Did you know that many pediatric authorities are now recommending meat (vs. iron-fortified cereal) as a first food? This stems from the fact that there are a high percentage of infants with evidence of marginal zinc and iron status. There are a couple of reasons why iron deficiency tends to be common amongst infants including, but not limited to: early cord clamping, low birth weight, preterm birth, and diminishing iron stores, so providing your baby with meat helps replete t ... heir iron and zinc stores while providing greater nutritional value than grains. Also, the iron in animal protein is more bioavailable than the iron found in iron-fortified cereals. We do a mixture of baby-led weaning and purees. I strongly believe in the benefits of BLW (see my podcast for more details), but also want to make sure my little one actually consumes (vs. just chews on) iron-rich meats to receive enough iron, zinc, and B12. In fact, there was a really interesting study done by the British Medical Journal last year which concluded that "infants following BLW had similar energy intakes to those following traditional spoon feeding and were eating family meals more regularly, but appeared to have higher intakes of fat and saturated fat, and lower intakes of iron, zinc and vitamin B12." I'll post the article link below. We simply blend meat (usually whatever we're eating) into a puree mixed with bone broth, water, or breastmilk and a little fat (coconut oil, butter, ghee). Another way to incorporate more animal protein while following principles of BLW is to offer softer meats like salmon, sardines, oysters, chicken, and pate which can be manipulated with or without teeth. If you can squish the food between two fingers, it's probably okay for your little. You can also include smaller pieces of cooked ground meat or flatter, longer, meatballs once your baby gets a little older. I'll post a picture of what that looks like in a future post. Of course, work with your pediatrician to develop a plan that works for your baby and takes into consideration potential food allergies and reactions. wedding wears for young girls http://ift.tt/2d3tAl6 http://ift.tt/2pmdGe3