Food being given by Childminder

[Scubes]

Hi
LO is 10months and has just started with Childminder.

She has given her marmite sandwiches and dairylea sandwiches and wants to give her soya milk next week when she goes full time.

I didn't think they should have marmite, not sure about the other two items. Anyone got any advice?

Thanks

actually wholemeal is ok as long as everything else they have isn't high fibre, as young children shouldn't have the same type of high fibre diets that adults are recommended. It puts unnecesary strain on their digestive system and also absorbs a lot of nutriets thus robbing them from the child. Wholemeal bread as part of a healthy diet that doesn't include lots of other wholemeal stuff would be fine though.

If other carbs like pasta and rice are not of the wholemeal variety and you're ntofeeding them bran flakes every morning the occasional wholemeal sandwitch should be fine. It's all about balance.

Thanks Kew, so what bread should we give? I make my own brown bread using strong brown bread flour but we also give her wholemeal bread.

I hate all these rules, it's a wonder any of us are still alive I'm sure my Mum fed me all sorts of 'wrong' stuff when I was a tiddler!

My 8 month DD has wholemeal bread.

Philly is nicer than dairylea I think...but still nothing wrong with dairylea.

I didn't think they should be having any other milk apart from breast or formula under one???

don't worry too much abou the bread, just don't feeds her brown rice and wholemeal pasta for every meal as well.

If you make your own how about a mix of half white half wholemeal?

FWIW I fed DS wholemeal bread, still do, just not lots of other high fibre stuff, and he's fine!

(and yes, I agree, philly much nicer than dairylea )

"A diet too high in fibre will fill up a child before their nutritional needs have been met and can interfere with absorption of minerals, such as zinc, iron and calcium, so refined bran must not be added to a young child's diet" from vegetarian society

I also was told no cows milk until after 12months but I think some sources say from 9 months.

I gave brown bread if anything but not high bran wholemeal, but then DS not hugely keen on bread so its wasn't a big issue for us. He is 2.6 now and quite happily eats the same wholemal bread as me just not very much of it.

I agree with OMDB - as long as you're not filling them with the high fibre equivalent of every carb going then a moderate amount of one type eg bread should be just fine.

Scubes - bet your mum didn;t feed you wholemeal bread or Soya milk though unless she was very very trendy and ahead of her time. We used to eat wholemeal bread in the late 70's and were considered to be pretty damned odd. You could only buy it in healthfood shops.

I think you should decide what you are really concerned about and say something and try not to worry about the other stuff.

Once your LOs are looked after by someone else, it's impossible to retain the same level of control over what they eat.

I've told my 13-month old dd's nursery that I don't want her to have juice, but I let the odd portion of spaghetti hoops and jam sandwiches slide, even though I wouldn't give those to her at home.

Ha ha Kew, no you're right of course about my Mum. It just seems knowledge can be dangerous... and confusing! I'm all for advancement and research but it does make me wonder how we all survived sometimes with the constantly changing guidelines. I suppose what I should take from that is to relax a bit.

Ok so will swap to brown bread. Any long list of suggestions for sandwich fillings I can give to CM?

Oh god just realised I've been giving her wholemeal mini pittas as well - shoot me!

even the vegan and vegetarian sites say not to give commercial soya milk to babies. If you want soya milk you need to use a soy infant formula. Also calcium in soya milk is only absorbed at about 75% of the rate of cows milk (so need more I assume) and doesn;t have B12 in it.

Don't worry about it scubes, the odd wholemeal pitta will do no harm.

Try to include fruit or salad in sandwitches, it's a great way to get them eating them and gets them used to more healthy sandwitch fillings from a young age.

