whats the reason to give your baby rice instead of porridge?

[atkht]

Hi,

I've been feeding porridge to my 14th mths bb. May i know when should we give them rice? and why is it so? Delay in giving rice to them will have what kind of problem later? TIA

 

[apollo]

i started giving my son rice at 11mth old. no special reason, i just give when i feel tt he is ready. it is good to explore them to diffe texture of food and let them learn hw to chew. chewing can improve their speech =)

 

[atkht]

i started giving my son rice at 11mth old. no special reason, i just give when i feel tt he is ready. it is good to explore them to diffe texture of food and let them learn hw to chew. chewing can improve their speech =)

so you have to cook separate dishes like vege & meat/fish..?

 

[Mummy to Baby V]

At about 12 months old, my boy didn't want to eat porridge and mashed food. I realized he was ready for chunkier textures and enjoyed chewing, so he's been eating rice / pasta / noodles ever since.

Moving on to chunkier food also opens up a new window of eating experiences -- finger food, self-feeding, larger variety, etc.
This keeps mealtime interesting and I believe this is key to my boy being easy at the dining table.

At the early stage of introducing rice, I cooked it till soft. Then pour some vegetable stock / soup over it to make it soupy.
Vegetables, egg and fish steamed separately. (Actually when cooking porridge, I also steamed them separately to prevent overcooking and loss of nutrients.)

 

[apollo]

so you have to cook separate dishes like vege & meat/fish..?

Yes. Actually he eats the same foods as us. But when he was still young, we will scoop out his shares b4 adding the seasoning, usually is soup and i will add in some veg, fish, tofu and boil until the ingredients are cooked and let him eat tgt with the rice. =)

 

[Ting]

IMO,i think its to give them the idea n habit to chew. bcos if u keep giving porridge, which is very mushy n soft, they can just swallow it, so by giving them rice and meat n vege, they will tend to learn how to chew. also, rice will be fuller compared to porridge.

 

[atkht]

my boy only has 6 teeth infront... can eat rice & finger food?
When i give him scramble egg to let him eat himself , he will pickup and throw away

 

[Mummy to Baby V]

my boy only has 6 teeth infront... can eat rice & finger food?
When i give him scramble egg to let him eat himself , he will pickup and throw away

Even with no teeth, babies can learn to chew with gums. 6 teeth sounds good.
Steamed carrot strips or cubes is a simple finger food.
Or pieces of soft pear, cooked pasta, etc.
Just put some food on a plate / bowl for child to pick up, guide him to put into mouth.
After some time, can introduce fork then spoon.
This also trains fine motor skills.

Scrambled egg may be hard to pick up?
So far, my boy only loves egg to be hard boiled, torn into small pieces, and he feeds himself.
(Note that egg white should be offered after 12 months and check for allergy.)