When can a child be given tomatoes. Tomatoes for kids When and how much

Fresh cucumbers and tomatoes are enriched with vitamins and minerals necessary for the development of the body. Juicy fruits increase appetite and promote better absorption of nutrients. However, in order to avoid allergies, you need to know exactly at what age vegetables can be given to children.

What are the benefits of tomatoes and cucumbers for a child?

Tomatoes are good antioxidants. They are enriched with organic acids and phytoncides, which normalize the digestive system. Pectin contained in tomatoes activates metabolic processes, has an anti-inflammatory and antibacterial effect on the baby's body. Other useful properties of vegetables include:

• increased protective functions due to zinc, vitamins A and C;
• normalization of the work of the hematopoietic organs;
• maintenance of water-salt balance due to potassium and sodium;
• stabilization of the functions of the gastrointestinal tract, prevention of constipation;
• appetite stimulation.

Cucumbers are well-known dietary products that have a detoxifying and mild diuretic effect. Fruits are easily digested, do not cause a feeling of heaviness in the stomach. The use of these vegetables also brings significant benefits to children:

• stimulation of hematopoiesis due to folic acid;
• strengthening bones due to calcium and phosphorus;
• normalization of the thyroid gland;
• obesity prevention;
• increased protective functions;
• stabilization of metabolic processes;
• increased protein digestibility.

Cucumbers and tomatoes have a rich vitamin composition, but they are not included in the list of vegetables for the first feeding.

When and how to introduce each vegetable into the children's diet?

Vegetable complementary foods are introduced in the summer months, when it is possible to buy vegetables from the garden. Answering the question of parents, from how many months you can give tomatoes, pediatricians recommend including thermally processed vegetables in the diet from 11 months of age, and fresh fruits after a year. Early introduction of vegetable complementary foods provokes allergies.

To prevent an adverse reaction from taking a new food, it is recommended to start feeding the baby with tomato varieties with yellow and orange color. It is necessary to give a teaspoon of tomato juice and puree to the crumbs during the main meal. If the child does not have a rash and redness on the cheeks, you can increase portions of meals.

Despite the fact that cucumbers do not contain irritating components and rarely provoke allergies, they are also introduced into complementary foods after 12 months. It is better to feed the baby with local fruits. Imported and greenhouse vegetables are chemically treated and enriched with nitrates. When introducing crumbs of cucumbers into the diet, the following rules are followed:

• for the first dose, a few pieces are enough;
• the child is given pulp, peeled;
• during the adaptation period, it is better to give the baby mashed potatoes, later - to introduce salads with herbs seasoned with vegetable oil.

Cucumbers and tomatoes should be introduced into the diet very carefully, observing the reaction of the baby's body.

Are there allergic reactions and other negative consequences?

Tomatoes are strong allergens, and therefore it is not recommended to introduce them into the diet of an infant up to 10 months of age. You should not abuse tomatoes even after a year, but give them to your baby in small portions. The use of this vegetable in large quantities provokes malfunctions in the digestive and excretory systems.

Cucumbers almost do not cause allergies and rarely lead to adverse reactions. Despite this, it is also better to introduce them into the baby's menu after a year. The child's body does not produce enough enzymes necessary to break down new food, which leads to the development of colic, flatulence and other disorders in the gastrointestinal tract in the crumbs.

There are restrictions under which tomatoes and cucumbers are contraindicated in feeding a baby. With caution, vegetables are used for any form of food allergy in a child. It is necessary to abandon tomatoes for kidney disease and increased secretion of the stomach. Cucumbers are excluded from the diet for measles and enterocolitis.

Can a small child eat canned vegetables?

To increase appetite, you can give a 2-year-old baby a pickle or a tomato. The child should not eat a vegetable, it is enough to suck on it so that the juice activates food receptors.

Salts are fully introduced into the diet of a baby from 3 years old. At this age, the child's stomach easily digests food with excess salt, vinegar and spices.

