Hi My LO is 6 months old,,,,I know cow milk shouldn't be given to baby till 1yr...my Mil says I should soak or mix idli with milk n feed baby...but I don't wanna miss x with milk...so plz help me 1.how can I give idli to baby., 2.is it ok to mix with cow milk if m wrong
Pls don't mix with cow milk. Mash the idli nicely and give with breast milk or formula milk..preferably it should be little warm. Else prepare some vegetable purée with carrot, beans, potato etc and give mashed idli with that. Or if u have introduced dal, toor or moong u can give with little daal ka paani. Go with what your baby likes. A month later when baby is little comfortable with solids u can prepare rasam, sambhar etc also without much spice and give idly with that... I think 8th month onwards it should be ok to mix a little ghee with idly for taste and nutrition. Can also introduce curd / yoghurt around 8 months or so, it's good for health and goes well with idli. Have given u many options, hope this helps.
None of my kids liked formula. I was at wits end when my own milk was not enough after a point the second time around. The ped put too much pressure on me to force them to have formula .I decided to go with my gut feeling and moms recommendation. Used organic milk as early as 4months as a supplement. No issues and they are happy healthy teenagers now. So to answer ur specific question. If u are giving idli to a 6month old then I wouldn't worry too much about mixing a bit of cows milk to it . If the baby is ok with formula then u can start with that . As with the introduction of any new food to the baby be careful. Start with small quantities and watch for any allergic reaction.
I have given cows milk in porridge and rice cereal too especially in India. My kids never took formula and I was quite uncomfortable nursing in public during India trips so have given few tablespoons of organic milk with baby food . No issues ever and my US peds never raised any concerns either .
Doctors don't recommend cow milk to kids below 1 year because it is hard to digest because it has lot amount of proteins and minerals. Better to express breast milk and give it along with idly, u can also use formula.