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Kelly.Wu
Squeeker
Joined: Nov 11, 2004
Posts: 14
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Apr 02, 2008 - 02:59 PM |
 
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| Post subject: baby solid food |
i am a new mommy and my baby's getting to 6 months. i feel like i didn't find a good way for her solid food yet. i have so many questions. i will really appreciate if you'd like to share.
- rice cereal, is heinz better or gerber better? i used heinz for sometime and she got used to it but i just found it makes her poop drier and drier. i used it because the doctor from worldlink told me baby needs lots of iron. so i compared both and heinz contains a lot more iron, gerber has a lot more nutrition elements.
- do you cook solid food for your baby? i'd love to cook for my baby but considering the food saftey in china, i am hesitating to do it. can we trust organic food in china?
- is there a good way to help baby's dry poop? i used to give her lots of water and now she likes more and more flavors and doesn't like water at all.
pls enlighten me..... thanks |
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shine
Barker
Joined: Aug 19, 2006
Posts: 126
Status: Offline
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Apr 02, 2008 - 03:50 PM |
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First things first, introduce one thing at a time into your baby's diet and give your baby that same thing for three consecutive days and observe your child closely. If he/she shows no signs of abnormal behavior then your child is not allergic to that particular food.
Rice Cereal , Carrots & Apple Pulp made poop very very dry in the case of our baby. Hence we never give our baby all the three at the same time.
Also rice cereal alone was making it difficult for our baby to poop, hence we started mixing boiled broccoli's, boiled sweet potato, potato etc to the cereal.
Pear Pulp also helped our baby a lot and she just loves it now (she is 8 months now)
Apart from above, we are also giving boiled peas, banana's (small ones and not too ripe), and Oat Meal Cereal
In case baby is severely constipated, prune Juice helps however till date i have not been able to get hold of it in any of the City Shops. It seems that it is always out of stock. |
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helloasia
Lurker
Joined: Mar 15, 2008
Posts: 28
Status: Offline
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Apr 02, 2008 - 05:43 PM |
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| Post subject: Re: baby solid food |
| Kelly.Wu wrote: |
| - rice cereal, is heinz better or gerber better? i used heinz for sometime and she got used to it but i just found it makes her poop drier and drier. i used it because the doctor from worldlink told me baby needs lots of iron. so i compared both and heinz contains a lot more iron, gerber has a lot more nutrition elements. |
While the baby needs iron, it also tends to be constipating, so it is not surprising that her poop is getting drier if she is taking in more rice cereal. I have used both brands and find them both ok, although I usually prefer Earth's Best (sold in CityShop) as it is advertised as being organic and not containing any sugars, salts or preservatives. Plus my baby prefers their flavors.
| Kelly.Wu wrote: |
| - do you cook solid food for your baby? i'd love to cook for my baby but considering the food saftey in china, i am hesitating to do it. can we trust organic food in china? |
I've stuck to jar food (organic) for this reason. To avoid the nitrates that are often found in vegetables, you can either purchase only organic veggies, e.g., carrots (but how to be certain that they are organic?) or you can wait to make homemade veggies for your baby until she is 8 months old when her stomach will be producing enough acids to destroy the nitrates
Other than that, I've started to make my own foods because my baby is almost 8 months like congee and egg yolk.
| Kelly.Wu wrote: |
| - is there a good way to help baby's dry poop? i used to give her lots of water and now she likes more and more flavors and doesn't like water at all. |
Starchy veggies like sweet potato and potatoes can actually contribute to constipation. I would also stay away from banana which can be constipating as well.
However, I would try apple juice, pear juice, or prune juice, or introducing more of the fibery fruits or green veggies into her diet like pears, peaches or peas. Also, I usually add water to my baby's food so that it is more runny than solid whenever he is constipated so he gets water this way and would try to feed him more breastmilk (that is if you are still breastfeeding).
Hope this helps! |
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Kelly.Wu
Squeeker
Joined: Nov 11, 2004
Posts: 14
Status: Offline
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Apr 09, 2008 - 10:26 AM |
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thank you very much, mommies! i've learned great tips from you guys! thanks thanks thanks! appreciated!!!!  |
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sbergman
Veejay
Joined: Sep 12, 2007
Posts: 2165
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Apr 09, 2008 - 03:37 PM |
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I think the best thing to do is to avoid baby food altogether and use a food mill to process whatever food the family is eating. The baby will get a greater variety of nutrients and will also develop a much broader palate. Baby food in China contains much too much sugar. You can use plain oats if you are looking for a warm cereal.
