The health of any person depends on what enters the body with food. This is especially important in tender childhood, when internal systems are still developing. Correct interaction of enzyme structures, chemical components of food is the key not only to the health of the baby, but also to the proper development of the child. To do this, it is necessary to form his menu using baby food, dairy products.
Fit together
Currently developed technology of children's food products allows us to produce positions that are combined with the characteristics of the children's body at the most tender age. This takes into account all stages of food processing by the body. This is not only about the gastrointestinal tract and the processes of absorption occurring in it, but also the transportation of components to tissues and organs. Proper nutrition of the child should ensure the supply of the necessary components at the cellular level for the further subcellular process of providing the body with the necessary compounds.
Specialized baby food products are created taking into account age-related needs. They must be high quality, possess such characteristics that satisfy the requirements of metabolism. Enzyme processes occur in the body through food, so the presence of all the components necessary for the proper course of a chemical reaction is very important.
What is?
Currently, baby food products are divided into five major categories. The classification is based on chemical, biological specific qualities. Each of the groups is designed for a certain age of life.
For the smallest children, food created for six months of age is suitable. The body is still immature, the digestive tract is only developing. Fermentation processes are rather weak, and this imposes serious restrictions on the possibility of eating a variety of foods. Usually, until the age of six months, the child predominantly feeds on mother's milk, where there are all the important substances that the baby needs.
Grow and grow
The choice of products of the second category is much wider, that is, intended for children under the age of one year, but already older than six months. The production of baby food of this class is based on knowledge about plastic nutrition, energy metabolism in the body.
The most important for the child during this period are milk and products made on its basis, diluted with proteins, starch, iron, vitamins, minerals. Protein comes from meat, and grain in the form of starch provides an energy influx. To provide body tissues with iron, the menu includes liver, oatmeal, egg yolks. Vitamin complexes, mineral children receive from fruits, vegetables.
Third group
Such baby food products are intended for children older than one year of age, but less than three years old. At this time, the body is actively developing, which obliges parents to provide through food an influx of all important components. Biochemical processes proceed actively, physical systems develop and mature. In many ways, the functions of the body at this age become what they will last for life. In a child, the need for protein structures is reduced; you need a few less vitamins that supply energy to the components (calculations are made per kilogram of mass).
During this period, a variety of baby food products are allowed, their list is much wider than the options listed above. For the proper development of the body, it is necessary to provide the main food categories (almost without exception). It is important to take into account the peculiarities of young children: this affects the requirements for cooking. For baby food, special ratios of different components are recommended, atypical for the adult population. Emphasis is still placed on milk and products made from it. Children need bread, cereals, mashed potatoes, fish, meat, vegetables, fruits, natural juices. In order for food to be adequately absorbed, it is necessary to grind the components carefully.
Baby is growing
You can learn about what a child should eat older than three years old, but younger than six years old, from the norms of food in kindergarten. Of course, sticking to their house is not necessary, but parents need to understand: such rules are developed by specialists taking into account children's characteristics and needs, so it will definitely not be superfluous to navigate them.
Normally, a healthy child of 3-6 years old assimilates almost all baby food products (not only natural, but also conservation) without problems. The most useful are considered to be combined, including components of mineral origin, protein structures. This is more important for those who visit the kindergarten. Recommended sweets, bread, cereals. It should be preferred rich in vitamins, amino acids, specialized dishes designed specifically for children. Of the vitamins, the most significant are those belonging to group B.
Go to school
During this period, baby food should be extremely diverse, and the menu should be rich in order to satisfy all the needs of a growing organism. Normally, every day a child should consume up to half a liter of milk and products based on it. Salads, soups should be eaten with sour cream, and butter is recommended without special processing, fresh. It should include fish, meat, chicken eggs, vegetables and fruits in the diet. Vegetable oil is recommended for dressing vegetables.
The list of baby foods for school age includes bread products. Special attention should be paid to rye varieties and products enriched with useful components. Cereals will not be superfluous. For normal development and growth, the child needs berries, vegetables, unclarified juices containing pulp, pectin.
