Until 6 months, the baby does not need any other nutrition other than mother's milk. It replaces food and drink for him. But from six months of age, and in the case of artificial babies - even earlier, the mother inevitably faces the question: what can the child drink. Tea or cocoa - of course, cannot be given yet. Fermented milk drinks and juices, which are introduced into complementary foods quite early, are cold. I want to give my baby something warm, tasty and good for his health. And an old drink immediately comes to mind - compote. It is brewed from berries or fruits, so it retains a huge amount of substances that are most valuable for the child’s body. But in order for the drink to bring only benefits to the baby, you need to know at what age and what kind of compotes to offer the baby, and how to cook them correctly.
When to give compote to a baby?
If a newborn is breastfed, he usually does not even need water. Mother's milk fully meets his needs. Although you can offer water, especially in hot weather: it is quite possible that the baby will drink it with pleasure. When active complementary feeding begins, you cannot do without additional liquid. Children who are fed formula must be given extra food.
At first, the baby is given only water. His digestive system matures gradually. In cases where there are reasons, such as underweight, complementary feeding can be started at four months. But WHO recommends doing this for six months. From the same age, you can try giving compote to babies. It must be introduced gradually, like any new product. Start with a teaspoon and increase the portion daily, offering the drink several times a day.
How to cook compote for babies?
Cooking compote for children is quite simple. The water must be of excellent quality, it is good if it is filtered. Fruits should be selected that are not overripe and without visible defects. You should not choose exotic foods; for a child of the first year of life, the most suitable food is considered to be the food that his ancestors consumed. Therefore, the first drink is best made from green apples; they are the least allergenic.
To get a tasty and healthy compote, the fruits are cut into slices and the berries are placed whole. In most cases, you need to cook for about fifteen minutes. Before use, it must be allowed to brew. Sugar should not be added to drinks. When you really want to sweeten it, you can do it with a small amount of fructose.
Brief summary
Compotes are an important component of a baby’s diet. They are healthy and quench your thirst well. To avoid problems with digestion and allergies when introducing them into your baby’s diet, follow the following advice from your pediatrician:
- you can introduce compotes into the diet of a healthy baby from 4-6 months,
- the first compotes should be cooked from green apples at the rate of 1 large apple per 0.5 liters of water,
- for the first time, give 1 teaspoon of the drink and observe the child’s reaction throughout the day,
- up to one year, it is allowed to feed the baby three times a day with decoctions of fruits, 100 g at a time. After a year, compotes can be given in unlimited quantities, but without replacing water with them,
- Berry decoctions can be offered to a child no earlier than 1.5 years.
Do everything right, and your baby will delight you with good health!
Benefits of compote
Even after figuring out whether a child can have compote and at what age it is best to start giving it, parents often doubt whether this should be done. In fact, this is a healthy drink containing quite a large amount of vitamins. Of course, some of them are lost during cooking, but more than half still remains. And this is important for a growing body, and also helps strengthen the immune system.
Many fruits and berries contain substances that have a positive effect on the functioning of the intestines and contribute to its colonization with beneficial bacteria. Many mothers are familiar firsthand with the problem of constipation in children, because the digestive system is just developing. Compote made from prunes or with the addition of raisins helps to cope with this problem, as it has a laxative effect.
Not all babies are willing to drink water. But they must receive the required amount of fluid, because the child’s body is easily dehydrated. Also, when a child has a cold, he is advised to drink plenty of warm drinks. And if the little one refuses other drinks, perhaps he will like the compote. You can give it even during meals; it will not interfere with digestion. One condition must be met: it must be at room temperature or slightly warm.
Thus, it makes sense to give compote to a child, because this drink:
- contains vitamins and microelements, helps strengthen the immune system;
- promotes normal functioning of the digestive system;
- extra drink, especially for those who don’t really like water.
Which compote to give to the baby first depends on the time of year. If the season allows, it is better to brew the drink from fresh fruits, primarily apples. To do this, take a fruit (you should choose a green variety) and wash it thoroughly. Next, peel, cut into small slices and pour a cup of water. Bring to a boil over low heat, then remove from heat. There is no need to boil for a long time to preserve more nutrients. After the drink has been infused for an hour, it is ready to drink.