• kidney disease;
• malfunctions of the cardiovascular system;
• increased blood pressure.

How to choose tomatoes and cucumbers?

Quality tomatoes have a dense, shiny skin. The degree of suitability of vegetables for consumption is evidenced by their color and elasticity. Ripened fruits are characterized by bright color and elasticity. Excessive hardness indicates immaturity or an excess of nitrates, and softness indicates staleness or the onset of decay.

Complementary foods should be introduced in the summer, when special fertilizers are not used for growing vegetables. "Overfed" cucumbers have a bitter taste and often cause poisoning. High-quality fruits are distinguished by a rich green color without yellow streaks, an elastic surface without rot and a dry tail.

Do not buy vegetables brought from afar. Cucumbers and tomatoes are grown in any locality, so finding organic fruits is not so difficult.

Ideal if vegetables are grown in their own garden

Some simple recipes

To prepare a simple vegetable salad, you need to chop 1/4 head of small cabbage, apple, carrot and cucumber. The ingredients are thoroughly mixed, salted and seasoned with refined oil. It is unacceptable to use fatty dressings like mayonnaise and sour cream in the dish, which are hard to digest by the children's stomach.

To prepare a meat salad, you need to cut 50 g of boiled chicken, 1 cucumber, apple, carrot and potato. The ingredients are seasoned with a small amount of vegetable oil, sprinkled with chopped boiled egg and parsley. To increase the appetite and mood of the baby, you can lay grass out of greens, and cut flowers out of orange carrots.

To prepare a vitamin soup, you need to chop boiled zucchini, a small pumpkin and a head of cauliflower (see also:). The ingredients are poured into 1 liter of water and boiled until tender. Pour mashed potatoes from 2 tomatoes into softened vegetables and keep the dish on fire for another 4-5 minutes. Slightly cooled soup is served with finely chopped greens.

Improper use of tomatoes and cucumbers provokes an allergy in the baby. To avoid adverse reactions, follow the recommendations of experts. Then your baby will only benefit from new products.

So when can children eat tomatoes? Pediatrician, scientific editor of the magazine "Mom and Baby" Irina Ferganova answers the question: At what age can children be given tomatoes?

Usually, after a year, healthy children can be offered various vegetables, including tomatoes and cucumbers, but on condition that they are well tolerated by the body. It must be remembered that vegetables that have an orange or red color can cause allergic reactions in a child. And if a baby has an increased amount of oxalate salts in urine tests (which is fraught with the formation of kidney stones), then foods that promote excessive synthesis of these salts should be limited in his diet. These include tomatoes. And yet, cucumber fiber stimulates intestinal motility, provoking liquefied stools. The amount of vegetables offered also matters. Let me remind you that the recommended daily amount of vegetables for children from 1 to 3 years old is 200 g; from 3 to 6 years - up to 500 g. You should not exceed the norm.

It should be added to what the pediatrician said - tomato to tomato is different. It is one thing to have a vegetable plucked from a grandmother’s garden, and quite another tomato brought from distant warm countries. Ideally, this vegetable is very useful. It contains potassium, magnesium, iodine, calcium, phosphorus, copper, iron and zinc necessary for the child's body. A lot of vitamins, many of which are needed for the growth and development of the baby.

Let's take a closer look at all the useful properties of a tomato. The tomato contains almost half of the periodic table: magnesium, potassium, iodine, phosphorus, sodium, calcium, copper, manganese, zinc and iron. As well as a whole bunch of vitamins: C, K, A, B, E, B2, PP, B6, beta-carotene. And all this in one vegetable! Just imagine how much benefit from the above substances. And in addition to the above, the tomato contains lycopene. This antioxidant is found only in tomatoes. Scientists have conducted research and found that lycopene is extremely beneficial for the body. Lycopene reduces the risk of cancer by up to 30 percent. In addition, it strengthens and contributes to the normal functioning of the cardiovascular system. Scientific fact that lycopene is more effective than vitamin C.

