TWO LIFE STAGES OF LIFE THAT I WOULD LIKE TO DISCUSS :
- infancy
- pregnancy and lactation
DIET REQUIREMENTS IN INFANCY IS:
- Good nutrition is essential for the growth and development that
occurs during an infant’s first year of life. When developing
infants are fed the appropriate types and amounts of foods, their
health is promoted. Positive and supportive feeding attitudes and
techniques demonstrated by the caregiver help infants develop
healthy attitudes toward foods, themselves, and others
- Throughout the first year, many physiological changes occur
that allow infants to consume foods of varying composition and
texture
ENERGY REQUIREMENT: Recommendations
for feeding infants, from infant formula to complementary foods,
are based primarily on the DRIs. The DRIs for vitamins, minerals,
and protein are set at levels thought to be high enough to meet the
nutrient needs of most healthy infants, while energy allowances
An infant’s energy or caloric requirement depends on many
factors, including body size and composition, metabolic rate (the
energy the body expends at rest), physical activity, size at birth,
age, sex, genetic factors, energy intake, medical conditions,
ambient temperature, and growth rate.
0–6 months 60 g/day of carbohydrate 7–12 months 95 g/day of
carbohydrate
Sources :
- lactose, the carbohydrate source in breast milk and cow’s
milk-based infant formula
- In later infancy, infants derive carbohydrates from additional
sources including cereal and other grain products, fruits, and
vegetables
- Dietary fiber is found in legumes, wholegrain foods, fruits,
and vegetables. Breast milk contains no dietary fiber, and infants
generally consume no fiber in the first 6 months of life.
- provide 5 grams of fiber per day by 1 year of age.
PROTEIN REQUIREMENT:
- 0–6 months 9.1 g/day of protein RDA
- for older infants 7–12 months 11 g/day of protein
SOURCES:
- Breast milk and infant formulas provide sufficient protein to
meet a young infant’s needs
- In later infancy, sources of protein in addition to breast milk
and infant formula include meat, poultry, fish, egg yolks, cheese,
yogurt, legumes, and cereals and other grain product
LIPIDS :
- 0–6 months 31 g/day of fat
- 7–12 months 30 g/day of fat
SOURCES:
- Breast milk and infant formula are important sources of lipids,
including essential fatty acids, during infancy
- Food sources of lipids in the older infant’s diet, other than
breast milk and infant formula, include meats, cheese, and other
dairy products, egg yolks, and any fats or oils added to
home-prepared foods.
VITAMIN AND MINERAL SUPPLEMENTS: VITAMIN
D
- 0–12 months 5 µg (200 IU)/day
- for Infants 0–12 months 25 µg (1,000 IU)/day
SOURCES: fortified milk products, including milk-based infant
formulas, are the major dietary source of vitamin D. Fish, liver,
and egg yolk are also sources of this vitamin.
Vitamin A
- for Infants 0–6 months 400 µg Retinol Active Equivalent/day of
vitamin
- 7–12 months 500 µg Retinol Active Equivalent/day of vitamin
A
- for Infants 0–12 months 600 µg/day of preformed vitamin A
Vitamin B12
- for Infants 0–6 months 0.4 µg/day of vitamin B12
- 7–12 months 0.5 µg/day of vitamin B12
Calcium
- for Infants 0–6 months 210 mg/day of calcium
- 7–12 months 270 mg/day of calcium
Sources:
- An infant can obtain sufficient calcium by consuming adequate
amounts of breast milk or infant formula.
- Older infants can obtain additional calcium from complementary
foods such as yogurt, cheese, fortified or enriched grain products,
some green leafy vegetables (such as collards and turnip greens),
and tofu (if the food label indicates it was made with calcium
sulfate).
DIET REQUIREMENT BY PREGNANT AND LACTATING MOTHER:
Pregnancy is a demanding physiological state.
Consequently, there is widespread maternal malnutrition leading
to high prevalence of low birth weight infants and very high
maternal mortality. Additional foods are required to improve weight
gain in pregnancy (10-12 Kg) and birth weight of infants (about 3
Kg). It is hence important to ensure provision of extra food and
healthcare to pregnant and lactating women.