You can not drain the liquid, but make a compote with pulp. To do this, apple pieces are crushed in a blender. This is not necessary, because almost all vitamins pass into water. But the taste becomes more pronounced. In addition, the child will be able to get fiber that is beneficial for digestion.
After apple compote for babies is introduced into the diet, you can cook it with the addition of pears. They do it the same way, only they pour twice as much water.
Compote for an 8 month old baby: recipe
With the birth of a little miracle, parents have many questions regarding the nutrition of their children. In particular, when can you start feeding your children complementary foods and with what? Compote also has a place on this list. What beneficial properties does compote provide to the body and what is it used for?
What kind of compote can an 8 month old baby have?
Healthy baby food includes different types of compotes. Drinks contain vitamins and microelements that the body cannot do without.
Dosage. Compotes are introduced into a baby’s diet no earlier than six months. At first it should be given in small portions, adhering to the daily dose for the baby. It is 100 ml. Drinking is divided into several stages. The diet of an 8-month-old child includes unlimited quantities of compote, provided they have greater mobility. Pediatricians believe that compote does not belong to complementary foods.
Allergy. Dried fruit compote is the safest for an 8 month old baby. It does not cause allergic reactions. In addition, at this age you can give compotes from fruits and berries.
When it comes to red foods, you should be careful because they can cause allergic reactions. But still there must be an individual approach to this matter.
Sugar. Compote for an 8 month old baby does not need to be sweetened much. It is very useful to take raisins instead of sugar. Prune compote also has a good effect on a child’s body, especially when the baby suffers from constipation.
A delicious drink is made from sea buckthorn. It does not have much acidity, so there is no need to add a lot of sugar. At this age, compote can be prepared from different fruits and vegetables.
Is it possible to give a baby compote during feeding? This drink does not affect the digestive process. It is necessary to ensure that the compote is at room temperature. The best time to drink the drink is after the children have had breakfast or lunch.
How to cook compote for an 8 month old baby?
Before you start cooking compote, you should pay attention, first of all, to water. It must be pure from a spring or filtered. An important point is that the compote should not be boiled for a long time. With strong boiling, beneficial substances are lost.
Peeling the fruit is a must. The drink should always be fresh, so it is brewed in small portions. Cutting fruits into small pieces for boiling is not suitable; they still won’t have time to boil. It is advisable to use a saucepan that has a transparent lid.
Apple. Recipe for compote for an 8 month old baby from apples and pears. It is considered the most harmless drink among baby food. The good thing is that you don’t have to use sugar when making compote; apples have their own sweetness. This is quite enough for a child. But if you wish, you can sweeten it a little.
For the compote you will need:
- apples;
- pear;
- a handful of raisins for taste;
- half a liter of water.
Cooking method. Apples and pears should be washed, wiped and peeled. Cut and remove seeds from the middle. Place the prepared ingredients in a saucepan and add water. After the compote boils, remove from heat. There is no need to open the lid. The drink needs to steep for an hour. The compote is ready to eat.
Apples contain fiber. It improves the digestion process. Therefore, you can beat the cooked compote. It will turn out with pulp, the child’s body will receive useful substances.
Dried fruits. Their dried fruit compote for 8 month old babies is popular among young mothers. It helps improve the baby's digestion and improves immunity. A drink of dried fruits is being prepared. You can use pears, apples or other dried fruits.
For one serving of compote, 50 g of dried fruit is enough.
Cooking method. First you need to process the drying. It should be thoroughly washed and scalded with hot water. Dried fruits are placed in a pan, poured with not too hot boiled water and left until the morning.
In the morning, mix the drying agent with water and you can add a little sugar. It is recommended to use fructose instead of sugar. The compote is ready to eat.
Compotes have great benefits for children's bodies. The child receives a lot of vitamins, which he so lacks, especially in the autumn-winter period. They are replenished by drinking wonderful drinks.
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Dried fruit compote for babies
At the end of winter, apples lose their beneficial properties, so it is better to cook dried fruit compote for babies. The best ones are those that were dried not in the oven, but in the sun. When choosing a product, you should pay attention to the appearance: the fruits are bright and free of defects, probably treated with a special composition. Before cooking, wash them well and soak them in water for a while. For a handful of dried fruits you need about a glass of liquid. They are poured into already boiling water, and after fifteen minutes they are removed from the stove. Dried apples are suitable for the first time, then you can add dried apricots, raisins, and prunes. Raisins will add a little sweetness to the drink; add them five minutes before the end of cooking. Strain before use.
