If you really think so, you should pay attention, because parents' eating habits and attitudes towards food will definitely affect the next generation! Of course, you have to listen to experts first to tell you what's so special about fish! Fish is rich in protein, amino acids, fish oil (DHA and EPA), vitamin B group, vitamins A, D, E and trace minerals such as copper, iodine, magnesium, iron, potassium and phosphorus. For fast-growing children, it has the following functions: 1. Vitamins A, D and E contribute to the formation and development of baby's vision, teeth, bones and skin mucosa; Potassium ion can maintain the balance between sodium and potassium in human body and make the body work normally. In addition, eating fish with small size and soft bones, such as kissing fish and dried small fish, can also absorb rich calcium at the same time, which is helpful for bone development. 2. Enhance memory/responsiveness/learning ability. The baby's brain develops very rapidly. According to research, the baby's brain weight has reached 80% of that of adults at the age of 4, and it is fully mature at the age of 7. Therefore, preschool can be said to be a critical period for the child's brain development! Fish oil is rich in DHA and EPA polyunsaturated fatty acids, which can make the information between brain cells communicate smoothly, improve the vitality of brain cells, and extend the fibers of brain cells to help babies develop better in memory, responsiveness and learning ability. It is an indispensable and important nutrient in the growth process of infants. 3. Maintaining vision health DHA can strengthen the response of photoreceptor cells on retina to light, and maintain the visual acuity and response sensitivity of cerebral cortex, which has the function of maintaining vision; In addition, taurine in fish can inhibit cholesterol synthesis, restore fatigue, and make baby's vision better. 4. Relieve Allergy and Inflammation Symptoms DHA and EPA have the effect of inhibiting allergic reactions, which can alleviate the baby's allergic symptoms, such as atopic dermatitis, etc. In addition, it can also improve the inflammation in the body. 5. Improving the immune system DHA and EPA can enhance the immune resistance of the baby's body, so that it is not easy to get sick due to virus or bacterial attacks, which is beneficial to the baby's health. Fish can't be replaced by livestock meat! If the baby doesn't like fish, or mommy thinks it's too much trouble to deal with fish, can you just let the baby eat other meat? The answer is no! Nutritionist Sun Yingjie pointed out that compared with other meats, fish meat has the advantages that its protein muscle fiber structure is short, and the proportion of connective tissue is small, so the meat quality is soft and easy for babies to eat. More importantly, the important nutrients DHA and EPA mentioned earlier are all in fish oil (fish fat), but there is almost no common livestock meat. In addition, compared with livestock meat, fish meat contains a lower proportion of fat, a higher proportion of protein, and a lower calorie. Proper consumption of fish meat can prevent the baby from becoming overweight due to excessive fat intake. There are ways to eat fish wisely! 7 ? You can start trying at 8 months. How old can your baby start eating fish? Although some elders will add non-staple food at the beginning of the baby (4? 6 months), let the baby try, but if the baby has allergies, or has a family history of allergies, and is worried that his stomach and intestines will be allergic or uncomfortable with fish, you can follow the advice of the Baby Non-staple Food Manual published by the Maternal and Child General Hospital, and wait for the baby to be 7? It doesn't hurt to take it again when you are 8 months old. If you still have allergies, you can postpone it until 1 year old. As for how much to eat? Sun Yingjie, a nutritionist, said that at first, the baby was given 1 spoon every time and 1 every day. 3 times, slowly increase to 2 tablespoons each time, 1? Six times. If you start eating fish too late, will it hinder your baby's development? If the baby is delayed from eating fish until 1 year old because of allergic problems, many moms often worry that the baby lacks DHA and EPA, which will hinder brain development. Nutritionist Sun Yingjie suggested that because the baby is still drinking milk during the period of eating non-staple food, the breast-fed mommy can increase the content of DHA and EPA in breast milk by eating more fish. If the baby who drinks formula milk is worried about the baby's DHA and EPA deficiency, he can buy formula milk powder with DHA and EPA ingredients for him to make up for the nutritional deficiency that he can't eat fish! Common reasons why babies don't eat fish Sun Yingjie nutritionist believes that the reason why babies don't like to eat fish is usually nothing more than "fear of being stung by fishbones" and "hate the smell of fish". Here are some ways to teach moms how to make a move! Baby who is afraid of fishbone. Make fish paste: 1. Remove the head and tail of the fish and take the middle section; 2. Peeling and central bone, fine spines; 3. Chop the fish with a knife until no bones or particles can be touched, or directly beat it with a blender. 4. You can also add vegetable puree, sweet potato puree or potato puree according to your child's preference and mix well to make the taste richer. . Making fish balls: 1. Add proper amount of protein and trace salt to the above fish paste and mix well; 2. Boil a pot of boiling water, squeeze 1 into balls and cook in the pot. . Making fish floss: 1. Remove the head and tail of the fish, remove the internal organs, and cut into appropriate sizes; 2. Apply a small amount of salt to the surface for salting (dehydrate the fish, and the cooked meat is easier to separate from skin and bone); 3. Cook 2 until it is cooked thoroughly, let it cool, and remove the skin and bones; 4. Put 3 into clean gauze, squeeze out and drain the water; 5. Finally, put it in the pot and stir fry, so that the water evaporates and gradually becomes loose and flocculent. Nutritionist Xiao Dingning: Fish balls and fish floss on the market may contain excessive seasonings, and even chemical ingredients such as preservatives and fluorides are added. It is suggested that Mommy can make them for the baby by herself, so as not to increase the burden on the baby's liver and kidneys. Sun Yingjie, a