Nutritional requirement for infants and toddlers is usually high as compared to the adults. For the five years of your child, his body needs some vital nutrients to ensure proper growth and development. During these growing years, every parent looks worried about their child’s growth and development.
Therefore, in this blog, you will find some useful information about the nutritional requirements for the infants and toddlers.
Nutritional Requirement for an INFANT (0-6 months)By the term ‘infant nutrition’ we mean that an infant is getting enough nutrition for his proper growth and development. The important nutrition that is needed can be protein, fat, vitamins and minerals. These vital nutrients can be given to him through Breastmilk. Breast Milk is best for the babies until the of 6 months. The biggest benefit of breastfeeding is that it provides immunity power to the newborn baby. Hence, until the age of 6 months, a baby should be fed with only her mother’s milk. To ensure that baby is getting sufficient nutrition, the mother should intake healthy and nutritious diet. It is good to avoid oily and spicy foods. Homemade food is best for both mother and baby.
Please consult your doctor if you have any concern about breastfeeding your baby.
Nutritional Requirement for an INFANT(6-12 months)
You should consult about you baby growth and development with a good pediatrician for a regular interval of time. You make sure that your baby is gaining proper weight and actively responding to a healthy diet. However, once the baby completes his 6 months of age, you can start introducing liquid and semi-solid foods in addition to the mother’s milk. You can start by introducing fresh fruit puree (half cup) or seasonal fruit juice (½ cup). Cereals can also be introduced like rice water, daal ka pani (½ cup), etc. Make sure you are giving a ½ cup of water too at a regular interval.
At this age, the nutritional requirement of an infant is Iron, Vitamin D, Fluoride and Vitamin B 12. The dosage of these vital nutrients varies according to the baby’ weight. Therefore, please consult the pediatrician for better guidance and understanding.
Nutritional Requirement for a Toddler (1-5 years)Toddlers from the age 1 year and above are the fussy eaters. They are not interested in their meals rather they give more priority to their activities and play-time, which make them fussy eaters. Still, it is important to feed them with nutrition so that they remain active and healthy.
According to the pediatric nutrition, a child should be fed with milk & dairy products, protein-rich foods, like fish, eggs, peanut butter, fresh fruits and freshly cooked vegetables. The suggested servings can vary from ½ cup to ¾ cup, depending upon the weight of the child. The vital nutrients at this age are Calcium, Riboflavin, Protein, Vitamin A, Vitamin C, Iron & Thiamin.
Usually, we believe that a child needs all the vital nutrients after the birth, however, in the true sense if you are planning how to get pregnantyou should consider a healthy and a nutritious diet, as all these make your body ready for having a healthy pregnancy.
Every mother wants her kid to grow up healthy and strong with full immunity. However, you should make try to feed your kids with varied and balanced nutrition. Do not get stuck to a routine diet. This creates a monotony in the minds of an active baby. After all, a mother should encourage her children to eat good, wholesome, nutritious food."
About Akansha Bansal:Lives with a notion “SIMPLE LIVING, HIGH THINKING” and have an optimistic approach towards life. Always eager to learn new things. She is the founder of a Parenting website called "Budding Star"
Link to Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/budingstar/Link to Twitter: https://twitter.com/BudingStarLink to Insta: https://www.instagram.com/budingstar
