Mango Baby Food – 6 Healthy Reasons Why You Need To Try It
Mangos are soft luscious tropical fruits that are sweet tasting and are bursting with vitamin A, vitamin B, vitamin C as well as minerals like potassium and iron. You can, therefore, let your baby enjoy this exotic fruit with great health benefits.
Introducing Mango baby food will ensure that your baby has a balanced diet. While your baby will be getting most of the essential nutrients that they need to grow from your breast milk or baby formula, introducing healthy solid foods like mango baby food will ensure that your baby benefits from all the nutrients that are lacking in breast milk.
At What Age Can You Introduce Mango Baby Food?
Introducing mangos to your baby will give her new tastes and textures to explore. However, you should ensure that you only introduce mango baby food when your baby is ready for solids. Doctors recommend that solid foods should be introduced to babies who are between six months and eight months old.
However, since babies develop at different rates, your baby may get ready to eat mangos earlier than six months or much later. So, how do you tell if your baby is ready for solids? There are signs that you can look for to help you determine if your baby is ready for more than just breast milk. These signs include:
- Sitting upright: If your baby can sit upright on her own, then it means that she is ready for solids.
- Head control: If your baby can keep his head in a steady position on her own.
- Curiosity about food: If your baby develops an interest in foods by eyeing or reaching for your spoon when you are eating, then it means that its time you introduced her to some solid food.
When starting out on solid foods, it is recommended that you start with soft solid foods, and that is why mango baby food is a good choice to start with.
What Are The Nutritional Benefits Of Mango To Babies?
Mangos are known to be the king of all fruits because of their sweet taste and nutritional benefits, and that is why everyone from babies to adults likes mangos. Even if your baby is the type that always throws tantrums during feeding time, she is definitely going to fall in love with this tasty and nutritious fruit. Here is why mango is good for your baby:
Improves Digestion
Mangoes are a rich source of fibres and good digestive enzymes. This will mean that your baby will have a smooth digestion as there will be improved breakdown of proteins. The fibres will also prevent constipation. The digestive enzymes in mangoes will also lower the level of acidity in the stomach.
Improves Eyesight
Mangoes are a rich source of vitamin A which is very important for eyesight. Mango baby food will, therefore, protect your baby from eyesight related problems such as eye dryness, night blindness, itching and cornea problems.
Better Memory
(Via Lego.com)
Giving your baby mangoes will play a very important role in her brain development since mangoes contain glutamine acid, an important amino-acid that is good for brain development. Mangoes are also rich in vitamin B6, which also play a role in the development of the nervous system by improving brain functioning.
Better Skin
Apart from improving eyesight, vitamin A also ensures that your baby has good skin. Vitamin A makes the skin soft and shiny and moisturised.
Improves Your Baby’s Immunity
Mangoes are also rich in vitamin C. They also contain high contents of carotene and beta-carotene. These carotenoids boost the body’s immunity levels by facilitating the removal of free radicals from the body. Since babies always have weaker immunity as compared to adults, introducing baby mango food will provide an added boost to your baby’s immunity. Vitamin C helps with wound healing.
Eating a mango also improves the body’s ability to fight micro bacterial infections by enhancing epithelial body functions.
Better Weight
(Via Livestrong.com)
For those who are worried about their babies gaining weight, then you need to introduce mango baby food. Mangos will provide your baby with good calories that will lead to healthy weight gain. This is because the calories are very nutritious and easily absorbed by the body.
How You Can Prepare Mango Baby Food
Before you give mango food to your baby, you will need to prepare it first by removing the skin and pit. The best way to make mango baby food is to puree it to make it soft for the baby. This is because babies should be first introduced to semi-solids first before they can upgrade to solids.
Below are tips that you can use to prepare mango puree for your baby.
Step 1
Take one ripe mango and wash it thoroughly to remove bacteria. Place the washed mango on a flat surface and use a knife to slice it horizontally. Ensure that the flat of your knife passes very close to the mango seed.
Step 2
Cut the other side of the mango the same way so that you are left with two halves and a seed.
Step 3
Ensure that you remove as much flesh as possible from the seed before you discard it.
Step 4
Cut in each half with a knife to separate the flesh from the skin. You should be careful not to cut into the skin.
Step 5
Cut the mango flesh into cubes.
Step 6
Puree the mango in a blender until it is smooth.
Step 7
You can then serve your mango puree to your baby. You can also mix the mango puree with other fruits or mix it with yoghurt to make a mango-yoghurt puree. You can also freeze the remaining mango food so that your baby can eat them later.
Reference article: Useful Tips On How To Thaw Frozen Baby Food
5 Measures To Take When Feeding Mango Food To Your Baby
Although there are no risks associated with giving mango food to babies, you should keep the following in mind:
- Ensure that you do not attempt to give mango food to your baby when he or she is below six months old.
- Confirm that your baby is not allergic to mango. You can check for allergies by giving small pieces on the first day and then wait to observe if there are any allergic reactions. If your baby shows any signs of allergic reactions, then you should stop giving her mango food.
- Mash the mango properly until soft to avoid chocking. You should also keep the texture of the fruit in mind. This is because too much fibre will make it hard for your baby to swallow and may even choke her.
- Do not feed unripe mangos to your baby. This is because unripe mangoes are very sour and will cause digestion problems to your baby.
ü Do not feed unripe mangos to your baby. This is because unripe mangoes are very sour and will cause digestion problems to your baby.
Conclusion
One of the healthiest foods you can offer your baby is mango food. Apart from being very delicious and juicy, mangos are packed with a lot of nutrients that your baby will benefit from during this period that she is growing at a fast rate. Think of all the vitamins, minerals, fibre and the good enzymes that are contained in a mango. Mango is also low in both fats and calories.
