The best food for babies

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 Meal schedule for babies

Month

2 1. Only milk:
3
mothers milk
is best
4

5
2. Continue to
6
breastfeed +
7 supplementary
8 food
9

10

11

12
3. Transition to
family meals

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Dear Parents,
The birth of your child marks a new and exciting stage in your
lives. And there will be plenty of changes food, for instance.
From now on, you will have to make sure that your baby is
well fed. This brochure will show you what to look out for. Our
schedule will guide you through the first year without a hitch.

The Healthy Start network

+ 9

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1

The first 6 months

Breastfeeding: the best thing for

the mother and child
There is nothing better than full breastfeeding right from
the start. What that means: your child will only receive
mothers milk. Partial breastfeeding is still better than
not at all if you cannot or do not want to breastfeed all the
time. Your child will still be able to enjoy the benefits of
mothers milk.

Mothers milk unbeatable for the baby

Mothers milk provides the baby with important nutrients to
help it grow and to ensure that its body and mind develop
well. As a mother, you will produce precisely the milk your
baby needs at that time: in the right amount and composition.
This means that mothers milk is perfect to beat hunger pangs
and also to quench thirst.

Tip!
Do you have any more questions about breastfeeding?
Simply ask your midwife. Right at the start, if possible. All
statutory health insurance providers pay for counselling by
a midwife. Gynaecologists, paediatricians and breastfee-
ding counsellors will also be glad to provide information
and assistance (addresses: p. 15).

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It is practical and free
Mothers milk is available on the spot, wherever you happen
to be. It is kept constantly at the right temperature.

How often should you breastfeed?

Your child will decide how frequently it wants to feed, and for
how long. What that means: simply breastfeed your child as
often and as long as it wants. It is perfectly normal during the
first few weeks if your baby is hungry just 2 hours after its last
meal.

Do bear in mind!
In the first few weeks your baby will drink smaller
amounts of milk more frequently, including at night.
But as soon as it has started to sleep longer at night,
it will drink more in one meal, but less frequently.

How long should breastfeeding continue?

Exclusive breastfeeding is recommended during the first six
months in the life of healthy infants. It should continue until
at least the beginning of the fifth month. It is a good idea to
continue breastfeeding, even after your baby has started to eat
baby food. The solid meals will gradually replace the
breastfeeding meals.
Breastfeeding ties a gentle knot,
satisfying more than just hunger and
thirst. It is an intimate moment of calm
that nurtures the bond between
mother and child.

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 What if breastfeeding is not
possible?
You cannot or do not want to fully breastfeed your child?
In this case, you should give your baby industrially
manufactured formula. You should never prepare
your own formula no matter what kind of
milk you use!
Pay attention to the dosage:
make sure the spoon is only level,
not heaped.

Infant formula throughout

the first 12 months
Infant formulae are described as Pre
or 1. You can give your child these first
formulae right from the start. They are
suitable throughout the first 12 months, even
after you have introduced baby food. Just like
mothers milk, you can feed your child as much Pre or
1 formula as it likes and as often as it wants. Do not feed
follow-on formula (marked with 2) until your child has
started to receive baby food.

HA formula in case of allergy risks

HA infant formula is designed for babies with an elevated risk
of allergies who cannot be fully breastfed or breastfed at all.
In these cases you should give your child HA-Pre or HA-1
formula until it receives its first baby food. After that, your
baby can be given normal infant formula.

Do bear in mind!
Consult with your
paediatrician or midwife
if you are uncertain which
food is right for your baby.

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Only use special food under the advice of
your doctor
Ask your paediatrician for advice if your baby frequently
experiences flatulence, tummy cramps or constipation, or if it
has a distinct tendency to burp or spit. Only give your child
special food on your doctors recommendation. The same is
true of infant formula based on soy protein.

How many bottles does a baby need?

Your baby will decide when, how often and how much it
wants to be fed, depending on how hungry it is. The
manufacturers instructions on the packaging are just
recommendations. You can feed Pre or 1 infant formula as
often as you like: the baby is full if it turns away from a bottle
before it is empty. Refusing the bottle indicates that the baby
is not yet hungry. You can be certain that your baby is
receiving enough milk if it seems content and is gaining
weight. In the first few weeks your baby will drink smaller
amounts more frequently, including at night. But as soon as it
has started to sleep longer at night, it will drink more in one
meal, but less frequently.

