Nutrition Tips Archives - Page 3 of 26

November 18, 2022November 14, 2023

In Nutrition Tipsby AUNT PORRIDGE

What is kangaroo mother care and why is it important?

Kangaroo mother care is a method for Low Birth Weight babies (read our previous post on How to feed a low birth Weight Baby) that provides skin-to-skin contact for the purpose of;

Providing warmth
Allowing the baby to be in close proximity to the mother’s breast makes the demand for breastfeeding easier.
To encourage early and exclusive breastfeeding.

Point to Note: Different caretakers can care for the baby using the kangaroo method.

How it’s done?

Dress the infant in a nappy/diaper, hat, and socks only.

Place the infant skin-to-skin on your chest ( either mother or caretaker) between the breasts, with the infant’s head turned to one side.

Tie the infant with a cloth while he/she is attached to your body. You can ask someone to help you.

Use your clothes to cover yourself and the infant too.

Encourage the mother to breastfeed the infant frequently if she’s doing kangaroo care.

If the infant can not breastfeed, then give him/her expressed breastmilk with a spoon and cup. When the infant starts to suckle well and is gaining weight, reduce the feeding from the cup and use the breast.

Contact our nutritionist on how to feed a low birth weight baby especially when it comes to complementary feeding.

Dietician /Nutritionist Aunt Porridge || +256 787 070 057

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November 8, 2022August 3, 2023

In Nutrition Tipsby auntuser

Tips for a pregnant Mum

As a pregnant mum, there’s lots of advice concerning nutrition. Sometimes you wonder what to pick or leave, yet it all looks essential. With lots of information, one may wonder who is right and wrong. Always talk to your gynecologist before making any abrupt decision.

As a nutritionist I bring you a few essential tips or guidelines to help you;

Always consume fortified foods such as vegetable oil, flour, or cereals for additional vitamins and minerals. Fortified foods have labels marked with an “F”. The goal is for you and the baby to have as much abundance of nutrients so the body doesn’t go to your reserves
Always use iodized salt to prevent poor brain development, physical growth, and goiter. Iodized salt protects against unexplained abortions, miscarriages, and stillbirths too.
Drink and drink lots of fluids, especially water. An estimation of at least significant 8glasses/2.5litrtes/6 full NICE cups for a good functioning body.
Eat a variety of locally available foods. Have a blend of animal and plant sources Why?? It’s not one particular food that has all ingredients. One food may be high in one nutrient and low in another yet you can get that down in a different food.
For example, fruits have high levels of vitamin C and beef has more iron. Meaning fruits have little or no iron while beef has no vitamin C.
During pregnancy, there’s a provision for you to eat at least one extra meal in addition to the regular meals (breakfast, lunch, and dinner)
Avoid taking tea or coffee with meals especially if they contain iron. There are particular chemical compounds found in tea or coffee that interfere with iron absorption.

If you would like specific advice regarding pregnancy nutrition and how to prepare for the delivery of a healthy baby.

Contact our nutritionist for expert advice on vitamin and nutrient deficiencies.

Dietician /Nutritionist Aunt Porridge || +256 787 070 057

Vitamin A foods and how you can add them to your everyday diet

Last week we talked about why your child needs Vitamin A. Kindly read that post before you continue. This will help you better understand why Vitamin A is a big deal to your child’s health.

Vitamin A helps your child have good eyesight, a strong immune system, and proper growth and development. it’s found in the following local foods such as;

Fruits
Pawpaw, guava, and mango

Vegetables
Pumpkin, Carrots, Broccoli, orange flesh sweet potato, red and yellow bell peppers, dark green leafy vegetables like spinach, kale, nakati

Animal sources
Meats( especially liver) dairy and their products (cheese, yogurt, butter), eggs, fish especially oily fish

Fortified foods
Cereals, flour and cooking oil.

Aunt porridge has pumpkin and silverfish which are rich in vitamin A.

The question now would be, how to incorporate them into your diet?

You can add a teaspoon of mukene to any sauce made at home.
Mashing pumpkin into sauce adds extra vitamin A .👌
Giving your child a boiled egg 🥚 (the whole egg and not just the egg yolk).
Adding either pawpaw, mango, carrot, or guava to your choice of juice.

Contact our nutritionist for expert advice on vitamin and nutrient deficiencies.

Dietician /Nutritionist Aunt Porridge || +256 787 070 057

Why your child needs Vitamin A daily?

Vitamin A is a fat–soluble vitamin meaning it’s best absorbed in the body in the presence of fat or oil. Vitamin A has other names like “Retinol or retinoic acid”.

Being deficient in Vitamin A has fatal consequences like;

Significant morbidity (how many times one falls sick) and mortality( those who die from a particular disease) from childhood infections.
The world’s leading preventable cause of childhood blindness.
The body experiences a low ability to fight infections.
Increased risk for childhood respiratory diseases.
Decreased growth rate and slow bone development.

From the above consequences of vitamin A deficiency; one needs a daily dose of it from foods.
If you noticed at 6 months your child is supplemented with a drop of vitamin A in their mouth. Sadly this is not enough and more is got from the foods your child eats. Let’s prevent deaths and sicknesses caused by nutrient deficiencies.