We use the BRAT (bananas, rice, applesauce, toast) diet when a child has diarrhea so it seems that these would be the foods to avoid if your baby is constipated. |
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msittig
Rocker
Joined: Oct 06, 2004
Posts: 733
Location: Zhangjiang High-Tech Park
Status: Offline
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Apr 09, 2008 - 05:24 PM |
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Seconding sbergman, our experience was using a food mill to raise a healthy (fat) baby. At the beginning it was mostly rice porridge (Gerber, then Heinz) with maybe banana added, and then a pretty quick switch over to ground-up whatever we were eating for dinner that was soft and not oily/spicy. |
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CIA
LoopKicker
Joined: Mar 23, 2008
Posts: 890
Location: Least Expect
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Apr 09, 2008 - 05:34 PM |
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Tons of prepackaged Gerber baby food at City Shop if you choose that path. |
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beautybeast
Seeker
Joined: Mar 24, 2008
Posts: 58
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Apr 10, 2008 - 04:00 PM |
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I have always had good experiences with Gerber with 3 kids of my own. What I also did last was to make solid foods of my own. if you can get your hands on a very good juicer, which they sell in China now, if not you could always bring one back from your home country, you may make your own solid food. Then you can have your own choice of what to mix, fruits, vegetables, proteins, etc. you may add a little bit of honey for more taste. just my two cent. hope it helps. |
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aloha99
Reacher
Joined: Nov 20, 2003
Posts: 253
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Apr 15, 2008 - 07:54 PM |
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When introducing solid food you have to make sure that it's not too dry to avoid constipation. I usually add water or infant milk or you could simply mix drier food like broccoli with food that has high water content like tomato, zucchini, pumpkin...
As baby food is expensive and not that healthy I'd recommend you do our own. Quite simple and easy - and trust me I usually never cook ! Just take some vegetables and steam them (healthier and better tasting than boiling them) then use a blender to pureed them. You can add a tiny pinch of salt or butter. Later on you can introduce meat or fish. I use a Philips set very easy. See below.
http://www.360buy.com/wareshow.asp?wid=112432
Once the baby is used to simple food you can start to give more complex flavors. Just be careful if you plan to give some of your own food. Food for adults tends to be to salty, spicy or oily for babies.
Regarding food safety yes it's hard to trust any organic food here. My pediatrician recommended to cook veggies and meat slightly longer. And since carrots absorb more nitrates it's best to cook them for at least 1.5 hours.
For constipation I usually soak one or two plum into hot water for about one hour than give the juice to my baby. Meanwhile you can massage the lower left side of the baby's stomach with warm hands. |
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beautybeast
Seeker
Joined: Mar 24, 2008
Posts: 58
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May 05, 2008 - 03:45 PM |
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Gerber is always the best bet for me. after 5 months your baby is beginning to develop its brain capabilities in which having solid food would assist in that development. many stores in shanghai now sell baby food, both domestic and import. |
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shana
Lurker
Joined: Mar 05, 2008
Posts: 28
Status: Offline
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May 07, 2008 - 11:21 AM |
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If you're making your own, which I think is healthier than the pre-packaged stuff, you don't need to add any salt/sugar etc. to it - let baby develop a liking for natural foods. Salt especially is really dangerous if they get too much.
Also, mix with breastmilk to soften it.
I don't trust the jars to be really "organic" , and some research has just come out from Europe (sorry, can't find the link) that shows organic veges etc. in Europe are no better and contain no less chemicals than normal produce.
Good luck with your little person! |
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yu888
Board Deity
Joined: Jan 25, 2003
Posts: 18042
Location: ZhongShanParkArea SH
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May 07, 2008 - 11:26 AM |
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our son liked only the fruity babyfoods so we started cooking soups to make porridge with and mixed blended veggies at first but then small pieces. Mostly organic veggies and rice for him at first, and even now i guess, to avoid any potential issues, though he eats alot of table food now at 19 mos. Kept his food as bland as possible as the over use of salt affects a baby more than a full grown adult. in fact all his broths were not salted for the most part until after he was 1. and even now, very very light, or diluted versions of our normal foods whenever possible. |
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msittig
Rocker
Joined: Oct 06, 2004
Posts: 733
Location: Zhangjiang High-Tech Park
Status: Offline
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| Posted:
May 07, 2008 - 11:38 AM |
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