Changing needs
- Up until approximately six months of age, a baby will be able to meet all their energy and nutrient requirements from breast or infant milk¹ as well as the stores of certain nutrients that babies are born with
- From around six months of age, milk alone will not suffice and additional energy and nutrients need to be provided from solid foods for optimal growth and development
Current guidelines
- British and Irish Governments recommend exclusive breastfeeding for the first six months of life and that solids should be introduced from about six months
- However, babies should be considered as individuals. If weaning is started earlier than six months, it should not be before four months (17 weeks).
What are these guidelines based on?
In 2000, the World Health Organisation (WHO) commissioned a systematic review of the scientific literature on the optimal duration of breastfeeding2. They examined the effects on health, growth and development of infants in studies where they were exclusively breastfed for six months, compared to infants exclusively breastfed for three to four months.
They concluded that:
- There were no differences in growth between those exclusively breastfed for six versus three to four months
- No benefits of introducing solid foods between four and six months have been demonstrated
- Infants who are exclusively breastfed for six months experience less gastrointestinal or respiratory infection
Nutritional requirements
- It is important to remember that babies have very different nutritional needs from adults
- Babies double their birth weight in the first six months and triple it by the end of the first year
- They therefore have higher requirements for energy and certain key vitamins and minerals than adults relative to their size
- To achieve these high nutrient requirements, babies need to consume energy- and nutrient-dense foods
- This means ensuring that their diet is relatively high in fat compared to an adult diet, to provide sufficient energy, and low in fibre, to avoid filling them up at the expense of other nutrients
- Babies should also be offered small meals at frequent intervals to take into account the limited size of their stomachs
Meeting a baby’s nutritional requirements
- Variety is the key to achieving a healthy diet for babies
- Offering a wide range of different foods during weaning will help to ensure that a baby obtains all the energy and nutrients needed for growth and development
- To ensure a balanced diet during weaning, a variety of foods should be offered from the main food groups.
Key nutrients for consideration
Energy
- Infants need around three times more energy than adults relative to their size but have a stomach around ten times smaller
- It is vital, therefore, that they get energy-dense solids to meet these needs
- Carbohydrate rich foods are a good source of energy, as are full-fat dairy products, along with nuts, seeds and oils
- Parents need to be wary, particularly at the start of weaning, of not replacing too much milk with relatively low-calorie vegetable and fruit purees
- Vegetable purees can have a little oil or butter added to them to increase the energy density
Vitamin A
- Vitamin A is essential for normal growth and development, healthy skin and eyes and the immune function
- Good sources of vitamin A include liver, oily fish, whole milk, cheese and butter. Carotenes (which are converted to Vitamin A) can be found in good quantities in carrots, dark green leafy vegetables and orange-coloured fruits and vegetables
Vitamin C
- Vitamin C is necessary for normal growth and development. It is needed to form collagen, a protein used to make skin, scar tissue, tendons, ligaments and blood vessels. It is also important for the absorption of iron
- Vitamin C is found almost exclusively in foods from plant sources
- Good sources include peppers, broccoli, Brussel sprouts, berries, blackcurrants, oranges, mango and kiwi
Vitamin D
- Vitamin D is essential for calcium absorption; deficiency can cause poor bone growth and rickets
- Although vitamin D can be made by the body through the action of sunlight on the skin, babies require an additional dietary source due to their rapid growth and formation of the skeleton
- Useful sources of vitamin D include oily fish, liver, eggs and fortified breakfast cereals. Margarine is fortified with vitamin D (by law) and it is added voluntarily to other fat spreads
Iron
- Iron deficiency (anaemia) is the most common nutritional deficiency in the UK3
- Symptoms of iron deficiency include lethargy, apathy, irritability and loss of appetite
- If a baby is being weaned at six months, it is particularly important that good sources of iron are introduced into the diet quickly
- Iron found in red meat is most easily absorbed by the body
- Iron can be found in other sources too, but is not quite so easily absorbed by the body
- The absorption of iron from non-meat sources will be enhanced if Vitamin C is given at the same time
- Good non-meat sources of iron include iron-fortified infant cereals, dried fruit (which can be soaked and pureed), beans, lentils and chickpeas, as well as green vegetables such as broccoli and spinach
- Follow-on milks, such as SMA Follow-on Milk, which are specially formulated to complement the weaning diet, are also good sources of iron
Zinc
- Zinc is essential for growth, development and immune function
- Useful sources of zinc include meat, fish, pulses, wholegrain cereals, cheese, eggs and milk
Vitamin supplements
The UK Department of Health recommends supplements containing vitamins A, C & D for:
- Babies receiving breast milk as the main drink after six months
- Babies receiving infant or follow-on milk and drinking less than 500-600 ml per day from six months until one year
