It is natural for children to love snacks, but mothers are often worried that snacks will threaten their baby's health. Therefore, they often strictly forbid their baby from eating snacks. However, occasionally giving babies some snacks can not only promote their bone development but also provide necessary nutrients. Now let's learn about the selection of baby snacks.
Snacks that should not be given to babies
1. Jelly
Jelly is made from thickeners, flavors, colorings, and sweeteners. If parents often give their babies these snacks, which contain excessive additives, it will seriously affect their growth, development, and intellectual health.
The national random inspection of these jellies sold on the market showed that the pass rate was only 91.3%, indicating that there are still significant safety problems. Moreover, there is a risk of choking on jelly.
2. Cola
Cola contains a substance called caffeine. Originally, cola was a medicine used to relieve headaches, fatigue, and runny nose caused by colds. However, when it is added to food and consumed by babies when they are thirsty or feel the need, the caffeine will accumulate in their bodies and cause significant harm to the developing organs and tissues, such as making their bones fragile, reducing bone density, and increasing the risk of fractures.
3. Popcorn
The iron can and seal of popcorn machines are coated with lead or lead-tin alloy. When the can is heated, part of the lead appears as lead smoke or lead vapor. When popcorn is rapidly depressurized, the lead can easily be absorbed by the porous popcorn, contaminating it. Popcorn contains a high level of lead, which can damage the nervous, digestive, and hematopoietic systems. For young children whose brains are still developing, eating popcorn is like poisoning them.
Snacks suitable for babies
1. Dairy products
Various dairy products contain high-quality proteins, fats, sugars, and other nutrients. Moreover, milk is the largest source of calcium. Drinking a sufficient amount of milk can provide babies with adequate calcium. Therefore, dairy products are the best choice for baby snacks.
For baby snacks, choose solidified yogurt and other dairy products. The lactose in dairy products can easily corrode teeth. After the baby finishes drinking milk or eating dairy products, it is important to rinse the mouth or brush the teeth to prevent tooth decay.
2. Fresh fruits
Fruits contain a variety of sugars, inorganic salts, vitamins, and organic acids. Eating fruits regularly can stimulate appetite, aid digestion, and promote healthy growth for babies. Therefore, fruits are also on the list of baby snacks.
For babies over 6 months old who have not yet grown teeth, you can scrape the pulp of bananas, apples, and other fruits with a spoon and feed it to them. For babies over 8 months old, you can cut the fruits into small pieces and let them eat on their own.
3. Soft foods
Noodles contain rich proteins. Soft snacks like small buns and steamed cakes are very suitable for babies under 2 years old to chew and digest. They can also help babies intake dietary fiber and B vitamins.
Precautions for babies eating snacks
First of all, we need to prepare healthy snacks for babies, low in sugar and fat, and reject fried foods. Provide fresh fruits as snacks and choose low-sugar biscuits and oatmeal milk.
Making homemade biscuits is also a good choice. It is healthy, hygienic, and allows you to control the ingredients.
There should be clear rules for giving babies snacks. Snack consumption should be controlled to a certain extent because excessive indulgence can lead to negative effects.
We should also pay attention to the timing of giving babies snacks. Snacks should not be given before or after meals, otherwise, babies may refuse to eat proper meals.
When a baby has a poor appetite and refuses to eat regular meals, we can give them some snacks to supplement their energy. Once their appetite improves, we can then give them proper meals.
So, moms, don't resist snacks. Don't blindly think that snacks are bad. Sometimes, appropriately adding some snacks for babies can improve their mood and greatly benefit their development.
