Interesting Milk News

I was perusing the Dr. Greene website, and came across this interesting information, which is great to know since we will be starting Kyle on whole milk in just another 2-months

Preventing Colds With The Right Milk

Giving children milk that contains Lactobacillus appears to decrease the rate and severity of respiratory infections, according to a study in the June 2, 2001 issue of the British Medical Journal. Healthy children between the ages of 1 and 6 who attended daycare were randomly assigned to receive regular milk or Lactobacillus milk over the 7 months of the study. The children drank an average of 8-9 ounces per day. The study was carried out in 18 different daycares. Those who got the Lactobacillus milk missed daycare due to illness 11% fewer times. They had 17% fewer complicated respiratory illnesses, and needed 19% fewer courses of antibiotics. The evidence that beneficial bacteria can prevent infections continues to grow. Probiotic milk products and active culture yogurts are an easy way to replenish these beneficial bacteria.

Baby Food I Wish I Hadn't Bought

I love food and trying new things, so of course, I was so excited about Kyle starting solids and introducing him to as much a variety as I could. But at the same time, I want to make sure that it is healthy for him, which is why it was great for me to be able to make fresh baby food for him at home. But sometimes it is also nice to have jars handy, if we were running out somewhere, or if I just didn't have anything fresh in the house (or any purees in the freezer)

There is a great variety out there to pick from, but unfortunately, I didn't learn early enough to read the label before buying. Basically, I believe the jar should just contain the labeled fruit or veggie, with no additives, except for water or ascorbic acid. Therefore, these ones that I bought I had a hard time giving to Kyle:

Guava dessert (Guava, water, sugar, corn starch, citric acid, ascorbic acid)
Hawaiian Delight dessert (Water, nonfat milk, pineapple juice from concentrate, sugar, rice flour, corn starch, citric acid, lemon juice from concentrate and ascorbic acid)
Vanilla Custard pudding (Water, sugar, egg yolks, nonfat milk, corn starch, whey protein concentrate, wheat starch, whey and vanilla)

OK, so I guess I should have been thinking that being dessert, they would have sugar added. But on top of this, the consistency was disgusting, it's just a goo that of course Kyle didn't mind, but I probably would have gagged on. I'll stick to fresh fruits for dessert for him for a while...

On top of that, I don't know why I ever bought jarred bananas and applesauce. Bananas are the easiest baby food to make yourself! And for applesauce - I just buy a big adult sized jar, knowing that Kyle will go through it quickly enough. Just make sure that there is no added sugar!

Strawberries

On a recent visit to the pediatrician for her son's 9-month checkup, a friend remembered our recent conversation about how little guidance we receive in the realm of "What to feed the baby", and therefore specifically asked what the no-no foods are at this age.

She was told that wheat, dairy and berries are all fine as they are secondary allergenic foods, and since her son had been doing well on all other foods that it was now fine to give him these.This was great news to me, because I had bought a few jars of food with berries in it BEFORE I read that they were on the foods-to-avoid list. I had them stored away, thinking that maybe I could use them after Kyle turned one, if he was still eating pureed foods at that point!

I was out shopping and saw some fantastic looking strawberries, with a big sticker on the container saying "GREAT FOR KIDS SNACK" Hmm, what a great idea, a new finger food for Kyle's dinner! So I bought some and couldn't wait to give him a new treat. He was not a big fan when he tried them for the first time on Saturday. So yesterday, his dad mixed in some strawberry pieces with his yogurt at lunch time and he was happy to eat that, just no strawberries on his own. (TIP: So far, Kyle will eat anything that has been mixed in with his yogurt!) Finally, this morning, I did what I should have done from the beginning and whipped out the Gerber jars. So along with his cereal, we had Apple/Banana/Strawberry. It tasted mostly of apple, and he ate it with no problem. We'll have to work up to the strong taste of strawberries on their own. Guess it wasn't such a great finger food idea after all!

Egg Yolks

I first gave Kyle egg yolks a month or so ago, and he wasn't too wild about it on it's own. Per suggestions I picked up from a Happy Baby class (more like sales presentation), I added some mashed banana to the egg yolk, and also a little sea salt. He seemed OK with it, but obviously didn't love it because I ate what was left. It tasted like salted banana, not much of a yolk taste, although the texture was pretty creamy.

Now that Kyle is getting to be a big boy (10-months old on Tuesday!) he loves having finger food for dinner, no more of that cereal and puree, that's only for breakfast. So a typical menu for him is small chunks of mild cheddar cheese, pieces of well-cooked green beans, bite-sized pieces of toast, and cubes of chicken breast (sauteed whole in olive oil and then cut up) Tonight, I was out of chicken, and he wasn't too wild on the cannellini beans the night before, so I was looking for a new protein idea for him. Hmmmm... why not egg yolks again?

