Is it good for babies to eat rice cereal?

Generally speaking, when babies start to eat complementary food, most parents will first add rice flour to their babies, and then gradually change the food for their babies. Everyone knows that rice flour is rich in nutrients, which can be easily digested and absorbed by babies, and is very beneficial to the growth of babies. However, many parents worry that rice flour is not good for babies. Is it good for babies to eat rice flour?

Is it good for babies to eat rice cereal?

(1) Supplement the insufficient nutrition in milk

Babies need more iron during their rapid growth and development, but the iron that babies bring from their mothers is basically consumed 3 to 4 months after birth. In addition, the content of iron and vitamin D in dairy products is relatively low. Therefore, 4 to 6 months after birth, babies are prone to iron deficiency anemia and vitamin D deficiency rickets. What to do? Only by adding complementary foods in time and replenishing the deficiency of iron and vitamin D in time can we ensure the healthy growth of our baby. This is a major reason why complementary foods should be added to babies after 4 months.

(2) Train your baby’s swallowing ability

Babies are accustomed to eating milk (liquid) food, and it takes an adaptation process for them to gradually transition to eating solid food like adults in the future. Generally speaking, this process takes half a year or longer. Babies can start by eating mushy, soft foods and gradually adapt to and accept the solid foods that adults eat.

(3) Prepare for weaning

Adding complementary foods is also a preparation for the baby's weaning, so complementary foods are also called "weaning foods." The meaning of this word does not entirely refer to the food consumed during weaning, but to the food added during the period from sole breast milk (or formula feeding) to complete weaning. During this process, complementary foods gradually replace milk, allowing babies to gradually change from sucking milk to chewing food in the way of adults.

(4) Activate your baby’s intelligence

In the study of integrated early childhood development, emphasis is placed on ways to integrate early childhood education into the daily life of the family. In fact, it is to use the baby's eyes, ears, nose, tongue, body's sight, hearing, smell, taste, touch and other senses to give the baby a variety of stimulation to enrich his experience and achieve the purpose of enlightening intelligence. Adding complementary foods can meet the above conditions, giving the baby rich stimulation and thus achieving the purpose of enlightening intelligence. (A complete guide to adding complementary foods to your baby)

(5) Training chewing ability

As the baby grows older, the mucous membrane of the gums gradually becomes hard. Especially after the front teeth grow out, when given soft semi-solid food, the baby will chew the food with his gums or teeth and then swallow it. Therefore, adding complementary foods in time is beneficial to training the baby's chewing function, which is beneficial to the development of the jaw and the eruption of teeth.

The disadvantages of babies eating only rice cereal

Rice noodles, as the name suggests, are foods made with rice as the main ingredient. The ingredients include: 79% carbohydrates, 5.6% protein, 5.1% fat and B vitamins, etc. What babies need most during their growth stage is protein. The protein contained in rice flour is not only of poor quality, but also in low content, which cannot meet the needs of babies' growth and development.

If babies only eat rice cereal and use rice cereal instead of milk, protein deficiency will occur. The specific manifestations are: delayed growth and development, affecting the baby's nervous system, blood system and muscle growth, as well as low resistance, insufficient immunoglobulin, and easy to get sick.

Babies who are fed with rice flour for a long time grow slowly in height, but their weight does not necessarily decrease. Instead, they become white and plump, and their skin is filled and tight with fat converted from excessive sugar intake, which is medically called a mud-like appearance. However, these children are strong on the outside but weak on the inside, and often suffer from anemia, rickets, and are susceptible to diseases such as bronchitis and pneumonia.

For some parents, it is even more inappropriate to add rice flour foods to their babies during the neonatal period. Pancreatic amylase does not reach adult levels until the baby is about 4 months old, so babies under 3 months old should not be fed rice flour products. After 3 months, feed some rice flour food appropriately, but do not feed only with rice flour. Even if feeding with milk, milk should be the main food and rice flour as a supplement.