At what age can you give your child tangerines?

These exotic fruits are valued for their beneficial qualities and pleasant taste. They contain vitamins A, B, C, phosphorus, folic acid, potassium and calcium, which are necessary for the full development and growth of the child’s body. Helps improve immunity and help fight infection. Therefore, some parents are in a hurry to introduce their child to tangerines. But there is still no need to rush, so that they only bring benefits; you should know at what age and in what quantity they can be given.

Benefits for children's bodies

Tangerines are 90% water, the remaining 10% are organic acids, pectins, sugars, potassium, calcium, magnesium, phosphorus, vitamins A (retinol), C (ascorbic acid), E (tocopherol), group B (in particular , riboflavin, thiamine), K, P.

It is worth noting that tangerines do not contain nitrates, since the ascorbic acid they contain prevents their penetration.

Impact on the children's body:

• help strengthen the immune system;
• help the body fight infection;
• necessary for good vision, formation of bone tissue and teeth;
• improve the growth of nails and hair;
• have a positive effect on the skin;
• protect cells from toxins;
• improve the functioning of the cardiovascular and nervous systems;
• support normal functioning of the thyroid gland;
• increase the level of hemoglobin in the blood, stimulate hematopoiesis;
• improve the functioning of metabolic processes in the body and the digestive system;
• saturating the body with energy;
• remove toxins;
• stimulate the functioning of internal organs and the brain;
• normalize blood sugar levels;
• improve memory.

During transportation and long-term storage, the fruits are able to retain all the beneficial substances.

Useful qualities

Oranges and tangerines have a high content of ascorbic acid.
Mandarin, like orange, is useful for children due to the presence of such positive properties:

• contain fructose, B vitamins, ascorbic acid, tocopherol, vitamin H, high potassium content, and magnesium;
• help improve the child’s immunity;
• have a beneficial effect on the heart muscle and liver;
• contain fiber and pectin, which help improve digestion and cleanse the intestines;
• have a beneficial effect in the fight against constipation or indigestion;
• increase appetite;
• cleanse the blood;
• fresh juice helps strengthen the skeletal system;
• add energy;
• relieve internal inflammation;
• help improve the metabolism of carbohydrates and lipids in the body.

Possible contraindications

Despite their beneficial properties, tangerines can be harmful to a fragile body. They are contraindicated for children with inflammatory bowel diseases, peptic ulcers, and gastritis. The fruit can negatively affect kidney function, so it is contraindicated for cholecystitis, hepatitis and nephritis.

Tangerines contain a lot of sugar, so children with obesity or diabetes can only consume them in limited quantities.

Even if the baby is not bothered by the listed diseases, it is not recommended to eat too many tangerines in one sitting in order to stock up on vitamins. We should not forget about hypervitaminosis, which is caused by consuming large doses of vitamins.

Introducing tangerines into children's diets?

After children eat exotic fruits, the reaction can be very different, so the child should be closely monitored for the first few hours. Select a ripe tangerine, peel it, and divide it into slices. Pour boiling water over one slice that you plan to give to the baby for testing. You can also put it in the freezer for 20 minutes. Such simple measures will help get rid of most microorganisms that are on the surface of the fruit. Partially remove the film from the processed slice to make it easier for your child to eat the pulp. If the baby has few teeth, then he may not eat, but simply suck a tangerine slice. The white pulp that remains at the end should simply be discarded. If your baby is teething, it is better to give him tangerines in the form of fruit juice. This will avoid injury to the gums.

At what age should it be given?

If the child is healthy and has no predisposition to allergic reactions, then you can introduce him to tangerines after 1 year. However, some doctors still believe that it is better to try them for the first time at the age of 1.5 years.

If there is an allergy to any other foods, the introduction of exotic fruits into the baby’s diet is postponed until 3 years.

How to choose and cook

It is recommended for one-year-old children to give tangerines separately from other food or add them to cottage cheese. It is useful for older people to eat them fresh on their own, along with apples, as part of fruit salads, and homemade ice cream. You can add them to the filling of sweet pies or cookies.

Best time for tangerines: December to February.

You should choose fruits that are bright yellow or orange in color. Large hybrid varieties from Turkey and Morocco are sweeter; Abkhazian tangerines contain more vitamin C. High-quality fruits are always weighty and dense with a noticeable citrus aroma and slightly moist skin, without spots on the surface.

How much and in what form to give to children

When introducing a new product into your diet, you should follow the rule of gradualness. You should start getting acquainted with the product with a small spoon of juice diluted with water 1:1. Then you need to monitor the body’s reaction. If redness, peeling and rashes on the skin do not appear, then next time you can offer him half a slice of tangerine, increasing this amount daily.

