What can you feed a 4 month old baby?

The question of first complementary feeding arises before every mother several months after the birth of the baby. It often causes a lot of controversy and disagreement. How to introduce complementary foods correctly? When is the best time to start this process and what to use first? How to make sure your baby is ready? When to introduce complementary foods during artificial feeding? Let's try to figure out what the World Health Organization (WHO) and the Russian Union of Pediatricians advise on this matter, and how to competently start complementary feeding in order to help the growing orgasm get acquainted with the new stage of its life without negative consequences.

What is the introduction of complementary foods?

In general, the process involves feeding infants foods that are needed by that age to supplement breast milk or formula. It is divided into two groups:

• Transition food. These are products that are specifically designed for the physiological needs of infants;
• Food from the family table. This includes foods that are consumed by all family members;

Gradually, children are accustomed to eating homemade food until it completely replaces breast milk/formula. On average, a healthy child by the age of 1 year is physically able to completely switch to food from the seed table. The child does not have the physiological maturity to immediately master such food, so to bridge this gap he needs special adaptive food (food of the transition period).

How and what is acceptable to feed a baby at 4 months

Now that all doubts have been dispelled, we can begin to consider the list of products acceptable as food for a 4-month-old baby. These include:

• vegetable puree;
• fruit puree;
• juice;
• cottage cheese;
• porridge;
• milk mixture.

Frightening variety, isn't it? But, you need to offer new food gradually and a little at a time.

Experts recommend starting complementary feeding with homogenized vegetable puree from:

• broccoli;
• cauliflower;
• zucchini.

If your baby is underweight or has unstable stools, it is better to start with cereals.

Unsweetened vegetable purees may not immediately please a child who is accustomed to the taste of sweetish breast milk or formula, and therefore parental persistence and patience will be required.

When the baby tries vegetables (it takes about 5-7 days to adapt), you can offer him fruits, crushed to a puree-like consistency:

• apples;
• peaches;
• pears;
• bananas.

Most likely, the child will take on these products more willingly, which will undoubtedly please the mother.

As for cereals, at 4 months the most suitable nutrition option will be instant instant gluten-free cereals:

• rice;
• buckwheat;
• corn.

But it’s better to hold off on millet, oatmeal, barley and rye porridges, because they contain gluten, a protein that causes heaviness and bloating in toddlers.

The first juice that a 4 month old baby can try is apple juice. While getting acquainted with this product, it is better to dilute it with boiled water, approximately 1:1 and offer no more than a teaspoon, gradually increasing the dose.

adapted cottage cheese for infants last, in the amount of 1-2 teaspoons in the form of a curd mass diluted with breast milk or formula.

First complementary foods during breastfeeding and artificial feeding. When to start?

The question that worries everyone is when to introduce complementary foods during breastfeeding and bottle feeding?

According to the recommendations given by WHO, the first complementary feeding, for both types of nutrition, should begin if the child is six months old, in some cases it can be started a little earlier, but not earlier than 4 months. By this time, the baby’s body will be sufficiently formed and strengthened to begin mastering new food. The Union of Pediatricians of Russia advises starting to get acquainted with food between 4 and 6 months, but do not forget to take into account the individual characteristics of the baby.

Before 4 months, the baby’s body does not have the digestive enzymes and sufficient immunity necessary for a correct reaction to previously unknown food, which means the risk of allergic reactions increases. In addition, by about 5-6 months the baby gains the ability to swallow food rather than push it out of the mouth, which is associated with the development of its nervous system.

If you are wondering whether you need and how to properly introduce complementary foods at 4 months, it is better to seek recommendations from your pediatrician.

If you introduce complementary foods too late, a situation of micronutrient deficiency may arise in the child’s body, since breastfeeding and artificial feeding no longer meet all the necessary needs of the growing body.

Is a child at 4 months ready to introduce complementary foods?

From 4 months of age, bottle-fed infants begin to gradually switch to adult food. This is due to the fact that at this age babies do not receive enough useful and nutritious elements from the mixture. Some pediatricians are of the opinion that breastfed children are also ready for the introduction of complementary foods.

