5 Mistakes Made When Transitioning to Complementary Food in Babies

Anadolu Medical Center Child Health and Diseases Specialist Dr. Yeşim Eker Neftçi shared the top 5 mistakes parents make when transitioning to complementary foods. Neftçi underlined that the complementary food process starts after the first 6 months in babies, and said that there are factors that need to be considered in infant nutrition in this period when babies transition from breast milk to solid food.

Giving additional food to babies in the first 6 months

Stating that babies should be fed only with breast milk in the first 6 months, Neftçi said, “Additional nutrients given together with breast milk in these months reduce the baby's need for sucking and prevent the baby from benefiting sufficiently from breast milk.” said.

Blender should not be used, foods should be left lumpy

Emphasizing that babies should be accustomed to lumpy food after completing a maximum of 8 months, Neftçi said, “The longer a baby gets used to lumpy food, the more we create children who face swallowing problems later on and who gag and vomit when lumpy food comes into their mouths. swallowing problems occur.” he said.

Portions should not be kept too large

Stating that a baby's portion is less than half the portion of an adult human, Neftçi said, "Therefore, mothers should not force their babies to feed their babies with excessive amounts of food." used the phrase.

Baby biscuits should not be preferred in infant feeding.

Neftçi said that baby biscuits are never recommended in infant nutrition, “Because biscuits are a food containing a high amount of sugar and fat, and also contain additives. For this reason, it is not very suitable to use biscuits in infant feeding.” he said.

The amount of nutrition of the baby should be formed according to his age.

Stating that the stomach capacity of babies is not as large as that of adults, Neftçi says, "You can create the baby's nutrition program, the foods that should be eaten in a day according to his age and weight, by taking the nutrition plans described by your doctor as an example." said.