Barley porridge from how many months. Pediatricians' advice on how and from how many months you can give porridge to your baby

Often, grandmothers advise young mothers to start feeding their child with semolina and oatmeal as early as possible, just as they did in their “maternal” years.

In our time, the approach to the introduction of complementary foods has become more thoughtful, and many traditions of the past have radically changed in this regard. And mothers, armed with opinions and advice from various sources, often ask me questions: at what age should oatmeal be introduced into the baby's feeding and nutrition, whether it will cause allergies, how much it can be given and how to cook it properly.

The benefits and harms of oatmeal

Oatmeal is very useful for the digestive system: enveloping the mucous membrane of the stomach and intestines, it protects these organs from the aggressive effects of various substances supplied with food.

In addition, the beneficial properties of porridge are as follows:

Useful trace elements and vitamins contained in porridge	Beneficial effect on the body
Potassium, magnesium	Have a beneficial effect on cardiovascular activity.
Vitamins B	Promotes the development of the brain, positively affects the functioning of the nervous system, has a calming effect, improves digestion and skin condition.
Calcium, phosphorus	Strengthens bones.
Iron	Increases hemoglobin in the blood.
Iodine	Improves metabolism.
Zinc	Plays an important role in the process of building body cells, helps to better assimilate B vitamins, helps to strengthen the immune system.
Cellulose	It has a positive effect on bowel function, prevents constipation.
Antioxidants	They help to strengthen the immune system, protect the body from adverse external factors.

Despite all the usefulness of porridge, its harmful effects on the body can be as follows:

Oatmeal (like some other cereals) contains a vegetable protein - gluten, which often causes allergies in infants, which disappear over time. True, in some people (albeit quite rarely), gluten intolerance is congenital and persists for life. In this case, all foods containing it are excluded from the diet.
When the starch contained in oatmeal is broken down in the body, glucose is formed, the accumulation of which, with frequent use of porridge, can lead to diabetes mellitus.
If a child has problems with the functioning of the digestive system, then the fiber, which is abundant in oatmeal, can aggravate them.

Oatmeal allergy

Signs of gluten allergy include:

pain in the tummy after feeding with porridge, accompanied by crying;
increased flatulence;
violation of the stool: it becomes liquid, foamy, with a pungent odor;
the appearance of skin rashes;
anxiety of the baby, sleep disturbance;
underweight.

When these symptoms appear, the use of oatmeal should be stopped and a doctor should be consulted for a diagnosis.

Therefore, when answering the question whether it is possible for children to oatmeal, first of all, the age of the baby and the absence of an allergy to gluten are taken into account.

When can you give oatmeal?

You can offer porridge for the first time either at the tip of a teaspoon or give a micro dose of the product, carefully observing the behavior and condition of the child.

It is important to exclude the occurrence of allergies.

A new dish should always be given to the baby in the first half, in order to have time to notice a possible negative reaction to the product.

If you find signs of allergies, then you should exclude oatmeal from the baby's diet for at least two weeks. If the acquaintance with the dish passed without any changes in its condition, then the volume of porridge can be increased depending on the child's nutritional interest and the amount of food that he eats.

Oatmeal for a 1 year old baby can be a good, healthy and nutritious breakfast. Add a piece of butter to the porridge.

Features of cooking oatmeal for a child

Up to 1 year old, the child is given oatmeal, boiled in water to avoid allergies to cow's milk protein. If you are not allergic to milk protein, then you can try porridge with milk earlier.

There is a large selection of special children's "box" cereals on sale, which are easy to prepare: they just need to be poured with boiled water. Such boxed cereals are convenient for travel or just like NZ in case you had a hard day.

Or you can cook porridge from regular oatmeal.

The required amount of water is poured into an enamel pot and brought to a boil.
Flakes are poured into boiling water at the rate of 5 g per 100 g of water, mixed.
After boiling, the porridge is cooked over low heat for another 5-7 minutes, stirring constantly.
The consistency of the porridge should be liquid, homogeneous, there should be no lumps in it. After habituation, the concentration of cereals in the dish increases. So, over time, the product offered to the baby becomes thicker and thicker.
To enhance the taste of oatmeal, you can add dried fruits and berries to the finished product.
Add a little butter (3-5 g) to the finished dish to enhance the taste and nutritional qualities of the oatmeal.

If the child is dissatisfied and refuses to eat porridge, do not force him. Set aside the introduction of oatmeal for a while and then offer it again.

Oatmeal recipe for children over a year old with milk

Oatmeal in milk is cooked for children over a year old, when the risk of an allergic reaction to cow protein is significantly reduced. To begin with, milk can be diluted 2-3 times with water so as not to overload the baby's body. If such porridge is well tolerated, then you can cook it in whole milk.

Ingredients:½ cup of Hercules flakes, 1 cup of milk, 1 cup of water, 5 g of butter, salt, dried fruit (to taste).

Preparation:

Pour water into an enamel pot, boil, salt.
Pour in the flakes, cook over low heat, stirring constantly, for 5 minutes.
Add milk, bring the porridge to a boil again, remove from heat and leave under a closed lid for another 8-10 minutes.
Add butter and dried fruit (optional).

Bon appetit and may your child grow up healthy!

Many people mistakenly believe that millet and wheat are one and the same. However, in reality, millet groats are millet seeds. Since this product has a large amount of useful vitamins and minerals, and also rarely causes an allergic reaction, millet porridge is often used as baby food. In this article, we will consider the benefits for the child's body, possible contraindications and recipes for making millet porridge.

Features of millet groats

As a rule, all cereals put a significant load on the digestive system, but not millet. It is this property that explains the addition of this product to the diet of people with stomach diseases. Most of the millet composition is devoted to starch. It is about seventy percent, which includes fifteen percent of protein and essential amino acids (valine, leyine, lysine). The fat content of millet groats can vary from two and a half to three percent. Sugar is only two percent.

