Baby Feeding & Nutrition

Recently Answered

• QHow can I find out if my baby has a food allergy?

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  A Univ. of Nev. School of Medicine, Family Medicine answered

  Food allergies in babies are acquired in the first or second year of life. Studies show two-thirds of the allergic reactions that parents report are due to cow's milk, fruits (especially citrus and strawberries) and vegetables (especially tomatoes). Other allergic reactions are due to eggs, nuts and cereals. Allergic symptoms to foods usually happen between minutes to two hours after exposure to the food.
  
  Allergic symptoms include:

  1. Skin: itching, flushing, swelling and sweating
  2. Eyes: redness, tearing, swelling of lids and itching
  3. Mouth/nose/throat: sneezing, runny nose, congestion, itching, metallic taste, hoarse voice, difficulty breathing, wheezing, feeling of choking and turning blue
  4. Heart: racing heartbeat, very slow heartbeat and irregular heartbeat
  5. Stomach: nausea/vomiting, belly pain, bloating and diarrhea
  6. Mental: overwhelming feeling of fear, fainting, dizziness and seizures

  In general, it is recommended that babies should not start solid foods until 4 months of age. It is recommended that you offer one food a day when first starting out and keep a diary of reactions or no reactions. See your pediatrician or healthcare provider for all the routine well checks for guidance on foods. Do not give babies cow's milk or honey until after 1 year of age.
  
  Most food allergies reported by parents have been shown to not be true allergies when tested by a blood or skin test. However, consult your healthcare provider for any concerns or new signs or symptoms associated with foods.
• QWhy does my baby need a vitamin K shot?

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  A Dr. Deborah Mulligan, MD , Pediatrics, answered on behalf of MDLIVE

  Vitamin K is essential to help blood clot.  Babies born with a vitamin K deficiency may have unexpected bleeding (0.25% to 1.7% incidence) during the first week of life in previously healthy-appearing neonates (classic hemorrhagic disease of the newborn [HDN).  Late HDN, a syndrome defined as unexpected bleeding due to severe vitamin K deficiency in infants aged 2 to 12 weeks, occurs primarily in exclusively breast-fed infants who have received no or inadequate neonatal vitamin K prophylaxis. The efficacy of neonatal vitamin K prophylaxis (either oral or parenteral) in the prevention of classic HDN is firmly established.
  
  Since time is of the essence, the American Academy of Pediatrics recommends all babies receive vitamin K rather than perform laboratory tests to find out which baby is deficient and waste precious time.   
  
  
• QWhy is it important that my baby gets enough calories?

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  A Dr. Mehmet Oz, MD , Cardiology (Cardiovascular Disease), answered

  There are many reasons why you need to make sure your baby is getting enough calories. Among other things, lack of growth in the womb can cause a decrease in brain development, immune deficiency, and short stature.
  
  If vital organs don't get the nutrients they need, they're not going to grow to and function at their maximum capacity. And there's evidence to show that this can contribute to a wide range of problems when these babies become adults - for example, hormonal problems like thyroid issues, metabolic problems like obesity, and even cardiovascular problems like heart disease and hypertension.
• QHow can I safely prepare and handle powdered infant formula?

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  A Univ. of Nev. School of Medicine, Family Medicine answered

  Powdered formula is not sterile, and it can become contaminated after it is opened. If your baby gets powdered infant formula, follow these steps to protect him/her from infections:

  Clean up before preparation

  • Wash your hands with soap and water.
  • Clean bottles in a dishwasher with hot water and a heated drying cycle, or scrub bottles with a bottle brush in hot, soapy water, rinse well, and then sterilize them.
  • Clean work surfaces, such as countertops and sinks.
  • Wash your hands again with soap and water before beginning to prepare a bottle.

  Prepare safely

  • Use hot water (158 degrees F/70 degrees C and above) to make formula. A simple way to heat water to this temperature is to boil a kettle of fresh water and to use it to make formula within 30 minutes of boiling.
  • Measure the right amount of formula and water.
  • Keep powdered formula lids and scoops clean (be careful about what they touch).
  • Close containers of infant formula or bottled water as soon as possible.
  • Carefully shake, rather than stir, formula in the bottle.
  • Cool formula to ensure it is not too hot before feeding your baby by running the prepared, capped bottle under cool water or placing it into an ice bath, taking care to keep the cooling water from getting into the bottle or on the nipple.
  • Before feeding the baby, test the temperature by shaking a few drops on your wrist.

  Use up quickly or store safely

  • Use formula within 2 hours of preparation.
  • If the baby does not finish the entire bottle of formula, discard the unused formula.
  • If you do not plan to use the prepared formula right away, refrigerate it immediately and use it within 24 hours. Refrigeration slows bacterial growth and increases safety.
  • When in doubt, throw it out. If you can't remember how long you have kept formula in the refrigerator, it is safer to throw it out than to feed it to your baby.
• QWhat is the proper way to bottle-feed?

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  A Sarine Salama , Psychology, answered on behalf of MDLIVE

  Prop the baby in a semi upright position, cradled in your arms. Hold the bottle at a slight angle and make sure that the nipple is completly filled with milk to decrease the amount of air the baby is intaking, thus decreasing gassy tummies!
• QAre there cookbooks for making baby food?

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  A Dr. Alan Greene, MD , Pediatrics, answered on behalf of DrGreene.com

  There are a growing number of great resources both on and off-line for making delicious, nutritious baby food.
  
  Feeding Baby Green features not only easy recipes, but also the key windows of opportunity for developing our children’s eating habits using not just taste, but all of the senses.
  
  It details a totally new approach to cultivating age-appropriate abilities to recognize and enjoy healthy amounts of great food, during critical moments of development.
• QWhat is the best organic baby formula?

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  A Dr. Alan Greene, MD , Pediatrics, answered on behalf of DrGreene.com

  Of the current options available for healthy pre-term babies, I prefer choosing an organic, milk-based formula with added DHA and ARA. Examples include Bright Beginnings Organic (made by PBM), Earth’s Best Organic Infant Formula with DHA & ARA (made by PBM), Parent’s Choice Organic Infant Formula (made by PBM), and Similac Organic.