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Archive for the ‘Baby Feeding’ Category

Breastfeeding looks easy, mums just whip up their tops up and the baby gets her food – right? Wrong! While breastfeeding is very easy, getting started, getting your baby to latch on and feeding in the correct position is incredibly hard. The good news is, once you’ve mastered the latch and your positioning, breastfeeding will become as easy as eating a whole packet of biscuits!

First things first
Your baby’s face is specially designed for breastfeeding. Her little turned up nose and receding chin means she can feed happily and breath at the same time, so never worry that she cannot breathe. If she can’t she will pull away from feeding. If your baby’s nose seems to be blocked by your breast, change your positioning slightly to see if that helps or move your breast so that your baby has a clear airway.

It is important to have a proper latch when breastfeeding, firstly, so that your baby is extracting your milk in the right way and therefore getting as much milk as she needs and secondly, to avoid blisters and sore nipples for you. Here are ten tips for acheiving that all-important latch:

• Start early

The best time to start breastfeeding is the first hour after your baby is born (we know you want to rest, but it’ll be easier in the long run!) This is because babies go through a period of being alert straight after they are born, but after that they spend much of the next 24 hours asleep. Most babies will instinctively suckle at the breast soon after birth, so take advantage of this time and also having the midwives around you to help to get breastfeeding started.

• Tickles

Try tickling your baby’s bottom lip with your nipple to make her open her mouth wide. Once your baby’s mouth is wide you should quickly move it onto your breast. Make sure you bring your baby to you rather than leaning towards your baby, to get the ideal positioning for your baby.

• A proper latch

When moving your baby’s mouth onto your breast, make sure that she gets about an inch of the surrounding areola (the darker area surrounding your nipple) into her mouth. You can also pull your baby’s chin down gently after she has latched on to help her take more of the areola in her mouth. Your nipple should be pulled back into your baby’s mouth so that extracting your milk is easier for her. If you find that your baby only has your nipple in her mouth, rather than the surrounding area, it is likely that your nipples will get sore and possibly blister. If you think your baby is feeding incorrectly, insert your index finger into her mouth while she is feeding and gently pull her off your nipple. Just pulling her off your nipple without a finger can be very painful!

• Fish mouth

Make sure that your baby’s lips are rolled outwards while she is feeding so that they resemble a fish’s mouth! If her lips are inverted, gently use your finger to pop them out as this will help with her latch.

• Check your baby’s mouth

A baby properly latched on will be covering more of the areola with his lower lip than with the upper lip.

• Hold your breast

You might need to hold your breast to help guide your nipple into your baby’s mouth. For larger breasted women you may have to do this with every feed. If you do have to hold your breast, grasp it at the sides rather than at the top or the bottom so your hand doesn’t get in the way of your baby’s mouth.

• Nipple positioning

Your nipple should be aimed at your baby’s upper lip rather than the middle of the mouth.

• Head positioning

Your baby’s head should be slightly tilted back and not slumped forward. Her chin should indent the lower portion of your breast.

• Switch positions

Switch positions if one position doesn’t work. The traditional position is your baby facing towards you with ‘tummy to mummy’ and her legs around your tummy. Your could always try the football or underarm hold, where you hold your baby’s head to your breast with her tummy on her side and legs pointing behind you.

• Don’t give up!

If you start to feel like nothing is working and your nipples are sore – try not to lose heart. Have some time out and try again when you’ve both had a bit of a break. Follow the instructions above and try not to get frustrated with your baby. It might be worth visiting your health visitor or a breastfeeding councillor to help you to get your latch right, or read our feature on breastfeeding problems.

How do I tell if I’m breastfeeding correctly?
If you’ve got the latch right:

• Your baby’s chin and nose should be touching your breast
• Your baby’s cheeks should be nice and rounded while sucking
• You should be able to hear content suckling sounds NOT clicking or smacking noises which indicate that your don’t have a good latch.
• Your baby is perfectly happy and stays on the breast for a sufficient amount of time and rarely fusses.
• When your baby is suckling there is a circular motion of her jaw rather than fast chin movement.
• You should be able to hear and to see your baby swallowing milk.

If you are not breastfeeding correctly:

• Your baby will have trouble keeping on the breast and will be frustrated at not being able to extract milk properly.
• Your baby falls asleep after a very short time nursing
• Your baby fusses when off the breast and acts hungry all the time
• Your nipples look pointed or crushed, or they are very sore and bleeding.
• Breastfeeding hurts! Breastfeeding is not supposed to hurt. When you first start to feed your baby you may feel a tingling sensation as your breasts let down milk, but after that you should feel no pain at all.
• Your baby’s cheeks are pulled or sucked in when she sucks

Other helpful tips:
If your baby frequently falls asleep at the breast try tickling her feet or her cheeks to wake her up. You could also undress and change her nappy to wake her up.

