Homemade baby food NOT allowed in daycare?!

[lilmissmommy]

I'm going to be starting working full-time in August at a school. The school has a daycare. I want to enroll my 7month old baby. I was just informed that the school doesn't allow homemade babyfood, it has to be commercial jarred babyfood. I do not agree with this! It's a measure of caution of the daycare because of the risk of contaminated food, but this seems to be a deal breaker for me. My son is exclusively breastfeed and is only fed homemade food! I am going to schedule an appointment with the school's principal.

Why do so many parents negotiate optimum nutrition for the children for convenience?

[lynsage]

What if you canned the baby food in little jars and put computer-printed labels on it? Tell them you buy it at the farmer's market or something

[lilmissmommy]

Originally Posted by lynsage

What if you canned the baby food in little jars and put computer-printed labels on it? Tell them you buy it at the farmer's market or something

lol Not possible. Not even healthy! It is not recommended to make homemade canned food because of the risk of bacteria.

[rhiOrion]

I'm wondering if I'll run into this issue. My daycare is pretty strict about food. Food for parties can't be homemade. You have to have a medical note in order to have any substitutions at all from the daily menu (in the older classrooms, of course).

The handbook doesn't address baby food, really. But of course all the baby food I see there is jarred. I'm not opposed to jarred food, really (many of them have a short ingredient list- the food it is supposed to be, and water), but I'm not sure yet if I want to do purees.

My daycare also doesn't allow breast milk once they're out of the infant room (so, 12-15 months) for "sanitary reasons." They give them cow's milk, instead. And if you want them to not have cow's milk, you need a dr note, and then they give them juice. I'm going to cross that bridge when I get to it.

[Ruthla]

The no breastmilk for toddlers thing is worth fighting, IMO. Why should a toddler get inferior milk when the best is available? And why should a cow's milk-allergic baby be denied milk? What if you wanted to give your child goat's milk or organic cow's milk? It makes sense to say "we're providing cow's milk, if you want anything else, you need to provide it." IMO, juice isn't a great beverage for kids anyway, certainly not in the quantities most people seem to serve it.

However, I can see their point about baby foods. Homemade foods need to be frozen before serving, or at least refridgerated for the day. Then they need to be carefully warmed up before serving. It's a lot more work than keeping a bunch of jars at room temperature and then opening right before feeding. When you've got one adult and 4 infants, the extra "convenience" means that she's got more energy to care for the children (instead of spending the energy caring for their food.)

You can find organic jarred baby foods with simple, pure ingredients. IMO, this isn't worth the fight. You can buy the jarred foods just for daycare and continue to use the homemade stuff at home. Or you can hire a babysitter instead of using a daycare center.

[meg_shannon]

Wow...that's ridiculous, all the daycare policies just mentioned. The WHO recommends breastfeeding for at least 2 years. Jarred food is more likely to contain BPA. Juice is full of sugar. Etc, etc, etc.

I would expect a daycare to provide evidence for their decisions, for "sanitation" (in reference to the breastmilk) is not a legit answer unless they back it up with what type of bacterial contamination they are concerned about. As a biochemist this stuff pisses me off; a lot of lay people make claims about risks without having even the slightest understanding of the subject material or research available.

My rant is over....I would print off the pertinent studies and public health policies/recommendations, and request that the facility take current information into account. If they are unwilling to do so contact the necessary local groups.

At the very least I would expect them to explain themselves (who is a daycare provider to challenge the WHO?)

[rhiOrion]

Originally Posted by Ruthla

The no breastmilk for toddlers thing is worth fighting, IMO. Why should a toddler get inferior milk when the best is available? And why should a cow's milk-allergic baby be denied milk? What if you wanted to give your child goat's milk or organic cow's milk? It makes sense to say "we're providing cow's milk, if you want anything else, you need to provide it." IMO, juice isn't a great beverage for kids anyway, certainly not in the quantities most people seem to serve it.

.

My plan is to wait and see what DD is doing at that stage. I'd hate to raise a big fuss about it now, only for it to turn out that she doesn't want milk during the day at that point, or something. Once she's on solids and I have a better feeling for her breastmilk intake during the day, I'll fight it. I could see them saying they won't warm it up, or whatever. Or no bottles. But I see no reason they can't offer her breast milk in a sippy cup. I'm assuming they probably dont' have fridges in the toddler room. So maybe they don't want to put breast milk in the main fridge in the kitchen?

Hmmm. Sorry to derail your thread, OP

[Magelet]

my thought with the no breast milk for toddlers cows milk only thing is that maybe they wanted to simplify. with breast milk, they have to keep the milk seperate, keep track of whose milk is for whom. with cow's milk, they have a big box/jar in the fridge that all the kids get except the ones who get juice.

[nurturebaby]

The reason they probably want to restrict breastmilk for the toddlers is because with toddlers, whatever beverage/food the child is consuming, the chance of inadvertently 'sharing' it goes up. Whether it's actually sharing their cup with another child, or even just spilling some on the counter and having another kid put their hand in it and consume some that way.