You can make a drink from dried apricots and raisins without cooking: just pour boiling water over them in the evening, cover with a lid and leave overnight.
Prune compote for babies
If you are prone to constipation, a compote made from. It is done like this: cut five fruits in half and throw them into boiling water. This amount requires one liter. Otherwise, proceed as with compote from other dried fruits: boil for ten minutes, let stand for a while, strain before giving to the baby.
Compote for a baby is a tasty and healthy drink that can be given from the age of six months. But you need to monitor the reaction. If signs of allergy appear, you should discontinue the product and try again after two weeks. In cases where the baby refuses to drink it, you should not force it. You can simply offer it after some time has passed.
Mother's milk is rightfully considered the most beneficial product for a child's body. However, in its composition, milk resembles more food than drink. Infants must be given clean water, natural juices and, of course, compotes. For many parents, the important question remains: at what age can you safely give your child compote?
This drink saturates the children's body with vitamins and minerals, as it is prepared from fresh fruits and berries or dried fruits. In addition, compote will quench thirst and normalize water balance. Parents should know which product will bring the greatest benefit and how to prepare it correctly.
Suitable age for introduction into the diet
Most pediatricians are inclined to believe that this vitamin drink can be given to a child at 6 months. Before this age, compotes are not recommended due to possible allergies. Ideally, before preparing the drink, you should try to offer your baby the berries and fruits that are included in the composition. If a rash, flatulence or difficulty breathing does not appear after a while, then the child does not have an allergy.
The optimal age when you can give compote is considered to be from 3 to 12 months. However, before starting such complementary feeding, it would be advisable to consult a pediatrician. Young mothers should follow these rules when introducing the product:
- At 6 months of age, you can brew fruit and berry drinks.
- When your baby turns one year old, offer him dried fruit compote. The drink is especially relevant in winter, when it is impossible to find fresh fruits on store shelves that will delight you with their vitamin composition. Drinks from dried fruits can be prepared without sugar, because the ingredients themselves are sweet.
- First, compotes for a child are diluted with boiled water so as not to provoke allergies again.
If you still decide to give your baby a fruit drink from 5 months, then first check for an allergic reaction to the ingredients and consult with your pediatrician. Taking into account the rich vitamin composition, infants should drink compotes immediately after feeding.
How to choose products for compote?
- The water should be clean - preferably intended for feeding children or filtered.
- The best option is when mom can cook compote from fruits collected in her garden or country house. In this case, in the summer-autumn period, mother should think about preparing berries and fruits for making a drink in winter. It can either dry the summer harvest or freeze it.
- It is better to buy dried fruits in packages rather than in bulk. Choose a product that is not brightly colored, as bright colors may indicate added dyes.
- When preparing products, they should be thoroughly washed and peeled, and the stems and seeds should be removed. It is also recommended to scald fruits with boiling water to ensure that harmful microorganisms are removed.
Acceptable compotes for infants
What kind of compote can be given to a baby at the beginning of complementary feeding. Apple product is recognized as hypoallergenic. It is best if the drink is made from fresh fruit. Summer and autumn are suitable for this.
If you put off getting acquainted with the drink until late autumn, you will have to prepare a compote from dried apples or other dried fruits. In winter, you can add frozen fruits and berries to the drink.
If the apple compote has been successfully tested by the baby’s body, then next time treat him with a new taste. Your baby will be delighted with drinks with the addition of:
- fresh or dried pear fruits;
- rose hips;
- apricot and plum.
What other compotes can you give to your child? Particular attention should be paid to sea buckthorn. This tasty and healthy berry is sure to please your little ones. After preparation, the drink should be strained through a sieve so that it is convenient for the baby to drink it from a bottle.
The options for children's compotes are varied. However, remember that it is not recommended to give drinks with raspberries or strawberries to a child under 8 months of age, so as not to provoke an allergic reaction.
Useful tips
A special feature of preparing children's compote is minimal boiling of the ingredients. It is best to remove the container with the drink from the heat immediately after boiling. If mom wants to boil the fruit, 5-10 minutes is enough.