Banana is an amazing and fabulous fruit: it satisfies your hunger, supplies the body with energy and useful substances. It has a convenient natural packaging. Even babies are not allergic to bananas. That’s why banana is often included in baby food. Adults also eat them with pleasure – with the exception of those who have diabetes. Energy value of bananas is 90 kilocalories per 100 grams. Fibers they contain facilitate intestinal transit and contribute to good digestion of sugar and fat. Bananas have balanced vitamins. They contain lots of vitamins E and C, and vitamin B6.

Banana is also a source of trace elements: 100 grams contains 42 mg of magnesium and 348 mg of potassium, the content of the last is comparable only with dried apricots. In addition, tropical fruits are a source of calcium, iron and phosphorus.

Once there were only green bananas, and they slowly turn yellow in our house. Today bananas reach the desired condition in special places filled with ethylene gas at high humidity and temperature around 13 oC. Here they stay from 4 to 8 days – depending on the established regime, according to the fruit and market needs. Fast mode allows bananas ripen for 4 days, but they are delicious when they are kept for eight days.

Ethylene is not accidentally chosen for ripening of bananas – during the maturation in natural conditions bananas themselves emit this gas.

Buying bananas, we first assess their appearance: color, presence or absence of black spots, the size of the fruit andtheir degree of maturity. It is known that a good banana is yellow, juicy, with shiny and sleek surface and do not have too ribbed form. The black dots on the surface are a sign that the fruit contains maximum sugar. But if the entire surface of the banana is black it’s a bust, indicating that the firm-supplier could not keep their products properly. However, such fruit is harmless and completely edible.

Meanwhile, according to an existing document, bananas are divided into three classes. Best – “extra” should be a minimum length of 20 cm, volume of 3-4 cm. Sometimes they can have the same thickness but be a couple of centimeters shorter. Requirements for the second class: length -14 cm, volume – 2, 7-4, 1 cm, however, usually fruit of all varieties: thick and thin, long and short – are sold at one price.

The basis of the export products is bananas which are used in culinary. Best-known varieties are Cavendish, Gro Michel, Lakatan. Export class bananas must endure all the difficulties of transportation.

Bananas which are used in culinary, are dessert and vegetables bananas. Today small dessert bananas can be found in our own sales network. Their value is considerably less than the traditional: 8-12 cm, thin skin, with the taste of honey, sweet and delicious. For the price they are twice expensive.

All the remaining bananas for us are exotics. There are a variety of bananas with a taste of an apple. There are red bananas, with red-brown, red and burgundy skin and pink core. Vegetable bananas can be boiled, fried, dried, put in the soup instead of potatoes. They are used in chips and even beer production. These fruit contains a lot of starch and is not sweet.

There are a few things you should look out for if you are wondering when to introduce foods to babies. The average age for a baby to start eating solids is between four to six months. If you notice your baby is able to hold his/her head up well and can sit with a little support at this age, he/she might be ready for solid foods. Another sign to look for is if your baby is reaching for your cutlery when you are eating and mimicking your mouth opening. Consult with your doctor before starting your baby on solid food.

When it comes to the choice in food, opt for an organic food. These will be free from pesticides that are harmful to developing brains and growing bodies. Good choices to start with are mashed banana or iron-fortified rice cereal. Only ever add cereal to your baby’s bottle if instructed to do so by your GP. Adding cereal to his/her bottle does not teach him/her to eat solids, it will only cause your baby to become overweight.

Sit your baby in a high chair propped up with pillows or comfortably sitting upright on your lap. Start with a small amount of food on a baby’s spoon. Hold the spoon a good distance away from your baby and wait for him/her to open his/her mouth before feeding. Your baby might only manage one or two spoonfuls in the first feeding. Listen to your baby by watching his/her body language. If he/she is pushing the spoon away then they have had enough. If your baby has not had any, he/she might not be ready. Do not force them. Wait a few weeks and try again. Some babies like to grab the spoon that you are using to feed them. If this is the case with your baby, give him/her another spoon to hold to keep him/her happy.

When starting your baby on foods, begin with only one food. If you choose pureed apple, make sure it is just apple and not apple and pear for example. It is easier for your baby when there is only one flavour. Another reason for this is that trying
one food at a time can help you identify if your baby is allergic to any food. Keep a food diary and list any reactions your baby might have. Signs of allergies can include vomiting, diarrhoea, a runny nose, bad stomach ache, a rash on the face or anus and gas. If you suspect your baby may be allergic to a food, seek medical advice.

