What do you feed a 16 month old...

[carang]

yes, it's all about moderation. you don't use a cup of soy sauce, do you? no, you use a tablespoon or slightly more for a big wok full of noodles, veg and meat. it's not a huge amount when you consider the size of a child's serving.

we cook normally, but as said, we don't add EXTRA salt, we leave that up to the adults at the table.

i am a firm believer that you need to start the way you mean to continue.

IF you mean to continue cooking your child's food separately for the next 7-8 years, then by all means continue. (i'm not judging if that is what you choose to do.)

IF you want your child to be well-rounded, able to be taken to a restaurant, to enjoy a variety of foods etc, then what better time than the present to start introducing these things?

 

[jvn]

Same here, we just don't add extra salt but if salt is there in the recipe, for example from cheese, bacon or soy sauce then that's fine - and bear in mind my boy is still under a year old so I'm much more aware of it now than I will be in a years time. I actually use the reduced salt soy sauce but then I love salty food so it's actually good that feeding The Boy is making me cut down

 

[nicolejoy]

1) scheduling. His schedule is different from ours. Eg he has dinner at 6:30 so there's time for him to bath and relax before bed while we eat later. If we cook together our food will need reheating and won't taste good.
2) he still only got 6 teeth so we give him softer food, like cooking his vege longer, pasta softer etc. It's easier to to it separately
3) we like spicy food and also eat semi junk food like deep fried stuff and I don't think he should eat spicy stuff. (again we sometimes hold the spice for his portion but we might as well just cook separatly at the right time)

Here's what I've found with my daughter (21 months):
1) scheduling - we do try to eat earlier so that we can eat with her. We used to eat at 7-7:30, sometimes even later - but it's too late for her. She usually goes to bed at 8-8:30ish. Hubby now leaves work as early as possible, often bringing work home for him to finish up at night. He gets home around 6:30-7ish and we eat as soon as he comes in the door. It's better if we could eat together at 6, and on weekends that's what we do - but 6:30-7 works... family dinners are important to us so we do the best with what we've got.

2) My daughter teethed early (had 8 teeth by 7 months old, had 16 teeth at about 13-14 months) BUT I think that sometimes parents underestimate how much their kids are actually able to gum. I've seen kids with no teeth successfully gum on steak and vegetables that weren't cooked any softer than normal. Same with pasta. The main thing is to just cut it into bits that are small enough for them, OR alternatively to leave it as bigger chunks (the size of their hand) that they can gnaw on as "finger food".

3) There's nothing wrong with kids having spicy food or a bit of deep fried food, also nothing wrong with fats/sugars/salts in moderation. Introducing them to a variety of different flavours will increase the things that they do like and help to make them NOT fussy eaters. If a kid is eating fried stuff for every single meal, there may be an issue, but there's nothing wrong with a bit now and then. Ultimately we want our kids to have similar tastes to us, so that we can eat the same foods. Like Carang was saying, I know some kids who are 10 and their parents are still cooking them cheese on toast because they don't like what the rest of the family is having. The parents will cook pasta and then cook a sauce specifically for their 10 year old and then another sauce for everyone else. That's not where I want to be in 9 years time!! So if I don't allow it NOW, it's less likely to be a problem 9 years down the road.

 

[carang]

not to mention the "real life" factor... you get on a plane? sorry, no cheese on toast! you go on holiday? no cooking there unless you rent a place with a kitchen, in which case, why go on holiday in the first place?

 

[happyvalleygirl]

I cook with soy when making stir fries and fried rice. It is very bland otherwise! 1 teaspoon should be fine for a large baby portion. I always make sure H drinks a lot of water at mealtimes and throughout the day.

All babies/toddlers need a wide variety of different textures and flavours or else you run the risk of having a fussy eater, which is no good for anyone in the long term.

 

[southside852]

like those mentioned above, at 16 months, they can eat everything you can. by then too, i was so tired of making separate meals for our son that i welcomed a meal that he ate out. the fact is that they are going to have learn to eat regular food so why not start now? exposure to a variety of food early on is huge....i usually just made sure we were eating in what i deemed to be in clean restaurants and the food was not totally deep fried etc...

 

[shuchisingh]

Just adding on to what nicolejoy said for baffelly:

1. my son has dinner at 7, while we usually have it at 8-8:30. dinner is ready before 7 and we warm it for us or just make some lat min additions.
2. my son has 8 teeth... and he has everything. he was having most things even when he did not have teeth. they can chew perfectly well with their jaws.
3. if your son doesnt like spice he would let you know. spice is quite subjective anyways - i get teary eyed eating at one of my freind's place but her 1 year old daughter enjoys the same food.