Often, parents don’t think about how they can influence their infant’s health, including their infant’s immune system development through nutrition. Below are a few tips for parents to help support the development of an infant’s immune system during pregnancy and the first year.
During pregnancy: A mom should remember that what she eats affects her child before and after birth. A good source of vitamins and minerals and proper hydration will help a mom-to-be stay healthy.
A healthy and balanced diet during pregnancy is important for your health as well as your baby’s. That’s exactly what online WIC classes teach you.
Dr. Ronald Kleinman, chief of Pediatric Gastroenterology and Nutrition at Massachusetts General Hospital, recalls nutritional guidelines that differ greatly from today’s recommendations. “Several generations ago, doctors were quite dogmatic in establishing the order of what came first, next, and next. For example, the pediatrician would say, ‘First, rice cereal. Then, peas. Then, introduce a yellow vegetable.’ There wasn’t any rhyme or reason to that dogmatism.”
Nowadays there are all sorts of guides and books that theac parents how to feed their babies and what foods they need to introduce in their diet and when. The WIC program is dedicated to providing all the information a mother needs to provide her baby with a balanced meal.