Review: InfantNutritionCenter.com

Back before my first child was born, I didn’t really know much about the nutritional requirements of infants (similarly to most new moms, I would expect). My husband and I attended a breastfeeding preparation course, and I remember thinking to myself, “why do we need a class to learn how to breastfeed – isn’t it just a natural thing?”. It never occurred to me back then that I might not be able to breastfeed my baby for any reason.

And in fact, my husband and I were in for quite a surprise when our newly born, healthy, 9 pound 2 ounce baby girl seemed completely unwilling (or unable) to latch on and nurse, even with the help of the nurses in the hospital birth center. After a very frustrating couple of days, she had lost more than 10% of her birth weight, leading us to take her into the doctor the day after we were released from the hospital. The pediatrician’s response was to point out that the benefits of breastfeeding aside (and he wasn’t arguing those), this baby needed to eat – and now. So we did what many parents do when breastfeeding becomes difficult or impossible to accomplish, we supplemented with formula. In order to provide the best nutrition that we could for our baby.

Now, I never completely gave up on breastfeeding and we managed a semi-successful combination of pumping, nursing and formula until our daughter turned six months old and weaned herself from the breast. Since I was back working full-time by that point, had come down with a case of mastitis, and had been struggling with milk supply from the very beginning, it was almost a relief to simply turn to formula completely. And we were glad that there were so many formula options out there for us to choose from – milk-based, soy-based, iron-fortified, low-iron, whatever the needs of your baby, there is bound to be the right option for you.

I still feel that breastfeeding is best, and did successfully breastfeed my second child for a full year (even while working full-time). My third baby was stubborn, and also difficult to nurse. We did make it almost to the full year, but it was hard, exhausting, and I almost gave up and weaned her several times.

I wanted to share about my experiences with feeding my own infants, because as I’ve discovered throughout the years, there is no ‘one size fits all’ solution when it comes to infant nutrition. There are recommendations, and lots of options – but it’s up to every family to decide what works best for both mother and child. Back when I was a new mom – and even the third time around when I was struggling, it didn’t seem like there were a lot of places to go for good information as to what my babies really needed in the way of nutrition. Which is the long explanation for why I am so happy to share information about an amazing new website developed by Anatomical Travelogue, a medical imaging research and media production company based in New York City.

What it is:

A remarkable new website, InfantNutritionCenter.com, was unveiled on October 19. This site is part of TheVisualMD and combines textual information with photographs and videos to show parents exactly what their babies need on a nutritional basis, and why.

[InfantNutritionCenter.com] takes us Moms on a unique and powerful visual journey through infant nutrition and development, with amazing visuals that reveal how proper nutrition shapes development and how individual nutrients affect the senses, bone formation, and the immune system of infants. Showcasing new data and 3-D images, the site lets you explore and learn the latest research findings through video, pictures, and graphics, in depth questions like why infant eyesight depends on getting enough DHA and what key nutrients contribute to the healthy growth of your child’s brain.

Developed as a resource for Moms, the website brings together information from leading health centers and researchers across the country to explain how nutrition is crucial to infant development. How can you make sure that your newborn gets the nutrients she needs to ensure healthy growth through her first birthday? How do you keep her stomach from getting upset? What should you, as an expectant Mom, eat to ensure that you stay healthy as your infant grows? What vitamins do you need if you’re breastfeeding to ensure that you’re passing along the right nutrients to your infant?

Courtesy of TheVisualMD and Mom Central, I had the opportunity to take a look at the website right when it launched in order to provide and share feedback about it.

Here’s my take on it:

The two things that stand out to me about this website are the detailed amount of scientific information provided – and the very real (and clear) photos and other graphics that help show those of us who are not scientists or nutritionists why babies need the proper amounts of protein, fat and calories. The site also explains how and why babies digest their food the way that they do, and explains why they need to eat so much so very often during that important first year of life.

Even as a three-time parent, with no infant currently at home, I found a lot of the information very intriguing and interesting. I know what the experts recommend – but what this site does very well is to explain exactly where those recommendations come from and why they’re so important. One set of statistics that stood out immediately when I began browsing the site are that “70% of babies are breastfed at birth, and 90% will also receive formula during the first year of life”. Knowing how important formula is, it’s good to know that it’s better now than it ever has been before and that scientists are still working to make it as comparable to breastmilk as possible, at least in terms of the nutrition provided to infants.

There are 14 pages of information provided, with everything from “The Importance of Fat” to “Skin & Hair Growth”. Each page includes the breathtaking photos, along with detailed descriptions and links to further  related studies, clinical trials and reputable sites such as Mayo Clinic – Infant and toddler health, and the USDA Food Pyramid Site.

Where can you find it?:

When the site was unveiled on October 19th, the event was webcasted live. That webcast can still be accessed, and provides some informative discussion about the importance of infant nutrition. You can find the Infant Nutrition Center site at http://www.infantnutritioncenter.com.

I wrote this review while participating in a blog campaign by Mom Central on behalf of Mead Johnson. Mom Central sent me a gift card to thank me for taking the time to participate.

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