Of the trace elements, a significant content of silicon can be noted. This substance is extremely useful and necessary for the proper development of human bones and skeleton, especially for a small growing child's body. Phosphorus, present in millet, enhances the action of silicon and promotes the activity of the brain. It also plays an important role in strengthening the heart and blood vessel walls. Thanks to the complex of B vitamins, the brain is activated, the immune system is strengthened and carbohydrate metabolism is stimulated. In terms of fat content, millet groats are significantly inferior to oat groats. The greatest amount of protein in millet than in the same cereals made from rice or barley. Vitamin B9 contained in millet porridge is much higher than in cereals made from corn or wheat groats. Also, millet is extremely necessary in case of iodine deficiency in the body or thyroid gland diseases. The composition of millet is also rich in zinc, sodium and bromine.

For babies - children at 1 and 2 years old, such porridge is undesirable.

For a one-year-old child, it is, first of all, tasteless, and allergies can also occur.

Benefits and contraindications

First of all, millet porridge is useful for a baby due to its rich content of protein and amino acids. It is thanks to them that the intensive development of muscle fibers occurs, as well as the strengthening of bones and skeleton. The presence of fiber in the composition helps to cope with constipation in the baby. Millet, from which millet groats are made, has special substances that help to remove antibodies formed in the course of any disease from the body. In this regard, doctors introduce this product into the diet of a sick baby. Millet porridge is a kind of additional treatment, where antibiotics are already involved. This type of cereal helps, does not reduce the effect of the drug, but also prevents excess toxic substances from accumulating in the body. The great benefit brought by the use of millet is explained by the presence of a lipotropic effect that it has on the human body.

The beneficial properties of millet are as follows:

it helps to remove excess fluid and relieve swelling;
has a diuretic effect on the human body (it is recommended to use it in the presence of a disease such as dropsy);
in the event of an inflammatory process in the pancreas, it is necessary to consume millet at least once a day;
promotes healing of injured bone, cartilage tissue and various wounds;
the condition of the skin improves if millet is added to the diet (this is due to the rich content of vitamins and minerals, and the skin acquires firmness, elasticity, resistance to various kinds of inflammation);
the presence of a vitamin B complex, in the composition of millet groats, helps to reduce the nervousness and irascibility of a restless child;
that with regular use of millet, the baby has an appetite (this is noted by many parents);
millet is a rich source of trace elements such as iron;
its excellent compatibility with the group of B vitamins improves the process of hematopoiesis in the human body;
copes well with the elimination of toxic and toxic elements (heavy metal ions) from the body.

As mentioned earlier, cereals are a fairly common cause of allergic reactions. Millet is the weakest allergen of all possible cereals used for making cereals. Typically, an allergic reaction occurs exclusively in children. This is due to the fact that the baby's digestive organs are not yet sufficiently strong.

You will learn more about the age at which millet porridge can be introduced into the baby's complementary foods below.

Introduction of millet porridge into baby food

Experts recommend that the parents of the baby introduce millet porridge into complementary foods after they have taught him how to eat buckwheat or rice porridge. A baby on artificial feeding can begin to consume millet porridge as early as the seventh - eighth month. With natural nutrition, it is recommended to introduce millet from eight months to nine months of age. Despite the fact that millet groats rarely cause an allergic reaction in a child, it is still advisable that the first serving is no more than one tablespoon. Later, the portion of millet must be increased, naturally, in the absence of any unpleasant reaction on the part of the child's body. Ultimately, you should receive a serving, the volume of which will be one hundred fifty - one hundred seventy grams per meal.

There are some tips for introducing this product into your baby's complementary foods:

For the first tasting, it is advisable to cook millet porridge in such a way that it has a liquid consistency. To do this, increase the volume of water or infant formula.
For the first time, it is recommended to serve millet to the baby for breakfast. So you will have the opportunity to observe the body's reaction to this product during the day.
In the absence of an allergic reaction, the portion of millet porridge should approximately double with each meal.
In order to diversify the child's diet, cook soup from millet instead of porridge.

When the child is two years old, you can add boiled pumpkin, prunes or various fruits to the millet. And make a delicious casserole from millet. For an eight month old to ten month old baby, it is recommended to first grind the millet before cooking. To do this, use a coffee grinder.

For older children, it is permissible to cook porridge from larger millet. However, whole grains of millet are acceptable for children over one year old.

Preparation

For the traditional recipe for making millet, you need to get: two hundred grams of cereals, thirty grams of cold-pressed vegetable oil, four hundred low-fat milk, two tablespoons of granulated sugar (or honey), four hundred milliliters of boiled water and a pinch of salt.

The algorithm for cooking millet is as follows:

The groats are thoroughly washed two to three times in water, until the water becomes clear. Since millet groats tend to have a bitter taste, before boiling, it is advisable to soak it for thirty minutes in cold water. This will get rid of the unpleasant taste. Next, the cleaned millet is poured into a saucepan with a firm bottom and filled with water. The power of the hotplate should be medium.
When the water boils, you will need to remove the formed foam and reduce the power of the burner. Continue cooking the millet until the water evaporates.
Meanwhile, boil the milk separately, and pour it into the cooking porridge in a small stream. Reduce heat again.
Until the cereal has had time to swell, add salt and granulated sugar (or honey). The cooked porridge becomes very thick, therefore it is necessary to sweeten the dish in advance.
Then remove the pan from the stove and season with vegetable oil, since millet is usually obtained with a dry texture.

When preparing millet for a baby less than one year old, you will need to almost double the volume of milk used, or reduce the amount of millet.

Stir the contents of the pan regularly during cooking, so you will avoid burning the cereal to its walls.

In order to diversify the baby's diet - try to prepare a tasty and healthy soup for him using millet and vegetable broth. Of the ingredients, you need to get: three medium-sized potatoes, a small carrot, parsley, two hundred milliliters of milk, one tablespoon of millet, dill, a pinch of salt and twenty grams of sour cream with a low percentage of fat.

To get a delicious soup, you must strictly follow the sequence of the following steps:

Millet groats are washed and poured into a saucepan. Then water is poured. You must wait until the water boils.
Meanwhile, in a slightly larger saucepan, cook finely chopped vegetables beforehand. In order for the broth to turn out to be rich, it is advisable to take a smaller volume of water, so that it barely covers the vegetables.
Then boiled vegetables and millet are poured into the mixer bowl and thoroughly chopped until a puree consistency is obtained.

