The baby's brain grows enormously during its first three years of life and many new neuronal connections occur. The brain also spends 30% of the energy consumed by the child, so feeding him well is essential. That the intake of nutrients is adequate is essential for the correct development of the brain. Must Nourish the baby's brain.
That the child receives sufficient and adequate emotional and sensitive stimuli is essential, but the nutrition It is also decisive so that the neural connections can be constructed and the necessary elements are available.
In pregnancy the mother has to discard the use of tobacco, alcohol and drugs. You have to be calm and not suffer avoidable tensions. In addition to medical controls, it is essential that you take care of your diet, including iodine, iron and folic acid in the appropriate amounts, so the gynecologist can recommend a supplement to ensure optimal levels.
In both pregnant women and children, cortisol, the stress hormone, is detrimental to the baby's brain development. Therefore, mothers should avoid situations of this kind, both in the family and in the workplace.
For the child it is also important to avoid excessive fear or tension, since, although data are already pointed to the damage produced by cortisol, there is no evidence to determine that stress is harmless. Therefore, the methods of parenting and "learning" of the sleep patterns to which parents resort should a priori demonstrate that they will not harm and that fear or anxiety do not leave sequels. I, therefore, believe that its use must be seriously considered.
For babies, breast milk is the only thing they need during the first six months of life because it contains all the necessary food in the exact composition. If the infant is given milk of formula, therefore, it should always be recommended by the pediatrician.
Then we must ensure that complementary food offers necessary nutrients both for general physical growth and specifically for brain development.
As of the year the child's brain continues to grow, children have a higher metabolic rate and face many intellectual, cognitive and even enormous changes in their environment, which make the energy and nutrient needs to be met correctly. so as not to condition its subsequent development.
Children with malnutrition may suffer from deficiencies and delayed speech, motor skills and even a lower IQ, which is complicated to reverse later.
Apart from the influence of other factors still under study such as genetic background, environment, exposure to pollution, stress, parents' educational level and birth weight, experts agree to determine that nutrition is an undoubted factor that influences cognitive development .
And that parents can do a lot. Myelin is a substance that lines nerve cells. Omega-3 fatty acids and amino acids (proteins) are the cement and bricks of neurons. And glucose is the energy they use to function. We have to offer all these nutritional elements to the child so that he can develop his brain correctly.
In the following topics we will review these nutrients for the baby's brain, their uses and food sources in which to find them.
