Baby Care

Posts Tagged ‘nutrition’

Children, who already run, jump and swim, are extremely active in summer, and therefore they need much more energy from products that “charge” their batteries. In summer the most of the time children spend in the open air. It’s the season of hikes, long walks, sports and helping adults in the country. The baby wants to pick a bunch of greens, collect berry himself.

The energy consumption increases while appetite reduces due to heat. So, what to feed your little active baby, what products at what time and in what quantities are good for a child in summer?

Very often in the kindergarten or school, when teachers meet their pupils in the beginning of the school year, you will hear they say that children have grown up. And surprisingly, in summer children are growing more active, and therefore the children need the protein, which is the main “building” material of organisms, more than usual. It is very important to increase the proportion of sour-milk products during summer. This way the protein is in its most easily assimilated form. Cottage cheese, kefir, yoghurt should be given to the child 100-200 ml more than his/her normal age-norm. The best is to break the daily norm into 2-4 reception. Thus you first help your child’s stomach – because dairy bacteria contained in dairy products help to improve digestion, which is especially important in hot weather. Second, the baby will not have to drink a glass of kefir at once, especially if he/she is not fond of such drinks.

Daily portion of meat products are also recommended to increase in 10-30 g, depending on the age of the child. With regard to carbohydrates, the main suppliers in the children’s menu for the entire warm period should be berries, fruit and vegetables. Minimize the consumption of biscuits, rich bread, wheat bread and confectionery products, if the kid wants sweet – offer a cup of berries.

It’s necessary to include fresh vegetables in the diet – spices, radishes, sorrel and young nettle should be added to soups and salads. Also keep in mind the forest berries. Remember, that usually they are sweeter than the garden ones.

Proper nutrition is the main thing that a woman who is preparing to become a mother should carry out. Every day, she should receive all necessary materials, trace elements and vitamins to maintain normally in her own body and to the development of the child. A few tips, guided by which each woman easily can make the best diet for all nine months of pregnancy, are required to learn.

Vitamin A in the form of carotene, which requires growing cells, healthy skin, eyes, bone, enters the body with yellow vegetables and fruits (sweet peppers, carrots, apricots, dried apricots, peaches) as well as herbs. In addition, yellow vegetables and fruits contain folic acid, which has a positive effect on the brain development of the future child.

Vitamins of B group are contained in thin porridges, particularly gross. It should therefore be mandatory to include porridge oats, buckwheat and dark unpolished rice in the diet. In addition, the vitamins of this group are contained in the black bread, cabbage, and beer, although this drink is not recommended for pregnant women.
 
Vitamin C is used by the organism in the process of regeneration, wound healing; a child needs all these for proper growth and development of a durable skeleton and teeth. The main source of vitamin C is a citrus fruit. Dietitians in this case particularly recommend grapefruit, which contains the highest dose of vitamin C and is less dangerous in terms of allergy development. In addition to citrus, this vitamin is found in strawberries and raspberries, tomatoes, and white cauliflower, cabbage and broccoli, sweet peppers, sorrel, and spinach.
Selenium, which often works in combination with vitamin E, is very important from the standpoint of prevention of cardiovascular, cancer and infectious diseases.

Iron plays an important role. During pregnancy, women need to have up to 40 milligrams of iron a day, because this time it is spent not only to meet the increased demand of the female body itself, but it is also used to provide it with sufficient developing fetus. The shortage of iron leads to anemia, decrease of immunity, in violation of the fetus (e.g., delay of growth and mental development), as well as premature births. It is not difficult to avoid such problems.

Iron is found in all foods, especially offal (liver, kidney, and brains), lean beef, poultry and some varieties of fish. Plant products, all seasonal fruits, vegetables and herbs grown on the ground are also rich in iron. Especially it is found in fruit and berries with bright coloration. It is worth considering that iron is best absorbed in the presence of ascorbic acid (vitamin C). Therefore, dishes from meat or fish should be combined with fresh vegetables, or with lemon juice.

Calcium is most important in the formation of bone tissue. From this perspective, it will be useful to include in their menu’s milk, kefir, cottage cheese, cheese, and fish. A large quantity of calcium is found in almonds, peanuts and dried fruits.

