Baby Food Recipes, News and Information

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In an effort to advertise their products to you, lots of baby care companies will offer free samples of their goods for you and your baby to try.

We regularly take a look at some of the free items on offer and add the best ones to our Free Stuff for Baby page.

Our page mainly includes offers for the US and the UK, but there are some international offers available, too.

We also try to bring you details of sales of baby goods and other free resources that you may find useful.

So why not take a look and see if there are any offers suitable for YOUR family - and don't forget to bookmark the page so you don't miss out on new offers as we add them...

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September 3, 2007 14:19 - Iron Deficiency - New Study Reveals Risk Factors

A new study that has just been published in September's edition of the journal 'Pediatrics' shows that overweight and Hispanic toddlers are at an increased risk of developing iron deficiency.

A deficiency of iron can cause severe, long term problems for children. The body uses iron to make haemoglobin, which supplies oxygen to the body's cells through the blood and gives blood cells their red colour.This is why a lack of iron is often indicated by skin paleness.

Iron deficiency also affects brain function and development - so children lacking in iron can face serious learning difficulties.

Unfortunately, around 2.4 million US children are affected by iron deficiency.

The Amercian Academy of Pediatrics study set out to identify the risk factors for children aged between 1 and 3 years and more specifically the risk factors for Hispanic toddlers, who make up the biggest minority group of children in the US.

The study revealed that overweight toddlers who are not in daycare are at an increased risk of iron deficiency (possibly indicating that good nutrition is more carefully adhered to in a daycare setting). The study also found that Hispanic toddlers are more likely to be overweight and not in day care than white or black toddlers - which, they believe, may account for an increased risk of iron deficiency within that group.

One of the authors of the report, Jane M. Brotanek of the University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center, Dallas, Texas, had previously authored a report entitled Iron Deficiency, Prolonged Bottle-Feeding, and Racial/Ethnic Disparities in Young Children. This study found that prolonged bottle-feeding, which is more common with Mexican-American children than with white or black children, put children at a higher risk of iron deficiency. This is because bottle-fed children tend to consume a lot of milk and juice - both of which are low in iron.

To make sure that YOUR child is not at risk of iron deficiency, it is important to include lots of iron-rich foods in his diet. These include

• meat (particularly beef and lamb)
• dark green vegetables
• whole wheat cereal
• avocado
• peas
• beans
• tofu
• peas
• blackstrap molasses
• millett
• quinoa
• amaranth
• broccoli
• barley

To a lesser degree, there is also iron in brown rice, mushrooms, squash, white potato and sweet potato.

If your little one has been routinely prescribed iron drops WITHOUT a diagnosis of iron deficiency being made, then you may like to read about the controversy that surrounds the routine iron supplementation of breastfed babies...

Read more...

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September 4, 2007 22:43 - My Baby Won't Eat!

Natasha from Australia wrote to us today about her 12 month old daughter.

She has no teeth and Natasha is unsure about what to feed her as she does not seem to like chunky food. She also refuses to eat breakfast and lunch - and Natasha says that she only ever eats dinner when she is REALLY hungry.

Here is our reply, which you may find helpful if you are experiencing similar problems with YOUR little one...


Firstly, I'd like to invite you to read our page entitled How Much Should My Baby Be Eating?. This page shows how your baby may be receiving adequate nutrition - even though YOU may feel that she's not eating enough.

It also explains how babies are actually pretty good judges of the amount of food they need - and that following their cues, rather than comparing your child's food intake with that of another baby - is often the best approach.

Of course, it's important that your child's development and weight is monitored by a pediatrician. That way, any underlying problems that may be contributing to your baby's lack of interest in feeding can be quickly identified.

You say that your daughter has no teeth and does not cope well with textured foods. In itself, a lack of teeth should not prevent your baby from enjoying foods with soft lumps - babies gums are hard and many little ones do very well by simply mashing food between them (this is often known as 'gumming' food). We suggest some suitable foods for babies at this stage on our Finger Food For Baby page.

