An extract from http://www.mummysg.com/forums/content/20-ways-ease-colic.html

Published on 20-11-2010 08:31 PM

Parents may wonder what colic is all about. It can be described as the uncontrollable crying of a baby for hours with no known reason.

You may suspect your baby has it if the crying continues for several days. Colic tends to peak around 6 weeks then improves significantly between 3 and 4 months.

It is quite frustrating for both mommy and baby. Sad thing if mommy cannot bond well with baby because of this reason. Hopefully these tips will help to ease colic discomfort and bring back sanity to you.

1. Get anti colic remedy.
There are several brands in the market that offers relief of colic. It can be diluted in the milk or given directly to the baby. Whichever you choose, it all really depends on your luck to ease colicky baby. Seek a pediatrician for advice on this would be wise.

2. Offer the slowest flow of teat to avoid gulping milk.
For new moms, you may be surprised by the number of brands offer different shapes and sizes of teat. dont’t get distracted by the model it brings, but make sure your baby won’t gulp milk every feeding. You may need to try a few types before settle down to one.

3. Offer the milk in smaller amount frequently.
dont’t worry if your baby keeps asking for more milk. Give some time for the little tummy to digest the milk.

4. Change soiled diaper or cloth before feeding.
If you change diaper after feeding, you have to lift baby’s leg above her stomach that may encourage reflux that is something can cause colic.

5. Feed the baby in an upright position.
This is to encourage milk to begin exiting the stomach during the feed which helps to minimize colic.

6. Always try to burp the baby in the middle and after feeding.
By doing this, you can help baby burp the air up before they are collected too much that causes gas in the stomach.

7. Hold the baby in an upright position for about half an hour after feeding.
Well, you may be too tired to wait for that long after feed. But try as long as you can to avoid baby spitting up the milk.

Food For A Healthy, Happy Baby

An extract from http://www.mummysg.com/forums/content/211-food-healthy-happy-baby.html

Published on 15-11-2012 03:00 PM

It is vital for a baby to have an assorted diet once he can eat solid food. At an early age, the baby will learn how to eat food with different textures and flavors as well as gain the essential nutrients that are crucial for the his growth and development.

Here are some ideas on what you can serve your baby during its first year:

4-6 Months:
Pureed food is ideal for your baby’s digestion. It is important that your baby has fruits and vegetables. Ripe bananas, avocados, and papayas are some fruits you can start with. Pureed cooked pears, apples, potatoes, sweet potatoes, pumpkins, and carrots are also good choices. Green vegetables like peas, zucchini, green beans, and cauliflowers are rich in vital nutrients. The simple tastes are enough so you need not add spices or seasonings.

6-7 Months:
By the time the baby reaches six months, it starts to eat three meals a day. It is also the time you can feed your baby different kinds of food for as long as its texture is smooth and silky. The important minerals that a baby needs at this age are calcium and iron.

For breakfast, cereals with low salt and sugar are fine. It is okay to serve baby cereal as well as kids’ cereal and instant oats. Just serve it with milk.

Lunch and dinner should contain 25g of meat or protein. Minced or pureed meat is an excellent way to start. Add chopped vegetables to complete its requirement of certain nutrients. A good substitute for red meat is red lentils. Be sure that the skin of the potatoes and sweet potatoes are peeled to make it easier for the baby to chew and digest them.

7-9 Months:
By this time, the baby’s food can just be mashed or semi-pureed since the tongue and muscles in its mouth are stronger.

Cereals with low sugar and salt as well as cooked semi-pureed food are still ideal meals for breakfast. Once your baby turns eight months, you may prepare buttered whole meal toast.

For lunch and dinner, you can feed your baby mashed instead of pureed vegetables. Grains like rice, quinoa, and couscous are a good addition to the meal. To add more texture, minced meat may be added as well as grated fruits like pears and apples. Dessert may be yogurt, custard, cooked fruit, or rice pudding.

9-12 Months:
You can feed your baby finger food by now. Chopped foods with lots of color are a good way to make it look attractive. By now your baby might be used to eating the kinds of food that the rest of the family eats.

For breakfast, you can serve muesli or porridge with milk. You may also add fresh fruits to yogurt. Cream cheese goes well with toasted whole meal toast.

For lunch and dinner, you may now serve your baby as much as 50g of meat that is chopped into small pieces. Just mix them with vegetables. Pasta, so long as it can be easily chewed, is a good alternative to rice.

If you would like to offer your baby snacks, freshly cut fruits and vegetables, cheese cubes, and muffins with fruit filling are good choices.

You can come up with different meals for your baby that taste delicious and are healthy. Just look around your kitchen and be creative.