A child under 3 years old can be given no more than 1 fruit per day, older - 2-3. After 6 years you can eat 5 pieces per day. It is not recommended to eat tangerines on an empty stomach. It is better to offer peeled slices as a dessert 20-30 minutes after eating.

Before use, you must thoroughly rinse the fruit under running water, rinse it with boiling water, then remove the peel, white fibers and seeds.

Possible nutrition problems

There should be no major health problems after eating tangerines. Most often, the body reacts in the form of an allergic reaction. In such cases, complementary feeding with citruses is stopped and postponed to a later date. The signs of allergies are varied; to accurately determine the reaction, you need to know about them.

Important! If the child’s behavior changes significantly after drinking tangerine, then the introduction of the product should be postponed until the age of one.

Allergic reactions manifest themselves in children in different ways. Tangerines are a strong allergen. This is not uncommon even among adults. Signs of allergies:

• rash of various types;
• rhinitis;
• Quincke's edema;
• lacrimation;
• diathesis;
• itching;
• restless behavior of the baby.

Baby's allergies

Any manifestation of an allergy requires stopping the use of the allergen. On the same day, the child should be given an antihistamine. The course of treatment will be determined by the doctor. There are different types of rash:

• pinpoint itchy redness;
• rashes in the form of blisters with liquid;
• a red spot localized in one place with peeling;
• isolated large spots.

Don't panic if you have allergies. The main thing is to identify it in time and stop the introduction of tangerines into complementary foods. It is not known for certain at what age a child can be given citrus fruits. Some babies are ready to introduce citrus fruits from the age of 9 months, others - only at three years. There are many other healthy products with the same rich composition.

What to do if your child has allergies

Most adults believe that it is best to offer children citrus fruits instead of sweets. They will not harm teeth, contain vitamins, minerals and will be beneficial for children. But often after consuming them, the child develops redness and an itchy rash on the skin.

Symptoms of allergies:

• redness of the skin, urticaria;
• peeling;
• rash, itching;
• swelling of the mucous membrane;
• heavy breathing, runny nose;
• lacrimation, redness of the eyes.

If such symptoms appear, you must immediately exclude tangerines from your diet and consult a doctor who will prescribe enterosorbents (Polysorb) and antihistamines (Zodak, Suprax, Zyrtec). For external use, ointments and gels are prescribed, which should be used to treat the skin to eliminate rashes and itching. For rhinitis, drops with an antihistamine effect are prescribed.

In case of breathing problems, you should immediately call an ambulance, as an allergic reaction can develop into anaphylactic shock or Quincke's edema.

Allergies in a child should not be treated with folk remedies, as this can only worsen the condition.

To prevent allergic reactions, you must:

• monitor the amount of fruit you eat;
• buy only proven fruits;
• wash thoroughly before cleaning;
• Do not let your child eat the peel, as chemicals may accumulate in it.

Hidden dangers of citrus fruits for children

More often than others, an allergic reaction occurs. However, the symptoms differ depending on the condition of the body. First, a red rash appears over large areas of the body; in some children it appears only on the face: cheeks and chin. These are the most common signs of diathesis that developed due to the consumption of a large number of tangerines.

In addition, itching appears, and less often - swelling. If there is a tendency to bronchospasm when allergy symptoms appear, the risk of respiratory dysfunction increases. Anaphylactic shock and Quincke's edema are the most dangerous consequences of a negative reaction. Other complications:

• pain in the abdominal area;
• nausea, vomiting occurs, the functioning of the gastrointestinal tract is disrupted (diarrhea, flatulence) - these are signs of poisoning, which is caused by a significant dose of toxins entering the body along with fruits;
• fever;
• tangerines contain a large amount of glucose, so they are dangerous to eat if you have diabetes;
• Citrus fruits contribute to an increase in acidity, which is due to the presence of organic acids in the composition; as a result, an exacerbation of stomach diseases develops if gastritis or an ulcer is diagnosed.

Tangerine poisoning

Sometimes they cause poisoning in a child, even when consumed in small quantities. Most often this happens due to a stale or unripe product. Also, the cause of intoxication can be poor-quality processing of tangerines before eating (the peel may contain particles of dirt, pathogens, and chemicals).

Typically, poisoning in a baby is accompanied by nausea, vomiting, and diarrhea. Body temperature may rise and headache may appear.