The right approach is the basis of success
Currently, our country has special regulations - "SanPin" on food products in kindergarten. This is due to the need at the state level to develop a culture of nutrition for minors in order to ensure a healthy future for the nation. The right combination, the availability of nutritional components is not just a guarantee of the health of one particular child, but of the whole generation. In the area of responsibility of adults - to provide kids with products, adjust the rhythm and instill the right food culture.
The difficulties associated with the control of the manufacture of food for children, its sale, are due to the high requirements of the current regulatory documentation. Specialized acts normalized the characteristics so that the diet intended for children, ceteris paribus, would satisfy all the needs of the body. At the same time, it is unacceptable for the menu to include products that are prohibited in baby food, since their use is associated with a potential danger to the health and even life of the child.
Some features
Baby formulas do not currently need to be specifically certified. Other products intended for children are not subject to such an operation. The manufacturer must declare his goods, officially confirm that he meets the standards. From the point of view of the law, a declaration is equivalent to a certificate.
More recently (until the summer of 2013), the country had a registration system in accordance with GOST. Previous rules declared that mixtures should be safe. This fact was established by reconciliation with standards adopted at the federal level. In 2013, new regulations were legalized, which included some points regarding the nutrition of children.
Thorough topic research
The safety aspects of products used by humans for food traditionally concern a wide range of people, because their health depends on this. When it comes to children, this nuance seems even more important. It was on the basis of such public relations that laws, regulations and rules were adopted to regulate this topic. In addition, the situation led to the organization of a special study. This was devoted to the peculiarities of baby food and conducted by a specialized large agency.
Quite curious are the results of a study of public opinion. The event was held with the condition of anonymity, so that all participants could express their position without fear, respond sincerely. For this reason, the data obtained are evaluated as reliable. The survey examined public opinion regarding the current legal system for regulating the observance of food quality for children. All respondents agreed that the topic is really important, as it determines the future of the state.
The public believes that ...
As the analysis of the collected information has shown, many inhabitants are firmly convinced that the full development of the child occurs when specialized products are included in the menu. It is necessary to add to the diet components enriched with minerals and vitamins, microscopic vital elements that come into insufficient concentration with breast milk at the most tender age. If several decades ago this topic worried only specialists and nutritionists, now the broad masses are concerned about it.
Special nutrition makes up for the shortage of essential substances. Gradually, a wider variety of dishes is included in the diet, expanding the possibilities of products, supplementing the menu with juices. This makes it easier for the baby to switch from breast milk to more generally available food.
What to look at?
According to public polls, almost 40% of all citizens, choosing baby food, study the composition for the enrichment of useful substances. About a quarter of all who wished to share their opinions noted that for them the main reason for choosing is the absence of harmful compounds, preservative components. A few percent more ordinary people prefer to buy only products of responsible production, with particular attention to value. Only one tenth of our fellow citizens are ready to purchase foreign food, arguing their position with the increased quality requirements practiced in other powers.
The current legislation of our country establishes general requirements for the quality and characteristics of the production of baby food, so you should not reassure yourself so recklessly that only imported goods can be worthy in terms of level. The legal documents that are currently in force regulate: all baby food must be satisfactory to the digestive system at one age or another. Only then will the kids grow and develop normally. The importance of such normative acts is difficult to overestimate - they legislatively establish the conditions for the future power.
All is justified
In order for food products to meet the needs of the child's body, they must contain a number of specialized components aimed at enhancing metabolic processes, stimulating immunity and growth, and developing tissues and organs. Additionally, they include substances that help the baby’s underdeveloped immune system to resist infectious agents, inflammatory processes.
For baby food to be really high-quality and effective, iodine and selenium must be in its composition. Be sure to include vital minerals: manganese and zinc. Significant for children is copper that enters the digestive system in adequate quantities. The specific concentrations of these substances necessary for the baby are determined by age and individual characteristics. It is for this reason that special positions for one-year-old babies can be seen on sale, while others are designed for three years of age and older.
Best kids
Any modern father, every mother is interested in ensuring that their child receives only the very best. This applies to all aspects of development: educational games, sports sections, proper nutrition. Recently, the principles of healthy eating are well-known and actively promoted, and up to half of all citizens already follow them, noting that price is the most insignificant factor, while only the benefits of the product and its good taste are really important. Many consumers, based on such considerations, prefer to buy exclusively the products of large, well-established brands.