After a laborious nine months of restrictions and precautions, it’s only natural to welcome a welcome change in the form of an outing or dining out! However, by now, eating at home has become a ritual for both you and your infant. Therefore, for the first few times, eating out with a baby may be challenging. Not only will your infant be in a new environment, but food safety is also a concern.
Thus, it’s not easy to have a gala time with a frail figure in your arms. Unlike you, your baby is not going to be served at the restaurant and may feel uncomfortable in the new ambiance. You may also feel skeptical about breastfeeding your baby in public and would rather turn down the dinner invitation. Read below to counter this dilemma and enjoy your meal.
In This Article
- 5 No-Stress Tips For Eating Out With The Baby
- What Not To Do When Eating Out With A Baby?
- Eating Out When Breastfeeding
- Foods To Avoid During Breastfeeding
5 No-Stress Tips For Eating Out With The Baby
You can’t control how your baby feels or if he needs to eat, so along with praying, be ready to feed him when you go out to eat. Below are a few tips to ease your dining experience:
1. Choose The Right Place
Choose a baby-friendly restaurant and reserve in advance; babies can easily become cranky! Let go of tempting ‘couples’ only’ places that are dim and have crystal all over. Opt for places that have open spaces, some aquariums,, and plenty of room to walk around. Check if they offer high chairs. In fact, it helps if you take a corner table!
2. Do Not Deviate From The Baby’s Eating Schedule
Hungry babies are never happy and will not be at peace. To ease this discomfort, you can carry or order a soft-boiled egg. If the baby likes something particular to nibble on, do take it with you as well. If your baby has progressed to baby foods such as cereals (Nestle Cerelac or Farex) you can easily order boiled water in the restaurant or carry your own in a thermos and prepare it in a jiffy to counter those untimely hunger pangs.
3. Water Stories
Carry your own boiled water in a baby’s bottle or a sippy cup- this water should be boiled and cooled. Do not be influenced by the filtered water in the restaurant. Filters come in varied efficiencies, and germs and viruses today are very resistant. If you have to order, then opt for branded mineral water.
4. Customized Requests
You can either carry semi-solid food along, or some restaurants do offer khichdi. You can request that they make a non-spicy, softer one for your baby. The same thing can be done for potatoes and cheese
5. Milk
If possible, pump the breast milk and store it in a sterilized bottle, ready to feed! Sterilize the bottle and nipple before leaving home and store carefully – in case he needs water, use your own bottle
The key to dining out with the baby lies in how much you can engage him. While waiting for the food, take the baby around, and keep her from getting bored. Boredom simply leads to tantrums – and yes, no matter how hard you try, the baby will get bored at some point for sure. So you should be mentally prepared for a tantrum, a dirty diaper, and some clutter. It is, well, a part of parenting itself.
What Not To Do When Eating Out With A Baby?
Following are a few things that you should not do while eating out with your baby:
- Experiment with new foods or even cereals. You never know if he may be allergic to the ingredients of the new stuff. It’s best to stick to the same brand of cereals and pasteurized milk (if already started)!
- Feed pre-cut fruit or vegetable as an alternative to suck on and leave you in peace! Cut fruits and vegetables lose their nutritional value quickly, attract germs as well as change their taste. Always feed thoroughly washed, freshly cut fruits only
- Forcefully make your baby taste pani puri water or roadside chuski! This might upset his stomach and moreover, hygiene cannot be guaranteed!
- Feed fruit juices, milkshakes, and lemonades from restaurants. They are definitely made/diluted with water and the hygiene of water may be dodgy!
- Feed anything raw, except freshly cut fruits that your baby has sucked on before without any allergic reactions
More responsibilities come with having a baby, and your body is put to the test as well. Carrying and putting your baby to sleep, or breastfeeding! To counter this toll on your body, it’s essential to follow a balanced diet. This might be missed when eating out. Relax. Check below for a few healthier eating options with a little compromise on taste and experience.
Eating Out When Breastfeeding
Sure enough, if you have a baby and are breastfeeding her, you are still doing the job of nourishing the little one. Even if eating out, you will need to keep tabs on what you eat.
Some tips to ease your dining experience are listed below:
- Multigrain: When eating out, think smart, order a multigrain sandwich in Subway or pan/thin crust pizza from Pizza Hut! Feel free to order brown rice, oats, and brown rice. Multigrain options are an essential source of carbohydrates and fiber
- Salads: The best meal! Fresh vegetables and continental varieties are powerhouses of vitamins and nutrients. They detoxify the body. Tip: Don’t miss the salad bowl in Pizza Hut!
- Lean Meat, Eggs, And Pulses: Lay back, relax, and order mutton biryani and Doner kebabs or turkey sandwich! They will cater to your daily requirement for protein
- Fish: You can now relish in the amazing Goan fish curry or Bombay Pomfret Masala! These are power packed with protein and omega-3 fatty acids
- Yogurt: Yogurt can especially be a good choice as it contains good bacteria to regulate intestinal health and calcium for healthy bones. You can indulge in Greek yogurt, flavored yogurt, or plain yogurt; try mishti dahi or plain dahi, or even fruit smoothies
- Milk: Milk is essential for all the calcium and bones, and it helps your back post-delivery. Enjoy milk in the form of lassi and milkshakes! Sometimes milk may cause allergy in your baby so drink milk in moderation and watch for any signs of allergic reaction. Consult your obstetrician for supplements of calcium and vitamin D. Vitamin D – an essential nutrient is obtained by your baby through breast milk
Foods to Avoid During Breastfeeding
Food consumed by the mother can seep into the breast milk. As a result, it’s critical to notice if your baby exhibits allergy symptoms after breastfeeding, such as itching, rashes, redness of the skin, swollen eyes, diarrhea, constipation, vomiting, or a loss of appetite.
Below is a general list of foods to avoid during breastfeeding:
Spicy food
It may cause dehydration and constipation in both you and your baby
Caffeine
Go easy on coffee and tea! Caffeine may make your baby restless and difficult to sleep
Alcohol
Occasional wine is fine, otherwise, alcohol may affect the baby’s development and your milk supply
- Feed baby before having alcohol as your blood quickly absorbs alcohol and reaches its peak 30-90 minutes after drinking
- Or feed 2-3 hours after drinking, by this time the alcohol levels should have gone down
- Skip the alcohol, if you have a newborn as he might need very frequent feeds
Herbal teas
Truth is the very attractive Green Tea, Chamomile Tea, Strawberry tea, and flower teas all contain caffeine. In addition to this how your baby’s body reacts to certain ingredients such as chamomile or rose hip is unknown and not worth the risk!
Excessive Fatty Foods
Post delivery you may already be striving to get back in shape and therefore avoid fats totally. Which is also wrong! On the other hand, some might crave more calories. Avoid foodstuffs such as deep-fried fries and patties. Remember, excess of everything is bad!
In addition to this, avoid stress, have adequate rest, sleep, and eat well for a healthy breastfeeding experience.
There’s no need to order the restaurant’s nine-course tasting menu right now. Infants’ attention spans are short, so please limit your visit to no more than an hour. The baby may be able to sit still for extended periods of time as he grows older. If your baby starts to fuss or has a full-on tantrum while dining out, you may always step outside or into the car to give everyone a break. There are times when all you need is a shift in the environment to feel revitalized.
