Lets talk about weetbix.

[Junglemum]

So i often see references to not giving weetbix to babies under 12 months. Sometimes it is claims about the salt content, other times it is about fiber and sometimes allergy concerns.

So i did a little research this morning and this is what i found.

First i looked at the salt.
The recommended dietary intake of sodium is as follows;

0-6 months 120mg/day (estimated amount an exclusively BF baby gets)
7-12 months 170mg/day
1-3 years 200-400mg/day *

*from nrv.gov.au

Weetbix contain the following amounts of sodium per serve, which is 30g or 2 biscuits;

Original 96mg
Organic 87mg
Multigrain 157mg
Kids 33mg

Compared to
Oats 5mg / 30 g serve

So oats are the clear winner in terms of Salt, but given that my kids have home cooked fruit and vegies which have minimal amounts of sodium (for example 1/2 an avocado has 2mg of sodium, an apple has about 1mg) At the introduction of solids the RDI goes up by 50mg, i pressume that a baby will still get the 120mg/day from breastmilk and can have up to 50mg more sodium from solids per day. Although one kids weetbix, at 16.5mg a day is a large percentage of this (33%) in terms of salt content, my daughter would still be well under 170mg a day with her diet of mainly fruit and veg.
I guess if my kids were having other foods high in sodium i might see it differently.


I then went on to look at fiber.

Weetbix all contain 3.3g of fiber, except multigrain which contains 4.6g.

Oats are often suggested as an alternative, but the fiber in oats is 3.0g/serve of 30g, so not that different really. BM contains no fibre so i guess it would be a big change for their digestive system. Although the amount of fibre is not huge compared to fruit and veggies. 1 apple has about 2.3g of fibre, a pear has 2.1g, 1/2 Cup carrot has 1.7g.

So again the fiber content is a little higher in weekbix than oats but not significantly.

I have heard a few times that weetbix packets suggest not giving weetbix until 12 months. I looked but couldn?t see it on any box?s here. I did find on their Australian website that they don?t recommend introducing any wheat products until 7 months, but that was all I could find. If anyone has proof of this claim (ie, a box with it on) I?d be interested to hear. What it does say is ?2 Weet-Bix Kids with 1/2 cup of milk provides 1/3 of daily calcium & iron needs of children aged 1-7 years.? That is a far cry from "do not give to infants under 12 month" ( I email the company to ask them about this rumor, awaiting for a reply. )

Finally, the concern of allergy. Given that we have eczema in the family I am going to try and avoid high allergy foods related to eczema. But most things I read suggested that as long as there is no history of allergies it is fine to introduce wheat at around 7-8 months. Although many people say before this is fine, and others say wait until 12 months. There was a study done in Sweden that suggested introducing gluten while still breast feeding was important to reduce the likelihood of a child developing celiac disease.

I guess to the problem is that nutrition and disease is not an exact science. We?re still learning, hence the forever changing recommendations!

As far as weetbix are concerned from all I have seen they are fine as a part of a balanced diet for an infant, particularly if the rest of their diet is low in sodium. Oats are slightly better in terms of salt content and are a good alternative.

I would be very interested if anyone has further reading on introducing wheat...

[LimeSlice]

That is really interesting - thanks for posting that

I never knew it was suggested not to give them weetbix under 12 months. While Charlotte eats porridge most days, she does eat weetbix often and has done since 7 months old.
We have no food allergies int eh family though so it was never a concern from that aspect.

Isn't the wheat allergy thing why *they* recommend giving babies rice cereal as opposed to wheat based cereals as first foods?

[Junglemum]

Yeah Limey that is why rice cereal can be a great first food. Although i find that due to the iron fortification it causes more constipation problems than anything else, so we went straight to fruit and vegies. There are lots of recipes to make your own so i guess that's an option.

I am still a bit confused as to the optimal time to introduce wheat though. i guess while the experts are confused i have no chance. :

[Rouge]

Awesomely put. I think too if people knew the amount of sodium in regular foods, non processed wholefoods, they might be shocked. Like did you know celery contains the same amount as weet-bix in one stalk?

[maz]

Ah you clever chicky babe
Now you know what N looks like...he has no ezcemer, no allergies.....he's been eatting weetbix since he was 8 weeks old. My doctor told me to introduce him to solids at 6 weeks due to his reflux...he told me weetbix would help keep 'it down' and would be no different in salt content to other foods he would be eating.

It hasnt hurt my boy now has it

[*charmalea*]

rouge - so even though celery has the same amout as weetbix .... i would consider the celery to be a better option , as its whole and pure .. straight from the ground and not a box ... wdyt ??

we did BLS at around 8 mths wheat was introduced . i BF for 14.5 mths and my lil one is gluten intolerant , her dietician said , if your cealiac , your cealiac ...introducing wheat would make the symptoms appear eariler , you cant change it , BF helps alot only if the mother changes her diet ... but then the mum misses out on a huge load of fibre and other minerals .

i also think that weetbix are ok if thier diet is balanced . and they have been around for ever and ever and i bet they are a top seller .

thanks for posting though , there is not enough info about the food on the shelves at the supermarkets .

[Junglemum]

Like did you know celery contains the same amount as weet-bix in one stalk?

I had no idea!

[*EJ*]

Very interesting and WOW on all your research Falguni!!

DS1 has had wheatbix from an early age (not sure exactly when) started on rice cereal and then progressed to wheatbix once he was needing a little more at breakfast time.

I must say i have never looked into wheatbix so throughly but in my ignorance (maybe/maybe not) believed i was giving him a healthy nutritious breakfast compared to other choices i could have made. On top of the wheatbix he also has puffed rice, LSA mix & apple/pear puree that i make each week. Scarey thought but would this be considered a high salt content breakfast? Once again considereing it's fruit picked from a tree?

The mention of eczema is an interesting one, DS1 does have patches on his arms & legs of 'dry skin' that i apply a perscribed cream to. I use soap free products but these will still flare up now and again. I wonder if it has anything to do with wheat??

To this day he has wheatbix every morning and he loves it. I have breifly researched the contents in food we eat and i try really hard to make the right decisions. I'd definately be interested to hear what others think and have found out from research and expereince.

Great thread Falguni