What are the signs that determine whether a child can be introduced to complementary foods at 4 months? Before you start changing your child’s diet, you should pay attention to a number of signs:

• The baby's first baby teeth have erupted.
• The baby watches with interest the adults' meals.
• The baby does not get enough of formula or breast milk; this is manifested by frequent demands for food.
• The child learns to sit.
• There is a lack of weight.
• Developmental delay due to insufficient nutrient intake.

Boy with teether

Rules for successful complementary feeding

Before introducing your baby to new foods, you need to understand some basic nuances of how to properly introduce complementary foods to your baby:

• Observe your baby's behavior, assessing his level of readiness. Does he try to sit? Has he developed the ability to swallow food rather than push it out, and has he developed an interest in food at the table?
• You should not offer previously unfamiliar products in the evening, because... in this case, you can miss possible negative reactions of the body and not react to them;
• Products that have not previously been introduced are given strictly one at a time. There is no need to introduce five new products in one day;
• We begin to include all new dishes with 0.5 tsp/l, and increase their volume throughout the week;
• Avoid adding previously unknown foods to your diet during periods of illness, vaccination, and in cases of sudden change of environment.

What products are best to start with?

Pediatricians usually recommend fruits and vegetables. It is their child’s body that will best accept them, and the baby himself will most likely react favorably to such an innovation.

It is recommended to start complementary feeding
with zucchini. This is the most hypoallergenic product for the baby's body.

Vegetables usually come in first. This is a puree of zucchini, cauliflower, broccoli, pumpkin - the least allergenic foods.

Next, fruits are added to the baby’s diet. They start with applesauce, then try pear, apricots and peaches, banana, and prunes. Apricots and peaches are seasonal fruits, so it is better not to choose these fruits as first complementary foods in winter. For complementary feeding, choose only green apples and pears, if possible local varieties. Yellow, red apples and pears contain more allergens than green varieties. Imported fruits for long-term storage are treated with wax and chemicals that are difficult to wash off, and if they enter the baby’s body, they can also provoke an allergic reaction.

For the first feeding, both fruits and vegetables must be heat treated. Apples and pears can be baked, boiled or steamed. Bananas can be steamed. And later, after the fruits have been tested in cooked form, you can include them in the diet in their raw form - in a nibbler, if it is an apple or a pear, or in the form of a puree, if it is a banana or peach.

It is recommended to start complementary feeding with vegetables

, since after sweet fruit purees the baby may refuse vegetable purees.

Complementary feeding calendar

How to start complementary feeding correctly? We present an indicative calendar for the introduction of complementary foods for children from 4-6 to 12 months. Its main points are based on the recommendations of the World Health Organization and the Union of Pediatricians of Russia.

Diet for a 4-5 month old baby

For those who are thinking about introducing their baby to new foods at 4 months, we advise you to consult your pediatrician. He will see if there is a need for this and give recommendations on where and how best to start.

How to properly introduce complementary foods at 5 months?

Complementary feeding at this age is best introduced with vegetable puree or porridge. These products are the easiest for a child's body to digest.

For example, you can start complementary feeding with vegetables with 0.5 tsp (3g) of zucchini puree. During the first week, you need to limit yourself to only this product for breakfast, increasing the volume every day and bringing it to 27 spoons (166 grams). When the volume of puree is more than 100 g. It is recommended to add 1 tsp of vegetable oil to it. We finish breakfast with breast milk or formula until completely saturated.

Next week we will begin introducing a new vegetable – cauliflower. We prepare two types of puree for breakfast - introduced zucchini and new cauliflower puree. First we offer 3 grams. new puree, and then add the previously introduced 166 grams. puree. Over the course of one week, introduce cauliflower entirely, replacing zucchini with it.

For the third week, broccoli puree is good. We also introduce 3 g. and feed the rest with the already familiar puree to a whole portion.

After your baby has successfully mastered vegetable purees, when you have already increased their volume to a whole serving, you can try making porridge for breakfast. For example, we introduce buckwheat for breakfast. We proceed in the same way, increasing the volume from 3 grams. up to 166g. per week with the addition of 1 tsp/l butter with 100 g. porridge. We eat the previously introduced vegetables in full for lunch.

How to properly introduce complementary foods at 6 months?

