The addition of complementary foods to babies follows the following principles:

1. Generally speaking, complementary foods can be added after the baby's tongue thrust reflex disappears.

After six months for exclusively breastfed babies;

After 4 months for mixed-fed or exclusively formula-fed babies.

2. It is recommended to buy high-speed rice cereal that can be prepared with formula milk to avoid sudden changes in taste that may cause the baby not to adapt.

3. When the baby starts to eat rice cereal, it is recommended to adjust it to a flowable paste state and give it a small sip first.

If the baby is willing to eat and does not have diarrhea, vomiting, eczema or other allergies, he can continue to eat.

4. Food supplements should gradually change from thin to thick, then to granular, then to solid, and the varieties should change from single to diversified.

5. Just add one complementary food at a time, and make sure your baby is not allergic before adding others.

6. It is recommended to cook vegetables, fruits, meat, etc. and grind them into a puree before feeding them to your baby.

7. After the baby has teeth, it can be replaced with granular food.

8. For babies before one year old, the staple food should still be breast milk or formula milk.

9. If the baby has the desire to eat by himself, he can be trained to eat by himself.

10. Babies are prone to constipation when they first start adding complementary foods, so they should increase their daily water intake and exercise, and massage and rub their belly to prevent constipation.

In addition, babies before one year old should not eat salt, sugar and other seasonings.

In short, when adding complementary foods to your baby, you also need to pay attention.

The World Health Organization stipulates that babies should not start adding complementary foods until they are 6 months old, and the scope of complementary foods refers to all foods except breast milk and formula powder. Therefore, when the baby reaches 6 months old, we should carefully consider how to add complementary foods to meet the nutritional needs of the baby. The principles for adding complementary foods mainly follow the following points.

First, we need to understand the importance of supplementary food.

Supplement the deficiencies of nutrients in breast milk.

Meet the baby's rapid growth needs.

Stimulate the secretion of baby's saliva and other digestive juices.

Enhance the activity of digestive enzymes.

Promote the development of teeth.

Train your baby's chewing and swallowing ability.

Enhance baby's digestive ability.

Stimulates taste, smell, touch and vision.

Teach your baby good eating habits.

Second, the time for adding complementary foods should be when the baby is 6 months old, with a minimum of no less than 4 months and a maximum of no more than 8 months.

Hazards of introducing food too early: Complementary food replaces breast milk, causing nutritional deficiencies and increasing the risk of disease.

The dangers of adding it too late:

The baby does not get the nutrients it needs, resulting in malnutrition, slow growth and development, and poor oral ability.

Third, the principle of adding complementary foods is mainly followed.

From less to more

Thin to thick

From one to many

No salt, less sugar, less oil

Do not eat honey water or sugar water before one year old, and try not to drink fruit juice

Fourth, the principle of adding food traits.

0-6 months: exclusive breastfeeding, no complementary food

6 months: pureed food.

7-9 months: powdered food

10-12 months: broken, diced, finger-shaped food

More than 12 months : Make it as delicate and easy to digest as possible according to the baby’s digestive condition.

Fifth, principles for adding food categories

Cereal foods: start with iron-fortified rice flour, and then gradually add rice porridge and rotten noodles that are easy to digest

Vegetables: Roots, beans, melons, leaves

Meat: pork, chicken, duck, liver, fish and shrimp (starting at 7 months)

Eggs: Eggs and pigeon eggs (start to be added at 7 months)

Fruits; apples and bananas are gradually increasing in non-allergenic categories

Sixth, the principle of observation after adding food.

Start adding food one by one. After adding each food, observe it for at least three days. If the baby eats and sleeps normally, add another one. If an abnormality occurs after adding, pause for half a month before trying again. If an abnormality still occurs, pause for at least three months before trying again.

These are some principles that you should pay attention to when adding complementary foods to your baby. I hope parents and friends will pay more attention and be careful, especially with allergenic foods such as eggs, fish and shrimp.