Do bear in mind!
Preparing formula:
Always prepare fresh formula shortly before feeding.
The temperature of the water should be between 30
and 40 C (body temperature) when mixing the infant
formula.
Attention: risk of scalding! Only handle hot water
out of the reach of children.
Formula already contains everything your baby
needs. Please do not add any other ingredients.
Discard leftovers. Never reheat formula.
Use a brush to thoroughly rinse and wash the bottle and
the nipple immediately after each meal and then leave
both to dry well. Only rubber nipples need to be boiled
occasionally.

Tap water is best

for preparing the milk: leave the water to
run until it comes out of the tap cold.

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5

Continue breastfeeding
with supplementary food

Ready for baby food?

The right time to introduce baby food differs from baby to
baby. But you will notice when your baby is ready: it will
become interested in what other people are eating. The
baby manages to put things in its mouth and no longer
uses its tongue to press the baby food back out again. It
can hold its head in a firm, upright position, provided it is
cradled sitting on its bottom. The right time for the first
spoonful of baby food is no earlier than the start of the 5th
month and no later than the start of the 7th month.

Gradually introducing the first baby food

Start with a few spoons of vegetable baby food before
breastfeeding at lunchtime. If this goes well, you can gradually
replace the milk meal completely with baby food. However,
you should continue to give your baby mothers milk or
formula for the other meals. Make your own baby food or buy
it in a shop: they both have advantages.

Be patient!
Your baby might not be ready for this step if
it has a lot of trouble getting used to the first
spoons of food. Take a break and then try giving
the spoon again a few weeks later. Some babies
find it hard to adjust to the new taste. These children will
need to try a new ingredient several times before
they like it.
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Vegetable-potato-meat baby food
For one portion Basic recipe
100 g vegetables
50 g potato
30 g lean meat (e.g. beef, pork, lamb or poultry)
1 tbsp canola oil
1 tbsp fruit juice or fruit pure as dessert
Preparation

1. Wash the vegetables, peel the 2. Add the sliced meat (or fish) and
potatoes and chop into small braise in a small amount of water
pieces. (approx. 10 minutes).

3. Blend together with the juice. 4. Stir in the canola oil. Add a dash of
water if the resulting mixture is too
stodgy.
Tip!
Try different kinds of vegetables: carrots, broccoli,
cauliflower, kohlrabi, courgettes, parsnips and pumpkin
are all vegetables that babies find easy to eat.
Occasionally replace the meat with fish (e.g. salmon).

If you buy baby food in jars ...

You should regularly pick baby food that includes the following
main ingredients in their recipes: vegetables + potatoes + meat.
You can occasionally use pasta or rice instead of potato.
Do not add seasoning to the baby food, even if you think it
tastes too bland.

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 Milk-cereal baby food
Your baby should get used to another type of baby food no
earlier than the start of the 6th month and no later than
the start of the 8th month. A milk-cereal baby food in the
evening will give your baby all the important nutrients that
milk and cereals provide. Even babies with allergies in the
family can enjoy this type of baby food made with real
cows milk.

Prepare your own milk-cereal baby food, or buy it ready-made

in a shop. The ingredients are important.
Make sure that the main ingredients of any baby food you buy
in a jar are (powdered) milk and whole grain cereal.

Thats enough
Babies know best when they are full.
Dont force your child to eat everything
on its plate or to finish the bottle.

Continue breastfeeding
along with supplementary
food. This way, you can
continue to give your
baby the protection
that mothers milk
affords and your
child needs.

Easy on the sweet stuff!

Milk-cereal baby food should taste only slightly sweet.
Do not sweeten it. Certainly not with honey!

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Basic recipe: Milk-cereal baby food

For one portion

200 ml whole milk (3.5 % fat)
20 g whole grain cereal (flakes) or semolina
2 tbsp fruit juice or mashed fruit
Preparation

1. Mix the cereal flakes into cold 2. Bring to a boil and simmer for
milk, or the semolina into simme- approx. 3 minutes.
ring milk.

3. Stir in the fruit juice or mashed 4. All done.

fruit.
Tip!
Use whole milk. Your baby needs a bit more fat
during the first twelve months.

20 g whole grain cereal (flakes) are equivalent to roughly

2 heaped tablespoons of oatmeal or spelt flakes
1 heaped tablespoon of semolina
Instant cereal for baby food:
see information on the packaging

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 Cereal-fruit baby food
You can replace the afternoon breastfeeding or bottle with
cereal-fruit baby food containing no milk around one
month later.