So, I VERY carefully separated the egg yolk from the egg white (no egg whites until he is past 12-months) and was going to scramble it in a pan when I realized "Kyle's already strapped into the high chair eating some dinner and waiting for the rest, so I'd better hurry. Plus, why do I want to dirty a pan for one egg yolk?" So, transfer the egg yolk into Pyrex custard cup, add a little water to try and get the rest of the yolk out of the previous container, whip it up quickly with a salad fork, and stick it in the microwave. I put it in for 30 seconds, then run a knife around the rim of the omelet and dumped it out of the cup, cut it into bite sized pieces, made sure it is cool, and voila, happy baby! He loved it, I'm thinking we may have a new favorite food! I was a little worried whether it was fully cooked or not (hence the multiple additional 5-seconds in the microwave) but it wasn't runny when I was finished, and not dried out, but light and airy instead.

Why the blog?

First of all, I have to say that after having my son 10-months ago, I have made friends with an amazing bunch of women. My only regret is that we are all so busy with our little ones that we unfortunately aren't able to get together more often. Whether it is friends from my "Preparing for Birth" class, the parents support group through the hospital, or our neighbors, it is fantastic to have others going through the same trials and tribulations (and joys!) and to be able to share our experiences and advice.

So, with so much shared experience, it was a real shock to me that everyone was very disappointed by the amount of food advice that we each received from our pediatricians. For the most part, I felt like I was hearing things AFTER the fact, and not receiving too many warning about what to avoid. Instead, I had to stumble upon this advice through books or online searches. Therefore, the blog. I'm hoping that I can pull together my experiences and those I hear from friends to help out others who feel lost in the world of baby food!

This is the first official post, however, I may put in some backdated entries so that some of my discoveries are in the correct chronological order. Also, despite the address "babyfoodie" I have to say that the food I prepare for Kyle is far from gourmet!

Finally, I speak from my experience and what I pick up from friends. However, everyone's experience is different, and if you have ANY concerns about feeding your child, please check with your pediatrician.

Kyle's Favorite Finger Food Snacks

These are great finger foods to have on hand at home, or to pack a little container into the diaper bag to keep our little one entertained!

Gerber Finger Foods Fruit or Veggie Puffs (Banana, Sweet Corn or Sweet Potato)
Gerber Finger Foods Bitter Biscuits
Zwieback Toast (these unfortunately contain high fructose corn syrup or partially hydrogenated oils, depending on the brand)
Gerber Graduates Crackers (Cheese or Lightly Seasoned)
Gerber Graduate Mini Fruits or Veggies (Apple or Sweet Corn)
Safeway O Organics Original Crackers

Diced Cheese (or just bring along a cheese stick and break it up)
Cheerios
Breadsticks

The Gerber Finger Foods Fruit or Veggie Puffs are great because they actually dissolve, unlike the Cheerios which actually require some serious chewing. I've had to break Cheerios in half for Kyle, and even then, I notice some worried looks from him as they get a little stuck. I also suggested breaking the toddler crackers in half as well. The Bitter Biscuits and Zwieback Toast can have some decent sized chunks break off, so just be very watchful. Also, these can get VERY messy, with mush all over hands/face/clothes, and usually mom too.

The dairy myth

I remember hearing everywhere that babies are not to have whole milk until after their first birthday. Funnily enough, it wasn't just me, but everyone I spoke to that interpreted this as "NO DAIRY". In fact, it is perfectly fine to introduce yogurts and cheeses, although you may want to discuss this with your pediatrician first. When Kyle and I went in for his 9-month check up, and were listing his daily food habits, our doctor said "Oh, you've introduced dairy already?!?" Well... the last time I saw you at 6-months, you didn't say anything about avoiding it!

It was however at a Happy Baby class that I received a handout listing suggested foods to introduce based on age, and saw yogurt listed on there. So I bought plain whole milk yogurt and Kyle LOVED it. He has it for lunch every day now. Soon after that, I was discussing foods with a friend who happens to be a pediatrician, and she suggested trying cottage cheese as her son had loved it. We tried it, and he was OK with it, but definitely not as ecstatic as he was with the yogurt! We'll try it again soon and see if his tastes have changed now that he is used to more texture.

It turns out that it is only whole milk (or any milk) that you aren't supposed to give until 1 year of age. Other dairy is OK, (1) because the lactose in yogurt (cottage cheese, cheese, etc) is already partially digested because of the bacteria and (2) breastmilk (and/or formula) won't be replaced by yogurt and cheeses. I found a good summary on the Wholesome Foods site

In addition to yogurt, Kyle has chunks of mild cheddar as a snack or with dinner nearly every day. I asked my pediatrician-friend if I needed to worry about the 3-day rule when introducing new dairy items, even though I know that he is OK with yogurt. She said that since we have no family history of milk allergy that it should be safe to assume that if he is OK with yogurt that he would be OK with other dairy products.

Other cheeses to look for are colby, jack or american. For the yogurt, I just buy "Mountain High" plain whole milk yogurt, and add a different fruit to it each day. There is also Stoneyfield yogurt that is plain whole milk, or they have their "Yobaby" line, which I don't like because there are too many added sugar and flavors which he doesn't need!