- Children should be introduced to compote, to which no sugar is added. Drinks prepared for children over one year old can be sweetened. At the same time, many parents avoid adding sugar even after one year of age, replacing it with fructose, grape sugar or raisins.
- The finished drink for children can be stored for only one day. If the drink sits longer, it becomes less healthy. In addition, it can ferment and spoil.
- Fruits from compote can also be eaten. Give them to children over one year old.
Find out if your baby's weight is normal by using the following calculator.
The benefits of compotes
Despite the fact that only fresh fruits and berries are used to prepare the drink, some parents still doubt whether they are doing the right thing by giving their child such a rich product. The main advantages of natural compositions over canned store-bought compotes:
- As you know, after heat treatment the bulk of vitamins are lost. However, fruits contain enough useful substances that contribute to the normal functioning of the child’s body.
- You can cook compote from dried fruits, since these ingredients have a beneficial effect on the baby’s digestive system and promote the proliferation of beneficial microflora. If a child has constipation, then it must consist of raisins, apples and dried apricots.
- A warm drink can be offered to your baby if he is showing signs of a cold.
The benefits of dried fruit compote for children lie in its amazing composition. Dried apricots and prunes have a mild laxative effect, and dried apple normalizes digestion. What else is useful for dried fruit compote? Raisins, pears and figs are responsible for strengthening the immune system and saturate the intestines with beneficial bifidobacteria.
Benefits of pear
Pear is a fruit rich in beneficial microelements. It will bring great benefits to the children's body. Therefore, the answer to the question whether infants can eat a pear will be positive. In addition, the baby will definitely like the pleasant sweet taste. Vitamins A, B, C, E, K and PP, which are contained in pears, have a beneficial effect on the skin. In addition, the fruit contains natural sugars, fiber, fluorine, zinc, copper and tannins. This explains the huge number of beneficial properties that pears have. These include the following:
• strengthening the baby's immunity;
• normalization of the functioning of the digestive system;
• removal of toxins from the body;
• normalization of the central nervous system, heart and blood vessels;
• increased vitality.
The fruit has a diuretic and antipyretic effect. Many mothers want to know if the pear is strengthening the baby. It depends on what variety of fruit is chosen and at what time it ripens. If your baby suffers from constipation, it is better to choose early varieties of fruit, since they contain a small amount of tannins that have an astringent effect and can weaken. If, on the contrary, you need to secure the chair, preference should be given to late varieties. Their composition allows you to achieve the desired effect.
Allergic reactions
It happens that a child begins to develop an allergy to compote. What should parents know in this case? First of all, let's look at why a baby starts having allergic attacks. The reason for this may be:
- drinking drinks in unlimited quantities;
- the presence of allergies in the mother, hereditary transmission;
- citrus compotes.
In addition, irritation occurs when parents forget at what age they can start giving compotes and start introducing this drink too early. The ideal time for the first compote feeding is at 8 months. During this period, the digestive system will already become stronger, and a strong immune system will also be formed.
How to determine that your baby does not have allergies? Before giving him a drink, you need to offer small pieces of fruits and berries from which the drink will be brewed. If after a while you do not notice any changes in the stool, redness, itching or flatulence, then the future compote has passed the test.
How to avoid allergies
Children should cook compotes according to the following rules:
- avoid red berries - raspberries, strawberries;
- do not add citrus fruits - orange, kiwi;
- use minimal amounts of sugar.
It is allowed to use apples, pears, prunes and dried apricots in the composition, since these fruits are not aggressive.
When is it allowed to be included in the diet?
Many mothers are interested in how many months can a baby start giving compote? Healthy full-term babies can start giving compotes as early as 4 months. If a child suffers from a digestive disorder, for example, regurgitates a lot, poops frequently (more than 3 times a day), or his stool is too runny and green, then new drinks should be introduced into the diet later.
When creating a menu for premature or low birth weight infants, you need to approach it with extreme caution, and it is better to introduce compotes into their diet no earlier than 6 months.
For the first time, give your baby a teaspoon of fruit infusion. Wait a day. If a disorder does not appear and an allergic reaction does not appear, then you can increase the dose to 50 grams, and after a week, feel free to pour 100 grams of the drink into the bottle.