Since breast milk is technically a type of body fluid, I can see how they would want to put some restrictions on this. It's the same reason why some schools restrict peanut products in preschool classes while the upper grades do not.

But I don't get the reason they only offer cow's milk or juice, other than the convenience factor.

[Rosehip]

Originally Posted by meg_shannon

Wow...that's ridiculous, all the daycare policies just mentioned. The WHO recommends breastfeeding for at least 2 years. Jarred food is more likely to contain BPA. Juice is full of sugar. Etc, etc, etc.

I would expect a daycare to provide evidence for their decisions, for "sanitation" (in reference to the breastmilk) is not a legit answer unless they back it up with what type of bacterial contamination they are concerned about. As a biochemist this stuff pisses me off; a lot of lay people make claims about risks without having even the slightest understanding of the subject material or research available.

My rant is over....I would print off the pertinent studies and public health policies/recommendations, and request that the facility take current information into account. If they are unwilling to do so contact the necessary local groups.

At the very least I would expect them to explain themselves (who is a daycare provider to challenge the WHO?)

Additionally, should they think that WHO only applies to developing countries, here is the American Academy of Family Practitioners' take on the topic:

"NURSING BEYOND INFANCY
As recommended by the WHO, breastfeeding should ideally continue beyond infancy, but this is not the cultural norm in the United States and requires ongoing support and encouragement.69 It has been estimated that a natural weaning age for humans is between two and seven years.70 Family physicians should be knowledgeable regarding the ongoing benefits to the child of extended breastfeeding, including continued immune protection,71 better social adjustment,72 and having a sustainable food source in times of emergency. The longer women breastfeed, the greater the decrease in their risk of breast cancer.73 Mothers who have immigrated from cultures in which breastfeeding beyond infancy is routine should be encouraged to continue this tradition. There is no evidence that extended breastfeeding is harmful to mother or child. Breastfeeding during a subsequent pregnancy is not unusual. If the pregnancy is normal and the mother is healthy, breastfeeding during pregnancy is the woman's personal decision. If the child is younger than two years, the child is at increased risk of illness if weaned. Breastfeeding the nursing child after delivery of the next child (tandem nursing) may help provide a smooth transition psychologically for the older child."

http://www.aafp.org/online/en/home/p...tionpaper.html

[mommy212]

Well I would be annoyed, mostly because my baby has become a bit picky and won't eat the jarred foods we bought for our trip. We ended up going out and buy foods to make him. So, this wouldn't work for us. But some jarred foods out there are not bad, and if you can find some he will eat i would not be too worried

[emilysmama]

I'll bet you can get around the rule. Go sit down with the director of the daycare and have a little chat. If the issue is that they lack the refrigeration to keep the food cold, then tell them you'll bring the food in a little insulated cooler with a coldpack inside. If the issue is licensing or state regulations, have them show you the exact wording of the regulation, and then tell them that you'll bring a physician's note that they can keep on file for the regulators. (Your pediatrician will be happy to write such a note stating that the baby must have homemade baby food.) If they are worried that you'll have remember to bring food in everyday, instead of just stockpiling a month's supply, then reassure them on that point. Most likely no one has ever asked to do this, so they haven't had to think of their solution. If they bring up an objection, just smile sweetly and ask if the two of you can brainstorm together to think of a solution, and then offer a possible idea.

I never had problem bringing in homemade food, but I was told that cloth diapers were against state regulations. I read the regulation carefully, and figured out that if I got a doctor's note, the regulation would still be satisfied, and the owner agreed to let us use cloth diapers. My dd was and is the only child in the history of that daycare to use cloth diapers, so it was just that they had never given the issue much thought and that their knee jerk reaction was to forbid it. But they were perfectly willing to try unorthodox solutions, as long as their license would not be in jeopardy.

[lilmissmommy]

Originally Posted by rhiOrion

The handbook doesn't address baby food, really. But of course all the baby food I see there is jarred. I'm not opposed to jarred food, really (many of them have a short ingredient list- the food it is supposed to be, and water), but I'm not sure yet if I want to do purees.

My daycare also doesn't allow breast milk once they're out of the infant room (so, 12-15 months) for "sanitary reasons." They give them cow's milk, instead. And if you want them to not have cow's milk, you need a dr note, and then they give them juice. I'm going to cross that bridge when I get to it.

Stage 2 babyfood and up have fillers added.

Toddlers aren't supposed to be filling up on juice, they should have 3 meals and 2 snacks daily. When they are 12 months and up they should only be drinking 16oz of milk a day (2 cups of milk). I can't see how it is "unsanitary" unless they don't have a fridge in that room. A way around this problem if that's the case? Ask if your child's milk can be stored (with his name written on the milk storage bag or bottle) in the nursery. How far could that be from the other rooms? Breast is best, not only for infants!
My pediatrician actually doesn't recommend that people ever drink cow's milk because it was never meant for human consumption!

