invisible psychological bond is formed between mother and baby. During breastfeeding, the baby communicates with the mother, calms down, feels protected. Breast milk is extremely useful for the healthy development of the child's body, dental calcification, and natural immunization of the child. Asking the question of what to breastfeed a baby at 4 months of age, a young mother should understand that the introduction of new products into the baby's diet can affect lactation, reduce the amount of breast milk, and so the baby may not receive enough nutrients and protective components necessary for healthy development …
Before introducing complementary foods, it is better to consult with a pediatrician and pediatric nutritionist, who, based on the history, condition of the child and related diseases, will be able to adjust the range of new products for introduction into the baby's diet.
There are many theories about the timing of the introduction of complementary foods, as well as the foods that need to be introduced into the baby's diet first. However, all pediatricians and nutritionists agree that breast milk should be predominant (70-80%) in the diet of a baby during the first year of life. How to feed a baby 4 months old if breast milk is not enough for a baby?
The main products for the first complementary foods are one-component vegetable purees, which are introduced in minimal amounts (a quarter teaspoon) with a gradual increase in the portion. For the first mashed potatoes, it is necessary to give preference to vegetables containing delicate fiber (cauliflower, pumpkin, broccoli). Also, for the first feeding, you can use dairy-free single-grain cereals such as rice or buckwheat, which is due to the high content of iron and zinc in them - the most important elements for physical and mental development.
How to feed a baby at 4 months old on artificial feeding
How to feed a 4-month-old baby with artificial feeding? When feeding with adapted mixtures, the introduction of the first complementary foods should be started exactly at 4 months, due to the fact that the nutritional value of such mixtures cannot fully provide the necessary balance of elements and vitamins for the development of the child. When deciding what to feed a baby at 4 months of age on artificial feeding, it is necessary to be guided by the general state of health of the baby. With overweight and frequent stool disorders (constipation), nutritionists recommend starting complementary foods with vegetable purees, while with frequent diarrhea, they recommend starting complementary foods with cereals.
There is also a theory that the most optimal products for the first feeding are low-fat dairy products, since they are similar in consistency to the formula or breast milk, and the baby's digestive tract will more easily cope with their digestion. Vegetables, in turn, are rich in vitamins, acids and trace elements, while cereals are the safest product for a child, not capable of causing gastrointestinal dysfunction.
On the question of the introduction of juices
Many parents, when deciding what to feed a 4-month-old baby, prefer apple juice, which, according to some pediatricians, should be introduced into the baby's diet from 3.5 months. The introduction of juices into a child's diet is a subject of discussion among pediatricians and nutritionists. The high acid content in juices irritates the unprepared gastrointestinal mucosa and also provokes indigestion. An insignificant amount of juice for the first feeding can cause a fermentation process in the digestive tract, which can adversely affect the condition of the child and his appetite in particular.
Found a mistake in the text? Select it and press Ctrl + Enter.
