This is how the introduction of complementary food affects your child’s digestion
The transition from milk to solid foods is an important step in a baby’s development. And a big change for his digestion. This can lead to bloating and constipation. We explain how these problems can be avoided in advance and what you can do about acute symptoms.
Milk contains all the nutrients that babies need in the first months of life and is easy to digest. Mother’s milk – just like the food industry designed baby milk – was designed exactly for the needs of the little ones. But over time, it is no longer sufficient as the sole source of nutrients. Many parents therefore switch to complementary food from around the fifth month.
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ToggleWhat exactly is complementary food?
Complementary food is the gradual transition from liquid to semi-solid to solid food. The milk (or substitute food) is gradually being replaced by mush, porridge and finger food – usually first with a vegetable and potato mash (with meat), then also with a cereal and milk and a fruit and cereal mash .
Ingredients include (sweet) potatoes, carrots, pumpkin, parsnip, spinach, courgettes, broccoli, fennel, avocados, apples, pears, bananas, pasta, rice, whole grains and oils.
In this way, the offspring are supplied with more complex carbohydrates and roughage, but they also need liquid. This is a big adjustment for the baby: the consistency of the food is firmer, it has to chew and swallow more and discovers completely new flavors.
When is my child ready for this?
When it makes sense to change your diet varies from child to child. Each has its own pace and should not be rushed. An indication of the maturity of complementary food is that the offspring no longer reflexively pushes away things that are held to and in its mouth with its tongue. He should also be able to sit up and hold his head up well. In addition, mouth-hand-eye coordination is important – i.e. being able to grab food and bring it to your mouth.
A pretty sure sign is if your child opens their mouth as soon as you hold out a spoonful of food. In this phase, your child becomes more interested in food, pays close attention to people eating and asks them to give him something. Usually it is from the fifth month, but it can also take a few months longer.
How does complementary food change digestion?
You will probably notice the change most strongly in the bowel movements, which are now becoming firmer and less frequent. Consistency and color are determined by the ingredients in the food: Spinach, for example, provides green tones, meat a dark brown and beetroot an intense red. Sometimes undigested pieces end up in the diaper, but this is completely normal. Here you can find out more about the different diaper contents.
How often a child does his big business is very individual – some several times a day, others only once in several days. Especially in the early stages of the changeover and when trying out new foods, digestion can get out of rhythm and sometimes cause problems.
Are digestive problems a cause for concern?
Bloating and constipation are relatively rare when breastfeeding. Parents are therefore often unsettled when their child’s tummy starts to rumble from the solid food or the offspring has to push harder to relieve themselves. However, this is usually harmless. The gastrointestinal tract has to adjust to the unfamiliar food.
Digestion can also be affected if your child is ill and perhaps on medication, is teething or is stressed, for example, by a change in daily routine or tensions in the family.
If your tummy feels hard when you touch it, it takes an unusually long time to have a bowel movement, your offspring cries for a long time, is visibly in pain or seems tired and exhausted, you should take a closer look and visit a doctor. If the stool is black (sign of dried blood), whitish-pale (bile) or greenish-foaming and smells pungent (infection), you should also have your child examined by a doctor.
What can I do to prevent digestive problems?
There are three starting points: well-being, exercise and the food itself. Make sure your sweetheart is doing well, that he feels safe and that he gets enough attention and cuddles. Movement also stimulates digestion – so encourage your child to crawl or walk.
Make sure your diet has enough roughage (e.g. apples, pears, grapes, plums, apricots, strawberries, blueberries, wholemeal semolina and wholemeal pasta) and liquid, e.g. water, unsweetened tea and – depending on your age – fruit juice spritzers. The right amount of fat in the diet is also important. There’s even extra complementary oil. Pineapple and mango also contain enzymes that promote good digestion.
What helps with specific complaints?
If your child is slow to defecate, you should eliminate constipating foods such as bananas, carrots, grated raw apples, pumpkin and rice as well as flatulent foods such as onions, leeks, legumes and cabbage from your diet for a few days.
A gentle clockwise abdominal massage – with antispasmodic oil made from caraway, fennel or camomile – and warm abdominal wraps can provide relaxation. The cycling exercise, in which your child lies on his back and you alternately move his little legs towards and away from his trunk, gets the intestines going.
Soaking unsulphured prunes in water and mixing both into your afternoon porridge, for example, is also an old household remedy to relieve constipation. In the pharmacy there are also gentle laxatives especially for children, which help quickly and gently and do not burden the sensitive balance of the intestinal flora.