Another tasty and healthy option involves adding pumpkin to millet porridge. Of the ingredients you need - one hundred and fifty grams of pumpkin, a tablespoon of butter, a pinch of salt, milk (or water) - two hundred milliliters, half a glass of millet. First, do not forget to thoroughly rinse the cereal and vegetable. Then the pumpkin is cut into small cubes and placed with the millet in a saucepan. The contents are filled with water (or milk) and brought to a boil.

As in the first recipe, you will need to remove the resulting foam and add a pinch of salt. Then you need to wait until all the liquid has evaporated. Then you can add boiled milk, it should be hot. Be sure to cover the pan with a lid and leave the contents to simmer for the next ten to fifteen minutes. Before feeding your baby, it is advisable to season the millet with a spoonful of butter. The porridge will be delicious and nutritious!

You will learn more about how to cook millet porridge in the following video.

The World Health Organization recommends that parents introduce complementary foods for babies from six months of age. At this age, children already lack the amount of macro- and microelements contained in breast milk. More and more nutrients are required that can compensate for the costs of children's energy, the amount of which is growing exponentially. Oatmeal is one of the first in the “market” of complementary foods in the nutrition of infants.

Oats are one of the first plants on earth that humans have learned to grow everywhere. Moreover, since ancient times, this cereal has been revered not only as a healthy food, but also as a medicine for a number of ailments. In Tibet, for example, it is still believed that this ancient culture prolongs life. Traces of oats have been found in ancient burial sites around the world.

Recently, "oatmeal" has been raised almost into a cult, from TV screens and from the pages of newspapers we are given a sufficient amount of information about the benefits of oatmeal for breakfast. Indeed, in comparison with other cereals used in the nutrition of children under one year old, oatmeal has a number of advantages. The table below shows a comparative characteristic of the nutritional and energy value of oats as opposed to other cereals (per 100 g of cereals).

Table 1 - Nutritional and energy value of cereals used in the nutrition of children under 1 year old

Nutrients	Name of cereals
Nutrients	Oatmeal	Semolina	Buckwheat	Rice	Corn	Millet	Barley
Proteins, g	12,3	10,3	12,6	7,0	8,3	11,5	10,0
Fat, g	6,1	1,0	3,3	1,0	1,2	3,3	1,3
Carbohydrates, g	59,5	67,9	63,2	74	72,5	67,2	67,7
including dietary fiber, g	8	0,2	1,1	3	0,8	0,7	1,4
Vitamins, mg:
beta carotene	traces	0	0,01	0	0,2	0,02	0
IN 1	0,49	0,14	0,43	0,08	0,13	0,42	0,27
IN 2	0,11	0,04	0,2	0,04	0,07	0,04	0,08
PP	1,1	1,20	4,19	1,60	1,1	1,55	2,74
Mineral substances, mg:
TO	362	130	380	100	147	211	205
Na	35	3,0	3	12	4	10	15
Fe	3,9	1,0	6,7	1,0	2,7	2,7	1,8
Mg	116	18	200	50	36	83	50
P	349	85	298	150	109	233	343
Ca	64	20	20	8	20	27	80
Zn	2,68	0,59	2	2,6	0,5	1,68	1,09
Energy value, kcal	342	328	335	330	337	348	324

As can be seen from the tabular data, oatmeal indeed has unique properties compared to other cereals. It contains all the elements necessary for the growth and development of the baby, and in sufficiently significant quantities: 100 g of oats provides the baby's body with protein from 39% (for the age of 6 months) to 28% (for the age of 12 months) of the daily norm, the protein composition is approximate to buckwheat proteins and contains all essential amino acids, including methionine - an amino acid that affects the normal functioning of the central nervous system. Carbohydrates in oatmeal are an order of magnitude lower than in other cereals, however, useful fiber from them is 2-3 times more. In addition, there is also much less starch compared to other cereals. The essential content of B vitamins - in comparison with the popular semolina, vitamin B 1 is 3.5 times more, vitamin B 2 - 2.8 times. The amount of minerals that make up oatmeal is also significant: especially phosphorus, potassium, sodium, magnesium, calcium, so necessary for babies during the period of muscle tissue formation and bone growth. In this cereal, these indicators are among the highest. Of all the cereals presented in oatmeal, there are relatively many lipids, so porridge from this culture can be recommended for babies with insufficient weight.

Oat is used for the production of three types of raw materials: oatmeal, oatmeal and oatmeal. Groats are produced peeled and polished, flakes are produced using special processing and technology, which subsequently makes it possible to reduce the time of heat treatment when making cereals. Tolokno is an oat flour with a pleasant smell, which has a higher taste compared to ground oats, as well as a high nutritional value.

Commercial porridges are made using mostly grain or oatmeal; for home cooking, mothers mainly use Hercules oat flakes.

Is "oatmeal" always good for a baby?

Considering the mass of useful substances that are part of the "oatmeal", scientists made conclusions about the effect of this cereal on the work and proper development of many organs and systems of a growing child's body:

The presence of a significant level of B vitamins helps to have a positive effect on the development of the nervous system, has a calming effect, providing the baby with a restful sleep. In addition, it has a good effect on the functioning of the brain.
The presence of calcium and phosphorus contributes to the formation of bone tissue in babies, and in babies under one year old, teeth are just forming and erupting.
Potassium, magnesium and sodium help to properly form and maintain the functioning of the cardiovascular system.
Thanks to fiber, which is much more than in other cereals, digestive processes are normalized in healthy children, constipation is eliminated, which is often observed in babies at the initial stage of the introduction of complementary foods.
Zinc in oatmeal is involved in the construction of cells in the child's body, forms and supports the immune system, promotes a more complete absorption of B vitamins.