[lilmissmommy]

Originally Posted by Ruthla

The no breastmilk for toddlers thing is worth fighting, IMO. Why should a toddler get inferior milk when the best is available? And why should a cow's milk-allergic baby be denied milk? What if you wanted to give your child goat's milk or organic cow's milk? It makes sense to say "we're providing cow's milk, if you want anything else, you need to provide it." IMO, juice isn't a great beverage for kids anyway, certainly not in the quantities most people seem to serve it.







However, I can see their point about baby foods. Homemade foods need to be frozen before serving, or at least refridgerated for the day. Then they need to be carefully warmed up before serving. It's a lot more work than keeping a bunch of jars at room temperature and then opening right before feeding. When you've got one adult and 4 infants, the extra "convenience" means that she's got more energy to care for the children (instead of spending the energy caring for their food.)

You can find organic jarred baby foods with simple, pure ingredients. IMO, this isn't worth the fight. You can buy the jarred foods just for daycare and continue to use the homemade stuff at home. Or you can hire a babysitter instead of using a daycare center.

I agree. I can't believe that their proposed solution would be to offer juice! Kids don't need to be drinking juice all day! Too much sugar, cuts into their appetite, teaches them unhealthy eating habits, fills them up instead of eating a healthy snack for example. Stealing the cow's milk campaign slogan: "Breast milk- it does the body good!"


Maybe for other mom's this isn't as important, but I do not agree on having my child eat jarred food. I like to know exactly what is in his food!

[lilmissmommy]

Originally Posted by meg_shannon

Wow...that's ridiculous, all the daycare policies just mentioned. The WHO recommends breastfeeding for at least 2 years. Jarred food is more likely to contain BPA. Juice is full of sugar. Etc, etc, etc.

I would expect a daycare to provide evidence for their decisions, for "sanitation" (in reference to the breastmilk) is not a legit answer unless they back it up with what type of bacterial contamination they are concerned about. As a biochemist this stuff pisses me off; a lot of lay people make claims about risks without having even the slightest understanding of the subject material or research available.

My rant is over....I would print off the pertinent studies and public health policies/recommendations, and request that the facility take current information into account. If they are unwilling to do so contact the necessary local groups.

At the very least I would expect them to explain themselves (who is a daycare provider to challenge the WHO?)

I think society is just way too use to babies drinking formula, eating jarred foods, and tots with their sippy cups filling up on cow's milk and juice the whole flippin' day. What right does a daycare have in going against a parent's personal choice when breastfeeding and eating homemade food is in the best interest of the child's health?

[lilmissmommy]

Originally Posted by Rosehip

Additionally, should they think that WHO only applies to developing countries, here is the American Academy of Family Practitioners' take on the topic:

"NURSING BEYOND INFANCY
As recommended by the WHO, breastfeeding should ideally continue beyond infancy, but this is not the cultural norm in the United States and requires ongoing support and encouragement.69 It has been estimated that a natural weaning age for humans is between two and seven years.70 Family physicians should be knowledgeable regarding the ongoing benefits to the child of extended breastfeeding, including continued immune protection,71 better social adjustment,72 and having a sustainable food source in times of emergency. The longer women breastfeed, the greater the decrease in their risk of breast cancer.73 Mothers who have immigrated from cultures in which breastfeeding beyond infancy is routine should be encouraged to continue this tradition. There is no evidence that extended breastfeeding is harmful to mother or child. Breastfeeding during a subsequent pregnancy is not unusual. If the pregnancy is normal and the mother is healthy, breastfeeding during pregnancy is the woman's personal decision. If the child is younger than two years, the child is at increased risk of illness if weaned. Breastfeeding the nursing child after delivery of the next child (tandem nursing) may help provide a smooth transition psychologically for the older child."

http://www.aafp.org/online/en/home/p...tionpaper.html

Thanks so much for this information! I plan on breastfeeding my son until he weans himself. I my baby so much that I want him to have the best nutrition that I can offer him.

[lilmissmommy]

Problem Solved

I am only permitted a 30 minute lunch break . In 30 minutes, I have to feed my baby his homemade food, and with the 10 minutes or less left over, I eat what the school's cafeteria is serving, or I bring whatever I made for dinner the night before. The school's director decided that under no circumstances would anyone give him the homemade food except myself. So I have to feed us both in 30 minutes. I find this rather inconvenient, but I will not negotiate with his nutrition and have them give him jarred foods. My son is now 9 months and 1 week and he still eats homemade food 24/7.

[sewchris2642]

Never mind.

[CliffRose]

Can you eat your lunch and feed your baby at the same time? It seems doable to me, and might get your kid interrested in eating more types of foods too, by watching mama eat her lunch

[SubliminalDarkness]

Originally Posted by lilmissmommy

lol Not possible. Not even healthy! It is not recommended to make homemade canned food because of the risk of bacteria.

What? People can food all the time.