at home with Jo Frost - October 2012 - (Page 110)

The myths and truths of Annabel Karmel, the UK’s best-selling author on baby and children’s food and nutrition, believes weaning your baby from milk to solids is an exciting time and a big step for both of you, but it can seem daunting… WEANING Jo says... ‘Despite the government stating that weaning should start when babies are six months old, I believe the process can start to happen between four and six months. But you do have to assess the situation on an individual basis. Every child is di erent.’ your baby a very good start in life. eaning your baby However, the fact of the matter is a sign that is that only a small percentage she is growing of mothers in the UK are still up and every breastfeeding at this six-month stage. parent wants to Besides, most health professionals make this an enjoyable experience. recognise that many babies show Unfortunately, as soon as new signs they’re ready for weaning at an parents consult books, websites, earlier age (but not before 17 weeks). friends, or even doctors for guidance, If there is a history of allergy in the excitement turns into anxiety. They family or atopic illness hear: don’t give solids before six – such as eczema, hay months, start with bland foods, fever or asthma avoid alleged allergens… and A THIRD OF – then it really they fear that feeding a baby UK MUMS WHO is best to try is dangerously complicated. BREASTFEED to breastfeed Understandably, they STOP AROUND exclusively for become excessively cautious EIGHT WEEKS six months and and feed their child a AFTER BIRTH delay introducing bland, limited diet or boring, solids. Babies who processed food – and suffer from bad cases of babies miss out on a precious eczema are much more opportunity to develop their likely to develop a food allergy. tastebuds… and at the very age when However, every baby is different they are most receptive to ﬂavours. and I believe in following your This is one of the main reasons instincts as a mother. Sometimes kids turn into picky and reluctant a baby may need solids a little earlier eaters. Here we look at some myths – at around ﬁve months – because and truths of weaning. she may no longer be satisﬁed by her usual milk feed or she may wake You should during the night when previously she breastfeed slept through, or she may not exclusively for MY TH 1 be thriving on breast milk alone. six months Also, waiting until six months The Department of to introduce solids means delaying Health guidelines in the introduction of important foods the UK state that babies like meat, which provide much needed should not begin weaning until iron – important for physical and they are six months and should be mental development. The supply of exclusively breastfed until then. iron inherited from the mother runs In an ideal world this would be out at six months, which means baby absolutely ﬁne – breast milk gives W will need to get iron from her diet. The introduction of lumpy foods also gets delayed, which may affect your baby’s speech development as the muscles she uses to chew are the same ones she uses for speech. MY TH 2 You can follow the same healthy-eating guidelines for adults when feeding babies The needs of babies and toddlers are different from an adult’s – a low-fat, high-ﬁbre diet is good for adults but not appropriate for babies or young children because they are going to need more fat and concentrated sources of calories and nutrients to fuel their rapid growth. Babies shouldn’t be given too much ﬁbre either, as it tends to be bulky in their system and can ﬁll them up before they get all the nutrients they need for proper growth and development. Excess ﬁbre can also remove valuable minerals and can cause other problems such as diarrhoea. Babies should eat a wide variety of fruit and vegetables to make sure they have plenty of vitamins and minerals in their diet. After the ﬁrst few weeks of weaning, make sure that as well as fruit and vegetable purées, you give foods that are higher in calories to build their strength – mashed avocado, fruit mixed with Greek yogurt or vegetables in a cheese sauce, for instance. 110 | OCTOBER 2012 WORDS: Annabel Karmel|PHOTOGRAPHS: Getty Images

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of at home with Jo Frost - October 2012

EDITOR’S LETTER
JO’S HELLO
WHAT’S NEW IN PARENTING?
OCTOBER OUTINGS
SCRUB A DUB DUB
WHERE THE WILD THINGS ARE
NICE WHEELS
FAMOUS MUMS
JO FROST ON THE GO
THE NAUGHTY CORNER
ADULT CLASSES
THE BIG C
YUMMY MUMMY
GET THE LOOK
PUSHY MOTHERS
TOPS ON TREND
MAKE-UP MAGIC
MOTHER WEAR
BABY BUMP BLISS
FIRST-TIME WORRIES
STARTING OUT
ON-THE-MOVE
SIGN UP
MILK TIME
SLEEP EASY
CRY BABY
WHAT’S THAT RASH?
MORE PLEASE
BABY STEPS
JOIN THE GREEN TEAM
COUNTRY COOL
PRE-SCHOOL LEARNING
BUDDING BOOKWORM
AN ITCH TO SCRATCH
‘I’M NOT HUNGRY’
GOING POTTY
BRITAIN’S GOT TALENT
LIVING WITH AUTISM
OPEN WIDE
THE COLD WAR
LET MUMMY KISS IT BETTER
PANIC STATIONS
A CLEAN SWEEP
PROJECT RUNWAY
ORGANISE THIS
TIME FOR BIG SCHOOL
ALL KITTED OUT
WHERE DO BABIES COME FROM?
‘I HATE YOU!’
TWEEN HEALTH
EAT WELL
TRICK OR TREAT
THE GHOST WITH THE MOST
LET’S BAKE
BABY BUDGET
WHAT KIND OF PARENT ARE YOU?
GIVE A CHILD A HOME
FAMILY MEN
GIRL POWER
DAY TRIPPER
GET PACKING
WHY PETS ARE BEST
COMING SOON
STORY CORNER
COUNT TO 10
PEARLS OF WISDOM
QUESTION TIME
KODAK MOMENTS
SURF’S UP
SOUND BITES
STOCKISTS

at home with Jo Frost - October 2012