Important! You cannot completely replace water with compote, juice and tea.
The child drinks a lot
Every caring mother notices the slightest changes in the baby’s behavior. If you see that your child drinks a lot of compote and other liquids, is this good or bad?
Causes
A child drinks too much for the following possible reasons:
- high air temperature in the room or outside;
- intoxication after vomiting or diarrhea;
- feeding with breast milk without further supplementation.
How much liquid does a baby need per day? The daily rate of water consumption for a child under 3 years old is 700-800 ml. If you are breastfeeding, you need to supplement your baby with water, but not more than 150 ml per day. This is exactly the amount of liquid that is enough to quench thirst after feeding.
Sometimes children drink a lot due to certain diseases. If you notice that a child drinks much more than he should, this may indicate the following diseases:
- infectious and colds;
- diarrhea, poisoning;
- pathologies in the endocrine system or brain;
- diabetes;
- disorders of the kidneys.
To make sure there are no such dangerous pathologies, take the time to show your little one to the pediatrician.
Drinking compote at night
If you begin to notice that your baby is increasingly asking to drink at night, this may be due to:
- air temperature (too hot and dry climate in the nursery);
- lack of parental attention (the baby tries to attract your attention by asking for a drink);
- formation of night drinking habit.
It is extremely difficult to wean yourself off from drinking at night, but it is necessary, since this entails disturbances in the functioning of the endocrine glands.
How to wean
Parents are also tormented by the question: how to stop their child from drinking at night, since this causes significant discomfort to the household.
- Provide your baby with comfortable conditions in the room, ventilate it as often as possible.
- Don't overfeed your baby before bedtime.
- Many parents allow their baby to drink compote at night, so the baby just gets used to this drink. Try replacing it with water so that the baby himself refuses the nighttime liquid.
- Also try to pay more attention to your baby during the day so that at night he does not try to attract you with such requests.
Compotes can be introduced into the diet when the child is 6 months old. This age is considered the most optimal for trying out a new type of drink, since the immune system and digestive system will become stronger. The first drink should be made from apples, and then you can add dried fruits.
Compote will not only help diversify a child’s diet, but will also become a source of vitamins for the baby’s body.
At what age can an infant be given compote?
A baby's first acquaintance with compote can be made when he reaches six months of age.
That is, at the same time when the first complementary foods are introduced. If the baby is on artificial or mixed feeding, you can give him compote diluted with water a little earlier - at five or even four months.
For the first time, let the baby try a teaspoon of compote, then monitor the body’s reaction: are there any allergies, is everything okay with the tummy (is there constipation, diarrhea, bloating, colic).
If the baby’s body accepts the drink normally, you can gradually increase the portion to 30-60 ml at a time.
What is the best way to make compote for babies?
The first compote in a baby's life is best made from apples.
To do this, you need to choose green varieties - they pose the least threat of allergies. Later you can add a pear to the compote.
You can also make compote from dried apples. In the future, the compote can be diversified with other dried fruits - dried apricots, raisins, prunes.
You should avoid red fruits and berries (especially strawberries), as they are considered foods with a high likelihood of developing allergies. For the same reason, you should not experiment with exotic fruits, especially citrus fruits.
Compote for babies, recipe
The best option for preparing the first compote for a baby would be a green apple.
Choose quality fruit that is large in size. Wash the apple thoroughly under running water.
Remove the core and cut the apple into slices or cubes - whatever you like.
Some experts also advise peeling the fruit, but in some recipes it is retained.
Place the chopped fruit in a saucepan, add 250 ml of clean water, put on fire, cover with a lid.
After the water boils, wait five, maximum ten minutes. Remove the pan from the stove and, without removing the lid, leave the drink to infuse and cool.
Strain the cooled compote, after which you can safely give it to your baby.
After a couple of weeks, you can add, for example, a pear to the compote. In this case, take half a liter of water for one apple and pear.
Compote for a six-month-old baby does not need to be sweetened with sugar. For this purpose, you can add raisins to the drink. To do this, first wash it and then soak it in water for a while. You need to add it to boiling water.
In winter, you can cook compote from dried apples. Wash them first and soak them in water until they soften and swell. You need to throw dried fruits into boiling water, and cook this compote for at least 20 minutes, then leave to cool and infuse.