But despite the beneficial properties of oatmeal, pediatricians recommend introducing oatmeal into the baby's diet a little later than other cereals - usually at 7-8 months. Some experts recommend even later introduction of this porridge for infants - at 10 and a half months, if the child is "artificial", at 11 months, if the baby is breastfed, after the child's stomach has absorbed buckwheat and rice porridge. There are a number of reasons for this, which call for the careful inclusion of "oatmeal" and experts believe that in some cases such porridge can harm a growing body.

Scientists say that phytic acid, which is abundant in oatmeal, reduces the absorption of calcium in the body and frequent consumption of oatmeal promotes the elimination of calcium from the bone tissue of a child.
The starch present in oat grains, under the influence of digestive enzymes, breaks down into elements, the final of which is glucose. If oatmeal is consumed frequently, it accumulates in the body, which can lead to the development of diabetes.
A large amount of fiber in oatmeal can negatively affect those children who have problems with the work of the gastrointestinal tract.
Recently, the presence of a group of proteins called gluten in some types of cereals, including oatmeal, has been of particular concern to doctors and parents. The number of people suffering from gluten protein intolerance is growing every year around the world. The symptoms of such intolerance are, first of all, problems with the functioning of the gastrointestinal tract, poor absorption of nutrients, leading to weight loss, weakened immunity, and stunting.
An allergic reaction to gluten is also possible, it can manifest itself in the form of:

sharp colic in a child after eating porridge;
manifestations of flatulence;
there is a bloating in the baby's tummy;
diarrhea or stool disorder, often with a strong odor and foam;
skin rashes, urticaria, which over time can turn into dermatitis. The most common sites of rashes are the knees, gluteal region, elbow joint, scalp;
sleep disorders in infants, a capricious state.

Here is the opinion of the doctor of the highest category, doctor E.O. Komarovsky, widely known in Russia and Ukraine about products with gluten.

What is gluten (opinion of Dr. Komarovsky)

Reviews of parents about rolled oats as complementary foods

Reviews of mothers on forums about the introduction of oatmeal into complementary foods, when and why to do this, of course, are different. But more often they confirm the opinions of specialists and doctors.

We are 9 months old. introduced, dairy-free. At first they tried at 6 - but the allergy poured out, apparently, the gastrointestinal tract was not ready. Now we are eating, it seems normal.
Alexandra

mm, I immediately introduced buckwheat, and rice, and corn, and oatmeal))), by the way, I like oatmeal most of all) there was no allergy ... and I introduced it at 5 months almost)
Vlada
https://www.babyblog.ru/community/post/baby_food/3037533

I introduced oatmeal a week ago. They started like everyone else with buckwheat, rice and corn. I do not think that oatmeal is not allowed for up to a year. If the child has never had allergies, why shouldn't gluten be? Is he harmful? Some start with oatmeal. Well, absolutely extreme people of guards and willows are replaced with oat broth.))) To make it tasty, I mix porridge with a mixture. The first few times I gave it on the water - my daughter even cried when I tried to shove it into her.
Natalia
https://www.babyblog.ru/community/post/baby_food/3037533

Choosing the right oatmeal for your newborn

So, your baby is healthy, he tried and calmly assimilated other types of this dish, you decide to include "oatmeal" in his diet. How to do it correctly so that the new product benefits the baby's body. First, you have two options:

Cook porridge yourself at home
Buy oatmeal porridge of industrial production

In practice, both paths take place, but each has its own pros and cons, which parents are guided by.

Industrial cereals for babies: with and without milk

Today manufacturers offer a wide selection of this type of porridge in different combinations and options. Experts have classified porridge into the following types:

Milk and dairy-free oat porridge. Milk porridge contains powdered milk formula (this is usually an adapted formula, a substitute for human milk). This porridge is intended for children who do not suffer from allergic reactions to milk protein or lactose. For kids who have problems in this regard, dairy-free porridge is suitable. In addition, the second type is suitable for the first introduction of oatmeal in order to establish how much the baby's body is able to assimilate a new cereal culture.

Porridge made only from oatmeal and porridge with additives. The first type is used for the first introduction of oatmeal into the diet, the second group, in addition to the main component, includes various additional elements, for example, fruits, berries, nuts, honey to increase the nutritional and biological value of porridge.

Prebiotics in the porridge will help improve the baby's digestion Adding fruit to the porridge can increase the amount of vitamins
Oatmeal is mainly recommended for babies from 6 months
In addition to oatmeal, producers use various fruits and berries The composition can be either one fruit or in combination with others

Mono-component and multicomponent cereals. The first option contains only oat groats, the second option uses at least two types of cereals.

Porridge with a therapeutic and prophylactic effect. This product is intended for the prevention and complex treatment of certain diseases. For example, some types of cereals additionally contain dietary fiber and are intended for children experiencing problems with the gastrointestinal tract, useful lactobacilli or bifidobacteria, which also contribute to the normalization of digestion. Recently, scientists have been developing milk formulas, which, among other things, are part of milk porridges with hypoallergenic properties, for example, lactose-free or with split protein.

Today, instant porridge is becoming more and more popular, which does not require cooking, you can simply fill it with water heated to 100 degrees or hot milk - and the porridge is ready. The assortment of manufacturers producing similar products, as well as the cereals themselves, is very wide - with different fillings, with and without milk. These cereals are sold in beautiful sachets, per serving.

Doctors do not recommend the use of this type of product for feeding infants for several reasons:

such products are manufactured using special technologies for exposure to high temperatures, as a result, most of the vitamins and minerals are lost;
for a more pronounced taste of fruits and berries that make up the composition, artificial flavors are added;
another important detail - if the tightness of the packaging material is violated, air penetrates inside and pathogenic microorganisms can develop in the porridge, that is, there is no guarantee of safety;

The main advantages of using industrial cereals:

Requirements for the quality of raw materials, the production of products for baby food are quite high, therefore, as a rule, manufacturers use oat grains and additional ingredients that meet the requirements of regulatory and technical documentation;
The chemical and microbiological safety of this type of product is also at a high level: modern factories today have certified quality and safety management systems, especially in such industries as products for children;
Industrial cereals have a stable chemical composition that does not depend on the season and meets the needs of the child's body;
The degree of grinding of cereals is ideally matched to the age and needs of the baby;
The ability to purchase cereals with functional properties, including those enriched with probiotics, vitamins and minerals, is, of course, unrealistic to cook at home;
Manufacturers offer a wide range of cereals with various, sometimes inaccessible in the kitchen, ingredients;
Another main advantage for busy parents is the speed of cooking porridge at any time and in any place where there is at least boiling water.