Diarrhea from tangerines in a child

Often, when poisoning occurs, diarrhea appears, which is accompanied by the following unpleasant symptoms:

• frequent watery stools (more than 5 times per day);
• the presence of an unpleasant odor;
• the presence of mucus, blood, and remains of undigested fiber in the child’s stool;
• general weakness, fatigue;
• fever, chills, dizziness, muscle pain.

To eliminate diarrhea, complex treatment is used, including:

• cleansing the stomach of toxins;
• correction of diet;
• restoration of the balance of fluids and salts in the body;
• normalization of intestinal microflora.

The first thing parents need to do is call a doctor. Before his arrival, provide the patient with first aid, which will help stop further intoxication of the body. The child should have his stomach rinsed. To do this, he must drink a lot of water in small sips, which will provoke vomiting. Then you need to give an adsorbent - Activated carbon, Polysorb or Smecta.

Often, due to diarrhea, dehydration develops, so you will need to take medications to replenish the loss of salts and fluids (for example, Regidron). If you have diarrhea, you should also adjust the baby's diet. Avoid fatty and fried foods, give porridge with water, baked or boiled vegetables.

The doctor will prescribe a probiotic (Linex) and an antibacterial drug to quickly remove toxins from the body.

Vomiting from tangerines

If vomiting occurs once, without abdominal pain, bowel movements, or fever, the child is advised to take fluids (a teaspoon every 10-15 minutes). There is no need for gastric lavage, since this action can provoke a repeated attack of vomiting. The baby should be given lightly sweetened boiled water at room temperature, or saline solution or Smecta.

If after a single vomiting and drinking the condition has improved and there are no additional negative symptoms, then you do not need to call a doctor. But still, he needs to be put on a diet for several days (low-fat cereals, water soups, steamed cutlets, boiled meat, stewed vegetables).

If a child vomits repeatedly after eating tangerines, it is imperative to call a pediatrician or an ambulance.

If children under 3 years of age vomit once, even if they feel normal, it is recommended to consult a pediatrician so as not to miss the onset of a more serious illness - intestinal infection, gastritis, pancreatitis or cholecystitis.

Additional symptoms indicating that the child needs to be examined by doctors are abdominal pain, high fever, lethargy, weakness, and repeated diarrhea.

Prevention of poisoning

To prevent tangerines from causing digestive problems, it is enough to adhere to the following:

• buy fruits only during their natural ripening period (late October - early January);
• shiny peel and rich color indicate that the tangerines were treated with paraffin and chemicals;
• do not eat a large amount at a time;
• choose fresh and ripe fruits;
• It is not advisable to buy wet and soft tangerines (they may have been previously frozen);
• Before eating, the fruits must be washed well, then poured with boiling water;
• do not allow the child to clean tangerines with their teeth (the peel can accumulate harmful chemicals that were used to treat the fruit for long-term storage);
• Do not consume citrus fruits if you already have diarrhea.

How to choose a good tangerine for a child

In central Russia, growing tangerine trees is impossible due to climatic conditions. Its ripening season falls in winter. You can buy fruits at any supermarket or market.

At what age can a child be given salt?

Doctors recommend giving babies foods grown in nearby areas. Therefore, tangerines from Abkhazia are best suited. They are not treated with substances to preserve ripeness, since transportation does not take much time. If there are no such fruits, then you should take into account the appearance of the peel when choosing. Focuses on several indicators:

• the skin should be thin;
• the surface of the peel is glossy and shiny;
• There should be no brown spots or areas of mold.

When you press on the citrus, it should retain its dense shape and slightly spring back when pressed. This indicates the freshness and ripeness of the product.

Important! The soft and lumpy peel indicates the age of the tangerine tree; its fruits have a less rich composition.

Features of selection and storage

1. Ripe fruits are quite heavy. Therefore, when choosing, take the fruit in your hand and try to determine its weight.
2. There is an opinion that smaller fruits are the sweetest.
3. When choosing fruits, you should pay attention to the absence of dents, dark circles, and traces of mold.
4. The surface of the fruit should be even and smooth, the peel of the ripe fruit should be dense.
5. The smell of a good orange or tangerine should be felt from a distance and be fragrant.
6. It is recommended to store citrus fruits in a cool place with minimal light. The optimal storage temperature is from 5 to 10 degrees.

Now you know when a child can have an orange or a tangerine, and what age is optimal for introducing these fruits. Parents should remember how to properly introduce citrus fruits into their children's diet. It is important not to forget that the first fruits to appear in your diet should be those that grow in your territory. It is also important to remember that any tropical fruit can provoke the development of an allergic reaction.