Protein...how much?

[@llli*purplemonkey]

Hi PP, I'm British too! But I moved to the other side of the land on the other side of the pond. Last time I went back home, I heard that English Mums are being encouraged to feed their babies fish at least once a week, while here Moms are advised to avoid it for allergy reasons. I'm afraid I've been too scared of allergies to risk introducing fish or nuts as yet. My son is 18mths and already has issues with oats and dairy, and we have quite a history of allergies in both sides of the family, but my husband is urging me to 'please try' fish and nuts! I know, I know. I should. So what's a good way to carefully introduce them? I re-tried dairy this week and that was a (messy and stinky) disaster, so it'll have to be next week or the week after.

[@llli*leila]

Thanks for the tips.

I'd love to know why you avoid grains?

They can really cause a lot of problems - gluten intolerance, celiac disease, etc. There seem to be so many benefits to "grain-free" diets (or low carb, or whatever you want to call them) that I just try to go that direction in our daily lives. Here's some more info: http://www.westonaprice.org/foodfeatures/be_kind.html

[@llli*purplemonkey]

Thanks, interesting article. It reminds me - I read something recently about the nutritional advantages of soaking beans. I wonder whether cooking grains (e.g. barley) in a slow cooker has the same advantages as soaking overnight - just a lazy hope from someone usually too disorganized to remember to soak the night before! It's good to know which are the healthier choices.

I've also read that the US and UK govs are considering redrawing the food pyramids to take the focus off grains, making fruit and veg the main food group in our diets. I guess they'd have pretty stiff opposition from farmers..?

I understood that celiac disease was genetic; so the wrong diet, rather than causing it, would make the disease apparent in someone susceptible. However, I do agree that anyone with a family history of gluten intolerance/celiac or similar should be pretty careful about what they feed their kids.

Gotta go!

[@llli*desertmama]

keep in mind too, that the nursing sessions to account for some of those reccomendations (there's a link around here somewhere )

TG - I was just about to because my son eats nowhere near that much food. Granted, he's only 1 but he definitely eats less than my friends' kids who are the same age. He still nurses a minimum of 6 times during the day + 3-6 more sessions at night.

[@llli*andrea.wolford]

dr sears has a good book on nutrition...
http://www.askdrsears.com/store/detail.asp?pid=14

try this link too
http://www.askdrsears.com/html/4/t044400.asp

[@llli*purplemonkey]

Thanks Andrea, I'm going to order a copy from the library.

Further research today turned up this website (below) where you can get detailed nutritional info for foods prepared in different ways (e.g. apples - with skin, without, raw, cooked, dried, canned, juice, sauce, etc):

http://www.nal.usda.gov/fnic/foodcomp/search/

However, knowing the mg of calcium in a particular food does not tell you how readily the body will absorb it from that source...but it's a start!

[@llli*danlynclark]

Here's another site that might have some good info for you:

www.nutritiondata.com

You can look up nutrients to find a list of foods high in that nutrient, or you can search a food and see the components. I love this site!

Lyn

[@llli*purplemonkey]

Wow, that's a great site! I particularly like that it includes the fact you're lactating into your BMI / nutrition needs. Looks like I need to revise my diet more than my son's! I didn't know my calorie requirements (and especially fat and protein) were so high. Probably why I haven't been able to maintain weight or shake this cold/sinus infection/whatever this is...

[@llli*leila]

Ideas for getting calcium: http://www.ppnf.org/catalog/ppnf/Articles/Calcium.htm