Raising Raw Children

[lvg4him]

I have always given banana as a first food. And it is usually the base of the smoothies I give my children. I had read the article about not giving startches to infants, but never thought about a banana being a starch until NOW. What are your thoughts? Is a banana too much of a stratch to give to children? And at what age it is OK to give a starch to a child?

Thanks for ANY info on this!

[SouthpawShelly]

My daughter is almost 20 months old and she eats bananas. She also eats carrots, yams, grapes, among other raw fruits and vegetables. I'm just now trying to get her to eat greens (salad) now. I have had the same concern with starches/carbohydrates that basically turn to sugar in the body. Diabetes runs rampant in my family. I hope you get an answer and we can all become better informed!
Blessed be.

[Allison]

As long as the banana is well-ripened (colored with lots of brown spots and no green) it is a wonderful food for children. It was the first food of several of my babies.

Dr. Joel Robbins, on the tape Children and the Hallelujah Diet (I think that's the name), says that you shouldn't give starch from grains to children until they are at least two.

[Sharon in Colorado]

Yes, like Allison wrote, the starches get released the more spotted they are, then it turns into a simple sugar. Have you ever eaten an underripe banana (still a little green?) and got a belly ache?

[Rawkinlocs]

As long as the banana is well-ripened (colored with lots of brown spots and no green) it is a wonderful food for children. It was the first food of several of my babies.

Dr. Joel Robbins, on the tape Children and the Hallelujah Diet (I think that's the name), says that you shouldn't give starch from grains to children until they are at least two.

Yet, that's the first thing most parents give and are advised to give (boxed rice cereal)...wow. The things I wish I'd known when my kids were infants
:rolleyes:

[Sweet lips]

Paula,

You are doing fine, banana are considered a frist fruit for children, following the guidance provided by the others. Here is a link that may assist you:

http://scholar.lib.vt.edu/VA-news/VA-Pilot/issues/1994/vp941110/11090018.htm.

Remember you are doing fine, we all have bunps in the road and have to get past them, but stay the course and feeling the blessings

[Mieke Benton]

Hi,
I am just reading the book "Primal Mothering in a Modern World"
I think this is the most important book about mothering.
By Hygeia Halfmoon, Ph.D
ISBN 0-9653533-4-6
All your questions and much more will be answered on a real deep level and much more.
She explains that the closest to mother milk is fresh ripe fruit. So bananas is one of them.
If you are eating raw foods and have children, please read that book it will make your heart sing!

[lvg4him]

Thanks SO MUCH! I didn't realize the starches were realized as they browned. Those are the best (and least expensive) kind! LOL! Oh good! My poor baby has been begging for bananas for three days now. I told her to wait till momma got her answer. OH, she will be so happy! She has been eating bananas since 6 months old. LOL!

[monkeyboy]

Hi Everyone,

Bananas rule!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

The Monkeyman rocks.

My kids love bananas.

My kids refuse to eat at Mcdonalds.

They like Subway.

Jared is the Ronald McDonald of the new Millenium.

Whatever?


Peace,

M.B.

[caramba]

I am just reading the book "Primal Mothering in a Modern World"
I think this is the most important book about mothering.


Just the title is enough to make me go out and search for it! Thanks for the info!

And, yes, ripe bananas were / are my LIttle Ones favourites too.

[heather]

bananas are my most favorite fruit. but i dare to say that i love them GREEN. well, slightly green. when they start to get spots i usually throw them out. gross. my kids are the same way too. funny.

oh - and my 13 month old will eat any fruit. and she LOVES avocados. yumm.

[Rawkinlocs]

bananas are my most favorite fruit. but i dare to say that i love them GREEN. well, slightly green. when they start to get spots i usually throw them out. gross. my kids are the same way too. funny.

oh - and my 13 month old will eat any fruit. and she LOVES avocados. yumm.

Don't throw out the spotties! Even if you don't like to eat them that way, peel, freeze in ziploc bags and use for smoothies or banana ice cream. If you have a dehydrator, slice 'em up and dry them for a tasty lil' treat (really good with almond butter!)

[rawprincess]

bananas are wonderful, another great treat/food for babies are mashed daterolls and avocados, mashed bananeas and avocados, avocados mashed with a dust of dulse, spirulina and kelp powder pour in a tbs of flax or coconut oil mix well till you have a smooth baby food texture and serve deliciously.
Creamed veggies are great too like blended tomatoes or spinach with 1/2 avocado and a little dulse. Not too much dulse and ensure you also add kelp powder to these savory foods to increase their dietry supply until they are able to take these in tonic formula like msm etc.

plenty fruit smoothies will enhance your meals as well, dont leave out blended peaches, berries, papaya, mango with some soaked dates to add a little niceness and serve. Only ripen fruits please that way you absorb more enzymes and nutrients and less of the starches.

[SamL]

I think very ripe banana's are a perfect first food choice.

I like them very ripe cause they taste a lot better, softer, easier to digest. Especially in recipe's.

[dakota]

is spirulina safe for toddlers to eat ?

[truthseeker]

Here's a good post from Sharon in Colorado, about bananas and blood sugar:


Bananas and Diabetes

Diabetics are often told to avoid bananas entirely. Each person's case must be considered individually, but on the whole bananas are actually good for diabetics. All food is converted to sugar for use by the body as fuel, regardless of its nutritional makeup. When excess food is eaten, it will be converted to fat, whether it was in the form of carbohydrate, fat or protein when consumed.

Refined sugars enter the blood stream rapidly. When the brain senses a rise in blood sugar, it responds, sendinga message to dull appetite. To diminish appetite at the end of the meal, we typically eat desserts last.

The problem with eating meals that are made of protein, fat and complex carbohydrates is that it takes hours to convert any of this food into useable sugar. Without the message from the brain telling us that blood sugar is rising, we have no way of knowing when to stop eating. This invariably leads to overeating, and overweight is a sure problem for diabetics, one that is compounded by finishing the meal with a sweet, high calorie dessert.

The sugars in bananas are fructose and glucose. Simple carbohydrates, they require almost no digestion and can be used directly by the body for fuel. The fructose portion requires more time to get into the bloodstream than the glucose. This allows for a more gradual uptake of sugar by the body than when the sucrose (table sugar) is consumed. The gradual uptake means you are less likely to experience the high blood sugar levels so damaging to diabetics, nor do you require surges of insulin.

Bananas are high in soft, soluble fiber. When sugars are consumed with fiber, the sugar update is slowed down. This benefits diabtics as they can only handle sugar in small increments. Two other factors in bananas that afford protection to the diabetic are guar gum and pectin. Both these nutrients slow down sugar uptake.

Bananas are rich in vitamins and minerals making them a healthy choice for everyone. Eating even a little bit of banana each day is excellent for you. With daily practice, your banana consumption will increase, providing a nutritious and delicious food, even for diabetics.

Serving suggestions: Start with 1/2 banana before each meal, slowly build up to 2 or more before each meal.

"It wasn't the consumption of bananas that caused diabetes, and it won't be the consumption of bananas that worsen it"