If by this period you have already introduced a number of products, then continue to use them, adding new ones to them.

Then you can add, for example, rice or buckwheat porridge, proceed in the same way as with puree. We take 0.5 spoons of new porridge, and feed the rest with the already introduced porridge with butter. We eat the previously introduced vegetables for lunch.

For lunch, you should offer new purees, such as pumpkin. At the same time, we leave breakfast unchanged, without introducing new types of cereals.

A wide selection of fruit and vegetable purees for children from 6 months, as well as a variety of cereals for children from 4 months, produced with an adapted milk formula based on goat's milk, is presented on our website. Due to the presence of prebiotics and a special DigestX complex, the risk of colic and constipation is reduced, the immune system is strengthened, energy metabolism and digestion in general are improved. And every baby likes the delicate creamy taste of Kabrita cereals and purees!

Diet of a 7 month old baby

Next, we include fruit (apple and pear) and meat purees (turkey and rabbit) in the child’s diet. We introduce fruit puree for breakfast, also starting from 0.5 tsp/l and increasing the volume to 10 tsp/l, and supplement with the previously introduced porridge.

We include rabbit meat puree after the applesauce has been completely introduced. We offer for breakfast starting from 0.5 tsp/l and slowly increasing to 8 tsp/l. We supplement the food with the previously introduced porridge.

When thinking about your baby’s nutrition, try to organize nutritious breakfasts and lunches for him, teaching him to eat at a certain time.

Diet for an 8 month old baby

Most likely, your baby will make his first attempts at feeding on his own around the age of eight months. Support your baby in this endeavor and give him small pieces of vegetables and fruits that he can hold in his hand on his own.

Also, this time is suitable for introducing fish, cottage cheese (no more than 50 g/day) and children’s kefir/biolact (up to 200 g/day) into the diet. For fish, give preference to cod, pollock, sea bass, salmon, pike perch or carp, and give it no more than twice a week.

You can start combining products with each other, adding, for example, berries to porridge or cottage cheese. We also begin to give a little bit at a time, gradually increasing the amount.

Diet of a child 9-12 months

By nine months, most of the foods needed now have most likely already been introduced, so continue to increase the baby’s diet, move away from the puree type and switch to a finely and coarsely ground consistency. As the year approaches, it’s great to start including fresh herbs from the garden in your diet.

At about one year of age, most children tend to pick up cutlery while sitting at the table independently and drink from a mug. Don’t disturb your child, but on the contrary, encourage his aspirations, even if it doesn’t work out well yet, because this is a complex skill that needs to be developed gradually, and an excellent workout for the brain.

WHO recommends continuing breastfeeding and formula feeding after the introduction of complementary foods.

What can be introduced at 4 months

Diarrhea in infants while breastfeeding

Many young parents do not know what can be given to a child at 4 months. After visiting the pediatrician for a routine examination, the doctor explains in detail what the child can consume. Depending on the individual developmental characteristics and health of the baby, the doctor makes recommendations. The most suitable products include:

• dairy-free porridges: buckwheat, rice;
• zucchini;
• pumpkin;
• cauliflower;
• broccoli;
• apple.

Parents choose one product from the list and let their child try it. It is preferable to use ready-made canned puree, which is sold in any store. Baby food is prepared using a certain technology. Purees are hypoallergenic and children tolerate them well. The right product will improve your baby's health.

Baby puree

Porridge or puree? Where is the best place to start?

There is no exact answer to this question. You have the right to start as you wish, taking into account a number of recommendations:

• When introducing complementary foods, it is easier for babies to get used to vegetables first, since they are the most bland product;
• It is recommended to start with vegetable purees for children who have problems with excess weight, with anemia, rickets, frequent constipation and colic;
• Porridge is considered a heavier food for a baby’s developing digestive system;
• Pediatricians advise children who are underweight and predisposed to allergies to start introducing cereal into their diet;

Complementary feeding scheme from 4 months - table

Complementary feeding chart for children from 4 months

Scheme for introducing complementary foods from 4 months with breastfeeding by day:

• 1 – 1/2 tsp. broccoli, GV
• 2 – 1 tsp. broccoli, GW
• 3 – 2 tsp. broccoli, GW
• 4 – 3 tsp. broccoli, GV
• 5 – 4 tsp. broccoli, GV
• 6 – 60-80 g broccoli, GV
• 7 – 70-100 g broccoli, GV
• 8 – 1/2 tsp. zucchini, remaining volume up to 70-100 g broccoli puree, GV
• 9 – 1 tsp. zucchini, the remaining volume is up to 70-100 g of broccoli puree, GV, etc.