After a successful experience with dried apple compote, you can add the same raisins and dried apricots to the recipe.
If your child suffers from constipation, you can prepare compote with prunes. But don't overdo your concentration.
Dried fruit compote for infants is a drink that can enrich the child’s body with the vitamins and minerals it needs for full development. Dried fruits and berries are famous for their effective effect on the gastrointestinal tract, so they can be given to children as a mild natural laxative.
Compote from 7 months recipe
Age: from 7 months
Dried fruit compote for children
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In the last article - compotes for children, I wrote about compote for a child up to a year old and older. How to give, how much, norms for each age. Now let’s figure out how to cook compote for a child. So that we get not only a tasty drink that the child will like, but that it retains as many vitamins as possible.
You will need to make dried fruit compote for your child:
- 50 g dried fruits (apple, pear);
- 500 ml. water
How to prepare dried fruit compote for a child:
1. Very convenient proportions of dried fruits and water. While we are just starting to introduce dried fruit compote for a child, you can prepare 20 g of dried fruit per 200 ml.
Let's figure out what dried fruits we use. From seven months - apple, pear, prune, they are least likely to cause allergies. At first we prepare only from dried fruits of apples, introduce them gradually, as the baby gets used to it, you can gradually add a pear to the apple, then, as the baby gets used to it, prunes. It is better to prepare compote from these dried fruits before 9-10 months. Then you can add raisins (they cause gas formation) and dried apricots (they often cause allergies).
Dried fruits must be washed thoroughly. We put them in a saucepan in which we will cook the compote, always with a glass lid, I’ll explain why later. Fill them with warm boiled water (not hot, but warm). And leave it to swell overnight. We won’t be draining this water; this is water for compote.
In the morning, mix the contents. If the child is older than one year, you can add a little sugar. It is better not to add sugar until the child is one year old; if the child completely refuses to drink without sugar, it is better to add grape sugar or a little fructose. Both of me happily drank without sugar, but sweet compote is even worse, and now they drink it, they like it slightly sweetened.
2. Place a saucepan with a tightly closed lid on low heat and bring the compote to a boil. As soon as we saw through the glass lid that it was boiling, immediately remove it from the heat without removing the lid. Leave it to cool with the lid closed.
Regarding the closed lid. This is very important for preserving vitamins. After all, not only temperature and prolonged heating contribute to the destruction of vitamins, but it is even more important that there is no contact with air during heating. This is why I often try to write that we close the lid and that almost all of my pots have transparent lids, so as not to have to remove them again.
3. After 30 minutes - 1 hour you can offer it warm to the child.
Of course, even with such gentle preparation in dried fruit compote for a child, some of the vitamins are inevitably lost, but the maximum remains that can be preserved when preparing the compote, i.e. by heating - up to 60% of the vitamins, and they are stored in the liquid. Because almost all vitamins and microelements from dried fruits pass into liquid, i.e. into compote. Mineral salts and organic acids are also preserved in the compote.
Store the compote for up to 1 day. I pour it into a jar with the lid closed and put it in the refrigerator.
I also like to pour it into a thermos, so you can also store it until the evening. Very convenient, no need to reheat.
The next day we prepare a fresh one, because the longer the compote sits, the more vitamins in it are destroyed. Bon appetit!
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What are the benefits of dried fruits?
High-quality dried fruits retain more nutrients than frozen berries, ready-made compotes or jam. In addition, they are not processed with sugar, so they do not harm the child’s body due to extra calories.
Eating them in winter is the best way to combat vitamin deficiency.
Dried fruit drink:
- strengthens the immune system
- improves appetite
- good for arthritis (if the recipe includes apricots)
- reduces and stabilizes intracranial pressure
- increases hemoglobin levels (if the recipe includes prunes)
- has a bactericidal effect (used in the treatment of genitourinary tract infections)
- normalizes metabolism
- strengthens the nervous system, helps treat depression
If the recipe contains several ingredients, this is not a good option for babies. Children over 12 months can already be offered multi-ingredient drinks.
It is necessary to limit the consumption of compotes or reduce them to a minimum if a child has a stomach ulcer.