During the months that your baby is moving on to solids, you should still be providing the usual feedings of formula or breast milk to satisfy your baby’s nutritional needs. There are certain foods that should only be introduced when your baby is at least one year old. These include eggs, honey, cow’s milk, citrus fruits and juices. The reason to wait until your baby is older for the citrus products is because they are very acidic and can cause a painful nappy rash. Cow’s milk does not provide sufficient nutrients for an infant. Honey can contain spores that are harmless to adults but might affect your baby. Eggs can cause a allergic reaction if given to young.

There are also certain foods that should only be given to your baby when he/she is two or three years old. These include any seafood or any nut products. If a family member has any allergies, your child is at higher risk of having an allergy, so take this in to consideration.

At this time you should try introducing your baby to a cup. Look for one with big handles and a lid. Give your baby water when he/she is getting used to the cup. This will avoid a sticky clean up if he/she messes. You can then move on to juices, but these must be 100% fruit juice. You might want to dilute these juices with water. Make sure your baby has less than 120ml of juice a day. The reason for this is that the extra calories do not give the same nutrition as breast milk, but they do have calories and can cause diarrhoea and contribute to your baby becoming overweight. When your baby is about nine months old, he/she will probably be ready to move away from the pureed foods and move on to chunkier textured foods.

If you are planning on bottlefeeding your baby, you should make sure you have all the necessary equipment in advance of your delivery date. It is wise to be prepared as that way you can familiarise yourself with the equipment and procedure involved.

In large chemists and baby shops, you can choose from a range of different shapes and kinds of bottle. Handle some to see which you find easiest to hold. Smaller bottles (4oz/120ml) and teats (with slow flow) for newborns will be necessary at the earliest stage. As your baby gets a bit older, you can buy 8oz/225ml bottles that will hold more milk.

You will need:

• Six bottles
• Six teats – make sure you get the right teat size for the age of your baby (i.e newborn, premature, 3-6 months etc).
• Sterilising equipment. Can be either a microwaveable steriliser, a steamer or you can buy sterilising solution which you have to make up.
• Muslin cloths for winding

If you’re planning on bottle-feeding your baby, you might find the following information beneficial:

To prepare your baby for a feed, you should first change the baby’s nappy if dirty and choose a comfortable place to sit, preferably where your back is going to be supported by some cushions. You should ensure you have a cloth to clean up any possetted milk and perhaps something to help occupy the time, like the radio.

The position of the bottle feeding baby is not as crucial as the breastfeeding position but you still want to put your baby into a good position for him to latch on to the bottle teat and receive a good supply of milk. Hold your baby so his head is in the crook of your elbow and he is in a slightly raised position.

Test the temperature of the milk by pouring a little on to the back of your hand and then get your baby to ‘root’ (search) for the teat by stroking his cheek. The baby should open his mouth and you can put the teat in his mouth.

Find a good angle for the bottle to be held and let your baby feed. If you want to change arms, the best way to get him to let go of the teat is to insert a finger into the side of his mouth. If you don’t do that, you will be surprised by the strength of his suction and you may not be able to release the bottle.

At the end of the feed, or possibly earlier if he seems uncomfortable and grumpy, you should wind your baby thoroughly so that he can fall asleep without being in any discomfort. Bottle-fed babies tend to feed more quickly as a rule, and therefore tend to take in more air as they go. Make sure that the bottle is tilted to ensure that the teat is always filled with milk and doesn’t contain any air. If your bottle-fed baby is regularly suffering from wind, you may want to experiment with using slower-flowing teats on his bottle, or different shapes and styles of feeding bottle. Make sure that you feed your baby in an upright or near-upright position, as this will help any air bubbles to come up naturally.

If your baby pauses for a break during a feed, you can use this opportunity to tilt them gently forward against the palm of your hand while supporting their chin, and rub or gently pat their back to try and bring up any air. Don’t try and force your baby to take a “winding break” – this will probably just result in him starting to cry, and taking in more air.

If he suffers from a lot of wind, it might be worth changing the teat flow.  A hole that allows the milk to come in to the baby’s mouth too quickly is probably overly large, and is responsible for letting the air rush in to your baby’s mouth thus creating wind.

Likewise, if your baby seems dissatisfied or exasperated by the amount of milk he is receiving, he may not be receiving a fast enough supply. You can rectify this by making the teat hole larger with a sterilised needle, or by investing in some faster flowing teats.