When your baby is ready or getting ready to start solids parents often have a lot of questions.

Remember that you do not need to puree foods to feed them to your baby. Your baby can enjoy mashed foods and finger foods, even before their teeth appear. It is very important that your baby tries different tastes and textures. When your baby self feeds they have much more control over the feeding and this is very important. Your baby can self feed with their fingers or a spoon. Self feeding allows your baby to try food at their own pace.

You don't need to purchase special equipment in order to prepare food for your baby. You can use a fork to mash their food where appropriate. I do not recommend using the mesh strainer bags. 
 
Click here to watch a baby self feed with a spoon
 
 
For more information or if you have questions about starting your baby on solids contact Jill, Nurture The Future's Registered Dietitian at nf.nutrition@gmail.com

Looking for a quick and easy lunch or dinner that the kids will enjoy too! Look no further. Involve the kids by having them choose what to include on their pizza and even help prepare it where possible. 

2 Whole Wheat Or Corn Tortillas
1/4 Cup Refried Beans
1/2 Cup Vegetables, diced (Use whatever you have: zucchini, corn, bell peppers, broccoli,
cauliflower, tomatoes)
1/2 Cup Lettuce, shredded

1. Preheat oven to 350F
2. Spread Refried beans on each tortilla
3. Place diced vegetables on each tortilla
4. Bake in oven for about 10 minutes, until crispy
5. Before serving add shredded lettuce


Looking for ways to serve healthy food for your family? Contact Jill, Nurture The Future's Registered Dietitian at nf.nutrition@gmail.com 

Many people come to me with concerns around their toddlers eating. Daily life with a toddler can be very challenging. It can be a constant battle for power. I feel that picking your battles is an important skill.

What’s better than having to choose if this battle is ‘really that important?’ Removing it all together! When it comes to whether a meal is eaten at all, that’s what I recommend doing.

I find that this can start with toddlers but really can happen with many different aged children and even teens. When dinner is ready the announcement “I’m not going to eat it” happens. The answer that you respond with should always be “okay.” This stops the power struggle in its tracks. An additional benefit to this response is that it gives some power back to the child, as it allows them to rely on their ability to understand their own hunger cues. There are no forms of pressure used when the answer is simply “okay.”

The next step is to require the child to come to the dinner table, not for the food, but for the company. Eating together is another large piece of the eating puzzle. I often find that when the child comes to the table they pick away at their food, however this is never a requirement. The requirement is that they sit with the family for even a few minutes regardless if they are going to eat or not.

And that’s it. Yes, it really is that simple. The key is really, honestly being okay with whether your child eats or not. If you don’t truly mean that response, your child will know and you will not avoid a mealtime battle. However, removing their need to eat at a meal removes the struggle, period.

Looking for support with your child’s eating? Both in person and online appointments available. Contact Jill, Nurture The Future’s Registered Dietitian at nf.nutrition@gmail.com

Quinoa is an ideal gluten free grain to serve to babies. It has a very unique taste and texture and offers a good learning experience. It also contains more iron than many other grains.

I encourage parents to start with high iron foods then add in vegetables and fruit. So, when I get around to giving babies grains, including a high iron one is a benefit.

I often get asked if grains should not be given until 1 or 2 years old. Although I do encourage parents to wait to feed grains to their baby, I only encourage them to wait until at least 6 months, and the reason is amylase.

Amylase, an enzyme, is an important component of carbohydrate digestion. Amylase is found in saliva (salivary amylase) and the pancreas (pancreatic amylase). Salivary amylase starts the breakdown of complex carbohydrates in your mouth, and in infants levels start to rise between 3-6 months. In the small intestine, where most digestion takes place, pancreatic amylase levels start to increase in babies around the 7 to 8 month mark.

As you can see, I would not choose to feed grains before 6 months. As amylase is also needed for the digestion of carbohydrates in fruits and vegetables and we introduce these foods right around the 6 month mark your baby could break down grains at this point. However, I suggest avoiding the infant rice cereal and instead using other high iron foods.

Although I don’t recommend offering any food to your baby before 6 months, I find that by the time you baby is eating some high iron foods and some fruits and vegetables you usually wont get around to gains until they are somewhat older.

Now going back to the gluten free comment I mentioned at the beginning. I definitely do not encourage babies to be gluten free. When I start introducing grains I typically go with gluten free first before adding in a grain containing gluten. That being said, I do add a gluten containing grain sooner rather than later as the newest research is showing that this is actually a benefit. So with quinoa being gluten free, but also higher in iron, I like to introduce it as one of the first, if not the first grain.

This baby at first was a little taken-a-back by the texture and taste of the quinoa. However, it only took a few handfuls for him to be enjoying it. For him, eating quinoa was a big learning experience and you could see him examine each handful in great detail before placing it in his mouth. What a wonderful example of how much learning is involved with starting solids!

Do you have more questions about feeding your baby solid food? Contact Jill, Nurture The Future’s Registered Dietitian at nf.nutrition@gmail.com