Mother's milk is rightfully considered the most useful product for the child's body. However, the composition of milk resembles food rather than drink. Babies must be given clean water, natural juices and, of course, compotes. For many parents, the important question remains: at what age can you fearlessly give your child compote?

This drink saturates the child's body with vitamins and minerals, as it is prepared from fresh fruits and berries, or dried fruits. In addition, the compote will quench your thirst and normalize the water balance. Parents need to know which food will benefit the most and how to prepare it properly.

Suitable age for introduction into the diet

Most pediatricians are inclined to believe that this vitamin drink can be given to a child at 6 months old. Before this age, compotes are not recommended due to possible allergies. Ideally, before preparing a drink, you should try to offer your baby the berries and fruits that are included in the composition. If after a while a rash, flatulence or shortness of breath does not appear, then the child does not have an allergy.

The optimal age when you can give compote is considered to be from 3 to 12 months. However, before starting such feeding, it will be advisable to consult a pediatrician. Young mothers should be guided by the following rules when introducing the product:

• At 6 months of age, you can brew fruit and berry drinks.
• When the baby is one year old, offer him dried fruit compote. The drink is especially relevant in winter, when it is impossible to find fresh fruit on store shelves that will delight you with its vitamin composition. Dried fruit drinks can be made without sugar, because the ingredients themselves are sweet.
• First, the compotes for the child are diluted with boiled water so as not to provoke allergies once again.

If you still decide to give your baby a fruit drink from 5 months, then first check the allergic reaction to the ingredients and consult a pediatrician. Taking into account the rich vitamin composition, infants should drink compotes immediately after feeding.

Acceptable compotes for babies

What kind of compote can be given to the baby at the beginning of complementary feeding. A product made from apples is recognized as hypoallergenic. It is best if the drink is made from fresh fruit. Summer and autumn are suitable for this.

If you postpone acquaintance with the drink until late autumn, then you will have to prepare a compote from dried apples or other dried fruits. In winter, you can add frozen fruits and berries to the drink.

If the apple compote has passed a successful test by the baby's body, then pamper him with a new taste next time. The kid will be delighted with drinks with the addition of:

• fresh or dried pears;
• rose hips;
• apricot and plum.

What other compotes can you give your child? Special attention should be paid to sea buckthorn. This tasty and healthy berry is sure to please the baby. After preparation, the drink should be filtered through a sieve so that it is convenient for the baby to drink it from the bottle.

The options for children's compotes are varied. However, remember that it is not recommended to give drinks with raspberries or strawberries to a child under 8 months, so as not to provoke an allergic reaction.

The benefits of compotes

Despite the fact that only fresh fruits and berries are used to prepare the drink, some parents still doubt whether they are doing the right thing to give the child such a rich product. The main advantages of natural formulations over canned store compotes:

• As you know, after heat treatment, the bulk of the vitamins is lost. However, there are enough nutrients in the fruit that contribute to the normal functioning of the child's body.
• You can cook dried fruit compote, since these ingredients have a beneficial effect on the digestive system of the crumbs, contribute to the reproduction of beneficial microflora. If a child has constipation, then it must necessarily consist of raisins, apples and dried apricots.
• A warm drink can be offered to your baby if he shows signs of a cold.

The benefits of dried fruit compote for children lies in its amazing composition. Dried apricots and prunes have a mild laxative effect, and a dried apple normalizes digestion. What else is useful for dried fruit compote? Raisins, pears and figs are responsible for strengthening the immune system, saturating the intestines with useful bifidobacteria.

Allergic reactions

It happens that the child begins to show an allergy to compote. What parents should know in this case. First of all, let's take a look at why the baby starts having allergic attacks. This may be due to:

• drinking drinks in unlimited quantities;
• the presence of allergies in the mother, hereditary transmission;
• citrus compotes.

In addition, irritation occurs when parents forget how many months from how many months they can give compotes and start introducing this drink too early. The ideal time for the first compote complementary foods is 8 months. During this period, the digestive system will already get stronger, and a strong immunity will also form.

How can you tell if your baby is not allergic? Before giving him a drink, you need to offer small pieces of fruits and berries, from which the drink will be brewed. If after a while you do not notice changes in the stool, redness, itching and flatulence, then the future compote has been tested.

How to avoid allergies

Children should cook compotes according to the following rules:

• avoid red berries - raspberries, strawberries;
• do not add citrus fruits - orange, kiwi;
• use the minimum amount of sugar.

It is allowed to use apples, pears, prunes and dried apricots in the composition, since these fruits do not differ in their aggressive effect.

The child drinks a lot

Every caring mother notices the slightest changes in the behavior of the baby. If you see that your child drinks a lot of compote and other liquids, is it good or bad?

Causes

The child drinks too much for the following possible reasons:

• high air temperature in the room or outside;
• intoxication after vomiting or diarrhea;
• breastfeeding without further supplementation.

How much liquid do you need per day? The daily intake of water by a baby under 3 years old is 700-800 ml. If you are breastfeeding, then you need to add water to it, but not more than 150 ml per day. This amount of liquid is enough to quench thirst after feeding.

Sometimes children drink a lot due to certain diseases. If you notice that the child drinks much more than it should be, then this may indicate such diseases:

• infectious and colds;
• diarrhea, poisoning;
• pathology in the endocrine system or the brain;
• diabetes;
• disturbances in the work of the kidneys.

To make sure that there are no such dangerous pathologies, take the time to show the little one to the pediatrician.

Night drinking compote

If you begin to notice that the baby is increasingly asking for a drink at night, then this may be due to:

• air temperature (too hot and dry climate in the nursery);
• lack of parental attention (by asking for a drink, the baby is trying to get your attention);
• formation of a habit of night drinking.

It is extremely difficult to wean oneself from the night "watering", but it is necessary, since it entails disruptions in the work of the endocrine glands.

How to wean

Also, parents are tormented by the question: how to wean a child from drinking at night, since this causes significant discomfort to household members.

1. Provide the baby with a comfortable environment in the room, ventilate it as often as possible.
2. Don't overfeed your baby before bed.
3. Many parents allow their baby to drink compote at night, so the baby just gets used to this drink. Try replacing it with water to get your baby to give up the night fluid on their own.
4. Also try to give your baby more attention during the day so that he does not try to attract you with such requests at night.

Compotes can be added to the diet when the child is 6 months old. This age is considered the most optimal for testing a new type of drinking, since the immune system and the digestive system will strengthen. The first drink should be made from apples, and after that you can add dried fruits.