Children eat complementary foods according to each age: From 9-12 months

The article was professionally consulted by Specialist Doctor II Cao Thi Thanh - Pediatrician - Pediatrics - Neonatology Department - Vinmec Hai Phong International General Hospital

A baby's diet from the first years of life is extremely important. Providing adequate nutrients appropriate for the age and development status of the baby is extremely necessary. Parents are the people who will accompany the baby in the process of nutritional supplementation. At each age, the baby's menu will change differently to provide adequate nutrition for the baby to grow up.

From 9 to 12 months is the period when babies can eat a variety of foods. In addition to giving children direct breast milk or bottle feeding with a frequency of 3-4 times a day in this age group, parents should prepare a variety of nutritional supplements for their baby.
The addition of a variety of food sources, on the one hand, helps the baby to have a richer diet in the future, on the other hand, helps the baby develop comprehensively in both mind and health.
At this stage, breast milk does not provide enough iron needed for the baby's development (while a full-term baby has enough iron stores from birth until 8 months old). Therefore, meat as a food provides nutrition and good iron for children. We can feed babies meat at the age of 9-12 months.

Your baby's diet should be supplemented with stewed meat, minced meat, porridge with meat and vegetables. Many parents mistakenly believe that just stewing bones to get water for the baby is enough to provide enough nutrition, at this stage, children should eat meat, fish, and vegetables. Particularly, bone broth will not fully supplement the necessary substances for children from 9 to 10 months old.
A small suggestion for parents, should stew a separate pot of porridge, for each meal, you can scoop out the porridge to add meat, fish, vegetables and a little cooking oil. This is a method to help children eat delicious and full of nutrients. However, when preparing menus for children, mothers should check and measure the norm of each type of meat or fruit. Only give your baby 1 type of meat/week, the amount of meat is about 3 tablespoons/3 times/day, stew and mince lean meat.

Increase the amount of fruit or vegetable in your child's diet up to 3 tablespoons/3 times a day. Extra eggs can be added each week, but only give the yolk until the baby is 1 year old because some babies are sensitive to egg whites.
Here is an example and suggestion of a weaning menu for 9-12 month old babies for breastfeeding mothers:
Breastfeeding 3 meals a day of 10% powder. Each meal 200ml Rice flour: 10g Water: 200ml Minced pork: 10g Green vegetables: 10g Cooking oil: 5g Fruit: 60ml Thus, it can be seen that, at the age of 9-12 months, babies can eat a variety of dishes. than from red meat, vegetables, and fruits. Therefore, parents should pay attention to add a variety of foods for their babies. Because, "children eat well and sleep well" is the great happiness of parents.
For children to be healthy and develop well, it is necessary to have a nutritious diet in terms of quantity and quality balance. If children are not provided with adequate and balanced nutrients, it will lead to diseases of excess or lack of nutrients, which adversely affect the comprehensive development of children in terms of physical, mental and motor skills.
The period of baby eating solid foods is an extremely important period to help children develop comprehensively. Children who do not eat properly are at risk of micro-mineral deficiencies, causing anorexia, growth retardation, malabsorption, etc. If they notice the above signs, parents should supplement their children with supportive products. The supplement contains lysine, essential micro-minerals and vitamins such as zinc, chromium, selenium, and B vitamins to help fully meet the nutritional needs of children. At the same time, these essential vitamins also support digestion, enhance nutrient absorption, help improve anorexia, and help children eat well.
Parents can learn more:
Signs of zinc deficiency in children
Micronutrient deficiency and failure to gain weight in children
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