Moms Are Talking About…
Feeding Cottage Cheese to Your Baby
The American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) recommends dairy products (yogurt, natural cheeses, cottage cheese) made from whole milk because babies need fats. As for all new foods, use the four-day wait rule. Keep in mind that these fats are the saturated kind, which should be minimized in older children’s diets. So when your baby becomes a toddler at age 1-2 years, you may want to switch to low-fat or non-fat dairy products, depending on which your professional baby care provider recommends and the age to switch. I recommend buying only ORGANIC dairy products, which are from cows that are not treated with antibiotics or BVG (bovine growth hormone) and graze on grass with no pesticides.
Although it’s OK to give your child dairy products like yogurt and cheese made from cow’s milk, do not feed cow’s milk itself to your baby until s/he is one year old. Until one year, give your baby breastmilk or formula and no cow’s milk, because cow’s milk protein is different from the protein in breastmilk/formula. Be sure all dairy and cheeses you give to your baby are pasteurized and not made from raw milk. Start your baby on dairy only if there are no milk allergies in the family–consult your pediatrician as to whether to introduce dairy to your baby. In fact, if there are ANY allergies in the family (food allergies, asthma, pollen, etc.) , especially in the immediate family, discuss them thoroughly with your baby care povider.
By the way, if you haven’t given yogurt or kefir to your baby yet, you may wish to choose these dairy products over cottage cheese because they have the healthy bacteria so necessary for your baby’s digestive and immune systems.
For more information on dairy products and your baby, check Super Baby Food or right back her at the Super Baby Food Blog.