Important nutrition tips for pregnant and lactating women
- Eat more food during pregnancy.
- Eat more whole grains, sprouted grams and fermented foods.
- Take milk/meat/eggs in adequate amounts.
- Eat plenty of vegetables and fruits.
- Avoid superstitions and food taboos.
- Do not use alcohol and tobacco. Take medicines only when
prescribed.
- Take iron, folate and calcium supplements regularly, after
14-16 weeks of pregnancy and continue the same during
lactation.
Nutrients that require special attention during
pregnancy and lactation period
CALORIES: The daily diet of a woman should
contain an additional 350 calories,
PROTEIN:
- 0.5 g of protein during first trimester
- 6.9 g during second trimester
- 22.7 g during third trimester of pregnancy.
FLUIDS: She should take plenty of fluids
including 8-12 glasses of water per day.
SALT INTAKE: Salt intake should not be
restricted even to prevent pregnancy-induced hypertension and
pre-eclampsia.
BEVERAGES:Excess intake of beverages containing
caffeine like coffee and tea adversely affect foetal growth and
hence, should be avoided.
Importance of eating Folate-Rich
Foods
- Folic acid is essential for the synthesis of haemoglobin.
- Folic acid deficiency leads to macrocytic anaemia.
- Pregnant women need more of folic acid.
- Folic acid supplements increase birth weight and reduce
congenital anomalies.
- Green leafy vegetables, legumes, nuts and liver are good
sources of folic acid.
- 500 mg (0.5mg) folic acid supplementation is advised
pre-conceptionally and throughout pregnancy for women with history
of congenital anomalies (neural tube defects, cleft palate).
Ways to meet the nutritional demands during
pregnancy and lactation
- The pregnant/lactating woman should eat a wide variety of foods
to make sure that her own nutritional needs as well as those of her
growing foetus are met.
- There is no particular need to modify the usual dietary
pattern. However, the quantity and frequency of usage of the
different foods should be increased.
- She can derive maximum amount of energy (about 60%) from rice,
wheat and millets. Cooking oil is a concentrated source of both
energy and polyunsaturated fatty acids.
- Good quality protein is derived from milk, fish, meat, poultry
and eggs. However, a proper combination of cereals, pulses and nuts
also provides adequate proteins.
- Mineral and vitamin requirements are met by consuming a variety
of seasonal vegetables particularly green leafy vegetables, milk
and fresh fruits.
- Bioavailability of iron can be improved by using fermented and
sprouted grams and foods rich in vitamin C such as citrus
fruits.
- Milk is the best source of biologically available calcium.
- Though it is possible to meet the requirements for most of the
nutrients through a balanced diet, pregnant/lactating women are
advised to take daily supplements of iron, folic acid, vitamin B
and calcium.
Importance of eating Iron-Rich
Foods
- Iron is needed for haemoglobin synthesis, mental function and
to provide immunity against diseases.
- Deficiency of iron leads to anaemia.
- Iron deficiency is common particularly in women of reproductive
age and children.
- Iron deficiency during pregnancy increases maternal mortality
and low birth weight infants.
- In children, it increases susceptibility to infection and
impairs learning ability.
- Plant foods like green leafy vegetables, legumes and dry fruits
contain iron.
- Iron is also obtained through meat, fish and poultry
products.
- Iron bio-availability is poor from plant foods but is good from
animal foods.
- Vitamin C - rich fruits like gooseberries (Amla), guava and
citrus improve iron absorption from plant foods.
- Beverages like tea bind dietary iron and make it unavailable.
Hence, they should be avoided before during or soon after a
meal.
- Commonly consumed plant based diets provide around 18mg of iron
as against recommended intake of 35mg per day. Therefore,
supplementation of iron (100 mg elemental iron, 0.5 mg folic acid)
is recommended for 100 days during pregnancy from 16th week onwards
to meet the demands of pregnancy.