Children's cottage cheese: properties and differences from a regular product
It has long been known that a child's body needs more nutrients than an adult. This is due to the fact that the growth of the child directly depends on the amount of vitamins and minerals consumed. Doctors recommend giving cottage cheese to children from a young age, as it contains the most important elements that affect the strength of teeth and bones.
The benefits of cottage cheese for a child's body
The composition of cottage cheese contains a huge amount of vitamins and minerals that are vital for the normal growth of the baby. It can be introduced into the diet of children who have reached the age of 6 months, since this product is easily digested and well processed by the children's stomach.
The curd mass is rich in complete protein and calcium, which means it contains amino acids that affect the growth of muscles and bones. The product allows you to have a beneficial effect on vision, as it contains vitamin A.
For a small child, cottage cheese is important for the development of the musculoskeletal system and to exclude the occurrence of rickets. The use of this fermented milk product will normalize the baby's stool and relieve him of constipation.
It is necessary to introduce children's cottage cheese into complementary foods, which must be home-made. This is important because purchased cottage cheese may have an incorrect expiration date.There is no guarantee that parents will purchase a fresh curd product in the store.
It is best to start complementary foods with cottage cheese made from goat's milk, as it is most easily absorbed by a growing body.
Another reason why you should not give your baby purchased cottage cheese is its composition. You can not be completely sure of the veracity of the information indicated on the package. The purchased product may contain components that will only harm a small child.
Children's cottage cheese must have low percentage of fat does not cause discomfort in a fragile stomach. Store goods may have too much fat, unacceptable for babies.
Differences between children's cottage cheese and adult
Children's cottage cheese differs from the usual adult one in the first place in that a different technology is used for its preparation. At the same time, careful selection of ingredients is necessary to obtain it. To prepare a product for an adult, you can use not homemade, but pasteurized milk.
The difference between children's and adult cottage cheese is very noticeable.
- Cottage cheese for children has an average percentage of fat content.
- Baby food contains only natural ingredients.
- The cottage cheese mass for the baby is made at home, which gives confidence in its quality and freshness. Adults can eat purchased cottage cheese.
- The fat content of the fermented milk product should not exceed 2.5%.
- For young children, cottage cheese is administered in small portions, gradually increasing the dose. This is necessary so that the fragile organism gets used to the product.
- Adults eat cottage cheese in almost any quantity, as their body and immunity have long been formed.
Pediatricians advise giving babies only fresh cottage cheese and in no case combine it with foods that can cause indigestion or diarrhea. It is important to control the amount of protein food that is consumed by the child. Oversaturation with protein will only harm the baby.
In no case should you feed a baby with cottage cheese if he has kidney problems or an allergy is found. This applies not only to cottage cheese, but also to other fermented milk products.
When and how to introduce curd complementary foods?
According to pediatricians, cottage cheese can be given to babies from 8 months. This can be done earlier, but if the baby has problems with weight gain and there are problems with bone strength. In addition, cottage cheese complementary foods from the age of 6 months will benefit children suffering from calcium deficiency or having a low hemoglobin in the blood.
Sometimes a recommendation for introducing cottage cheese into complementary foods may be artificial feeding, in which a small child does not receive substances important for life. Until six months, the baby should not switch to protein foods, since until this age his pancreas is not able to cope with such a load.
It is impossible to give new food to sick children, as well as to babies who have begun to cut their teeth. This is due to the fact that parents will not be able to determine exactly why the baby has a fever or diarrhea. These symptoms may be signs of a dairy intolerance or cause illness.
You need to start the introduction of curd complementary foods in a heated form. For the first time, it is enough to give the curd at the tip of a teaspoon, and after a week the dose can be increased to a full spoon.It is permissible for a baby up to a year to give a portion consisting of two teaspoons of curd mass at a time.
You can dilute the cottage cheese with apple or pear puree. For children older than 8 months, it makes sense to give curd food mixed with vegetable or fruit puree, but only with the one that the child eats well.
Some children do not immediately get used to cottage cheese, and therefore, if they refuse, you should not forcefully feed the baby. It is best to wait a few days and offer him curd again.
It is not necessary to feed babies with cottage cheese every day. It is enough to dilute the children's diet with them a couple of times a week. The use of this product daily is permissible only on the advice of a doctor.
How to cook?
There are several ways to prepare baby cottage cheese. All of them allow you to get a fresh and sour product, suitable for introduction into complementary foods.
Based on goat milk
Preparation: Goat milk is poured into a glass jar and left warm for 48 hours. As soon as the milk turns sour, it is poured into a saucepan and put on the stove. The liquid is heated over low heat and constantly stirred. The saucepan is removed from the heat as soon as the milk begins to curdle. It is strained through a strainer into a separate container to separate the curd mass from the whey.
Ready cottage cheese must be rubbed well through a sieve to obtain a homogeneous mass. Goat's milk is considered healthier than cow's milk, as it does not cause allergies and contains more nutrients.
Based on kefir
Method of preparation: 300 ml of kefir is poured into a small saucepan and put on low heat. As soon as the mass begins to curl up, the container is removed from the stove, and the contents are poured into a sieve. They wait until the whey drains, and after that the curd mass is rubbed until a homogeneous consistency is formed.
Based on cow's milk and sour cream
Warm milk is poured into a container and 150 g of sour cream is added to it. Everything is thoroughly mixed. The pan is closed with a tight lid and wrapped for 8-10 hours. After that, the liquid is boiled and passed through a strainer. The curd is separated from the whey. The finished mass remains only to dry and wipe well with a spoon.
Keep homemade cottage cheese for children in the refrigerator for no more than three days. In this product, over time, pathogenic bacteria appear that harm the child's body. It is best to give your baby freshly cooked cottage cheese.
How to cook homemade children's cottage cheese, see the following video.