But I'd also like to direct you to our Baby Feeding Problems page, which explains how to help your baby transition from smooth purees to lumpier textures. Some babies gag excessively on lumps (I'm not sure from your message whether or not this is true of your daughter) - but the techniques we describe may help in any case.

It's also difficult to tell from your message whether or not you are feeding your little girl from a spoon, or whether she is feeding herself. Many parents who experience feeding problems with their babies notice a big improvement when they put their little ones 'in control' and allow them to feed themselves. You can do this by letting your baby use the spoon, or by providing a range of healthy finger foods for her to choose from.

Variety is also key - the more options you offer your baby, the more likely she is to discover something that she really enjoys!

Your comment that your daughter only eats dinner when she's really hungry made me wonder why she may not be so hungry on other days.

Perhaps she is still drinking a large amount of milk during the day which is filling her tummy? If so, then try slowly cutting back on the milk and increasing the amount of solids you offer.

Another culprit is juice, which often makes babies feel full, but provides no real nutrients. For this reason, drinking too much juice may lead to malnutrition in some infants.

If your little one is drinking a lot of juice, then we suggest reducing - or eliminating - juice from her diet.

More than likely, though, this is just a phase that your baby is going through. Sometimes, infants seem reluctant to eat for no easily identifiable reason. They could be teething, feeling a little under the weather - or simply more interested in the distractions around them.

You may be feeling stressed or anxious about your daughter's refusal to eat, but please do try to hide those feelings from her. Babies pick up on mealtime tensions very quickly - and this can compound the problem.

Instead, try to keep things happy and relaxed. Eat alongside your baby, praise her when SHE eats and - above all - be patient.

We hope that things improve for you soon - and please remember to consult your doctor if you are at all worried about your baby.

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September 6, 2007 16:46 - Artificial Colouring In Food Causes Behavioural Problems - It's Official!

Parents have suspected it for years - and researched has now confirmed it! Artificial food additives affect children in a negative way.

The UK's Food Standards Agency has revised its guidelines on certain artificial colours following research by Southampton University. This research suggests that children may experience behavioural problems after eating or drinking certain combinations of these colourings along with a preservative called sodium benzoate.

To see the list of food colourings involved and to read more about this research, please visit the FSA website.

The FSA is also inviting comments to their 'Colours and Hyperactivity' blog, which you can access here.

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September 8, 2007 11:50 - Perfect Baby Food Purees

So - you've cooked a few healthy ingredients, whizzed them together in the blender to make a complete meal for your baby... and the end result has come out thick, stodgy and very unappealing.

OR - you've just thawed a couple of cubes of baby food and, although they looked great when they went into the freezer, they're now runny enough to drink!

Just what can you do to save baby's dinner and get your pureed disasters to a consistency he'll love?

Take a look at our two new pages, of course! We show you ways to thin baby food purees and thicken your baby's food using healthy ingredients that not only add a nutritious boost to the dish, but taste great, too!

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September 9, 2007 15:40 - Feeding A Baby With Reflux

If your baby has infant reflux, then the prospect of starting solids can be a little worrying. This is particularly true if your baby's symptoms have recently begun to settle - setting them off again is the LAST thing you want to do.

Trigger foods (ie the foods that can cause reflux to flare up) vary from one person to the next... and that's what makes feeding your baby difficult. There are no foods that you can absolutely guarantee will not aggravate your baby's reflux.

However, there ARE certain foods that seem to be lead to flare ups more commonly than others - and we have included them, along with some more great tips, on our 'foods for reflux' page.

But we would really appreciate YOUR input. If your baby has reflux, we'd love to know which foods you have tried and the effect they had on your little one. So please see our new reflux tips page, where you can submit YOUR tips and ideas and read tips from other visitors.

Thank you in advance for your contributions - by sharing your experiences, you'll be helping other parents who are worrying about what to feed THEIR little ones.

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