After giving birth to a baby, mothers with abundant breast milk will start breastfeeding their babies. For babies, breast milk is undoubtedly the best in terms of absorption and nutrition. However, many mothers face the problem of insufficient milk supply, which means that babies will have to drink formula instead of breast milk when they are a little older. So what is the best formula for babies? Let's analyze it below.
Formula milk is better than fresh cow's milk
After weaning, some mothers start feeding fresh cow's milk directly to their babies, which is actually very detrimental to the baby's health.
Analysis: The digestive system, kidneys, and other systems of infants and young children are not yet fully developed. Drinking fresh milk can cause many hazards. Firstly, the calcium-to-phosphorus ratio in fresh milk is inappropriate, and the high phosphorus content can affect the absorption of calcium. Additionally, the high content of casein in fresh milk can easily coagulate into clumps when it encounters stomach acid, making it difficult to be absorbed by the gastrointestinal tract.
Suggestion: If conditions permit, formula milk can be drunk continuously, just pay attention to choosing formula milk that is suitable for the baby's age.
More expensive formula milk is not necessarily better
In terms of the formula of formula milk, the nutritional components are basically the same, so similar products should not have a significant price difference.
Analysis: Generally speaking, imported formula milk is relatively more expensive, but it does not mean that their quality is necessarily better than similar domestic formula milk. The reason why imported formula milk is expensive is that it needs to bear extra costs such as sales, transportation, opening markets in different places, and tariffs. Domestic formula milk, on the other hand, is priced based on the national situation, people's living standards, and the comparison with various types of food, and it continues the previous unified pricing by the government, so the price is relatively lower.
Formula milk is not enough to meet the baby's nutritional needs
Although breast milk or formula milk can provide most of the nutrients needed for infant growth and development, it is still not enough to meet all the nutritional requirements. If complementary foods are not added in a timely manner, it can cause nutritional deficiencies such as anemia and zinc deficiency.
Suggestion: Add complementary foods to the baby according to their age. Start gradually adding egg yolk at 4 months; feed vegetable puree at 5 months; feed fish puree at 6 months; feed mashed tofu, animal blood, and liver puree at 8 months. The addition of these complementary foods can meet the rapid growth and development of the baby's body.
Rice porridge cannot replace formula milk
Rice porridge or other types of food cannot provide the same level of nutrition as formula milk for babies.
Rice porridge mainly consists of carbohydrates, with insufficient fat and protein content. Without the supplementation of formula milk, the baby's nutrition will definitely fall behind, and mixing formula milk and rice porridge together may also result in incomplete absorption of protein by the baby.
Suggestion: Strictly follow the instructions of the formula milk for the amount of water and the method of preparation.
Avoid using purified water to prepare formula milk
Some parents believe that purified water or mineral water is more advanced, so they often use such water to prepare formula milk, but this practice is not advisable.
The absorption rate of calcium from water by the human body is over 90%, while purified water loses the minerals of ordinary tap water, so it is not suitable for preparing formula milk. If mineral water is used to prepare formula milk for a long time, it is very likely to cause indigestion and constipation in infants.
Suggestion: Use boiled tap water to prepare formula milk. After boiling tap water, let it cool to around 40°C, then it can be used to prepare formula milk.
Add water first, then add formula milk
Some parents are used to adding formula milk to the bottle first, then adding water until reaching the required measurement line. However, this method of preparing formula milk is prone to inappropriate milk-to-water ratio. If formula milk is added first and then water, even if it is added to the original measurement line, the milk will become more concentrated; on the other hand, if water is added first and then formula milk, it will expand, but the concentration will be appropriate.
Suggestion: The concentration of formula milk should be as close to breast milk as possible, so it is best to prepare formula milk according to the requirements of the formula milk.
I have shared so many methods for choosing formula milk. Have all the mothers learned them? If you have learned, then hurry up and choose a better formula milk for your baby! I forgot to tell you mothers that the formula milk for babies at different stages is also different, so mothers must choose carefully.
