11 month old still wakes up for feeds. How do I make daytime meals more nutritive?

[connyrabbit]

My DS is still waking up one or twice a night for a feed at 11 months. Reading Gina Ford's sleeping guide, I found that some reasons why a baby wakes up is that the meals he gets aren't nutritive enough so he wakes up at night for more. But she doesn't give any info as to how to make meals more nutritive.
I make his meals myself, and he just isn't a very big eater and is on the thin side. He currently has 4 meals a day, 8am, 12.30, 4pm, 7pm. But no snacks in between.
Is there a guideline as to how much of each type of food (vegetables, meat, ...) makes up for a nutritive meal? What should the proportion of each be?

Thanks all

How much milk in the day?

4 milk feeds in the day, 15 mins in average. First thing in the morning, mid morning, mid afternoon, and before bed.

Forgot to mention, I am still breastfeeding, but just about to wean him.

They need lots of carbs and fat, and not too much fibre.
You could add snacks in, perhaps a bit of toast after his mid-morning feed and a banana after the mid-afternoon one. Frequent meals and snacks is how to get more into them.

My DS is also 11 months and wakes once around 4/5am for a feed. It is perfectly normal, and Gina Ford isn't a breastfeeding expert.

My DS was excl BF at that age and still woke up every night. He didn't start sleeping from 7 - 7 til he was 12 months.
Not sure about Gina Ford - every baby is different.

Chances are he probably doesn't need more solid food as milk will still form the majority of his calorie intake at this age. Its much more likely that he wants and expects the comfort of a breastfeed when he wakes up during the night. If you are planning to wean him perhaps you should start by dropping those feeds...will be painful for a few nights as he will protest, but it should be over fairly soon as he realises there is no milk on offer firstly between, say 11pm and 6am (give him a feed before you go to bed) and then later on, between 7pm and 6am. Could your DP try and comfort him when he wakes at night? It is very hard if you are breastfeeding to not give in when he is crying and struggling to get at you for a feed and you know he can smell the milk. If DP no use then wear a polo neck and dressing gown!!

If you are still convinced about lack of nutrition in the day though, I don't know of any guidelines for protein/carbs/veg for babies but I assume jars of babyfood would follow any and these tend to be mostly vegetable based if you look at the label. This would be broadly similar to adult proportions that would be sensible, ie about 1/2 veg, then 1/3 carbs, remainder protein. Also babies can and should have more fat than adults.

How about introducing some snacks in between meals that are more filling than ordinary fruit - say dried apricots, toast, pieces of cheese, banana chunks for example. Make sure you are cooking with things like olive oil, avocadoes, beans, all healthy, filling stuff. Also, when you have weaned him off the breast, try bedtime milk in the evening, which has the same calorific value but added cereals that take longer to digest.