Some suggestions:

cream cheese and grapes or apple
cream cheese with tomato or cucumber
cheese and salad
cheese and apple
humous and salad
humous and olives
apple and pear spread and cream cheese
cold meat and tomato
tuna and salad
bean spreads made with pureed beans and tomaot
bananagrated carrots mixed with cream cheese or humous

yep, definately put your foot down abou tht esoya milk and provide you own alternative

I agree with OMDB again - just take a sensible approach and you'll be fine. They have littel stomachs which don't deal well with being filled up with loads of fibre (in the wild they'd still just be drinking milk). But the odd bit of wholemeal pittabread isn;t going to kill her.

I used to put almost anything in a sandwich except either very processed foods or ham/bacon but thats my own anti-nitrate stance rather than any formal guidleine.

Dont forget boiled egg sandwiches - yum!

am I the only person in the universe that thinks salad (meaning lettuce and cucumber rather than tomatoes which I love) it a big waste of time?

Not filling, no real vitamins in the quantities we eat it, no fibre in the quantities we eat it, and a faff to wash and doesn't keep long?

Sorry to digress...

and now I'm going to agree with kew, anything can be bunged into a sandwitch, but I too would avoid overly processed stuff or highly salted cured meats

Only do egg if it's hard boiled though and you've laready introduced egg into her diet with no allergic reactions.

no I agree kew, when I say salad I mean raw veg, not leaves! Leaves are almost a total waste of time, although lettuce is sometimes acceptable in a sandwitch provided there are other veg in it too

Kew - rewinding a bit, when you said that bran inhibits the absorption of a key nutrient.............

When I worked with horses we never gave them too much bran because it inhibits the absorption of calcium, IIRC.

I don't see why it might not be the same for humans.

I think you'd have to eat pretty enormous quantities for it to be a problem though!

And I agree about salad - total waste of time!

I'd be worried about soy milk for babies. Aren't there phytoestrogens - plant hormones - in soy, which mimic the effect of human oestrogens?

I wouldn't consider marmite to be suitable for under 1s Also agree that formula or BM only suitable drink for under 1s! Though maybe she means in cooking or cereals, and not for a drink...

She does mean for cereal not as a drink but even so having got all your thoughts I
think I'll ask her to stick to cows milk.

Am still stunned by bread thing, all the books talk about bread but don't say which type. I steered clear of white bread thinking it wasn't as good for her. Ho hum. Will buy some brown bread tmw...or just keep making my own every other day........zzzz

I think soya milk added to cereals and so on is fine (not as a drink)
ds had a vegan diet when he was this age, also had wholemeal bread only, and seemed to do well on it (I know anecdotal evidence but it did work for us)

I think you are right Scubes, white bread isn't good for her. The more recent advice I have read says they should be having wholegrain cereals and breads; nutrient dense foods, not a diet based on 'white foods'. Wholemeal bread if fine, and most types actually don't contain much fibre, 1 slice about the same amount as 1 weetabix. It's bran babies shouldn't have for the reasons mentioned and refined bran has had alot its vitamins removed. Veggie babies need to take extra care, and maybe include some white carbs as getting loads of fibre from veggies, beans and pulses at every meal. Your homemade bread + wholemeal pitta sounds great for her IMO!

Your the mum, you should say what you want your child to eat or not. Give your childminder a list of food's your happy/unhappy with. Or if it's easier supply a lunch box. Don't be forced into something you are not comfortable with.

As a soon to be childminder, I would never give a child something parents were nn;ot 100% about. And really, with under 1s, I would only give what has already been given at home.

I would not give soya milk at this age.

Didnt know about the wholemeal stuff. I was planning to give DD weetabix for brekkie at 6 months, and then prob would have given wholemeal bread when she started on bread. opps

Thanks all for your messages, we have got over the soya milk thing and CM very understanding. As for the bread... today she gave her linseed and something else bread?? I have steered away from any seeded bread due to digestion probs - what do you think?

Turns out lo was badly constipated during day and she has just got very stressed doing a poo (or a Winnie as we affectionately call them in our house!) Poo not really hard but clearly it was upsetting her - what remedies for constipation and should I now advise on the bread?

Other than that her meals today have sounded quite yummy!