Most berries have a diuretic effect, so drinks based on them can increase the load on the kidneys. Compotes must be offered to children of any age in strictly dosed doses so as not to have the opposite health effect.
A child's stool upset should be the reason to refuse compotes, especially those containing prunes and dried apricots.
pros
- Due to the content of vitamins and minerals, drinking this drink supports the baby’s health, in particular, helps strengthen the immune system in winter.
- The child will benefit from its ingredients. For example, raspberry compote has the ability to lower temperature, lingonberry compote has the ability to help treat colds, and peach compote has a positive effect on vision.
- The product is a source of pectin.
- This drink will help diversify your child’s drinking regime. By including it in the children's diet, the mother will give additional liquid to the baby who refuses clean water.
- A drink whose recipe contains dried fruits has a positive effect on children’s digestion, as well as on their cardiovascular system.
- The sweetness of the fruit eliminates the need to add sugar to the drink.
At what age can children be given dried fruits?
Dried fruits themselves are a complex food for a child. But compotes based on them are an excellent option for infants and children under one year old.
According to the recommendation of the authoritative World Health Organization, complementary feeding should begin to be given to an infant at six months. By this time, the baby’s gastrointestinal tract has already become a little stronger and is ready to accept other foods (not mother’s milk or adapted milk formula).
Complementary feeding is necessarily accompanied by abundant supplementation. In modern pediatrics it is believed that it is not necessary to give a child anything to drink until he is 6 months old. The exception is situations with elevated body temperature of the baby, prolonged diarrhea.
In this case, the child can be given purified water and weak decoctions of medicinal herbs.
Compotes should appear in the baby’s diet at 6 months. Complementary feeding is often accompanied in children, since the intestines do not immediately adapt to new food. For this reason, dried fruit compote for babies helps solve this problem.
How to prepare dried fruit compote for a child?
For the drink, you need to choose high-quality fruits that have not been treated with chemicals.
Dried fruit compote for babies should contain one component - dried apples. When the body gets used to this drink, you can add regular raisins, aromatic dried apricots or prunes to it (provided that the child has already been given these products and they have not caused an allergy).
The best compote option for the little ones would be the following:
- rinse dried fruits in plenty of running water, soak for 15-30 minutes
- drain the water from the dried fruits, put them in a thermos and pour boiling water over them, let them brew for an hour
With this method, there is no need to boil the fruits, so they retain most of their vitamin composition. For a richer taste, the compote should be cooked for about 20 minutes. The recipe for infants does not include sugar. To sweeten the drink a little, you can add a little fructose or honey to the child’s compote (if there are no allergies). It is not recommended to give it to children in any form up to 12 months, after which it is strictly dosed.
An important nuance: if the recipe involves boiling dried fruits, this should be done with the lid closed and over very low heat. This way you can save more useful elements.
The recipe for dried fruit compote can be varied with various components. They taste great with rose hip decoction; you can also add black currant leaves, mint or lemon balm to this drink.
For a child over 12 months old, a refreshing compote can be boiled with lemon: to do this, put a piece of citrus into the ready-made drink for a few minutes and squeeze out a little juice.
Cooking recipes
In summer it is very useful to make a drink from fresh fruits. Only if you start giving your baby new types of fruits, add one each time. He needs to get used to the product and taste that is unusual for him. There are different recipes for making compote, choose which one you like best. READ ALSO: recipe for applesauce for babies
Traditional method: take a medium-sized apple and wash it. Peel it and remove seeds, fill it with boiled water - about two glasses. Boil over low heat for 15-20 minutes. Add fructose - sugar can cause bloating, and honey is contraindicated for infants.
Try brewing a drink in a thermos:
- Wash a fresh apple, remove seeds and peel.
- Cut into slices of any size.
- Then put it in a thermos and fill it with boiling water.
- Close the thermos and leave it to steep overnight.
- After a few hours it will be ready - the apples will “arrive” by themselves.
The drink should not be hot. Before offering the drink to your baby, cool to room temperature and strain.
From dry apples
Apple compote for babies is also prepared from dry fruits. It is good because it has its own distinct taste, sweetish and aromatic, and it does not need to be sweetened with anything. Dry apples contain the same substances as fresh ones, and it is preferable to cook it when there are no useful substances left in fresh ones - this is winter and spring. There are also various recipes for this.
