Fuel for your baby

There has been a long-standing debate about what to feed one’s baby and when to introduce particular foods taking place in a forum of domestic CEOs from all over the globe, who meet weekly in Kingston, Jamaica! These women are well educated and have changed their careers recently to ensure that the next generation of human beings are brought up to be stellar individuals. The single most important part of this is nutrition.

Countless studies prove that what goes into an infant’s mouth has direct effect on his or her growth and development. I’ve written about breast milk in the past, so I’m not going to harp on how perfect it is. What I am here to discuss is the relevance of a parent’s choices when it comes to giving your son or daughter solids.

Books suggest that in the first stage of weaning, you start your baby on infant rice cereal, and once you’ve established that he or she does not react adversely to it, you introduce vegetables and fruits. These are to be given one at a time, for three to five days, before moving on to the next item, so that allergies may be easily detected. Some urge you to try your baby on the sweeter foods, such as banana and pumpkin, while I decided to go for the blander vegetables like cho cho, callaloo and Irish potato. Fortunately, our son lapped and smacked up the whole lot!

For years I have been listening to parents comment on what their children like, or not, to eat. “My baby girl refuses to eat carrots”, or “Our child hates broccoli!” According to my paediatrician, it can take up to 20 times of tasting a food before a baby gladly accepts it.

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