Disadvantages of using cereals from the manufacturer:

The main disadvantage that parents see in buying porridge from industrial production is an expensive pleasure, although today you can find this type of product in different price categories on the market, depending on the manufacturer and composition of the porridge;
Many parents do not trust the producers, preferring to buy oatmeal themselves and supplement cereals with fruits or berries.

What to look for when purchasing porridge

Any product must be carefully examined before buying, especially those products that we buy for children. When buying porridge for baby food, use the following guidelines:

Look at the composition of the porridge: cereals (or cereals) from which it is made, additional ingredients: fruits, honey, nuts, and so on - if the child is allergic to at least one component, feel free to refuse this type. Cereals for children's nutrition should not contain flavors, dyes, stabilizers and other additives and improvers. If they are in the composition - put this product aside without hesitation.
Take porridge for the recommended age of the baby, it is recommended and indicated by the manufacturer on the package.
Inspect the packaging, it must be intact, no damage.
If the composition of oatmeal completely suits you and suits the age group, pay attention to the expiration date: the further from the date of purchase, the better - after all, the baby will not eat the entire volume in one week.
For the first use, it is better to choose dairy-free oatmeal without additives.
Do not take porridge in large quantities (volumes) - it is better to buy a new package later, with a more recent production date.
Choose porridge from well-known manufacturers that have been on the market for several years: as a rule, large industrialists have more serious questions about checking the quality and safety of products.
It is advisable to purchase goods in specialized stores or large super- or hypermarkets - in chain retail outlets it is more likely that you will not buy a fake.
When choosing porridge in separate bags, check the tightness and feel the contents of the bag, dry porridge should be crumbly, move well along the inner volume, and should not have lumps.

How to read the package correctly (for example, oatmeal with an apple)

Cooking porridge for the baby at home

If you are opposed to cereals produced on an industrial scale, or there is no way to purchase it, you can cook the porridge yourself at home, the main thing is to know how to do it correctly.

First, let's define the benefits of homemade porridge:

porridge prepared by loving and caring mother's hands is always fresh and much tastier than porridge "out of the box";
in the process of cooking oatmeal, you can vary the amount and independently choose an assortment of additional components, taking into account the tastes of the little genius;
the larger the cereal and the less processed, the more nutrients it contains and the porridge on such raw materials is more useful than from finely chopped cereals;
eating homemade porridge, the child will quickly learn to "chew";
if you still have older children or you yourself really respect this dish, you can cook one porridge for all, because the older ones are unlikely to eat homogeneous porridge diluted with water;
and a very important positive factor in a difficult economic situation - homemade porridge saves the family budget.

For very young children, it is very difficult to cook oatmeal of a uniform consistency, such a porridge is recommended for babies who already know how to chew;
The quality of the raw materials used for cooking porridge is an acute issue. As a rule, you buy cereals that are not sealed, like in baby food, and, unfortunately, manufacturers often do not really care about high-quality production and packaging. The same situation can be traced with the quality of fruits and berries that you add to the porridge (except, of course, those that you grew yourself (but the safety of the latter is also a question!). Fruits and berries, especially during spring or early summer (last year's harvest ) are unlikely to bring tangible benefits to the baby;
As a rule, home-made porridge undergoes thermal processing much longer than under production conditions, so some of the vitamins and minerals of substances are lost.

Choosing raw materials for cooking

The main raw material for the production of oatmeal is often Hercules flakes. How to choose and what to look for when buying cereals in the following video:

How to cook the right porridge

For the first oatmeal for babies, we cook it, according to the recommendations of doctors, in the water. The main principle of cooking porridge is to minimize the loss of nutrients that oatmeal is rich in. This can be achieved with minimal and short heat treatment. In the preparation of oatmeal, like any other, there is nothing tricky. First, the "base" is prepared - porridge with milk or without milk, and the rest of the components are put before use.

Many adults who prefer oatmeal porridge for breakfast do not boil them at all - they pour Hercules with boiling water or hot milk overnight and leave it in the refrigerator until morning. The next day, it remains to heat the porridge in the microwave and add fresh fruits or berries. This method, of course, allows you to preserve the maximum nutrients of oatmeal, but it is not suitable for children. First of all, for the reason that there is no 100% guarantee of the safety of the raw materials used (cereals, water or milk) and it is strictly forbidden to give a dish without heat treatment to children.

Preparation of components

All ingredients must be carefully prepared before use:

Sort out cereals or flakes, revise them for mold, insects, foreign inclusions. If you notice anything from this list - do not use this raw material under any circumstances - it can be very dangerous!
If you use cereals, they are additionally washed with warm water, the Hercules flakes are not washed.
Fruits and berries bought in the store, as well as cereals with mold, can be dangerous - today many of the plant products are processed with pesticides and wax, so the task of any mother is to eliminate these substances. To do this, the fruit must be thoroughly washed, not just by rinsing it under the tap, but with a brush (for fruit with a dense skin), you can use baking soda, as well as laundry soap to more completely remove wax from the surface of the fruit. Pour boiling water over citrus fruits for a disinfecting effect. Peel imported fruits or fruits with a dense skin.

Porridge recipes for infants:

How to cook oatmeal without milk

From cereals

Soak the prepared oatmeal overnight in warm water (for 1 part of the cereal, take 3 parts of water). Cook for 1 hour before use. You can add a little salt if desired. Further, for babies, it is recommended to grind the porridge through a sieve, or grind it in a blender to the required consistency. If the porridge is rather thick in consistency, you can add hot boiled water. When serving, put butter (pediatricians allow from 8 months, on average 5 grams per day). You can also initially cook porridge from ground, for example, on a coffee grinder, oat flour.