Water for an infant

WHO advises not to give water to children who are only breastfed, because milk is fully capable of providing the baby with all the necessary elements for growth and development. An exception, of course, is made during hot weather and illness, then we give water little by little and carefully, from a spoon. Children who are fed with adapted milk formulas need water, but only at their own request; there is no need to force them to drink. Once you have decided to start giving complementary foods, it’s time to establish your child’s drinking regime. With the addition of new dishes to the diet, water is important for a small body for better absorption and comfortable digestion.

How to introduce complementary foods to a breastfed baby at 4 months

During guardianship, it is customary to introduce new foods into the diet from 6 months. In some cases, these dates are shifted, and feeding begins at 4 months. These reasons include:

• prematurity;
• underweight;
• lack of microelements;
• not saturation with mother's milk.

Worth considering! The digestive system of breastfed babies is not as well developed as that of bottle-fed babies. Therefore, any changes in the diet begin by carefully studying the baby’s reaction.

It is worth adhering to certain rules:

• It is forbidden to give the baby several foods at the same time. If he has a reaction, it will be difficult to find the allergen.
• Try new foods before breastfeeding. By this time, the baby will be hungry and will eat with pleasure.
• After complementary feeding, supplement with breast milk.
• The consistency of the food should be puree without lumps. At 4 months, children cannot chew lumps and may choke on them.
• After getting used to the first vegetable, they begin to introduce a new one.
• It is recommended to feed your baby with a spoon to make it easier to teach him to eat on his own in the future.
• By the beginning of the 5th month, the child should try 4 products.
• Complementary foods are introduced when the baby is completely healthy. If you have a cold, the procedure is postponed.
• If complementary feeding coincides with vaccination, it is postponed for one week.

Baby in a green bib

Developing taste

It is very important not just to feed the child, but to teach him to eat with pleasure. The Kabrita baby food manufacturer can help you in this matter (. They have a large assortment of high-quality purees and cereals for first feeding, and in addition, healthy products for further nutrition and shaping the taste of children.

The main thing you must achieve is the child’s interest in the food on your table, his desire to pick it up and try it on his own.

What should I do for this?

• It’s good when the baby eats at the same table with adults. Everyone eats, thereby setting an example for him;
• There is no need to force your baby to eat or lure him with cartoons and toys;
• The amount of food should increase only at the request of the baby;
• Try a variety of dishes with your child;
• Do not serve sugary drinks or offer cookies/waffles/candies before meals;
• Teach your baby to eat carefully and with cutlery;
• Do not keep your child at the table if he no longer wants to eat or indulges in food.

Teach your baby to feel food, its texture, shape and smells. Talk about the tastes of food; ask older children to talk about what they feel (sour, salty, sweet, bitter, crunchy, etc.).

How to introduce complementary foods correctly?

The introduction of the first complementary foods involves following simple rules:

1. Puree or porridge must be one-component.
2. The ideal consistency of complementary foods is semi-liquid, without solid particles.
3. It is better to cook porridge in water, without adding sugar, salt, or oil.
4. Complementary feeding should be offered to the baby from a spoon.
5. Give complementary foods to the baby exclusively before breast milk or formula in the first half of the day or lunchtime.
6. On the first day, the baby is offered only 1 teaspoon of complementary foods. Every next day this portion is increased by 2 times until the volume of puree (porridge) eaten is equal to 100-120 g and becomes a complete replacement for one feeding.
7. The product can be given if there has been no negative reaction to it: allergies, disorders, bloating or constipation.
8. Another type of product can be introduced only after the previous one has been introduced. You should spend about 7-10 days getting to know each vegetable, fruit or porridge.
9. It is better to prepare porridge, vegetable and fruit purees yourself from seasonal products, but you can also buy ready-made food in specialized stores.
10. Breastfeeding should remain the main one, and complementary feeding should be done once during the day.
11. If a child refuses to eat porridge or purees, do not force him - perhaps he is full or is not physically ready for complementary feeding.
12. Give your baby complementary foods at exactly the same time every day.
13. Apple juice should be diluted with boiled water in a 1:1 ratio. Apple juice is introduced into the child’s diet in the same way as other products, bringing it to the daily norm of 40-50 ml.