The best drink:

tap water
As soon as your baby is
eating three helpings of
baby food per day it will
need something else to
drink besides mothers
milk or formula: tap water
is the best option. Leave
the water to run until it
comes out of the tap cold.

Tip!
Learning to drink correctly
At the start, you should fill the cup or mug almost to the
rim so that your baby immediately notices its upper lip
becoming moist. It will then instinctively open its mouth.

Babies want to kick,

crawl and explore the world.
But to do this they need to develop well.

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Basic recipe: Cereal-fruit baby food

For one portion

90 ml water
20 g whole grain cereal (flakes) or semolina
100 g mashed, finely grated or pured fruit or
stewed fruit, e.g. apple, pear
1 tsp canola oil
Preparation

1. Stir the cereal flakes into cold 2. Add fresh, pured fruit.
water, or semolina into boiling
water. Bring to a boil and simmer
for approx. 3 minutes.

3. Stir in the canola oil. 4. All done.

Tip!
One type of cereal and fruit is enough per day.
But do try different kinds of fruit: babies find it particularly
easy to eat apples, pears, bananas, peaches, nectarines
and apricots.

If you use ready-made baby food ...

The main ingredients in suitable ready-made baby food
will be whole grain cereal and fruit.

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10

11

12

The end of the first 12 months

Time for family meals

Your child no longer needs baby food, but it will require
5 real meals daily. Increasingly, it will want to eat by itself:

A family lunch gradually replaces the midday vegetable-

potato-meat baby food.
Dinner is now an evening meal and a cup of milk with the
family instead of the milk-cereal baby food.
The baby will gradually be given breakfast with milk and
bread or muesli instead of breastfeeding or infant formula in
the morning.
The cereal-fruit baby food without milk is replaced with two
snacks comprising bread/rusks and fruit, and later on some
crudits as well. Serving additional milk, yoghurt or quark
for instance as a snack is not recommended.

Liquids with every meal,

also between meals
The best things you can give your child are
water or unsweetened herbal or fruit tea
in a glass, cup or mug. Sucking constantly
on the bottle is bad for the teeth.

But watch out for ...

Small, hard foods such as currants and nuts.
Your baby may easily choke.
Very salty and spicy foods and dishes.

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 Guidance and assistance

Personal counselling
Addresses for nutritional experts close to you:
Breastfeeding: www.hebammenverband.de,
www.afs-stillen.de, www.bdl-stillen.de, www.lalecheliga.de,
www.stillen.de
Nutrition: www.vdoe.de, www.vdd.de, www.dge.de,
www.quetheb.de, www.hebammenverband.de (diet
during the first 12 months)

Telephone counselling
Allergy counselling hotline:
German Allergy and Asthma Society (DAAB) and PINA (Allergy/
Asthma Prevention and Information Network)
+49 1805 052251 (12 cents/minute from a landline;
max. 42 cents/minute for calls from

@
Mon.-Fri. 9:30 am to 12:00 pm mobile networks)

Online counselling
www.was-wir-essen.de
Visit the aid Experts Forum to receive professional advice on infant
and child nutrition.

Recommended reading
Infant nutrition aid, DGE, order no. 1357,
www.aid-medienshop.de, 2.50
Recommendations for infant nutrition FKE Research Institute
for Child Nutrition, www.fke-shop.de, 4.00
National Breastfeeding Committee
www.bfr.bund.de/stillkommission

Other counselling services at:

www.gesund-ins-leben.de

About IN FORM: IN FORM is Germany's initiative for healthy eating

and more exercise. It was founded in 2008 by the Federal Ministry of
Food and Agriculture (BMEL) and the Federal Ministry of Health (BMG),
and has since cooperated with its project partners across Germany to
positively influence all areas of life. The aim is to sustainably improve
dietary and exercise patterns within the population.
Visit www.in-form.de for more information.
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 Imprint
0329/2014
Published by aid information service
Food, Agriculture, Consumer Protection
Heilsbachstr. 16, 53123 Bonn, Germany, www.aid.de
with funding from the Federal Ministry of
Food and Agriculture according to a decision of
the German Federal Parliament.

Text: Monika Cremer, Idstein

Editing: Julia Bonfig, aid
Images: Fotolia: Vojtech Vlk: 1, Fotolia: 2, 3, 4, Monkey Business: 3,
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Artwork: www.berres-stenzel.de
Printing: Media Cologne GmbH, Hrth

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4th Edition

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