Home Made Baby Food for Maviboy

Since Maverick started solids, I've been busy planning and preparing home cooked baby food for him. My paed suggested that we should avoid prepared solids available in the market since Maverick is a very sensitive boy and he could have food allergies.

Parang gusto kong careerin itong pag pagkain sa baby boy ko. Para akong nutritionist, non-stop research sa mga nutritious foods for Mavi.

I want to advocate home made baby foods because of the following reasons as mentioned in Wholesome Baby Food:

• Making your baby's food homemade gives you total control over what is put into your baby’s food; you know it's free of additives that a tiny tummy simply does not need! If your baby is prone to food allergies, home made baby food will help You ensure that no foods that are allergenic are hidden!
• You take extra steps to ensure only high quality foods are selected for your baby. Do the commercial baby food companies put this much love and care into their jars?
• All the tools you need to make homemade wholesome baby food are probably already in your kitchen.
• Your baby is exposed to a greater variety of tastes and textures making the transition to table foods less stressful for your baby.
  
• You feed your baby according to his/her needs and cues. As you are controlling the texture and ingredients of your baby's food, you know what foods are best suited for YOUR baby.
• Healthy eating habits develop earlier as your involvement is dedicated to making only high quality, healthy baby foods and snacks. Your baby will benefit from these healthy eating habits long after that college diploma is in hand.
• Extra benefit - You save money when you make homemade baby food! Not only in the cost of the actual homemade baby food, but in the nutrient ratio as well. You get more nutrients for peso and your baby gets more nutrients for his growing body!

So far, Mavi has already tried the white rice cereal, banana and mashed potato (considered as Stage 1 Baby Food). I will talk about his adventure of his first brown rice soon. Yup, I switched to organic foods. There's an organic market at the back of Lagoon where I purchased the brown rice, and some organic veggies for little Maviboy.

Quote from the same site:

"Stage 1 Baby Food is a term that applies to baby foods that are highly pureed and strained. These foods are appropriate for babies who are just being introduced to solid foods. The foods in this range are targeted to babies who are between the ages of (4) 6 to 8 months old. Stage 1 baby foods are thin and runny and are foods that are the lowest on the allergy scale. Stage 1 baby foods are typically those foods that are also more easily digested by a tiny tummy. Some of these foods include, sweet potatoes, winter squash and carrots. The term "Stage 1" was introduced by the Gerber Baby Food Company to let parents know that these foods are appropriate for their infants who are just being introduced to solid foods."

Here are a few reminders when making home made baby food and feeding solids to your baby:

• ALWAYS consult your pediatrician prior to beginning any new food for your infant.
• ALWAYS follow the 4 day rule when introducing a new food to baby - offer your baby the same new food for 4 days to test for allergies to that food. This applies even when you are making homemade baby food! Never introduce more than 1 new food at a time.
  
  The "4 day wait rule" is a good practice to follow. It helps pinpoint allergic reactions and to pinpoint any digestive issues a new baby food may cause! Allergic reactions typically will occur within the first 24 hours. Digestive issues with new foods may take longer to appear. Once you have introduced several new foods without a reaction, you can then begin to mix them together as you wish.
• ALWAYS use clean hands, clean cooking utensils, preparation surface(s), pots/pans etc when making and and preparing homemade baby food. Cleanliness and Food Safety is a MUST when making homemade baby food!
• And Finally - All babies are different and will not like/tolerate the same foods or food textures! Do Not Despair! You should be willing to experiment with baby solid food for your baby. Offer your baby different foods, use different ways of preparing those baby foods and be willing to have a huge store of patience!

** Source from Wholesome Baby Food. It contains a lot of information about feeding baby solid foods, offers sample schedules and home made baby foods recipes!

Edit: CORRECTION was made. I accidentally posted Super Baby Food as source of the information posted above.