How To Introduce Your Baby To New Tastes And Solid Food
Knowing how and when to introduce a child to new tastes can sometimes be difficult for parents and carers
. This article offers some tips and pointers regarding this matter.
It is a good idea not give your child too many opportunities to try out new tastes. It is better to stick to fixed times during the day, ideally mealtimes, such as breakfast, dinner and lunch.
Give the child a spoon to hold, they will be unable to use it to feed themselves but it will be enjoyable for them to play with and it will help them to get familiar with holding one. Give them a plastic spoon rather than metal.
Don't be surprised if at first much of the food ends up on the floor, on their face or bib. It will take a while for them to be able to hold it in their mouth and chew it properly. They will use a lot of saliva to soften the food and it will often get pushed out of their mouth when they push it with their tongue. It is natural and the child is not rejecting the food out of dislike.
Make sure the food and utensils are clean to avoid the child getting sick.
Be aware of how the child feels about the food. If the child turns away or pulls a face then it usually means they do not like it or they are full. Don't force the child to eat food they don't like or over feed them.
Be careful that the food is not too hot. Some spoons show the temperature by changing colour.
Only feed them food that has been grated, pureed, minced, mashed or strained. If the food is too big or hard it may cause them to choke.
Take the child straight to the doctor if there are any signs of an allergic reaction.
I hope you have found this article useful and you find the tips helpful.