Concluzii post-intalnire mamici

Concluzii post-intalnire mamici

Cand vine vorba de cresterea copiilor, recomandarile, normele, standardele s-au schimbat foarte mult de la generatia parintilor nostri la generatia parintilor de acum. Ba mai mult, medicul pediatru Andreea Manda m-a “linistit” spunadu-mi ca s-au schimbat inclusiv de la nasterea lui Vlad si pana astazi. Cu alte cuvinte, studii legate de alimentatia copilului, de nevoile lui nutritionale, studii privind alergiile, programarea metabolica sau dezvoltarea lui optima din punct de vedere psihic si fizic se desfasoara chiar in acest moment, iar datele noi sunt interpretate de catre specialisti, transmise medicilor si ulterior viitorilor parinti. Si uite cum am avut o revelatie…

EN: When it comes to raising kids, the recommendations, the norms, the standard have changed a lot from our parents’ generation to the generation of nowadays parents. Furthermore, the pediatrician Andreea Manda has “encouraged” me by saying that they have also changed since Vlad was born until today. In other words, studies about the child’s nutrition, his nutritional needs, studies about allergies, metabolic programming or his optimal development both physically and psychically are being done as we speak, and the new data are interpreted by specialists, passed on to doctors and then to future parents. And then I had an epiphany…

Mi-am dat seama ca o parte dintre informatiile pe care le stiam eu cand l-am nascut pe Vlad sunt deja depasite! Stiu ca suna greu de crezut, dar asta e adevarul. As putea spune ca “pe vremea mea” se recomandau anumite scheme privind alimentatia copilului care acum s-au modificat, s-au imbunatatit. Nu spun ca am gresit, caci am facut ce era mai bine de facut la momentul respectiv pentru copilul meu, ceea ce medicul imi recomandase. Dar acum exista deja informatii suplimentare pentru o dezvoltare optima a copiilor. Caci spre deosebire de alte tari, noi luam in calcul nu supravietuirea unui copil, ci calitatea vietii acestuia. Cautam sa fim informati si sa alegem varianta optima pentru puiul nostru. Cred ca cei care aveti mai mult de un copil, si cu diferenta de varsta intre ei, ati primit poate recomandari diferite de la unul la celalalt. Asadar, m-am lamurit ca nu e cazul sa dam noi sfaturi, mamele care am trecut deja de anumite etape, ci sa directionam mamicile de copii mai mici decat ai nostri spre medici competenti, informati, care sa le ofere cele mai bune si noi recomandari. Pentru ca, desi poate ca suntem inca mame de copii mici, care am facut totul pentru ei ca la carte, nu detinem adevarul absolut si chiar nu le stim pe toate. Am participat la o multe astfel de intalniri cu mamici si venisem cu prejudecata ca stiu deja ce se va discuta si care sunt nevoile copilului dupa varsta de 1 an, dar iata ca inclusiv eu am avut surpriza sa descopar informatii noi, bazate pe studii recente. Cred ca de unele informatii eram atat de sigura, incat as fi fost in stare sa ma contrazic cu oricare nou parinte, gresind exact ca bunicii care contrazic parintii informati ai acestei generatii. Trebuie sa ne asumam ca nu le stim pe toate si sa fim deschisi catre medicii care ne recomanda o alimentatie adecvata copiilor din ziua de azi.

La toate acestea m-am gandit la finalul intalnirii din cadrul campaniei educationale Nestle Incepe Sanatos, Creste Sanatos  cu tema “Ce lapte alegem pentru cel mic de la varsta de 1 an”, care a avut loc acum cateva zile. Mamele invitate pot confirma ca subiectul de discutie dezbatut impreuna cu dr. Andreea Manda si dr. Mihaela Oros a fost extrem de interesant si foarte bine argumentat.

In ceea ce priveste alimentatia copilului dupa varsta de 1 an, una dintre erorile uzuale este ca parintii tind sa ii considere pe copii niste mici adulti. Sigur ca trec intr-o noua etapa, diferita de cea a piureurilor de fructe sau legume, dar stomacelul lor este inca in dezvoltare si au nevoi nutritionale specifice varstei. Stiu ca si eu am avut aceasta dilema cand am dat prima cautare pe net legata de “alimentatia copilului la 1 an” si am citit mirata ca deja poate trece pe mancarea parintilor. Ori nu e chiar asa, caci e foarte important sa ne asiguram ca parinti ca le oferim micutilor nostri o alimentatie adecvata varstei lor. Copiii mici, cu varsta de 1 an, au nevoi nutritionale mult mai mari decat adultii, pe kg corp, pentru ca au un ritm de crestere si dezvoltare mai accelerat. In acelasi timp, stomacul lor este mic, reprezentand 20% din capacitatea gastrica a adultului. Deci trebuie sa ne asiguram ca satisfacem nevoile specifice acestei etape de dezvoltare miraculoasa. Iar studiile arata ca in primii ani de viata alimentatia copilului are un rol extrem de important in dezvolatarea acestuia, pana chiar in viata adulta.

