Dairy-free cereals for the first feeding

Dairy-free porridge often appears in the diet of infants immediately after vegetable food. This product fills the energy needs of children and helps to gain weight. If the crumb well adds weight, then with the help of porridge you can diversify the menu of the toddler, gradually introducing him to new tastes.

Any porridge is rich in complex carbohydrates, vegetable proteins, dietary fiber, vitamins and other beneficial substances that are used to grow and support the health of babies.

Depending on the type of cereal, dairy-free cereals have such features:

• Pic contains a lot of calcium, amino acids, zinc, lecithin, phosphorus, vitamins B, iodine. One of the main advantages of rice is the absence of gluten - a protein compound, to which some people have a negative reaction. Porridge from such cereals very rarely causes allergies, is easily digested, pleasant to the taste.
• Buckwheat rich in proteins and iron, so be sure to be in the menu of low-weight babies and crumbs with anemia. This is also gluten-free cereal, so the risk of an allergic reaction to buckwheat is very low. From this dish the child will receive zinc, calcium, methionine, copper, lysine, magnesium, vitamins PP, B1 and E.
• Corn grits is another gluten free cereal. It has a lot of dietary fiber, amino acids, calcium, vitamin A, iron and other substances. Porridge from such cereal reduces fermentation and swelling, and also has a positive effect on the nervous system due to polyunsaturated fats.
• Millet also does not contain gluten, but is harder to digest than rice and buckwheat porridge, so babies under one year old are not recommended.
• Oatmeal gives the child vegetable proteins, vitamins of group B, various minerals (zinc, iron, magnesium, manganese and others). It is also rich in unsaturated fats and is a source of fiber.
• Barley grits acts as a source of amino acids, choline, potassium, vitamin A, calcium, selenium, vitamin K and other substances. It is nutritious, useful for digestion and immunity, prevents constipation.
• Semolina rich in starch and proteins, but inferior to other cereal products in vitamin-mineral composition and fiber content.
• Perlovka contains many vitamins B2, PP and B1. It is especially rich in fiber and starch, as well as calcium, copper and phosphorus.

To determine whether a child is ready to try porridge, it is best to turn to a pediatrician, because the beginning of this feeding depends not only on the type of feeding the baby, but also on the state of his health. For example, if a baby gains weight poorly or has problems with a chair, it is better to add vegetables, but cereals without the addition of milk, as first foods in his diet.

Age recommended by most doctors for the introduction of milk-free cereal in the baby menu - 6 months. If a crumb gets enough of mother's milk, there is no need to introduce such a product in the diet before. Moreover, the baby's digestive tract should be sufficiently mature for normal digestion of cereal dishes.

If the lure began with vegetables, then give the porridge to try about a month after that, that is, at 7 months of age.

If the child does not have a rash and other negative reactions, then the next day you can offer the toddler a larger portion. So gradually it is brought up to the norms recommended by the age of little ones:

• at 6 months - 150 grams;
• in 7-8 months - 150-180 grams;
• from 9 months - 200 grams.

If a baby is bottle-fed, it is allowed to introduce him to porridge a little earlier.

Starting to give a gruel should be as cautious as a breastfed baby, evaluating tolerability and gradually increasing the daily ration:

• at 5 months old the volume of porridge at one time can be increased to 150 grams;
• at 6 months - up to 150-180 grams;
• from 7 months - Give the child 180-200 grams of such a dish.

As for the varieties of cereals, depending on the cereal, their inclusion in the diet of kids goes through several stages:

1. The first child should try rice and buckwheat, as it is gluten-free cereals, which are easily digested. With a tendency to constipation prefer buckwheat porridge.
2. Later, the baby offers a third gluten-free porridge - corn. Since it is absorbed a little worse and is not so rich in calcium and phosphorus, on a constant basis, porridge from corn grits is included in the children's menu from 9-10 months.
3. Acquaintance with cereals, which include gluten, is recommended not earlier than 8 months. If the crumbs have a tendency to allergies, then this supplement is advised to postpone up to 1 year.
4. Barley cereal is introduced into the diet of children from 1.5-2 years old, and barley porridge is offered to children older than three years. So late inclusion in the diet due to the severity of the digestion of barley, from which make these cereals.

Once the baby is accustomed to two different one-component porridges, he can offer a mixture of such cereals, for example, rice-corn porridge.

All dairy-free cereals can be divided into two large groups:

• factory;
• cooked at home.

Cereal mixes produced by baby food manufacturers for babies, There are hypoallergenic and expanding menus. The former usually contain only crushed raw materials from one gluten-free cereal, while the latter can be multicomponent, often including fruit and other additives.

Factory cereals are sold in boxes or cans, which have detailed instructions on how to dilute or boil a particular product. The recommendations of different manufacturers differ, so after buying a new porridge, you must first carefully read all the information on the label. The difference often lies in the proportions of the liquid and its temperature.

