At what age can an orange be given to a child: features and recommendations

Each mother carefully monitors the diet of her baby. If you want to diversify its menu, she studies the benefits and harms of each specific product. At what age can an orange be given to a child? The article will discuss the benefits and harms of citrus for the baby's body, as well as the features of their use.

Beneficial features

Orange is one of the most common members of the citrus family. Its fruits attract adults and children with a bright color, pleasant taste and special aroma.

When can I give my child an orange? Before proceeding to determine the age of the baby, when he can eat the fruit without harm to his health, consider the benefits of the fruit. Here are the main positive properties of orange:

1. The composition of the fetus includes: fructose, glucose, sucrose, volatile, vitamins C, B, E, B7, minerals and amino acids. In orange, there is an increased amount of potassium and magnesium.
2. Regular inclusion of fruit in the food strengthens the immune system, improves the functioning of the heart and liver.
3. Thanks to the orange, you can eliminate constipation, improve digestion and appetite.
4. Freshly squeezed juice strengthens the skeletal system and preserves calcium in the body.

Oranges have many beneficial properties that manifest themselves if used properly.

Harm

At what age can an orange be given to a child? Before deciding on the time the fetus is included in the baby’s diet, it is necessary to consider its negative effect on the child’s body.

Despite its positive properties, an orange can cause harm. He is the strongest allergen, so babies are not given it.

Drinking juice is not recommended for diseases of the stomach and high acidity. Oranges can adversely affect tooth enamel. This is due to the presence of certain acids in their composition.

Contraindications include:

• pathology of the digestive tract (gastritis, ulcer);
• individual intolerance of citrus;
• pancreatitis
• diabetes.

Harmful substances can accumulate in the zest, therefore, children under 6 years old should be included in the diet with caution.

Allergy

When to give lemon and orange to babies? Before you include citrus fruits in your diet, you must understand that they can cause an allergic reaction. Even a slice of orange can trigger a rash, redness and swelling of the skin, and digestive upset.

The reaction of the body can appear not only on the active compounds that enter the fetus, but also on the chemicals that process them for long-term storage.

In a children's diet, any fruit is administered with caution and in small portions. This is done due to the risk of an allergic reaction. When it appears, seek help from a pediatrician.

There are recommendations when a child can be given oranges. Parents need to heed these tips.

Since how many months you can enter fruit into the diet

At what age can an orange be given to a child? Parents need to familiarize themselves with some of the nuances of introducing fruit into the diet:

1. Before starting to include an orange in the children's menu, mothers should eat it on their own (you can eat quite a bit). This is done only when the baby reaches 3 months of age.
2. It is necessary to feed the baby with orange, starting from 10 months of age.
3. Up to a year, the child is given diluted juice or a few drops are added to compote or tea.
4. If allergy symptoms are absent, then the portion is allowed to be increased with each feeding.
5. The baby is not recommended to give packaged juices, because they may contain harmful compounds.
6. It is not necessary to introduce several fruits into the diet at once (orange, persimmon, lemon, kiwi). If a negative reaction occurs, it will be quite difficult to establish its cause.
7. It is recommended to monitor the interval between the use of citrus fruits (3-4 days). This is enough to establish the causes of an allergic reaction.
8. It should be borne in mind that even a healthy baby is given orange in certain quantities.
9. When feeding with fruits, you need to remove seeds and peel.

When can an orange be given to a child and at what age? Parents should understand that such fruits should not be the first complementary foods for infants. First you need to familiarize the child's body with local fruits. Oranges can be consumed by children from the age of 1 year and older. If the baby is allergic, then the inclusion of fruits in the diet should be postponed until 2-3 years.

Due to the fact that oranges are rich in acids, it is not recommended to use them daily. This will lead to disruption of the digestive tract.

Selection of oranges

How old is an orange for a child? Before including it in the diet, parents need to choose the right fruits. The most successful option for kids are sweet varieties of fruits with a slight sour taste.

Such oranges grow in Spain, the Mediterranean and off the coast of Sicily. To choose oranges of excellent quality, the following recommendations must be observed:

• fruit color can be of various shades: from orange-red to greenish (this color is not always a sign of immaturity). This suggests that some fruits ripened in the sun, and the rest, lighter in the shade.
• A sign of ripeness of oranges is their weight. The fetus with the largest mass is considered the most mature. They also have a special aroma.

Sweet oranges are usually small in size. The thickness of the peel does not affect maturity and taste, but is a sign of a particular variety. Umbilical oranges (there is a formation in the navel) is an ideal fruit for infants. They are very sweet, they have a lot of juice and almost no seeds.

In what form to give the child

Initially, the baby is offered fresh fruit. For the first time, one slice is enough. In the absence of allergy symptoms, you can continue to familiarize your child with an orange. At each subsequent feeding add 1/2 slices.

Freshly squeezed fruit juice is the best choice for the baby. Can be combined with fresh fruits from other fruits: carrots, apples and others. Juices need to be diluted with water in a ratio of 1: 1.

At what age can an orange be given to a child? One year old kids can make a fragrant dessert. For this dish you will need the following components:

• 2 oranges;
• a handful of raisins;
• a glass of sour cream;
• 2 root crops.

Peel the oranges and cut into small pieces. Grated peeled carrots. All components to mix. Add sour cream and raisins, mix. If desired, you can put a small amount of sugar.

You can also make candied fruits from oranges. The process is as follows:

• Wash the fruits thoroughly, put in a deep bowl and pour hot water to remove the bitterness from their skin.
• Set the load on top, so that the fruits do not pop up. Leave for a quarter of an hour.
• After this time, oranges are taken out and wiped with a napkin.
• The fruit is cut into circles, the thickness of which is 0.5-0.6 cm. They are placed in a pan.
• Separately boil the syrup. It consists of water and juice in a ratio of 1 tbsp. liquids per 1 kg of sugar. Pour fruit circles in syrup and leave for 9-10 hours.
• After time, drain the liquid and bring it to a boil. Pour oranges with syrup. The process is repeated until the crust becomes transparent.
• After this, the syrup with fruits is boiled for another 5-7 minutes over low heat and cool.

Candied fruit is placed in a colander, and left to drain excess fluid. The process takes 6 hours.

Then the slices are placed on parchment and put in the oven, heated to 80 degrees. The door is best left ajar.

When children can eat other citrus fruits

At what age can a child give tangerines? They are recommended to be given from a year old. First, a little mandarin juice is introduced into the diet, after diluting it with water. Only then can you give the baby a slice. If the body normally responds to the fetus, then you can give 1-2 tangerines per day.

Lemon is allowed to be tasted starting from 8-10 months. At this age, babies may already perceive the quality of the product. And there is a high probability that he will like the sour taste of the fruit.

Lemon juice diluted with water is allowed to be given even earlier - from 6 months. Add 1 teaspoon of sugar to a glass of water in a drink.

Conclusion

The benefits of citrus are not in doubt, because they significantly compensate for the deficiency of vitamins and minerals in the body. However, the child should eat the fruits with great care, because they are the strongest allergens and have a number of contraindications. It is necessary to gradually introduce the baby to the product.