From flakes

In the case of using Hercules flakes, after their preparation, you can also soak in water overnight, but in the morning boil for 10-15 minutes for the safety of this dish for the baby.

If the baby absorbs dairy-free oatmeal well, and there are no problems, you can try to cook this dish with a mixture of milk and water, or with pure milk. But it will not work to cook the cereal purely in milk, since the cereal requires a long cooking, the milk in this case will evaporate, so first the cereal is boiled in water, and then milk is added.

Milk oat porridge

Ingredients:

Oat flakes "Hercules" - 1 glass

Water - 2 glasses

Milk - 2 cups (baby milk can be used for babies)

Butter - 4-5 g (1 tablespoon)

The rest of the ingredients are optional

Cooking technology:

Pour water into a saucepan, bring to a boil, salt (salt can be added at the end of cooking)
Spoon oatmeal gradually
Cook over medium heat, stirring constantly until boiling (about 3 minutes)
Rub the mixture through a sieve or chop in a blender
Add milk, bring the porridge to a boil over medium heat (5-7 minutes), turn off the stove and simmer under the lid for 10 minutes.
When serving, place butter and optional extras in the center.

Here's another way to cook baby oatmeal with milk and olive oil:

In a multicooker

Today the multicooker is firmly established in the kitchen in many Russian families and, as its owners say, porridge on this modern equipment turns out without problems. Oatmeal for a baby can also be cooked in any kind of multicooker.

Ingredients:

Oat flakes "Hercules" - 60 g
Water (milk or milk + water mixture) - 500 g
Butter - 10-15 g
Sugar (if possible for your child) or as desired

Cooking technology:

Put butter in the multicooker bowl (you can even grease the bowl with butter so that the porridge does not burn)
Pour in milk (water or mixture)
Add salt, sugar, stir to dissolve
Add oatmeal
The mixture is ready, now we put it on the "Milk porridge" mode and wait for the sound signal about the end of the process. After that, you can hold the porridge for a little more (5-10 minutes) with the lid closed in the heating mode.

Of flour

This flour can be obtained by grinding oatmeal in a coffee grinder or blender to the consistency of flour. For babies, the best flour to water ratio is 1 teaspoon (average 5 g) per 100 ml of water. Such porridge is called 5%, with an increase in the age of the baby (somewhere by 12 months), you can cook porridge with a concentration of 10% - take 100 ml of water for 2 teaspoons (10 g).

Ingredients (for 10% porridge):

Oatmeal flour - 100 g
Water - 1000 ml
Salt to taste

Cooking technology:

It is more difficult to cook porridge of a homogeneous consistency from oat flour than from flakes, since the flour can form lumps. Therefore, the water must be boiled and carefully add flour in small portions, stirring constantly, preferably with a wooden spoon.
Bring to a boil, reduce heat and cook with the lid closed for 30 minutes, stirring occasionally
Another feature of the preparation of porridge from oatmeal is that you need to salt it no earlier than 10-15 minutes after the start of the boil. Otherwise, the porridge may harden.

Cooking porridge with infant formula

To reduce the allergic manifestations that appear in babies when drinking milk or you are not sure about the quality of milk from the store, you can completely replace this product with an infant formula, better than one that is intended for children from 6 months. To do this, you must first boil the oatmeal in water and cool. After that, add the mixture, previously diluted with a small amount of boiled and cooled to 40 degrees water, at the rate of: per 100 grams of porridge - 1.5 tablespoons of the mixture. The mixture should not be placed in hot cereals, let alone boiled, since some of the nutrients will be lost. Many parents, in principle, prepare porridge for children up to a year old only on infant formula.

Delicious additions to oatmeal

At a time when the baby has already mastered oatmeal as a basis for porridge, you can enrich this dish with various ingredients that improve the taste, aesthetic appearance and nutritional value of oatmeal. But only if the baby does not have an allergic reaction to this or that component. First, enter one-component additives, then you can combine products, getting a tasty, beautiful, and most importantly, healthy dish that the baby will eat with pleasure. Although experts believe that it is better to combine one type of fruit with oatmeal. The table shows the recommended fillers and substances with which the porridge will be enriched. When a child still does not know how to chew, fillers are introduced in the form of mashed potatoes, for older children - in the form of grated or finely chopped.

Additive	Useful substances and recommendations
Apple	Vitamins: A, group B, iron, magnesium, phosphorus, pectin and others; for children from 5 months (in the form of puree)
Pear	Vitamins of group B, A, PP, C, zinc, copper, fluorine, pectin substances, etc.; for children from 5-7 months
Peach	Vitamins C, groups B, A, iron, potassium, Children from 7-8 months
Banana	Potassium, magnesium, sodium, iron, vitamins A, B 2, C, fiber; for babies from 6-8 months
Raisin	Potassium, iron, selenium, sodium, B vitamins, etc., are recommended as a whole for children over 1.5 years old and then very carefully so that the child does not choke. If you want to add raisins to a younger toddler, you can finely chop them.
Blueberry	Vitamin A, C, PP, group B, calcium, iron, manganese, natural antioxidants; for babies from 7 months
Raspberries	Potassium, iron, copper, selenium, calcium, vitamin C, group B; recommended for babies from 10-12 months

How to cook porridge for children under one year old and more: features

So, summing up a small summary, we note the main features of the preparation of oatmeal for babies of different ages. Such information is presented in table 3.