So:

1. Children under one year old can only be offered the juice of these amazing vegetables. It is sold in the departments of baby food and does not contain any impurities and spices.

2. After a year old, a baby can be given a tomato without a skin. In the event that the vegetable does not cause an allergic reaction, you can gradually introduce it into the menu. To make it easier to remove the skin, you need to cut a tomato crosswise from one barrel, and then pour boiling water over it. By the way, when a tomato is peeled, it is stripped of most of the harmful chemicals that are used to grow it.

3. Those kids who have already reached the age of three are allowed to eat tomatoes both raw and processed. In any case, before giving this product to a child, it is advisable to consult a pediatrician.

It is worth noting that lycopene is better absorbed with vegetable fats. Therefore, add oil to salads. It has also been observed that processed tomatoes have more lycopene than fresh ones.

Recipe for tomato soup for grown-up kids:

For cooking, you should take five tomatoes, two potatoes, one carrot and one onion, fifty grams of small pasta, one hundred grams of milk, one hundred grams of sour cream, one yolk, one teaspoon of flour. Vegetables are boiled in 2 liters of water, tomatoes are fried in oil and ground. After the pasta is cooked, tomatoes are put in the soup. A filling is made from milk, sour cream, flour and yolk, which is poured into the soup in a thin stream. After that, cook for another three minutes.

I really want to give this beautiful and tasty vegetable to the child early. Let's find out if it is good for a child and when a child can have a tomato?

Let's compare the composition of a tomato with the composition of an apple (certainly a healthy fruit for a child).

	tomato	Apple
kcal	20	47
Proteins, g	0,6	0,4
Fats, g	0,2	0,4
Carbohydrates, g	4,2	9,8
Water, g	93,5	86
Fiber, g	0,8	1,8
Potassium, mg	290	278
Sodium, mg	40	26
Calcium, mg	14	16
Phosphorus, mg	26	11
Magnesium, mg	20	9
Vitamin PP, mg	0,5	0,3
Beta carotene, mg	1,2	0,03
Vitamin A, mcg	200	5
Vitamin B1, mg	0,06	0,03
Vitamin B2, mg	0,04	0,02
Pantothenic acid, mg	0,3	0,07
Vitamin B6, mg	0,1	0,08
Folic acid, mcg	11	2
Vitamin C, mg	25	10
Vitamin E, mg	0,4	0,2
Vitamin K, mcg	7,9	2,2
Biotin, mcg	1,2	0,3
Iron, mg	0,9	2,2
Zinc, mg	0,2	0,15
Iodine, mcg	2	2
Copper, mcg	110	110
Manganese, mg	0,14	0,047
Selenium, mcg	0,4	0,3
Chromium, mcg	5	4
Molybdenum, mcg	7	6
Cobalt, mcg	6	1

So, we see that a tomato is inferior to an apple only in terms of calories and iron content. In terms of the content of most minerals, a tomato is not inferior to an apple, and in terms of the amount of vitamins and magnesium it significantly exceeds it.

The benefits of tomato

• Tomato contains a lot of A and carotene, therefore it is useful for growth and vision.
• It contains a lot of ascorbic acid, which is important for immunity and folic acid, which is necessary for blood formation.
• Tomatoes contain a lot of magnesium, which has a calming effect on the nervous system,
• Potassium, which has a hypotensive and diuretic effect.
• Tomatoes contain pectin, which helps to remove toxins from the body. They contain choline, which lowers blood cholesterol levels.
• Tomato contains lycopene, which strengthens the wall of blood vessels.

Conclusion: a tomato for children is not just useful, but very useful.

Harm tomato

Why is it not recommended to give a tomato to babies in the first year of life?

