Question
How should a child over five months and twenty days start introducing complementary foods? What are the effects of not drinking breast milk?
Answer
When a child reaches five months and twenty days, it’s time to begin gradually introducing complementary foods. Initially, you can offer the child some liquid foods such as vegetable soup, juice, etc., to spark their interest. Then, you can gradually increase the amount of solid food, starting with soft foods like rice porridge, pureed fruits, and so on. At the same time, attention should be paid to the texture and shape of the food, which should transition from fine to coarse, starting with powders before moving to chunks, to facilitate digestion and absorption. Additionally, if the child does not drink breast milk, artificial feeding can be adopted and the proportion of solid food can be gradually increased. It’s important to introduce new foods one at a time, observing the child’s digestion and reaction to ensure they adapt to the new food before introducing the next one.