Feeding Baby

Feeding A Baby

This article is long overdue. Actually, I have been writing it for decades, giving out drafts to various patients over the years, trying to prevail on anyone I imagined I could influence to start their babies out right, wean them wisely, lay the groundwork for a lifetime of healthy habits and, for the love of sanity, help their children build the body that they want them to have throughout their lives!

The idea that kids can have the junk foods because they are young still, is criminal in my opinion. What kind of logic is that? This is the body they will live with their whole lives, let us build it out of the best possible materials. This article is written to that end and to answer the questions of those who really want to do things right about how to do it effectively, make it work and sidestep common problems.

To be sure, it is a pretty sick world out there with most people making the problem steadily worse with their daily choices. For this reason, there are going to be some UN-common problems which may arise for some people. And, let us be honest (even if painful) some people attract problems no matter what they do. They need more help than this article can provide. This is tools for people who are ready to proceed with faith and with wisdom and a good attitude and who are willing to live life in a way that attracts good things into their lives. The business of attracting good things is the business of living life with a heart constructed out of the ideals taught in the Sermon on the Mount, in Taoism, in Buddhism, in Hindu scripture and everywhere sage people teach how to live in harmony with things, trusting the developmental program that is this mortal life, whether they acknowledged that God designed it or not. I have studied all of the above and, though I am an enthusiastic believer in Christ as the Son of God, Savior of the world, I am satisfied that as far as the Sermon on the Mount is concerned and everything Jesus taught that is a direct reflection of that, the same principles are the guides of all those systems of thought or religion that I mentioned. The truth is the truth and everything good that can come into a life comes through consciously living by that truth. It does not matter who has it and whether you agree with them. Indeed, a good deal of benefit comes from learning truth and its powerful perspectives from someone you disagree with and may not like very well. They will see things you might otherwise miss.

The practical matters of feeding a baby may seem a strange place for me to wax so eloquent, but the truth is that there is a good deal of everything but truth circulated about feeding babies. With minds and hearts teeming with casuistry, people want to push horrible ideas onto their children, before their children have a chance to grow up and be wiser than their parents and make them feel uncomfortable with their horrible choices. None of us are perfect and all of us grew up with some pretty sad ideas put into our heads about food. It is almost as if the system wanted to teach us to be sick. Certainly, the food producers wanted to increase their bottom line at any and all costs. One of those costs has been our health.

In my church, we accept a document as scripture, which we say is the Lord’s Law of Health. Early in this document (which is not so different from Romans 14 or other sources where one can glean a lot about the Lord’s pure diet instructions) it warns, before any specific instruction is given, “In consequence of the evils and designs which do and will exist in the hearts of conspiring men in the last days, I have warned you, and forewarn you, by giving unto you this world of wisdom by revelation—

My point, if it needs additional emphasis, is that corruption has made trusting the “wisdom” of men unwarranted and unwise. Even well-meaning “experts” are misdirected by all the impure motivations of those who laid the foundation they are working from. If that is not enough, within the lifespan of any middle-aged person, the “expert” advice has changed in key and important ways perhaps a dozen times.

My suggestion here is that we look carefully at nature and what she offers to us. We should look at the animal kingdom and consider what kinds of foods we should feed our young. We should listen to the advice of those who went before us who carefully did just that and gained wisdom along the way that they can share with us. What follows is a compilation of such wisdom as I have been able to obtain and utilize in my family and patients over the last 27 years.

First, a couple principles: Human breast milk is what human babies should eat, ideally from their own mothers. There are many tools for getting breast milk production up. There are herbs that help, such as Blessed Thistle, fennel, wheatgrass, barley grass and potato skins—these increase milk production. In addition, the woman must have two things for certain: (1) plenty of water to drink (best with a splash of raw apple cider vinegar in it) and (2) a relaxed state, not too stimulated where oxytocin can flow and she can appreciate the beauty of nursing. Problems can occur which challenge this latter point.

Taking a larger dose of cayenne pepper in water (like 1/2 teaspoon) will help with stress patterns. Cotton root bark tincture can help with oxytocin. The woman should practice breathing exercises and meditation to help her relax on demand if she does not naturally take to it. If there is a physical limitation (baby has atlas subluxation or a badly tied tongue, for example) it should be seen to promptly if possible. Infant massage every few days (or more) where mother massages the baby with extra virgin olive oil will both nourish the baby and help connect the nervous systems of mother and baby, preventing interpersonal problems with mother and child and facilitating health and healthy nursing patterns.

If a baby cannot nurse or get human breast milk for some reason, the next best option is FRESH goat milk with a teaspoon of blackstrap molasses added to every pint. Where possible, this should be milked as needed and not cooled or stored in the fridge. It should never be pasteurized.

