Rich in fiber content this highly nutritious dry fruit offers a lot of health benefit for your child. Containing many essential vitamins and minerals along with potassium and iron, prunes help your child to have stronger bones, good digestion, glowing skin and a good head of hair. Apart from all these prune is also a good source of fiber and contains antioxidants called phenol’s. Phenol’s essentially will help your child to grow a health heart. Prunes contain two of the most important vitamins for kids-Vitamin A and Vitamin C. The former helps your child to have healthy hair and good eyes. The latter will make sure that your child has good immunity and glowing skin.  There are numerous health benefits offered by prunes.

Giving Prunes to your Child: There are no known risk of allergy caused due to the consumption of prunes or plums for that matter. Prunes are nothing but dried plums. It is a high fiber food alternative which is low in cholesterol and free of any sort of sodium. Normally, these are the combinations you seek for in a food alternative for your child.  Thus prunes can be introduced to the child from 4 months to 6 months of age, depending on the recommended age of introducing solids.

Whilst purchasing prunes for your child try and find natural sources. Make sure that the prunes are not dried with sulfur. There are now many food stores and conventional groceries where prunes are available, which are not dried or preserved with the help of chemical. You can steam, blanch or bake prunes to prepare the perfect baby food for your tiny one. You can also add prunes in other items like salads or the Sunday Roast. Prune and olive chicken can be a very tasty dish for your toddler.

Health Benefits of Prunes

Anti-oxidant

Prunes contains a high level of anti-oxidants known as phenols. This protects your child’s cell membrane from any sort of damage caused by the free radicals. This means your child will be less prone to falling ill if prunes are given on a regular basis. It will protect your child’s heart and help it remain strong.

Builds Strong Bones

Prunes are rich in minerals like potassium. Potassium along with other phenolic and flavonid compounds helps your child to grow strong bone mineral density.

Rich in Vitamin C

Vitamin C is needed for the development of your child’s bones and muscles. It is also good for the teeth. Vitamin C will aid your little one to develop blood vessels of your growing child. Vitamin C is also a great source to boost the immunity.

High Fiber

The fiber content in prune is very high. This helps your child to enjoy a very healthy digestive system. This stabilizes the blood sugar content. The fiber also helps your child gain healthy weight.

Cures Constipation

Plenty of sugary treat often causes constipation and gas in your little one. The high amount of fiber present in prunes helps your child to digest food properly. This helps your child to regularize the bowel movement.

Rich in Vitamin A

Prune is a fantastic source of Vitamin A. It helps your child’s skin to remain healthy. Vitamin A is also good for your child’s little eyes. It will improve his/her vision and fight against any kind of infection in the body.

Strengthening Hair

Prunes are a fantastic source of iron. That is why she boosts the red blood cell formation in your child’s body. It also strengthens and nourishes hair. If you are worried about the lack of hair in your child’s wee head then feed him/her with prunes. The nourishment derived from this dry fruit will definitely boost the hair growth for your child.

Soothes Nerves

Prunes are also rich in potassium. Potassium is a mineral which ensures proper functioning of heart and the nerves system. In the growth stage it is important for your child to keep his/her healthy and free of any sort of fat.

Precautions

There are no known allergic reactions to prune. However, naturally made prunes can contain some pollen in them. So you have to look out for pollen allergies. Moreover, nowadays prunes are not sold in many groceries by their own name. They are sold by the name of ‘Dried Plums’ to make it more relatable to the customers. If he/she is not allergic to pollen, then naturally dried prunes can be given to your six months old baby. But make sure that he/she is introduced to solids prior to that. Prunes can be mixed with other fruits in the form of apples, blueberries, peaches, cranberries and melons. It also goes well with yogurt. Prunes also adds flavor to various chicken dishes that your child might enjoy.