Why choose organic food for your baby?

To be honest I never was bothered to buy organic food. Everything changed however when my daughter came along. My son grew up on natural food, as we used to have our own garden, and people in my country weren’t much into chemical pesticides treatment 13 years ago. When we shop these days though, we try as much as possible to get organic produce.

Children are more sensitive than adults to toxins, so choosing organic is a way to reduce their exposure to harmful chemicals, such as pesticides, pesticide residues and herbicides. Studies show that, on average, organic food has 95% fewer chemicals than non-organic foods. It also contains more antioxidants, vitamins and minerals.

For many parents, the jury is still out on Genetically Modified foods. If it is something you are concerned about, organic food is GM-free.

Don't forget the feel-good factor. Buying and eating them is a real guilt-free pleasure. It's great to know that you're not only helping the environment, you're feeding your family on good, pure food, that tastes better than processed food and has no hidden poisons, which is more than you can say for what you pick up at the average supermarket.

Perhaps one of the most important advantages of organic food is that it is pure nature-grown food. Forget E-numbers, hydrogenated fats, artificial colours, flavours, sweeteners, preservatives – none of these additives that are lurking in processed and fast foods, are permitted in organic ones. There are no residual antibiotics, growth hormones or BSE in organic meat, no pesticides in organic milk, and no hidden starch bulking out organic baby food. If you want a diet based on natural food that hasn't been tampered with – think organic.

Toddler On-the-go Meals

One of the best ways to keep your little one happy while you travel in the car, plane or just having a day out at the park, is to bring some healthy tasty snacks along. Spend few minutes to think trough what your child would prefer, to avoid a lot of spitting and fussiness outside. When your toddler is happy, everyone on the journey will be happy too :o)

Here are a few suggestions:

• Peeled, seeded, and wedged apples, oranges, pears, plums or grapes. Put them in the Ziploc bags or small containers. Bananas are great too, but don’t peel them or cut them till they’re ready to be eaten (they go black and mushy very quickly).
• Mini bagels (or normal sized ones cut in pieces) with some cream cheese spread.
• Mini muffins -They are easier to hold then normal size ones :o)
• Cucumbers, celery, or carrots (for older toddlers), peeled and cut as sticks to be easy to hold. My daughter loves cucumbers, although we have only six teeth.
• Pretzels -They are crunchy and fun to eat.
• Cheerios- Make sure to get low sugar ones.
• Raisins along with other dry fruits. Such a yummy healthy option: o). They look cheerful an appealing in that Ziploc bag.
• If your toddler is above 2 years old, chop some nuts too. Make sure your little one doesn’t have allergies to any of them.
• Crackers are also a good-to-go snack. Always fun to munch.
• Cheese sticks- Cut your baby’s favorite cheese in to stick for easy hold. Or cut it in to different shapes :o)
• Homemade veggie chips – Peel carrots, zucchini, pumpkin, sweet potatoes, turnip or apples into thin slices. Place them on a sheet slightly sprayed with oil. Bake the vegetables at 140C for about 30-40 min, or until crisp and golden brown. You can cut your veggies into “french fries” sticks and bake them about an hour and a half.

Different kinds of vegetables cook for varying lengths of times, so it is important to check for doneness frequently.

Do not forget to take some liquids with you. Water is the best. It will keep your baby hydrated, thirst satisfied. Of course if your baby prefers juices, it’s fine as long as they are low in sugar. My baby is still on the breast milk/formula, but I never leave without a Sippy-cup of water :o)

Tips to make your little one eat

1. Snack. If you are dealing with someone like my daughter, let them nibble. Don’t expect your kid to eat all 3 meals a day. Sometimes just let them snack on the healthy finger food through the day.
2. Don’t push it. When your baby doesn’t want anymore, let them leave. Otherwise your baby will end up crying, upset, and make other meal times hard and picky.
3. Allow the baby to be independent. Let your baby eat on their own as soon as they can hold, even if it’s messy. Prepare food that sticks to the spoon easily. Poor ones, sometime trying so hard to spoon their meal and it’s just not happening. :) I know the mess they make can be very frustrating sometimes, but totally worthy to watch. The messier their faces the funnier it is. Take a photo, it will bring some good memories later on.
4. Have a family meal together. Keep a happy family time at the table. Talk to your baby, praise them. Babies gladly will try food that you offer when everyone is eating. If not, give a friendly smile.
5. Keep trying. Fussiness is temporary. Continue to offer a wide variety of healthy foods and everything will settle down eventually.
6. Don’t be a chicken. If you want your kids to have good habits in eating veggies, show them that you do. Eat your vegetables at meal-time together. Talk to your toddler about how yummy those veggies they’re eating are.
7. Hide vegetables. If your kid refuses to eat some fruit or vegetable, hide it in the food you are preparing. Bake muffins with vegetables, carrots, pumpkin or even broccoli. Add carrots or even tomato in the smoothies along with the fruits. You can puree broccoli, cauliflower and carrots and add the mixture to spaghetti sauce.
8. No overloading. Never overload their plate. Keep it simple and colorful. Let them ask for more.

Getting challenging veggies in their diet

When we just started with the solids, it went well. She loved her cereals.

But when veggies and meats came along, she chose her favorite ones, and was rejecting anything else. At some point just to let her eat, i will mix banana with any of her lunches. Yikes, i know! So it was chicken with sweet potato and banana, or peas with fish and banana.

I even mixed broccoli (which she hates) with banana, yet it worked like a charm. Of course it wasn’t for long. And i have to come up with something new. But it should work with your little ones for a while until the novelty runs out and they find a new challenge for you.