Pasteurization is one of the many things we have done that prove that every decision made out of fear is the wrong one, as I am fond of saying. We traded very rare problems with milk coming from unhealthy animals (and which are no threat to the nutritionally sound human) for problems that will affect every consumer, every time, no matter what they do. That is pasteurization of milk. We damage everyone due to the remote risk of someone getting sick. Why not educate people about the nutritional support that make such illness a non-threat? That would make more sense, to be sure. But somehow in our day we let fear and drama rule the day at the expense of all.

In the case of undulant fever (which is what Brucellosis is called in humans), it can be fed out of any population of animals or humans by supplementing with calcium, organic alfalfa and kelp, in equal parts. In wisely nourished humans or free ranged cattle, the condition does not exist.

Second option, if the goat milk option is not possible for some reason, we will only feed the baby raw plant food and it must be rotated in order to prevent allergies. We may use some heat in the making of teas which are nourishing to the baby.

Almond milk: Best made with soaked almonds, soaked overnight. Blend with water, adding a little at a time until the smooth consistency is reached. This can be strained or given with the small pieces in it through a larger nipple. If the baby has trouble with the pulp then it should be strained. It is also best to mix this with a little blackstrap molasses. Yes, blackstrap molasses I cooked and not raw, but it is insurance that certain nutrients get in and that the large intestine remains active and empties as it should. Play with dosage, but maybe a teaspoon per pint is reasonable. Almond milk may be sweetened with either maple syrup or honey. In my opinion honey is better as it is full of many micronutrients, enzymes, insulin and minerals. The fear of honey causing botulism is actually worse than the undulant fever fear, for there is no recorded case of this ever occurring and it is a theoretical danger. It is made somewhat worse by dishonest beekeepers who feed bees corn syrup and then extract the frames and bottle it as honey. Still, it is simply impossible to ferment botulism in honey as honey naturally inhibits the spore.

Hazelnut milk: same as almond milk

Marshmallow root tea: Put a tablespoon of the cut root into each cup of water. Bring to a boil and then immediately reduce to a very low simmer. Let sit for 20-40 minutes at very low simmer and then let cool. Strain out when cool enough and give straight or sweeten with maple syrup, honey or whole stevia leaf tea or tincture (do not use stevia extract that is clear or white as this is a chemical isolate and unnatural).

Slippery elm bark: Sift the powder into hot water (no need to reach boiling) and stir in a little at a time. As it thickens it can be used in a bottle. Sweeten with any of the above and consider adding blackstrap molasses.

Ripe banana with jurassic green: Mash Dr. Christopher’s Jurassic Green powder into a ripe banana. Feed this a small amount at a time or there is a sort of binky/pacifier which has a mesh through which the baby can suck soft food.

Ripe avocado: this can be mashed and fed like a banana. Nutritional yeast can be mashed into this to ramp up B-vitamins and amino acids.

Finely chopped apples: Run through a food processor to make raw applesauce. Use organic apples and leave the skin on. Jurassic green may be added to this, or the apples fed just like they are.

Other nut and seed milks may be used (cashew, walnut, pumpkin seed, sunflower seed, flax seed, sesame seed, raw coconut) but less frequently than the above. Of these, flax and sesame seeds are the most useful to add to blend up with almond or hazelnut milk to enrich them and to encourage immune and gut health.

Potassium broth: this is cooked at a low heat until the vegetables turn pale gray. It is 1/3 organic potato skins and 2/3 every other kind of vegetable, with the top and skin on it. It usually includes onions and garlic and peppers. After it is simmered and strained, sea salt is added to taste to keep it stable in the fridge for several days. Baby can drink this warm in a bottle. Be aware that some babies have trouble with garlic and onions and in those cases they should be left out.

Fresh fruit and vegetable juice, made fresh in a juicer and fed soon after will also feed the baby indefinitely. A little jurassic green or nutritional yeast may be added to the juice to enrich it.

Many berries may be blended and mixed with juice. Be aware that strawberries may be an allergen for some kids and if so, they should be avoided.

Smoothies: You can blend fruit into a smoothie. Whenever this is done, consider adding coconut oil or olive oil. Babies need a lot of fats to be healthy. Sometimes we will also blend Ghee into the smoothie or add it to the avocado. Blackstrap molasses can be added to smoothies. Jurassic Green can be added to them. Sesame seeds or flax seeds can be blended to milk to make a base.

Bear in mind that babies need variety. They will learn to like the taste of whatever is familiar. We should go to great lengths to avoid giving them a taste for corn syrup and refined sugar and processed junk (which is what you find in baby formula), candy, chocolate bars, cold cereal, chemical non-food (like soda, gatorade, energy drinks, etc) and the like. Instead, we want them to learn to like a variety of raw foods, fruits and vegetables, nuts and seeds and things which are nutrient dense, but wholesome.

Fermented…something: We will have a problem if we fail to prompt gut microbiome in a baby. The baby does not have normal stomach acid and as such will not maintain a healthy gut microbiome, which is needed for all the fiber he or she will be getting from this raw food. As such, we need to add that microbiome to the gut each day. We do this using sauerkraut, kimchi or real fermented pickles. This can be blended into smoothies or potassium broth or just the water can be given to the baby in any context or just using an eye dropper. This should be done at least daily if not at each meal.