The traditional method is the simplest. Take a handful of dry apples and wash them thoroughly. Place in boiled water and leave for about 30-40 minutes until the fruit swells. They will remove particularly stubborn specks that always remain on the fruit when dried. Rinse them again, put in boiling water - about 1.5 cups, and cook over low heat for about half an hour. Then set aside and cool. Strain.
You can brew uzvar in a thermos. Prepare the apples in the same way as in the first method. Place them in a thermos and fill them with boiling water. It needs to brew, so it’s more convenient to do it at night. If the compote turns out to be too rich, add a little boiled water to it. For two glasses of boiling water you will need 100-150 grams of fruit.
Just like when cooking with fresh fruits, you shouldn’t make it from a mixture of many dried fruits at once. Add them one at a time. The next ingredient after apples could be prunes. At first, do not mix both compotes, but give them separately. Start introducing your child to prune compote with one teaspoon.
From prunes
For some children who have digestive problems, acquaintance with prunes can begin as early as five months - just not a compote, but a drink made from prunes.
For a five-month-old baby, such a drink will be useful. It cleanses the intestines well and helps peristalsis. In any case, consult your pediatrician first. To prepare it, you need to take a glass of pitted prunes and a tablespoon of fructose (or sugar) per liter of boiling water.
Dissolve fructose in water, then soak the prunes for half an hour and rinse them. Place in water and boil for 15-20 minutes until the berries are soft. After this, cool and strain the compote.
When the baby gets used to prune compote, you can give him apple compote with prunes. There will be no unpleasant reactions from him. This compote can be infused in a thermos, it will then come out even tastier. And then mix with fresh apples and other fruits.
Raisin compote
It is recommended to cook for a child from 8 months of age. You can cook it either as a separate compote or by mixing it with fruits already familiar to your baby in any proportion. This compote is not stored for a long time; it is better to prepare it immediately before use. It is better to choose raisins from light varieties. To prepare you need:
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- a tablespoon of raisins,
- half a glass of boiling water.
A portion of raisins must be sorted out and filled with cool water for half an hour so that they swell and all the debris that always accumulates in its folds is removed. There is no need to add sugar to the compote; the raisins are sweet on their own.
Rinse again, add boiling water and cook over low heat for 15-20 minutes. The lid must be closed. You need to start with a teaspoon, then increase to a full portion. The mother of a newborn baby should drink the same drink made from raisins - it will make the milk healthier and will help the baby in case of constipation.
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How and what dried fruits to choose?
It is not recommended to cook children's compotes with exotic dried fruits: bananas, mangoes, etc. It is better to prepare a drink from plants growing in your area. Also, a small child should not cook compote with dried cherries. During long-term storage, poisonous substances begin to form in the seeds of these berries.
For compotes, it is better to use fruits prepared independently in the autumn-summer period: apples, pears, quinces, apricots, grapes.
If dried fruits are purchased for a drink in a store or market, the following factors must be taken into account:
- The glossy shine of prunes and dried apricots should alert you: fruits that are dried naturally have a matte texture
- smoked dried fruits are most often processed with synthetic smoke, which is dangerous for children and adults
- high-quality dried fruits should not leave marks on your hands
- dried fruits sold by weight may contain microorganisms that are dangerous to a child’s health
For children's compotes, it is necessary to choose dried fruits that are thoroughly cleaned of stems and seeds. If fruits are not sold in original packaging, they must be especially carefully sorted and washed in water. You can add a few drops of vitamin juice (rowanberry, grape, plum) to the recipe to taste. It is better to prepare compote for babies without pulp. To do this, you need to strain the prepared fruit broth.
You should not give anything other than purified boiled water. If the baby refuses to drink, you can slightly sweeten the drink with a 5% glucose solution.
Babies aged one month and older can drink chamomile and fennel tea. They strengthen children's immunity, have an antibacterial effect, and are also great for helping with colic and bloating.
From the age of three months, it is recommended to gradually introduce apple and pear juices into the child’s diet, and from five months, the juice of apricots, plums, cherries, peaches, etc. is allowed.
A six-month-old child can already drink homemade compote. Prepared with your own hands, such compotes can significantly expand and enrich a child’s diet with vitamins.