Table 3 - Specificity of oatmeal in different age periods

Child's age	Features of cooking oatmeal
6-7 months	During this period, doctors still do not recommend introducing this type of cereal into complementary foods, but nevertheless, if you decide to include it in the diet, it is better to use a special industrial baby porridge recommended by the manufacturer from six months. In the case of home-made porridge, it is recommended to cook dairy-free or using infant formula, finely chopping it in a blender or on a coffee grinder.
8 months	If this is your first time introducing oatmeal, choose dairy-free oatmeal with no additional industrial or homemade ingredients, with butter. Then you can add fruits familiar and familiar to your baby (in the form of puree) to the porridge. On average, the volume of porridge is 180 grams and 5 grams of butter. The porridge should be of a homogeneous consistency.
9 months	At this age, it is necessary to accustom the child to solid food, the baby develops a chewing apparatus, homemade cereals can be prepared from cereals or flakes without crushing them first. At first, you can knead the ready-made porridge or grind it a little on a blender, then, when the child is confidently "chewing", the porridge made from "Hercules" can not be chopped. Fruits, instead of mashed and mashed potatoes, grate. From this month on, you can try to give your baby a multi-grain porridge made from two types of cereals. The recommended amount of porridge is 150 grams.
10 -12 months	The child is already ready for adult food, the porridge should not be of a uniform consistency, so it is better to cook it yourself. Fruits and berries can be very diverse, which the baby's body takes. Soft berries can be put in whole, hard fruits are finely chopped. The recommended amount is 130-150 grams.
1-2 years	Porridge becomes a complete breakfast. The child is able to chew well and assimilate various foods to which he was previously allergic, we cook oatmeal, as for everyone else, each time "changing" the filling of fruits and berries. You can combine cereals and herbal ingredients with each other. Experts advise 180-200 grams of porridge for breakfast.

Thus, oatmeal, loved by many as a healthy breakfast, can be introduced into the baby's diet from 7–8 months of age (as recommended by pediatricians). As you age, combine oatmeal with healthy fruits and berries that your child tolerates and loves. This combination will allow you to create a dish containing a lot of useful elements: vitamins, protein, minerals, fiber, which is simply necessary for the proper development and growth of the baby.

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Healthy eating is the backbone! Through the principles of good nutrition, caring parents help their children grow up healthy, strong, and developed. Everyone knows that at a young age, the lion's share of a child's diet is a variety of cereals. Cereals are rich in fiber and vitamins. Porridge quickly saturates the body and helps to improve digestion. One of the hearty and nutritious is corn porridge. It is easy to prepare it, and the cereal base is very inexpensive. But before including it in the menu of the crumbs, I would like to ask at what age children can use corn porridge, how to cook it correctly for a child and how often such food can be offered to the baby.

At what age children can eat corn porridge?

Corn grits contain a huge amount of vitamins and healthy dietary fiber. In terms of calorie content, this product is not heavy and therefore cornmeal porridge is recommended for baby food. At what age children can eat corn porridge? Nutritionists believe that, despite all the positive qualities, corn porridge is not suitable for the first feeding of crumbs.

A baby should get acquainted with corn porridge only after he has already got used to rice, buckwheat and oatmeal porridge. By age - this is no earlier than 8-9 months.

The fact is that corn grits can be considered an allergen, albeit not a very strong one. And such a product is too heavy for a baby's fragile digestive tract. When the baby grows up a little and gets used to several types of food (cereals, mashed potatoes, juices), you can slowly include corn porridge in his diet.

How to cook corn porridge properly?

Having found out at what age children can eat corn porridge, I want to find an answer to another equally important question. And what kind of corn porridge can you offer your baby? When a baby gets acquainted with a certain type of porridge for the first time, the product must be prepared according to the simplest proven recipe, without unnecessary products and observing all the rules. This is important to make it easier for the child's body to perceive a new dish for him. Also, in the event of an allergy, it will be easier to understand and eliminate the cause.

So, no matter what age the child decides to give corn porridge, it must be cooked, observing a clear rule: the corn groats must be well boiled. Otherwise, the child's gastrointestinal tract will be difficult to cope with this dish. To prepare baby porridge, you need to choose premium cereals.

The first porridge for the crumbs is best cooked in water, without adding a milk base.

Corn porridge is very tasty and even without the addition of milk, children eat it with pleasure. Corn porridge goes well with fruits and berries and can be slightly sweetened with honey or sugar. But all these additives are permissible only if they have been tried earlier and there is confidence that the child's body will not give a negative reaction.

How often should children be given corn porridge?

To the question at what age children can eat corn porridge, the answer has been found. It is quite clear that closer to the year this product can be safely included in the child's diet, and if the baby likes it, then this porridge will take its place of honor in the baby's weekly menu. However, now another question is brewing: how often can children be given corn porridge? It should be said right away that there is no clear framework. However, it is recommended to alternate the menu for the baby within reasonable limits.

Corn porridge should be offered to the child 1-2 times a week and this will be enough to saturate the body of the crumbs with useful microelements that are contained in this product.

But if the baby loves this porridge very much, sometimes you can replace it with some already boring dish in the diet.

In any case, it should be borne in mind that the nutrition of young children who have reached the age of one should become more diverse. The diet must be balanced so that the baby does not get tired of the monotonous food and at the same time the child's body receives all types of nutrients necessary for the healthy growth and development of his body.

It is important to remember that it is possible to include new food in the diet of a baby under one year old only after consulting a pediatrician.

As soon as the baby stops actively sucking at the breast and gradually switches to adult food, mommy can't wait to please him with new products. It is necessary to introduce complementary foods, based on the recommendations of a doctor. Food should be healthy, fresh, ground, nutritious and appropriate for the child's age. Oatmeal for babies is ideal for baby food. In terms of usefulness, it is the second after buckwheat. From what month can you give oatmeal to babies and are there any contraindications?

Why is oatmeal good for an infant

People have known about the benefits of oatmeal for a long time. Oats increase mental capacity, improve digestion, and fill the body with vitamins. For babies, oatmeal is especially useful because it is similar in composition to breast milk, and many children love to eat it.

the B vitamins contained in it have a positive effect on the nervous system, providing a calming effect. Children with nervous pathologies are recommended to use it regularly;
trace elements, vitamins and organic acids contained in oats normalize blood cholesterol;
oatmeal is quickly absorbed, saturating the body;
enveloping the gastric mucosa, promotes digestion and bowel cleansing;
relieves constipation;
potassium and magnesium improve heart function;
oats removes toxins, salts, heavy metals, cleanses the blood;
thanks to phosphorus, the work of the musculoskeletal and muscular system improves;
a large amount of iron restores hemoglobin levels and relieves anemia;
iodine improves metabolism.