Dupa implinirea varstei de 1 an, parintii au inclinatia sa ofere lapte de vaca micutilor atunci cand alaptarea nu mai este posibila, adica acelasi lapte pe care il consuma si ei. Doar ca este important de stiut ca laptele de vaca are un continut mare de sare, care suprasolicita rinichii inca imaturi. In plus, este sarac in unele vitamine, minerale si oligoelemente importante, precum Fier, Zinc, Iod, vitamina D, necesare pentru dezvoltarea echilibrata a copilului. Laptele de mama are 1.2g/100kcal proteine deoarece copilului ii trebuie 120 zile ca sa isi dubleze greutatea. Laptele de vaca are 3.3g/100kcal proteine tocmai pentru ca vitelul sa isi dubleze greutatea in 40 zile. Asadar fiecare mamifer are alt tip de lapte adaptat nevoilor speciei. Si noi doar vrem sa crestem oameni sanatosi nu vitei sanatosi, nu? 🙂

Pe kg corp, copiii mici au nevoie de 4 ori mai mult Fier si de 5 ori mai mult Calciu, Iod, Vitamina A si C, decat adultii. De aceea afirmatia ca dupa varsta de 1 an copiii pot manca ce mananca adultii nu trebuie luata ad-litteram, pentru ca desi pot manca multe alimente/feluri de mancare la aceasta varsta, trebuie inca respectate nevoile nutritionale diferite de cele ale unui adult.

Cei care au participat la intalnire pot confirma faptul ca in continuare recomandarea medicilor este de a oferi copilului lapte matern pentru cat mai mult timp posibil. Drept urmare, laptele pentru copii de varsta mica ramane alternativa optima exclusiv in situatia in care alaptatul nu mai este posibil. O mama a unui copil cu varsta mai mare de 2 ani a fost chiar felicitata de dr. Manda in timpul intalnirii pentru performanta de a-l alapta in continuare. Dar, ca mama, stiu ca acest target este dificil de atins, din multe puncte de vedere. Asadar, cand nu l-am mai alaptat pe Vlad la varsta de 1 an si 3 luni am ales un lapte care sa ii satisfaca nevoile de crestere, oferindu-i desigur inclusiv alte lactate pe baza de lapte de vaca sau capra, cum ar fi iaurt, branza, smantanta etc. Si daca tot am pomenit de lapte de capra, s-a discutat si acest subiect, ba chiar s-a atins si subiectul laptelui de soia, cocos sau migdale, si s-a explicat de ce varianta optima ramane laptele pentru copii de varsta mica, sau lapte praf cum mai este cunoscut in general:), care are o compozi­tie bine echilibrata de proteine si grasimi de inalta calitate, vitamine si minerale, necesare pentru sus­tinerea cresterii si dezvoltarii normale a copiilor.

Cele 2 portii zilnice (aprox 500 ml) de lapte pentru copii de varsta mica de la varsta de 1 an asigura necesarul de:

• Calciu (asigura peste 90%), Fier (asigura peste 70%) si vitamina D pentru cresterea normala a oaselor
• fier pentru o dezvoltare cognitiva optima
• fosfor si iod pentru o dezvoltare normala

Cineva ma intreba aici pe blog daca laptele praf pentru copii de varsta mica nu ingrasa mai tare decat cel de vaca. Raspunsul este ca nu, ba chiar lucrurile stau taman pe dos. Compozitia laptelui de vaca este mai putin  potrivita copiilor cu varsta peste 1 an deoarece, in afara celor deja mentionate mai sus, este un lapte cu prea multe proteine, care pot solicita ficatul si rinichii. Iar excesul de proteine in alimentatia sugarilor si copiilor poate duce la obezitate, mai tarziu in viata. Deci chiar daca acum copilul pare ca are o greutate perfecta, ca e fix pe percentila care trebuie, nu inseamna ca nu am creat deja anumite modificari la nivelul metabolismului sau, care ii vor da batai de cap adultului de mai tarziu.

Subiectul este extrem de larg si sunt sigura ca inca mai aveti intrebari care asteapta un raspuns. Asadar, va invit sa mi le lasati printr-un comentariu mai jos, iar eu le voi transmite mai departe medicilor pediatri. Asa ma voi simti cu adevarat de ajutor!

