Life Stages and Nutrition: Infants

by | May 30, 2019 | Ayurveda Blog, Nutrition

Ayurveda Nutrition and Infants

I would like to share some gems of nutritional/clinical knowledge based on my experience in treating patients from all stages of life. First, let’s discuss the nutrition and infants.

Keep in mind that while doctors do amazing work in the realms of surgery, diagnosing disease, and treating emergencies. However, they sometimes lead us astray with their nutritional advice since they have have little to no training in nutrition. Quite often they make us sicker with their
pharmaceuticals, and sometimes they treat us incorrectly. It’s good to learn how to navigate your way through modern medicine, avoiding bad advice and gravitating towards those recommendations which are helpful to us. Let’s work our way starting with babies, move on to the teen years, and then into old age.

First, it is best to not give babies synthetic vitamins with fluoride because fluoride disrupts bone formation and thyroid function. Instead, cook fresh, organic foods from all the food groups, avoiding food in jars. Purée the freshly cooked foods for the baby and avoid freezing or microwaving it. Cook fresh each day so the food has more nutritional value. As food sits, it loses its nourishing and life supporting value. Resist the temptation to think that higher doses of vitamins in a synthetic form is a good idea; there is a reason vitamins are found in small levels in the food. It is a burden on the kidneys and liver as they have to work overtime to rid the body of these man made chemicals. One example of this is Vitamin D, which is best absorbed through the skin. When swallowed through artificial means, it will go through the liver to be digested. Rubbing it into the soles of the feet will take Vitamin D directly into the blood, effectively bypassing the liver. This is especially important to consider for babies born during winter months when it isn’t possible to expose their skin to the sunshine to make Vitamin D.

It is also important to consider the methods in which foods are prepared when feeding your baby. Don’t mash bananas for them as they are too mucous forming and could give babies congestion. Even mashed, avocados are too difficult to be digested before the age of two, as are nuts, and should be avoided. While these foods contain valuable nutrients, the babies’ digestive systems are too immature to process them correctly. They remain partially digested and clog the delicate physical channels of the body which could lead to ear infections and digestive disturbance.

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