Asparagus is a beneficial food for our health, undeniably. But when it comes to babies, many people are doubtful about the actual effects of asparagus.
If you use it in the right way, then asparagus will boost your baby’s health greatly. In this article, the health benefits of asparagus for babies will be analyzed.
What is Asparagus?
Asparagus is a member of the lily family. It gains high appreciation over time for amazing therapeutic qualities, which are responsible for many health benefits. It is claimed that asparagus came from the Mediterranean region. Its cultivation started around 200 BC and expanded globally from the 18th to 20th centuries.
A long time ago, asparagus started gaining popularity as a cure for many diseases. The significant influences of asparagus were even recorded in the history of traditional Chinese medicine.
Now it is ubiquitous as people have widely acknowledged its great nutritional values. It can be considered an excellent source of important vitamins and minerals. For example, magnesium, zinc, potassium, and calcium are all present in large quantities. Regarding vitamins, you will find a series of types in asparagus, from A, C to E, or K.
All of these vitamins and minerals contribute to the enhancement of our health.
Health Benefits of Asparagus for Babies
With such a great profile of nutrients, it is undoubted that asparagus should play an important role in our meals. And you should let your baby be familiar with this healthy ingredient at early ages.
Let’s find out the health benefits of asparagus for babies!
Destroy Free Radicals
Free radicals are unstable chemicals generated by the body’s metabolism. They are the main reason for the appearance of oxidative stress that is responsible for many health problems.
In babies, free radicals are claimed to affect their liver negatively and reduce its function. This influence is particularly detrimental as the liver is crucial to the removal of toxins from the body.
Luckily, it can be prevented with asparagus. Thanks to its richness of antioxidants, asparagus has neutralizing influence and quickly eliminates free radicals in our body.
In other words, antioxidants from asparagus can protect the baby’s liver to the fullest extent.
This is an essential benefit. The immune system works as a shield to protect our body from foreign substances and diseases.
For babies, immunity is even more important because they are so vulnerable and weak. Any foreign substance, such as bacteria or viruses, might cause big troubles for their health.
Therefore, it is necessary to learn how to boost your baby’s immune system. And now, you have an answer – asparagus.
In addition to minerals, asparagus is also well-known for its various vitamins, including vitamin C. There is a close link between this vitamin and immunity enhancement.
Furthermore, antioxidants are also proved to be beneficial for the immune system. Your baby will become stronger if consuming asparagus regularly.
Diuretic properties can be seen as another amazing health benefit of asparagus. Diuretic refers to the biochemical or compound which makes our urine discharge induced.
Thus, asparagus will be good for your baby’s urine. It is even more useful if your baby experiences urinary tract infections. Remember that any problem in babies is worth concern.
When babies are used to eating asparagus, they do not suffer from problems with urine discharge. As a result, their kidney and urinary tracts will stay healthy.
Prevent Night Blindness
According to some studies, malnourished babies are the most vulnerable victims to night blindness. This problem usually happens because of the deficiency of necessary minerals and vitamins.
Babies should be fed asparagus to prevent this problem. It offers a variety of essential nutrients that young bodies need to develop.
Specifically, you should go for asparagus racemose in the hope of preventing both night blindness and other ocular problems in babies.
A large amount of insulin is found in asparagus. You can realize this complex carbohydrate in the name of prebiotic. It plays an essential role in helping the body absorb nutrients.
Moreover, it also lowers the possibility of allergies and stomach cancer.
To understand why asparagus is beneficial for baby’s digestion, we need to focus on its abundance of fiber. This substance enhances digestion so well.
Asparagus can even serve as a cure for diarrhea which is a risky condition in babies.
Asparagus should be served to babies who are more than eight months old. This is because the likelihood for gas or digestion problems is high for infants.
Even though asparagus offers great amounts of nutrients, it is better to control the consumption of asparagus. Over-consumption might lead to some issues which are dangerous for babies.
First of all, due to its diuretic quality, dehydration might happen and cause your baby’s mouth to be dry.
As a matter of fact, asparagus often leads to foul-smelling stools. Normally, it takes about one or two days to make this smell disappear.
Allergies to asparagus might be rare, but they do exist. Make sure to check your baby’s reactions to asparagus constantly.
How to Use Asparagus
It is strongly suggested that you peel asparagus before cooking it. In many cases, babies cannot digest its peel.
On the other hand, consuming it with peel is possible for babies who have teeth.
Cooking asparagus is as diverse as you can imagine. It is possible to steam, boil or fry it so as to make it more interesting for your baby. You can see some recipes with asparagus here.
Overall, asparagus is a good choice for baby’s diet because of its healthy nature. It is a great addition to improve various parts of your baby’s vulnerable body.
Even adults are recommended to choose this food as a way to promote their health naturally.
Author BioI’m Gina A. Herrera – a blogger for Cooking with Gina. Besides taking care of my kids, I usually spend time writing about the countries that I have been to, the cultures that I have experienced, and the foods that I have tasted.