Some will ask about yogurt. This is okay if it is raw milk from a known chemical-free cow with A2-A2 breeding. This yogurt must be made at home and allowed to ferment at the appropriate temperature for a full 24 hours. At this point, the yogurt will be very sour and not pleasant, but this must be done in order to digest all of the proteins that are hard for humans to handle. Then, this can have honey and fruit blended into it and blackstrap molasses and is then a suitable food for the baby. Watch closely for constipation, rashes, blood in bowel movements, bloating or congestion, anything which would signal that the baby is having an allergy to the milk protein. If this occurs, discontinue the use of the yogurt.

There are a few other options but the above list is pretty good. Raspberry leaf tea is good. Alfalfa leaf, comfrey leaf tea. These are all very nourishing and have abundant nutrition in them. Fresh tomato juice is good. These will replace meals. Babies do NOT need protein powders or any protein dense food.

Weaning Baby

As we start weaning baby, we are going to continue to use all the things that we have discussed above. In addition, we need to put more solids to work. Baby can chew bites of sauerkraut, pieces of pickle (again, these are raw pickles—cucumbers set in brine and allowed to ferment). Baby can eat small chopped vegetables.

We want to be overwhelmingly raw. It is okay to put/mash riced raw broccoli, carrots, cauliflower, etc, into a baked potato with olive oil or coconut oil, add nutritional yeast and balsamic vinegar and feed this to the baby.

Lettuce can be chopped and used to dip in almondaise sauces (from Traci’s Recipe Book), olive oil and vegetable seasoning broth powder, etc.

Avocado can be less mashed and the baby can start spooning it in.

We can introduce grapes and other fruits, raw nut butters, dried fruit, seed dehydrator crackers, sprouted grain pancakes (from Traci’s Recipe Book). Generally, we should avoid true grains until the child is 3 years old. If grains are used, they should be sprouted or highly fermented and should be conscientiously clean, organic grain. Best if glutenous grains are strictly avoided. We never want processed, cooked grain cereals with a shelf-life as you can purchase as “baby food” in the grocery store, but made from scratch, as whole as possible.

Steel cut oats have a natural medicine in them that calms the gut and eases digestion. Though they are a grain, if you have a baby that is insatiably hungry, this is one aid that may be used with fruit in the morning. Alternatively, millet congee may be made with fruit cooked into it to help quell an unruly appetite. Having said this, I really believe that sticking to raw is preferred if you can do it.

As my daughter learned recently as she carefully fed my grandson only raw food for many months after he was weaned, you do have to feed them pretty often as they will not feel full as they would on congesting, processed food that cannot be easily digested. This can be helped with plenty of fat, as mentioned above. Seeds and nut butters help.

Nothing works as well as sprouted grain, but, as stated it is best to leave it for later and it generally must be cooked to eat it, so we want to leave that for as long as possible and use it rarely before the age of 3. Fermented food also very much helps with satiation, as the best source of time-release nutrition is a good microbiome digesting raw vegetable roughage. Raw vegetable roughage comes from cabbage, carrots, broccoli, snow peas, beets, onions, radishes, cauliflower, kohlrabi, turnips, garlic, etc. You do not get much from lettuce and other delicate leaves. It is also noteworthy that spinach seems to interrupt normal healthy microbiome and should be minimized. Fermentation of raw vegetable roughage is time-release nutrition, and excellent nutrition at that, as full and complete as is possible for humans to receive.

Generally, we wait until the child is 2 years old before we introduce any appreciable amount of cooked food. Then we add sweet potatoes and squash, steamed broccoli, stewed apples, bone broth, beets, sprouted grain pancakes (but not glutenous), eggs with runny yolks. Leave muscle meats alone until 3-4 years old. Some beans are useful for babies, particularly lentils, which can be made into child-friendly soup. Green beans are good, also snow peas, sprouted mung beans or mung bean sprouts, lima beans and butter beans and edamame are all also the place to start adding legumes into the baby’s diet.

Keep a high percentage raw for life.

Mushrooms are fine to add to soups and food.

Notice the lack of dairy. It is my opinion that dairy, outside of butter and the highly fermented yogurt mentioned above, is of limited value and a lot of liability for humans. We are not baby cows or goats, etc. I recommend keeping dairy products to a minimum throughout life. Special occasions only, is one option. I never recommend drinking milk at all.

It is my opinion that any processed food and junk foods are best kept out of the home and out of the child’s diet and experience as long as possible. 90% of taste is familiarity. We hope that you will help your child have a familiarity with a vegetarian base that is primarily raw, always whole and healthy.

Corn, hard beans, peanuts, chocolate and all GMO’s are problematic for us. How much we can eat and how often varies, but always it is something to consider and watch for. Processed food like soybean and canola oil are terrible ideas. Avoid all chemicals in food and food that is not found in that form in nature.