These Are the Best Foods for a Baby ’s Brain

So much is going on in the first few months of a baby’s life, it’s no surprise that what a baby eats can have an effect on how important structures and connections in the brain develop. To help parents understand what babies need, the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) issued a set of recommendations for foods that ensure healthy brain development in babies’ first 1,000 days.
In the guidelines, just published in the journal Pediatrics, the AAP’s Committee on Nutrition say that certain nutrients, including protein, zinc, iron, folate, certain vitamins and polyunsaturated fatty acids are critical for healthy brain development. Diets lacking these nutrients can lead to lifelong issues in brain function, they note.

Dr. Sarah Jane Schwarzenberg, associate professor of pediatrics at the University of Minnesota Masonic Children’s Hospital and member of the AAP Committee on Nutrition, says that breast milk is recommended for newborns until they are about six months old. After that, she says, breast milk can’t provide the amount of iron and zinc that growing babies need, so breast milk should be supplemented with these nutrients if moms want to continue breastfeeding, or babies should be introduced to foods rich in them. Many baby foods are supplemented with zinc and iron, she says, but pureed meats are also a good natural source. Infant cereals are also enriched with these nutrients and could be good first foods for babies.
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Source: TIME: Health - January 23, 2018 Category: Consumer Health News Authors: Alice Park Tags: Uncategorized babies brains babies diet babies nutrition babies supplements baby diet baby food baby food diet best foods for a baby brain health breast milk breastmilk Diet/Nutrition healthytime what do babies eat what do ba Source Type: news