Baby Meal Planner | How We Plan Meal For Infants?: An infant is a child in his first year of life. Infancy is a time of rapid mental and physical development. An infant’s birth weight and length are approximately 2.5 to 3 kgs and 50cms. Following that, the weight doubles in six months and triples in the first year.
The infant’s daily diet is critical in sustaining his growth and keeping him healthy. If we do not feed babies properly, they may become malnourished.
Baby Meal Planner | How We Plan Meal For Infants?
The daily recommends diet for an infant is divided into two age groups that is 0-6 months and 6-12 months becuase the age of the infant effects his nutritional requirements.
In this first six months, there is a rapid growth and hence more nutrients are required. After six months the nutritional, there is a rapid growth and hence more nutirents require.
Energy
The first year of child’s life period is the period of rapid growth. Hence, energy requirement is maximum in this age. An infant requires double amount of calories per kg body weight as compared to an adult doing heavy work.
Protien
Because of rapid growth of tissues in the body of the infant, the requirementof protien is greatly enhanced. This requirement are depending upon the body weight and ismaximum in the first six months.
Minerals
Calcium and phosphorus requirements increase due to skeletal growth, and as the amount of blood increases, more iron require for the formation of haemoglobin in blood cells.
Water
Generally infant’s requirements of water is met by mother’s milk. But in summer he should be given boiled waters at regular intervels.
Diet Planning For Infants
Normally mother’s milk is first food given to infants. Nutritional requirements of an infant can easily met if he is getting on an average 850 ml of mother’s milk.
Milk is deficient in iron but during birth, child has suffcient stores of iron in his body which many last for four months. Other nutrients, Vitamin C is also insufficient in mother’s milk but it is enough to meet the requirements of an infant upto 4-6 months.
However, after 4-6 months, mother’s milk is insufficient to meet the infant’s growing needs. Supplementary foods will be provided to meet these requirements.
Importance Of Breast Milk
- After giving birth to a child, a color yellow liquid called colostreum is secreted for 3-4 days from mother breasts. Mostly mothers don’t feed this mlik to infants but this milk is very useful.
- Colostrum contains sufficient nutrients and has vital protective qualities.
- It contains large amount of antibodies and while blood cells to protect the child against infection.
- It has also some growth inducing nutrients.
- Mother’s milk is suitable for delicate digestive system of infant. Lacto albumin protien present in it easily digestible.
- Breast milk is contaminant-free because the infant receives it directly from the mother’s breast.
- It is safe, easily availabl and free from any adulterarion.
- Mother’s milk is neither hot nor cold. The infant gets it at an appropriate temprature.
Mother Milk Is Not Suitable For Many Circumstances
- If the mother is suffering from a serious disease like TB, cancer, heart problems anameia etc.
- Pregenancy of mother.
- Lower nutritional level of mother.
- inability of child to breastfeeding like weakness in infants, mouth disability.
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