• Tomato is a highly allergenic food (it often causes true allergies in children).
• Tomato contains a lot of histamine, can cause pseudo-allergic reactions. (If the baby eats a lot of the product at once, the child may experience reactions similar to allergic ones).
• Fresh tomatoes are high in fiber, which can cause stomach discomfort and digestive upset in children.
• Only fresh tomatoes are useful in the summer-autumn season, greenhouse tomatoes in winter and spring, due to their high content of nitrates and other chemicals, can be harmful and dangerous for a child.

When can a child eat a tomato?

Based on all of the above, tomatoes are allowed to be given to children from 8-9 months of age, but not fresh, but boiled or stewed, as part of vegetable soups and mashed potatoes.

How can a child be given a tomato?

Give them to a child up to a year in a very small amount. Tomatoes are not the main part of the dish for babies up to the 1st year. During heat treatment, some of their beneficial properties are lost and they are used mainly to improve the taste of the dish.
In ready-made vegetable purees, which are sold in stores, tomatoes also appear in products recommended for children from 8-9 months.

• It is allowed to give to children older than a year but the child must be able to chew well before you give him a piece of tomato, otherwise he may choke on a piece of tomato.
• Fresh tomatoes for small children can only be in the summer-autumn season.
• Up to 2 years old, a child can have a tomato without a skin, previously scalded with boiling water.
• It is better to give children tomatoes without salt or only slightly salting. (Due to the high salt content, children under 3 years of age are not recommended).
• For better absorption of carotenoids and fat-soluble vitamins, it is recommended to eat tomatoes with sour cream, vegetable oil or cheese.
• It is not recommended to eat a large number of tomatoes at once for children under 3 years old due to the high risk of allergic and pseudo-allergic reactions, it is better to limit yourself to one small tomato (50 g) per day.
• It is good to combine tomatoes with other less allergenic vegetables (boiled potatoes) as well as meat.
• Sauces and ketchups with tomatoes, as well as salted and pickled tomatoes, are allowed to be given to children not earlier than 3 years old, but it is better not to give them at all.

Now you know. Stay healthy!

For all their usefulness, tomatoes are considered a rather allergenic product. Usually they are not in a hurry to introduce complementary foods, fearing a negative reaction from the child's body.

Nevertheless, tomatoes play a significant role in nutrition, being a source of many useful substances.

Moreover, often in children they become a favorite vegetable. We will talk in more detail about at what age you can give your child tomatoes and why they are good and harmful, below.

Useful properties of tomatoes

Tomatoes are rich in vitamin A, carotene, ascorbic acid, magnesium, lycopene, iodine, antioxidants and other valuable elements. Tomatoes are useful for children because:

1. they have a positive effect on cardiovascular activity;
2. strengthen bones and promote growth (see article Growth of newborns by months >>>);
3. prevent the occurrence of thrombosis;
4. contribute to an increase in hemoglobin levels;
5. improve bowel function;
6. reduce the risk of developing tumors;
7. strengthen eyesight;
8. improve metabolism;
9. affect the strengthening of immunity;
10. regulate the functioning of the nervous system, providing a calming effect.

In view of the above beneficial properties, tomatoes in the child's diet should be mandatory. True, only natural fruits, that is, seasonal fruits (from June to September), have a full set of such properties.

Important! Those products that are present in stores and markets all year round may contain substances hazardous to health.

Harm and contraindications

Harmful effects on the body can be as follows:

• Tomatoes quite often cause allergies;
• Their use in large quantities can adversely affect the functioning of the gastrointestinal tract;
• Separately, it is worth noting the tomatoes, which are grown artificially. They often contain pesticides and nitrates that are harmful to the body;
• You can also not eat unripe fruits fresh because of the presence of solanine in them. This substance may cause poisoning.

Contraindications

Tomatoes should not be consumed when:

1. diseases of the digestive system (gastritis, pancreatitis, ulcer);
2. kidney disease;
3. cardiovascular pathologies (you can not eat canned fruits).

When can I give my child tomatoes and in what volume?

So, at what age can children be given tomatoes? This vegetable can be introduced into complementary foods from 9-10 months, but it must be thermally processed (in the form of mashed potatoes, in soups). Fresh fruits are recommended for children after a year.