Naturally, protein must be included in the diet of pregnant women. Amino acids, that are included in protein, are a kind of building material of cells of human tissue, and contribute to the growth of the child. The daily rate is approximately 75-100 grams of protein a day. This is roughly equivalent to three glasses of milk, 0.5 kg of cottage cheese, 2 eggs and 100 grams of meat or fish. It will be superfluous to recall nuts and legumes. 

In order to maintain power, the body also needs carbohydrates. Gross bread, cereals, pasta, vegetables, potatoes are slow, unrefined carbohydrates. They raise the level of glucose and maintain it for a long time. These products contribute to good peristalsis, eliminating the problem of constipation and nausea. In addition, they do not lead to the weight increment.
Despite of popular belief, the menu of pregnant women should also include unsaturated fats, for example, butter. While grilling products use refined oil because it does not form carcinogens during the thermal processing. And for the filling of lettuce, use the crude oil, since it is more useful. Daily Dose – 4 tablespoons of butter or mayonnaise (because of oil used with hot food), or 400 grams of lean meat, 8 chicken eggs or 16 spoons of sour cream. Of course, the best way to obtain the necessary dose will be a combination of various fat products.  

In addition to natural products a pregnant woman should actively use the vitamin-mineral complexes.

Stretch marks occur when expanding skin is stretched to its limit and tiny tears appear in the supporting layers of skin. Stretch marks are quite common in pregnancy; about 50-90% of women will get stretch marks on their abdomen, breasts, thighs or buttocks during pregnancy. However, there are ways to get rid of those stretch marks.

When you first notice stretch marks they will be red or purple lines, however these lines soon fade. The skin that is affected by your stretch marks will feel empty or extremely soft. Please do not worry about your stretch marks, as they pose no detrimental risk to your health.

Your chances of getting pregnancy stretch marks depend on a number of factors. Family history makes a difference-if your mother got stretch marks, chances are you’ll have them too. Ethnicity is another matter – women with darker skin are less likely to get stretch marks. Weight gain and weight loss can also change the magnitude of your marks. Be sure to keep yourself hydrated, as this will help your skin stretch.

Mothers who have just given birth are slimming down and noticing the results of being bloated like a hot air balloon. People like that guy from those Subway commercials are seeing the same thing, parallel lines that form on the stomach, the butt, the thighs, arms, and breasts—the symptoms of stretch marks caused by stretching the skin too far, or stretching the skin just fast enough that the body couldn’t keep up, and now it’s trying to grow back to normal. But the lines are faded and damn do those stretch marks stand out!

Apply cocoa butter to your stretch marks. Cocoa butter helps skin to regain some of its elasticity, meaning it can more easily return to its pre-pregnancy state. If you apply cocoa butter while pregnant, it can also help to prevent stretch marks.

Massage your stretch marks. Use circulation motions to gently massage the marks. As massage improves circulation, blood and nutrients can more readily reach the stretch marks, helping them to heal more quickly. Massage the marks for about 90 seconds three to four times per day.

Use a scar treatment cream on your stretch marks. Such creams are available over-the-counter in most drug stores. Generally, you’ll need to apply the cream twice a day for 8 to 12 weeks before you see results.

Consume a healthy diet. Aim to get plenty of Vitamin A, Vitamin D and zinc. All these nutrients are essential to good skin health. Without proper nutrition, your scarred skin will not be able to adequately heal itself.

There are several surgical procedures available to dermatologists and cosmetic surgeons that will get rid of stretch marks. The first and increasingly more popular choice is laser assisted scar removal. Since stretch marks are, technically, a sort of scar tissue, laser surgery can removal the top layers of skin to allow newer skin to take its place. Microdermabrasion and dermabrasion work in very much the same manner as the laser option, but they use a fine blade (like an electric razor) to scrape away the upper layers of skin, promoting new skin cell growth.

Pregnancy does not automatically damage your teeth. The tale that warns a woman to expect a lost tooth for every baby is false. If the mother’s intake of calcium is inadequate during pregnancy, her bones – not her teeth – will provide

the calcium her growing baby needs. This calcium loss is quickly made up after breastfeeding is stopped.

More frequent caries occurrence and gum inflammation (parodontosis) during pregnancy is related to the following reasons:

• The increased need of calcium. Growing Child “takes” mother’s calcium for his bones. If there is a lack of calcium, due to gastrointestinal tract chronic diseases or the lack of it in food, calcium is mobilized from mother’s bones. At first this affects the bones of the upper and lower jaw, particularly the surroundings of the teeth.

