Question – How much protein for a 9-12-month-old
I know I seem to be so obsessed about this issue, but I’d like to find out how much protein a baby should take daily. I am getting a bit confused, because suggested amounts vary significantly between different sources. For example, Gina suggests 50 g meat a day to meet a 9-12-month-old baby’s daily protein needs in The Contented Little Baby Book of Weaning (p102), but in The Contented Child’s Food Bible it says babies between 7 mths and 3 yrs should take 5 portions (each 3 g) of protein, milk included. So, total daily amount is 15 g, and if baby takes 200 ml of milk, which is said to provide 6-7 g protein, then they should take another 8-9 g from other sources: meat, yogurt, lentil etc.
50 g meat, such as lamb, contains approximately 12 g protein. If you give that for lunch, the daily amount according to Food Bible will be exceeded even without giving any cheese, egg, pulses, yogurt, etc. And other books and websites suggest different amounts again.
So, I am really confused, since excess amount of proteins may potentially be harmful for a baby’s little kidneys, but insufficient protein intake may adversely affect mental development. What amount of protein (in grams) should a baby take daily (between 9 to 12 months)?
Answer:
I hope I can provide a definitive answer to your question about how much protein your baby needs each day. You have seen that our protein comes from a wide range of foods, though meats and dairy foods are the richest source. You have also found that people often put the amount of protein in terms of food, as in 50 grams of chicken or one fish finger. That makes it easier when we are thinking about planning a meal, but can make mums feel stressed if their CLB is not keen on those particular foods or if they are planning a meal of other foods.
Of course there are recommendations for grams of actual protein required by a baby for their growth and development – protein is a key component of muscles – which your baby is increasing her weight of daily as he grows – as well as having many other roles in the body. In a medical setting a doctor or dietitian will sometimes calculate a baby’s protein requirement and will use their age and weight to do so. At 10-12 months old, your little one is likely to weigh about 9.8 kg (standard weight for this age range), and require about 15 grams of protein per day (as you mention, above). This is about 1.5 grams for every kilogram of his weight, but the amount per kilogram will decrease as he gets older.
To translate this into food, there is about 6 grams of protein in 25 grams of lean meat or poultry or 35 grams of white fish or 180 ml milk (refer to The Contented Child’s Food Bible for more protein portions). Other foods such as grain foods also contain a smaller amount of protein. For example, 1 thin slice of bread, 100 g boiled rice, or 25 g breakfast cereal all contain about 2 grams of protein. The reason we generally translate the protein requirement into servings of food is that it’s hard work to go through all the foods eaten each day to calculate exactly how much protein is coming from each and then add it up.
Do note that many babies will be eating a bit more than this amount, just as adults in the (well-fed) Western world generally take in more protein than their bodies require. The excess will be used for energy, or fuel for your baby’s body. It would take a very unusual or unbalanced diet to provide an amount of protein that might harm your baby’s kidneys, as this would have to be much more than a balanced diet could provide. And if your LO sometimes takes a little less than the recommendation, don’t worry. The recommended amounts are designed to meet the needs of almost all babies of this weight and age. Many will not require quite as much as this. And she’ll probably make up for it on other days anyway.
Rest assured that if your baby is healthy, enjoying a variety of foods from the different food groups, and growing and developing normally, he will be getting enough protein.