By the way! Thermally processed tomatoes contain more lycopene, which increases their health benefits.

A reasonable question that often arises among mothers who lead household plots: is it possible to give a tomato to a child under 1 year old if it is completely natural, grown in season in their own garden?

• In this case, after the age of 9-10 months and in the absence of a tendency to allergies, you can offer the baby a few pieces of fresh fruit;
• If there is no negative reaction, then the volume is gradually increased.

How many tomatoes can be given daily to a child?

1. First, the baby is given no more than 0.5-1 teaspoon of puree from this vegetable and is carefully observed throughout the day;
2. It is always recommended to offer a new product in the first half of the day in order to have time to track down a possible negative reaction to it before a night's sleep;
3. If this did not follow, then in a day the norm can be doubled, etc.;
4. After a year, children can eat a fresh vegetable, peeled. It is removed quite simply: the fruit is doused with boiling water and crushed to the desired state;
5. You can continue to give tomatoes in the form of puree or add them to other dishes.

Can kids eat canned tomatoes?

• Fruits harvested for the winter, for the most part, are devoid of the beneficial properties that fresh vegetables have. Therefore, they definitely will not provide the children's body with vitamins;
• But additives such as salt, vinegar, various seasonings contained in pickled and salted vegetables can put a serious strain on the digestive system and kidneys.

In accordance with this, up to three or four years it is not recommended to give canned tomatoes to children. The same applies to ketchups, sauces.

How to detect allergies?

An allergy to tomatoes in a child can manifest itself in the following signs:

1. rash on the skin (in different areas);
2. "red cheeks";
3. the appearance of itching;
4. sudden change in stool (diarrhea or constipation). There is also a good article on this subject on the website Stool with the introduction of complementary foods >>>);
5. bloating, abdominal pain;
6. watery nasal discharge, sneezing, congestion;
7. cough;
8. tearing;
9. severe anxiety, irritability.

Important! If, after the baby has tried the tomato, he has the above symptoms, then for the next two weeks (or even a month) it is necessary to stop giving the vegetable.

There is also such a thing as pseudo-allergy.

• It appears due to the use of a large number of fruits at one time;
• At the same time, earlier there was no negative reaction if the child ate them in a small amount;
• As a rule, negative symptoms go away when you return to age-related nutritional norms.

Which tomatoes to choose?

1. Tomatoes for children up to a year or two should be exclusively seasonal, grown naturally;
2. It is these fruits that contain the greatest amount of vitamins, they do not contain substances harmful to health. It is only important that they are mature and thoroughly washed;
3. If you buy tomatoes in a store or market, give preference to vegetables grown in the ground. Various chemicals are often used to grow greenhouse fruits;
4. When buying, you must carefully examine each tomato:

• The peel should be intact, and there should be no dents, dark spots on the fruits;
• If the vegetable is hard to the touch and pale in appearance, then this indicates its immaturity.
• Thick skins are often indicative of the presence of nitrates;
• And, naturally, a putrid smell indicates a spoiled product;
• Purchased tomatoes are better preserved if they have a stalk.

1. In order for all the beneficial substances (in particular, lycopene) contained in tomatoes to be better absorbed by the child's body, vegetable oil should be added to them (in mashed potatoes, in salads);

1. Up to two years, you need to offer the child fruits with a peeled skin;
2. You should not combine tomatoes with fish, eggs, bread. This slows down digestion and increases heaviness in the abdomen;
3. Salt and sugar are not recommended for children under one year old. Due to the fact that there is a lot of salt in tomato juice, it can be given starting from the age of three;
4. Tomatoes can be eaten together with any other vegetables (zucchini, carrots, broccoli, potatoes) and second courses (for example, with meat. Read what to do if the child does not eat meat ?>>>);
5. If there are difficulties with digestion, you should not give a tomato along with a cucumber at one time;
6. For heat treatment, it is highly not recommended to use aluminum utensils, since the acid contained in the vegetable reacts with the metal;
7. From the age of three or four years, you can use tomatoes in any form: fresh, in salads, in borscht, in stews, in juices, in sauces, etc.

