Many parents can’t wait for the day they get to give their baby their first spoon of “real” food. Introducing solid foods is a milestone and exciting time. For many parents infant cereals and Goodnight formula are the perfect place to start. There are many benefits to introducing cereals as a first food, once your baby has reached 6 months of age.
Benefits of Cereal and Goodnight formula.
After your baby is old enough to eat solid foods, organic cereals are a good, nutritious first food to introduce to your baby. Rice cereal is a good first choice, as it is easy to digest, and is the least likely grain to cause an allergic reaction. Most babies find the texture and taste of cereals to be appealing, especially when mixed with formula or breastmilk.
Cereals are also a good source of iron, and can help support your baby’s body as his iron stores begin to deplete between 6-12 months of age. Cereals also offer vitamins, minerals, antioxidants and fiber as part of a healthy diet.
Cereals and goodnight formulas are an ideal food for bedtime. Many studies have shown that a combination of protein, fats and carbohydrates eaten before bed, such a cereal and milk, can help both babies and adults sleep better. Feeding your baby cereal or goodnight formula before bed can help him sleep longer, especially if he tends to wake up hungry during the night.
What are Goodnight Formulas and Goodnight Cereals?
Goodnight formulas and cereals are a special blend of follow on formula and cereals that are meant to be used once a day, at bedtime or as a daytime snack.
Goodnight formula
Is a thick, creamy formula which contains both formula and cereals. It is meant to be used in a bottle, as a convenient before bed meal, to help your baby sleep longer.
Goodnight cereals
Are cereals with added formula that are meant to be prepared in a bowl and fed as a complete solid food meal.
For more information on how Goodnight Cereals can help your baby sleep through the night click here.
Types of Goodnight Cereals and Formula
We at My Organic Formula carry the German HiPP brand Goodnight formulas and cereals.
HiPP Goodnight Formula 6 Months +
Is designed for infants 6 months and older who have been introduced to cereals. Goodnight formula is a smooth mixture of follow-on formula, and rice and buckwheat cereal. It specially formulated to be fed through a bottle as a bedtime meal.
HiPP Goodnight Formula for 10 Months +
Is designed for older infants with follow on formula that meets an older babies nutritional needs. It contains oat cereal and is also designed to be fed using a bottle.
*Note: The following cereals do not contain added sugars, as some of their names might suggest. HiPP is dedicated to the health of your baby and avoids processed sugar ingredients like table sugar and corn syrup.
HiPP Goodnight Cereal Vanilla Cookie Mash
Is a flavored cereal with vanilla, butter, rice and wheat cereal as well as follow on formula.
HiPP Goodnight Apple Oat Cereal
Is a rice, oat, and wheat cereal with follow on formula and apple juice.
HiPP Goodnight Banana Rusk Cereal
Is a rice and wheat cereal with follow on formula, banana and crushed wheat rusk (a type of hard biscuit).
HiPP Goodnight Banana Semolina Cereal
Is a rice, wheat and semolina cereal with follow on formula and banana.
Why Organic?
With so many baby cereal choices in the store, why should you choose our organic cereals? The organic cereals we carry at MyOrganicFormula.com are naturally full of good nutrition, as they were grown on biodynamic farmland where the soil is properly cared for to insure maximum nutrition, without all the chemicals found in herbicides, pesticides, and synthetic fertilizers. Our European cereals by HiPP, Holle, Lebenswert, Babylove and DM all follow the strict guidelines of the European Union and are biodynamic or Demeter certified to insure you are receiving a pure, organic, sustainable product.
Why Not Before 6 months?
Since the advent of baby cereals doctors throughout the US have been telling mothers to give their babies rice cereal as early as 4 months of age, to add extra iron into their diet and protect them from anemia. However, most babies are born with an adequate supply of iron, which lasts well into the 6th month of life and beyond. Parents love this advice, because their babies stay fuller longer when they eat cereal. However, studies show that this trend can have a detrimental effect on your baby’s health.
When a baby is born, their digestive system is still developing. The intestines of a baby younger than 6 months are permeable, and can allow large particles of food to enter the body, undigested. When large particles of food enter the body through the intestines, the immune system sees them as invaders and attacks. This causes allergies, sensitivities, and new studies are finding that it can eventually lead to autoimmune conditions. A similar condition happens in adults when the lining of the intestines is damaged. The condition is known as leaky gut.
Babies were meant to have nothing but milk for the first 6 months of their life, while the protective layers of their intestines form. Introducing foods other than formula or breastmilk, prior to 6 months of age is an unnecessary risk.
If your baby is ready for cereals, check out our full line at MyOrganicFormula.com, and reap the benefits of nutritious, baby cereals and goodnight formula today.