nutritionist who buys sashimi directly, suggested that if Dad is really too busy than Mommy to help the baby pick fishbones carefully, he can also buy fresh sashimi and go home to cook soup or steam it, which is very suitable for the baby! Baby who hates fishy smell. Choose fresh fish. Nutritionist Sun Yingjie said that fresh fish is less likely to smell fishy. The following criteria are for moms' reference: □ The fish body is full and elastic, and if it is pressed lightly, it will be sunken, which means it is less fresh □ The eyes are bright and clear, and the black and white are not turbid □ The gills are fresh, and the pink or whitening is not fresh □ The scales on the skin are intact and do not fall off □ Smell the taste. Stale fish will have a heavy smell. When buying fresh fish properly, merchants usually help to do simple slaughter first, but after returning home, Mommy must completely remove the scales, gills and abdominal residues by herself. If it is not cleaned, it will be put in the refrigerator or directly cooked, and the smell will be heavier. Preservation method for removing fishy smell: After the fish is bought home and cleaned, appropriate amount of salt is applied to all parts of the fish. Because salt can remove water, it can release blood and fishy smell. Then, a small amount of white vinegar or lemon is applied to the fish. Finally, a small amount of rice wine is applied to the fish, which can not only inhibit the fishy smell, but also slow down the meat quality deterioration. Then, it can be frozen in the refrigerator, and then taken out and washed with clear water before cooking. Baby eats fish, and it must be cooked! Eating immature fish is easy to be infected with parasitic diseases, especially freshwater fish. □ Carefully shave off the fishbone. When the baby comes into contact with fish for the first time, it is best to try the fish with fewer fishbones first, and carefully shave off the fishbone for the baby. Otherwise, once the baby is stabbed, it will be scared and it will not be easy to eat fish again. □ Eat fish in season. Fish in season is not only fresh (caught now, not frozen), but also fat and beautiful, and the price is relatively cheap. -Fish skin, viscera, fat, fish eggs are easy to accumulate heavy metals, such as dioxin, mercury, copper, zinc, lead, etc., which will accumulate in the human body and cause sequelae. Many people mistakenly believe that the essence of fish soup is in the soup, and it is much more difficult to feed children to eat fish than to drink soup, so it is often thought that it is enough to drink fish soup for their babies. Sun Yingjie, a nutritionist, pointed out that the nutrition of fish soup is more edible in fish, and many fat-soluble nutrients and protein are insoluble in water. Therefore, it is the most correct way to eat fish soup. What fish is suitable for baby to eat? Recommended fish species V.S. cooking skills. Kissing fish: After washing, it should be completely drained. Because of its salty taste, the amount of salt must be reduced when cooking. Cod: The meat is tender, but the spines are hard, so the fishbones should be carefully removed. Snapper: Boiled, chopped and mixed into porridge for baby to eat. Salmon: The meat is thick, so it is recommended to mash it before giving it to the baby. Red-eyed silver carp: pay attention to shave off the fishbone. Fish Not Suitable for Babies The US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has warned pregnant women, pregnant women, nursing mothers and young children to avoid eating the following four kinds of fish with high heavy metal content with mercury content exceeding 1ppm, so as to avoid chronic damage to kidneys, brains, etc., and cause teratogenesis, infertility or growth retardation of young children. These fish include:. sharks, swordfish and mackerel. Freshwater fish is good? Whether the baby should eat marine fish or freshwater fish has always been a controversial topic. The following is an analysis of its advantages and disadvantages for moms! Advantages and Disadvantages of Fish Species Advantages of Marine Fish and Freshwater Fish. Fishbone is thick and few. Fish oil (DHA, EPA) is high. Heavy metal content is low (but not completely, rivers and groundwater are also polluted). Fat is low. Refined protein content is high. Long life, high accumulation of heavy metals. High fat, some children may have indigestion. Spine is many and thin. Handling is troublesome. The content of ．DHA and EPA is low. Because the content of heavy metals can't be judged by the naked eye and in a simple way, the harm to children after eating is far-reaching. In severe cases, it may cause children to grow slowly and even die of poisoning. Therefore, mommy has to be deeply wary of the deep-sea big fish that the older generation praised in the past. However, the most nerve-racking thing is that DHA and EPA (fish oil), which have the functions of promoting brain development, improving immunity and eyesight, exist in large quantities in these deep-sea fish with thick fat, and fat is where heavy metals are easily accumulated. It's really embarrassing Nutritionist Sun Yingjie said that, in fact, not only deep-sea fish have the problem of heavy metals, but freshwater fish may also contain heavy metals due to the pollution of rivers and groundwater, just because of their short life cycle and low body accumulation; The fish oil (DHA, EPA) contained in deep-sea fish is also found in freshwater fish, but the content is not high. Therefore, both have their own advantages and disadvantages. So, how should moms choose? Nutritionist Sun Yingjie suggested that by following the following principles, the possible risks can be minimized while taking into account the baby's nutrition! -Choose short-lived and small-sized species among marine fish, such as saury and anchovy. □ Only let the baby eat it every month 1? 2 deep-sea fish, avoid fish head, fish eyes, internal organs, fish eggs and visible fat when eating. □ Avoid eating the same fish for a long time, such as: prefer swordfish pine, try to eat every fish and share the risks. □ Avoid buying fish products from the same fish rice for a long time. □ When eating freshwater fish, patiently and carefully remove fishbones for children. Sun Yingjie's current position: nutritionist of Xindian Catholic Gengshen Hospital. Education: Department of Nutrition, Sun Yat-sen Medical College. Graduation experience: nutritionist of Huafan University.