Puffed Rice For Babies – When to Introduce, Benefits And Precautions

Is Puffed Rice Safe For Babies?

To answer this question, it is important to cite the report of the famous child nutrition expert, Dr Priya Rastogi, a senior consultant at Vedanta, New Delhi. According to the study conducted under her aegis, it was discovered that consuming puffed rice at an early age helps in the development of the body. It is a perfect snack to satisfy the small tummies of young babies.

The puffed rice can be served to infants and babies in any form. They don’t have any side effects if consumed within the prescribed quantity. It is safe for babies. Rather, it is a nutritious food for babies. It contains different forms of vitamins and minerals, which are, on any day, required by the baby for the development, growth and nourishment within the time.

When Can You Introduce Puffed Rice to Your Baby?

You can introduce puffed rice as soon as your baby is ready for solids which is around 6 months in most cases. For parents who are starting solids a little later too, puffed rice is an excellent first food item. Puffed rice is extremely soft and melts in the mouth immediately which means that your baby won’t run the risk of choking too.

Nutritional Value of Puffed Rice

The nutritional value of puffed rice per 100 gms has been given as follows for the reference of the parents.

Amazing Top 4 Benefits of Puffed Rice For Babies

As already mentioned, puffed rice is an important meal for babies. It has a broad range of advantages to the body. This food helps maintain a balance between taste and nutrition; hence, it is the best in almost every form and manner.

The list of the benefits of puffed rice for babies include

1. Storehouse of Essential Nutrients

One of the most important advantages of including puffed rice in the diet of young infants is the availability of so many nutrients. This is a good source of vitamin D and Calcium. It also contains the optimum amount of fiber and iron. All of these nutrients have individual and collective advantages for the young baby.

It not only helps to strengthen the bones and muscles but also helps the baby to develop the immunity to fight diseases and infections. All of these nutrients also help in the production of blood, and hence the hemoglobin level is maintained. Instead of supplying different types of supplements to boost the status of the required nutrients inside the body of infants, it is advisable to make them consume puffed rice because it is a storehouse of the best vitamins and minerals.

2. Helps to Gain Weight

If your child is suffering from the problem of malnutrition and is not gaining weight despite all the supplements, then puffed rice can be a conventional solution. This food comprises Carbohydrates and starch, due to which the body weight can increase. It is a safe method to increase the body weight of the baby and toddlers if they are underweight.

It is an important method to boost the energy levels in the body without being dependent upon artificial supplements and medicines that induce weight gain.

3. Helps Ease Bowel Movement

When young babies consume a solid diet, they usually face many digestion-related problems. Many times, they experience loose motion or constipation. This is because of the immature digestion and digestive system inside the body.

Even the bowel movement, which is essential for the discharge of waste from the human body, does not take place properly, due to which babies may experience uneasiness and get cranky. The best solution to these problems is to give them a sufficient amount of puffed rice. This helps them regulate the bowel movement easily so the baby can feel comfortable.

4. Improves Activity Levels

This food contains a lot of starch and carbohydrates. Starch and carbohydrates are responsible for providing the maximum energy to the child at a young age. This level of energy also helps the child to take different activities due to the possibility of increasing the height.

[Read : The 3-Day Wait Rule For Babies To Introduce Solids]

Precautions to Take While Introducing Puffed Rice to Babies

For every parent and caregiver, it is vital to take a few precautions when introducing any food to babies. Here are a few precautions you can take when introducing puffed rice to your baby.

• Start with very small quantities to make sure that your baby accepts the food well. Then, you can slowly increase the quantity.
• You can initially start with giving wet puffed rice so that the choking risk is minimized completely and then slowly transition your baby to regular puffed rice.

[Read : Infant Choking]

Are There Any Side Effects of Puffed Rice For Babies?

There are no known side effects of puffed rice for babies. This is one of the reasons why this is preferred as one of the first foods my many moms across India. Having said that it is important to remember that moderation is the key.

• Excess consumption of puffed rice may increase blood glucose levels
• While there are no specific side effects, it is important that parents monitor their babies for any kind of reactions from any new food because each baby is different and may react differently to different foods.

Top 2 Healthy and Tasty Puffed Rice Recipes For Babies

Here are some puffed rice recipes you can try out for your baby.

1. Puffed Rice Porridge

Soak puffed rice in breast milk or formula milk, mix it into a paste with the back of a spoon and feed it to your baby.

2. Puffed Rice Dal Porridge

Saute half a cup of puffed rice in a pan until brown. Add about 30 gm Bengal gram and saute it as well. Add the mixture to a grinder to form a powder. You can now cook this with powder with water, cool and serve to your baby.

For older babies who are ready with finger foods, you can try giving the puffed rice first and then graduate them to puffed rice mixtures, homemade bhel etc., with ingredients that are easy to eat for the baby.

Puffed rice for infants is the perfect balance of nutrition and taste. This is the best type of food item that you can give your little munchkin once they are ready for solids.

[Read : Finger Food For Babies: Everything You Must Know]

FAQ’s

1. Does Puffed Rice Cause Constipation in Babies?

Puffed rice does not cause constipation in babies. In fact it reduces the occurrence of constipation and frees up the bowel movement.

2. Does Puffed Rice Cause Gas in Babies?

Puffed rice doesn’t cause gas in babies. It is among the easily digested and absorbed foods.

Read Also: Poha For Babies – When to Introduce, Benefits And Precautions