Delicious And Nutritious: The Benefits Of Blending Your Own Baby Food

At present, one in three Filipino children under 5 lacks the necessary nutrition to reach their full potential. \As new World Bank research suggests that healthier food could help the nation’s children achieve a wealthier, brighter future, how can parents support this path? The answer may come from your kitchen. Home cooking is an effective way of monitoring exactly what goes into your baby’s food, ensuring that the 4Rs of food safety and nutrition are being observed while saving a little money along the way.

Fresh, fun and flavorsome

Official government advice on nutrition for children under two recommends a combination of breastfeeding with a balanced diet made up of fruit, vegetables, lean proteins and dairy products. Cooking this at home means you can control how much salt and sugar you add, as well as the quality of the ingredients that go in. With just a saucepan and a blender, you can make your own organic baby food, and gradually move from smooth to more textured foods as your child grows.

Family favorites

Home cooking also gives you an opportunity to introduce your child’s taste buds to family favorite dishes so that after a while, the whole family can eat together. Sitting down together for meals has been shown to benefit children’s health and social skills as well as helping them to feel emotionally secure. By starting your children young, they will soon come to love these shared meals as much as you do.

Tasty savings

The average Filipino family spends nearly half of its monthly income on food; making your own baby food can help to reduce these costs. When you buy ingredients for your family meals, simply take a little aside and blend it for your baby before any heavy seasoning or spice is added. Alternatively, cook in batches when you can and freeze portions so that you have always have a stock of delicious, healthy food available for your little one, even when the budget is feeling a little stretched.

Home cooking is a great way to care for your child’s nutrition as it gives you control over what exactly goes into each dish. It also introduces your baby’s palate to your family’s recipes and styles of cooking, and saves you money in the process. Affordable healthy eating habits and social skills for life; what could taste better?