Oatmeal for babies is a valuable product that contributes to normal development and health.

Can it hurt

Despite the usefulness of oatmeal, doctors do not recommend introducing it into complementary foods first. Oats contain gluten, which can cause serious allergies in toddlers. This protein is poorly digested by infants., since there are still not enough enzymes in the children's intestines that can break down the complex composition of oats.

Another disadvantage of oatmeal is the elimination of calcium from the body. Phytic acid in the composition does not allow the absorption of calcium, which negatively affects infants, who need this element vital.
Oatmeal contains starch, a source of calories. It breaks down in the body into sugar, which raises glucose levels. Excessive consumption of oatmeal threatens the development of diabetes. Babies are allowed to give oatmeal no more than once a week.

When to introduce into complementary foods

An enzyme that helps to absorb gluten is produced in the baby's intestines from 8-10 months. Gluten before it acts as a poison and causes allergies. Doctors recommend introducing oats into complementary foods from 9 months for breastfed babies, after 8 months - for artificial people after the baby learns gluten-free rice, corn and buckwheat.

The main rule of introducing a new product is a small dose in the morning. Then monitoring the reaction. If the crumbs do not have negative symptoms, the portion can be gradually increased. At the first symptoms of allergy, oatmeal intake is postponed for several weeks, then try again. Complementary foods should not be introduced if the baby is ill, is recovering from an illness or has been vaccinated. He will react negatively to any change in the diet. You need to wait 2-3 weeks until the immune system gets stronger and the body is ready for food experiments.

It is advisable for mom to keep a baby's food diary. When a new product is introduced, it records the date, product name and reaction. If the reaction is normal, the product is continued to be consumed. If there is an allergy, it is underlined in red and the estimated date of the second attempt to enter the diet is recorded.

How to choose oatmeal

The taste and quality of the cooked porridge depends on the type of oatmeal. There are several methods of processing grains, differing in name, composition, method and duration of preparation.

Uncrushed groats - whole grains of oats, peeled from the shell. Most useful, containing all the valuable elements necessary for the normal growth and development of a child. It is necessary to cook them for a very long time (at least 2 hours), which is inconvenient for mothers of babies. Therefore, this type of oatmeal is often included in the diet of older babies.
Polished groats are grains that have undergone mechanical processing and have lost some of their valuable fiber. You can cook such cereals in 40 minutes.
Hercules flakes. Of all types, they are less flattened, retaining their shape, and less lose nutrients. They are used in dietary and baby food. Cook for no longer than 20 minutes.
Flakes Extra. Prepare for 15 minutes. During production, they are crushed and contain the most starch and gluten. Flakes are divided into 3 grades, depending on what kind of crushing they are. If the number "3" is on the package, it can be given to the baby. This is the finest grind and after boiling the porridge will be tender and airy.
Oatmeal. The steamed peeled barley and oat grains are pounded into flour. Tolokno is useful for anemia, stomach diseases. It is poured with boiling water and after 2-3 minutes it is ready for use.
Flour, powdered grains. Used for the production of oatmeal cookies and tortillas.

For the preparation of oatmeal, it is better to buy Hercules flakes. They are quick to prepare and include all the ingredients you need. Before cooking, the flakes must be ground in a blender or in a coffee grinder. You can grind the entire pack in advance so as not to waste time when you need to quickly feed the baby later.

Store oatmeal and cereal in the refrigerator. This way the beneficial properties will last longer. High-quality oatmeal should not have a pale gray, but a creamy color and a light natural aroma. If the groats are bought in a cardboard box, it is better to pour them into a plastic bag so that it does not absorb moisture and deteriorate.

How to cook oatmeal for babies

Oatmeal is ground into powder. The optimal proportion for feeding babies is five percent porridge. 5 g of the resulting powder is placed in a teaspoon. It is diluted with 100 ml. water. If a large volume is needed, the proportion is doubled. When the child grows up, you can increase the rate of oats to 10 g per 100 ml. water.

How to cook yourself

Classic porridge

Oatmeal is poured into boiling water and, stirring, cook for 5 minutes. Infants are very conservative and dislike dietary changes. To make the baby get used to the unfamiliar taste, breast milk is added to the porridge. Salt, sugar, milk and butter are added as the baby's stomach gets stronger and gets used to the new meal.

Porridge with milk

When the baby is used to the oatmeal dish and is allowed to consume cow's milk, you can cook the oatmeal with whole milk. For this, the flakes need not be ground and used in the form in which they are purchased. They are sorted out, washed, and soaked with a towel. Take the same amount of low-fat milk and 2 tablespoons per glass of water. oatmeal. The water is boiled, sugar and a little salt are added. Milk porridge is salted much less than porridge cooked in water. Salt is added to milk porridge before cereals. Fall asleep oats, stirring constantly. The porridge is boiled over low heat until cooked. Milk is boiled in a separate bowl and poured into the mixture through a sieve. A little butter is added to the finished oatmeal.

Oatmeal porridge

In 100 ml. boiled water is diluted with 3 tbsp. oatmeal. Boil water (if the child does not tolerate cow protein) or milk, add oatmeal and cook for 2-3 minutes, stirring constantly. For a one-year-old child, you can put a piece of fruit or a berry - a banana, an apple, a strawberry - in the porridge.

Important! Mom should definitely try the prepared porridge herself. Oatmeal sometimes turns out to be bitter. Most often this happens due to a poor-quality product that was stored incorrectly or due to unusable water. Finely ground flakes are usually not bitter.

Multicooker recipe

You can cook oatmeal with milk for a child in a multicooker:

200 ml. water and 50 ml. low fat milk is poured into a bowl.
Add 3 tbsp. spoons of oatmeal. You can use coarse grits without grinding. Before cooking, you need to sort it out and rinse it.
Add a teaspoon of sugar and 1/3 tsp. salt.
Depending on the type of multicooker, the cooking time is set. Press the button "Milk Porridge" and close the valve.
The prepared oatmeal is mixed, poured into a plate and butter is added to taste.