• Saliva remineralization reduction features. Normally the strengthening of the enamel occurs at the expense of action of calcium and phosphate contained in saliva. During pregnancy the concentration of these substances in the saliva is reduced. Saliva buffer capacity is decreasing, which normalizes the acid-alkaline balance in the mouth after eating.

• Changes in the hormonal background during pregnancy leads to a gums circulation deterioration. They often become livid, easy start bleeding, even with small injuries.

Prevention of pregnants’ dental diseases includes:

• Regular supervision of the dentist. A woman should apply to the dentist before pregnancy, in order to sanify cavity. During the pregnancy the dentist should be applied to 4 times – at 6-8, 16-18, 26-28 and 36-38 weeks. In the presence of risk factors (aggressive microflora of the oral cavity, a significant decrease remineralizing properties of saliva, etc.) the number of examinations should increase two times.

• Individual cavity hygiene. Teeth should be cleaned at least 2 times a day. You should use brushes with normal or soft bristle. You should use prophylaxis tooth-paste containing calcium, as well as antigingivitis tooth-paste reducing gingival inflammation.

• Gums massage is necessary in order to improve blood circulation in tissues surrounding the tooth. Perform light movements from the teeth to the gums. Massage should last for 7-8 minutes.

• Nutrition. Following the recommendations of your obstetrician-gynecologist, you at the same time take care of your teeth, and of your child’s teeth, too. The formation of child’s teeth also depends on the level of calcium in the blood of his mother.

• Ultraviolet. There is no need to regularly sunbathe or visit the solarium, but you should regularly go out, breathe a fresh air and walk.

With proper hygiene at home and professional help from your dentist, your teeth should remain healthy throughout the pregnancy.

Women need to eat 4 – 5 times a day, better at the same hours.

The first half of pregnancy

During the first half of pregnancy the nutrition status of women differs from normal. They need to include all the needed proteins, fats, carbohydrates and minerals to their daily ratio.

Pregnant women usually have desire to eat something salty, and spicy. During this period, they can satisfy this desire.

The daily ratio should be 2400 – 2700 kcal.

It includes:

• 110 grams of protein
  Food should be rich with valuable proteins. Proteins are the basic building materials for the growing fetus. Meat is the main source of protein. Meat should better be boiled. Rich protein sources are poultry, fish, eggs, legumes, nuts, seeds. Every day, pregnant should eat cheese, sour cream, milk. 50% of the total number of proteins must occur in the proteins of animal origin.
  

• 75 g of fat
  Fats also provide a source of energy, furthermore, are involved in the formation of prostaglandins – substances that affect the work of the cardiovascular, digestive system, and affect the generic activity. Most fats are found in vegetable oils. The diet of a pregnant woman should include 40% of fat of a plant origin. From the animal fats the most recommended is the cow’s butter. Do not eat mutton and beef fat, and margarine.

• 350 g of carbohydrate
  Carbohydrates are the main source of body energy, used in metabolism. Carbohydrates are good for the work of nervous system. Youd better get carbohydrates from products rich with fiber: bread, fruits and vegetables. Amount of sugar in the diet should be 40 – 50 g per day.

The second half of pregnancy

In the second half of pregnancy the fetus is growing rapidly, increasing the pressure on all the organs of mother, so the total number of accepted foods should be increased.

During the last 2 months you should not have a salty, spicy, smoked, canned food. Try not to eat food from the semis. Typically, these products contain much calories but contain few nutrients that you and your child need.

The daily ratio should be 2800 – 3000 kcal.

It includes:

• 120 grams of protein
  Every day, you need to eat cheese, sour cream, milk. 50% of the total number of proteins must occur in the proteins of animal origin.
  

• 85 g of fat
  Most fats are found in vegetable oils. The diet of pregnant woman should contain 40% of fat of a plant origin. The cow’s butter is the most recommended animal fat. Do not eat mutton and beef fat, and margarine.
  

• 400 g of carbohydrate
  You’d better get carbohydrates from products rich with fiber: bread, fruits and vegetables. Amount of sugar in the diet should be 40 – 50 g per day.