Store cereals have many advantages, so they are in demand among young parents.

Another feature of the factory cereals is their enrichment of valuable substances in the manufacturing process. First of all, we are talking about vitamins, which are added to the cereal mixture, if there were initially few of them or they were destroyed due to the technological process.

Some porridges enrich prebiotics (oligofructose, inulin) and probiotics (bifidobacteria), so that such products improve digestion and stimulate the growth of beneficial intestinal flora.

Depending on the method of cooking cereals without milk produce:

• powder mixtures that only need to be diluted with a liquid;
• powders that need to boil briefly;
• crushed cereals, which are pre-brewed and infused;
• ready-made cereals, which the child can consume immediately from the box or jar.

The range of cereals without the addition of milk in supermarkets is now very extensive, so you can choose and buy the appropriate version of this complementary food for any baby. The most popular dairy-free cereal products are presented in the review.

Such porridges are considered high-quality pediatricians and are recommended for problems with stool, kidney disease and other pathologies. They are made without preservatives, include useful vitamin supplements, are distinguished by economical packaging.

The advantage of such cereal products is an organic base and ecological purity. All cereals of this brand are strictly controlled, have a great taste and simple composition, but there are no vitamin-mineral compounds besides vitamin B1 in such products.

In addition to dry cereals without additives, such a manufacturer offers buckwheat porridge with fruit and oatmeal with the addition of banana and lemon balm for a better sleep.

In addition, the Hipp range includes ready-made cereal with fruit, packaged in jars and intended for an afternoon snack.

Porridge of this manufacturer is very diverse (there are many types of fruit), have a pleasant taste, enriched with inulin and vitamin-mineral complex. In their composition there is no salt, starch, sugar.

According to moms, these porridges are easily diluted with water, forming a uniform dish without lumps.

The composition of such dairy-free cereals included a large list of vitamin substances and trace elements. They do not contain fruit, sugar and any other fillers.

Since the croup undergoes special treatment, less dry product is spent per serving than other manufacturers.

This well-known brand offers various dairy-free cereals, which, due to the addition of bifidobacteria, normalize stools and stimulate the growth of microflora, enriched with mineral and vitamin substances. Such cereal products are easily diluted with water, have a good smell and natural taste.

The quality of porridges from Nestle is high, the price category is medium, but some of their types contain traces of milk, lactose and gluten.

In milk-free cereals of this brand there is no starch, salt, sweeteners and other fillers. They do not form lumps when diluted, taste good, contain minerals, prebiotics, and useful vitamins.

Dairy-free cereal products of this manufacturer has a natural taste, diverse, enriched with minerals and probiotics. As part of these cereals there is no sugar, but fruit juices and other fillers are often found.

The line of non-dairy peals of this manufacturer is quite wide. They have vitamins, no preservatives and no harmful additives. Such porridges are quickly divorced and well digested, have a pleasant aroma, tasty. Their disadvantages include only small package size and short shelf life.

Under this brand you can buy non-dairy rice, buckwheat, corn and multi-cereal porridge.They are inexpensive, dissolve quickly, have a pleasant taste, do not contain sugar, are enriched with vitamin compounds, as well as with inulin (except buckwheat) and minerals.

Such a company produces buckwheat and corn porridge, as well as their mixture. Their composition is enriched with minerals and some vitamin substances, does not include sucrose.

The disadvantages of such cereals include a small range, the frequent formation of lumps, the presence of maltodextrin.

If the mother does not want to feed the baby with store porridge or does not want to spend her family budget on her, It is quite possible to cook non-dairy cereals at home. For this there are 2 ways.

1. Dry grits are ground in a coffee grinder, receiving flour, which is boiled after boiling with constant stirring until cooked. At 5 g of such flour take 50-100 ml of water, depending on the desired consistency. In the cooled porridge add breast milk or a mixture.
2. The croup is washed, filled with water in the ratio of 1 to 4, after which they boil over a small fire until it is completely boiled soft. In contrast to the previous method, the cooled porridge is interrupted by a blender or is rubbed through a sieve until a homogeneous mass is obtained, into which a little mixture or breast milk is added.

Sugar and salt in dairy-free homemade cereals do not need to be added.

And some more tips if the child did not like milkless porridge.

• You should not abandon the introduction of a certain cereal, if it turned out to be the baby does not like. Offer the crumbs the same porridge, but from a different manufacturer, as the products of different companies have smells, textures and taste characteristics slightly different.
• If you make your own gruel, try changing the amount of liquid. Perhaps the baby will like a more diluted dish, or, conversely, a crumb will eat porridge with great pleasure.

Watch the video, in which you will learn about the intricacies of feeding with dairy-free cereals.