EN: I realized that some of the information I had when Vlad was born are already outdated! I know that’s hard to believe, but it’s the truth. I could say that “during my days” some schemes regarding infant nutrition were recommended, which have now been changed, improved. I’m not saying I did anything wrong, because I did what was best at that moment, what the doctor recommended me. But now there are already extra information about the optimal development of children. Because unlike other countries, we don’t take into account the survival of a child, but the quality of its life. We try to be informed and to choose the best alternative for our baby. I think those of you who have more than one child, and with a certain difference between them, have maybe received different recommendations from one to the other. So, I am now convinced that us mothers, who have already gone through various stages, shouldn’t give out advice, but to leave that to competent doctors, who are informed and able to give them the best and newest recommendations.  Because, even if we are still mothers of small children, who did everything for them by the book, we don’t have the absolute truth and we really don’t know everything. I have attended many such meetings with mothers of small children and I went with the prejudice that I already knew what was going to be discussed and what the needs of a child after the age of 1 are, but I found myself surprised to discover new information, based on recent studies. I think I was so certain of some of the information, that I would gladly contradict every other new parent, being just as wrong as grandparents who contradict the informed parents of this generation. We have to acknowledge that we don’t know everything and to be open towards doctors who recommend the appropriate nutrition for children nowadays.  

I thought about all of this at the end of the meeting Nestle Incepe Sanatos, Creste Sanatos, with the theme “What milk do we choose for the child after the age of 1”, which took place a few days ago. The invited mothers can confirm that the subject up for debate with dr. Andreea Manda and dr. Mihaela Oros was very interesting and well debated.

When it comes to the nutrition of the infant after the age of 1, one of the most common errors is that parents have the tendency to consider their children as small adults. It’s true that they begin a new stage, different than the one of pureed fruits and vegetables, but their little stomach is still developing and they have nutritional needs specific to their age. I know I also had this dilemma when I searched the internet and read that they can already begin eating their parents’ food. Well that isn’t really the case, because it’s very important for us parents to make sure that we provide our children with age appropriate food.  Small children, at the age of 1, have much higher nutritional needs than adults, because they have an accelerated rate growth. At the same time, their stomach is really small, at about 20% of the gastric capacity of an adult. So we have to make sure that we are taking care of their specific needs in this miraculous development stage.  And studies show that nutrition in the first years in the life of a child has an extremely important role in his development, until his adult life.

After the age of 1, parents have the tendency to offer them cow’s milk, after breastfeeding isn’t possible anymore, so they same milk they are drinking themselves. But it’s important to know that cow’s milk has a high content of salt, which is hard on the still immature kidneys. Plus, it’s poor in some  important vitamins, minerals and other elements, like Iron, Zinc, Iodine, vitamin D, necessary for the balanced development of the child. Mother’s milk has  1.2g/100kcal proteins, because the child needs 120 days to double his weight. Cow’s milk has 3.3g/100kcal proteins precisely so that the calf doubles its weight in 40 days. So, each mammal has a different kind of milk adapted to needs of the species. And we want to raise healthy humans, not healthy calves, don’t we? 🙂

Per body kg corp, small children need 4 times more Iron and 5 times more Calcium, Iodine, Vitamin A and C, than adults. That’s why the saying that after the age of 1 children can eat what adults are eating doesn’t have to be taken word for word, because even if they can eat many types of food at this age, the nutritional needs which are different than those of an adult still have to be respected.

Those who attended this meeting can confirm that doctors recommend breastfeeding for as long as possible. Therefore, the milk for children of small ages remains the optimal alternative only if breastfeeding isn’t possible anymore.  The mother of an over 2 years old child was congratulated by  dr. Manda for the performance of still breastfeeding him. But, as a mother, I know this target is hard to achieve, for many reasons. So, when I stopped breastfeeding Vlad at 1 year and 3 months, I chose a milk to satisfy his growth needs, offering him also other milk products made from cow’s or goat’s milk, like yoghurt, cheese, cream, etc. And since I mentioned goat’s milk, this topic was also discussed, we even talked about soy, coconut or almond milk, and it was explained why the optimal choice is still the milk for children of small age, or formula how it is usually referred to :), which has a well balanced composition of high quality proteins and fats, vitamins and minerals, necessary for the normal growth and development of children.

The 2 daily portions (aprox 500 ml) of milk for children at the age of 1 provide:

• Calcium (provides over 90%), Iron (provides over 70%) and vitamin D for normal bone growth
• Iron for an optimal cognitive development   
• Phosphorus and Iodine for a normal development  

Someone was asking me here on the blog if formula doesn’t make children gain more weight than cow’s milk does. The answer is no, it’s actually the exact opposite. The composition of cow’s milk is less appropriate for children over the age of 1 because, besides the above mentioned reasons, it is a milk with too many proteins, which are tough on the liver and kidneys.  And excess proteins can lead to obesity later in life. So even if it looks like now the child has the perfect weight, that he is on the exact percentage, that doesn’t mean that we haven’t already created some modifications in his metabolism, which will be a problem to the adult he will grow up to be.  

The topic is very broad and I am sure you still have questions waiting for an answer. So, I invite you to leave them in a comment below, and I will pass them on to the pediatricians. This way I will truly feel helpful!