Subject to age-related nutritional norms and cooking rules, the use of this valuable vegetable can most positively affect the development of the child's body, increase appetite and take its rightful place among your baby's favorite dishes.

If the child is older than a year, and his appetite leaves much to be desired, see the online course

With the approach of the summer period, every mother tries to balance her baby's diet with a variety of fruits and vegetables collected from the garden. Not an exception are cucumber and tomato, which are not only tasty, but also useful for a small organism. Therefore, every mom and dad should know at what age you can give your child fresh cucumbers and tomatoes and how much these vegetables will be safe for the health of their little crumbs.

Useful properties of cucumbers

• Rich in vitamin C, iodine, salt, potassium, silicon, fructose and other minerals.
• Does not cause allergies and serves as a laxative for constipation.
• Regular consumption of cucumber juice contributes to the destruction of certain types of bacteria that adversely affect the infant's body.

Benefits of tomato for baby food

• Contains a whole group of vitamins: A, E, B, C, trace elements and minerals that contribute to the healthy development of the child.
• Lycopene and carotene help to strengthen the immune and cardiovascular systems, as well as improve the functioning of the organs of vision.
• The presence of salts and acids ensures the normal functioning of the baby's body as a whole.

Doctors say that tomatoes and cucumbers are a storehouse of health for all young children. One thing only confuses parents is that it is allowed to give these vegetables no earlier than 1-1.5 years, and this must be done carefully and in small portions.

When can a child be given fresh cucumbers

For babies under 1 year old, the use of cucumbers is strictly contraindicated. Since the cucumber belongs to raw foods, it is poorly digested by the still fragile gastrointestinal tract, therefore it can cause intestinal colic and other disorders in the body. Despite the fact that the vegetable has anti-allergic properties, you should be careful when giving a fresh cucumber to a child.

It is better to start complementary foods with small slices (pieces), while observing the reaction of the baby's body. It is strictly forbidden to combine cucumber and tomato together until the peanut is at least 2-3 years old.

When can I give my baby tomatoes?

The first acquaintance of a baby with a tomato should begin after a year. Until this time, starting from 7-8 months, the baby is allowed to use only fresh tomato juice. You need to introduce this vegetable into complementary foods from small slices (previously peeled) so that you can see how the baby's body reacts to the new product. If there are no problems during the day (rash, allergies, itching), then the tomato can be gradually introduced into the daily diet.

Read also:

• What is included in the diet

Tomatoes for children up to a year

From 2 to 3 years old, fresh tomatoes can be given to children only in small portions. So, for example, if it is tomato juice, then you need to start giving 1 teaspoon per day. The daily diet of vegetables for children from 1 to 2 years old should not exceed 150-200 grams. Starting from the age of three, it is allowed to introduce salads into complementary foods, but only seasoned with vegetable oil, not sour cream.

At what age can vegetable salads be given

In addition to fresh tomatoes and cucumbers, doctors recommend introducing salads into complementary foods for a 2-3-year-old child. Given the still unformed digestive tract, gastroenterologists recommend diluting the vegetable salad with a boiled egg.

Moms take note! Until the age of 3-4, exclude pickled and canned cucumbers and tomatoes from the child's diet, which, after heat treatment, are less useful for the infant's body.

If, after taking this food, your baby felt discomfort in the lower abdomen, or pain, then it is urgent to postpone the intake of such food at a later time.

Conclusion

Buy your child only those vegetables that were grown in the garden. In such fruits, there is a minimum of nitrates and therefore more benefit for the baby's body. When visually inspected, cucumbers and tomatoes should be whole, without cracks and bruises. Give preference to young fruits, not overripe ones, which, even when growing in the ground, have lost some of their useful properties.