Let's look at the table for introducing complementary foods into the diet of a 4-month-old baby.

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On the 7th day, complementary foods can replace one feeding. Be sure to watch the baby and his body’s reaction to new foods. Of course, not all vegetables will be to his liking - the child will spit and push food out of his mouth with his tongue. This is quite natural, because the baby gets acquainted with new tastes. But with fruits the situation will be the opposite: most likely, the baby will eat such puree with great pleasure. But you still need to be patient and follow the indicated scheme for introducing complementary foods so as not to harm the child’s health. And most importantly, never force-feed your baby: if he doesn’t want to eat, don’t force him, offer purees when the baby gets hungry.

Comments ()

Development of chewing skills

Many parents deliberately feed their children pureed and liquid food for a long time in order to reduce the risks of protests against pieces, scandals due to reluctance to eat on their own and fear that the baby will choke.

By 9-10 months, the child should definitely start eating more dense and solid foods. This skill is closely related to speech development, dental health and bite formation. And of course, by doing so you will open your child to the wonderful world of delicious food.

Start offering foods that won't break down or get stuck in your throat: banana, avocado, boiled potato, baked apple, etc. You will be surprised, but the child will master this skill very quickly if you do not interfere with it!

How can early complementary feeding be dangerous?

The introduction of complementary foods is allowed from 4 months. Until this age, the baby’s body is not ready to digest food other than the composition of breast milk. From about 4 months, the production of hydrochloric acid in the stomach begins, and enzymes are stimulated to break down incoming food. The permeability of the intestinal mucous membranes for large particles is reduced, and the possibility of allergic manifestations also decreases. Around this age, the reflex of the newborn’s tongue to push out thick and hard food fades away.

Attention! It is too early for breastfeeding babies to start complementary feeding at 4 months. The introduction of new food is permissible only according to the indications of a pediatrician.

It is not recommended to introduce complementary foods before 4 months

All parents should know and understand that all children have individual developmental characteristics. Not every child’s body is ready for a diet change at 4 months. Late intake of new food can cause pain, bloating, diarrhea, constipation, and gas formation in the intestines. Insomnia, moodiness, decreased appetite and weight may occur.

When these reactions occur, it is advisable to postpone innovations for a while. But the reason may not be that the baby’s body is not ready for another food, but is associated with intolerance to the new nutritional component. Therefore, it is advisable to consult a pediatrician.

Ignoring the symptoms of untimely innovations can lead to gastrointestinal disorders in the future. There may also be a tendency to allergies, decreased immunity, and susceptibility to infectious diseases. Due to the unpleasant first experience, the child may refuse to eat in the future.

Instilling healthy eating habits

Do not forget that children follow the example of their parents in everything. If you are used to eating junk food, then don’t expect anything different from your child. If every day he sees a picture of how his parents eat cookies, candies and sausages instead of cereals and vegetables, naturally, the baby will also take a closer look at these products and want to try exactly what his adults eat.

If you want to raise a healthy child, then first of all you need to change your habits and try to set him a positive personal example.

What should you not give to infants?

There are a number of foods that children under one year old should completely avoid eating. Such products include primarily sugar, salt, foods that can be choked on - nuts, grapes, raw carrots, raisins, peas, etc., soda, juices, fruit drinks, compotes, whole milk, honey and semolina porridge. These products will bring absolutely no benefit to the child’s body, but can, on the contrary, cause harm.

We tried to fully cover the question of when it is possible to introduce complementary foods to a child and how to make this process so that as a result the child receives good health, pleasure from the learning process and correct eating behavior.

Let your children be healthy and happy!

• Manual with recommendations for introducing complementary foods from the World Health Organization
• Website of the Union of Pediatricians of Russia

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