The Mother
During pregnancy, it’s essential to wisely choose what you eat as it directly affects you and your baby. Maintaining a balanced diet when pregnant is key, as gaining weight is quite easy during this time. Replacing refined white sugar with 100% pure maple syrup as a part of a balanced diet may be helpful in managing weight and keeping blood sugar level stable.
0 – 6 months
When your baby is born, breast milk or formula are his/her best source of nutrition. It is said that what you eat affects not only the nutritional value of your milk but also its taste. Including maple syrup in your diet can simultaneously recharge your energy levels as maple syrup is a better source of sugar and it contains fewer calories.
6 – 12 months
When your baby is older than six months, you start giving semi-solid food to him/her. Most Indian sweet dishes such as semolina halwa and kheer (rice pudding) are perfect for consumption at this stage. Avoid giving your child refined sugar as far as possible. But if you wish to do so, maple syrup is a better choice as it is high in manganese and is a source of calcium, potassium and magnesium. Maple syrup may be a better option than honey which is popular choice among babies. Resources say that consumption of honey at this age may in some cases lead to botulism, where as pure maple syrup is a safer option. Maple syrup, on the other hand, will never cause botulism. In fact, maple syrup contains 67 types of antioxidants, nine of which are found only in maple syrup, offering health benefits similar to those of berries, tea, red wine, flax seed, other fruits and vegetables.
Toddler
When your child is a year old, he/she is in a position to consume solid food, just like everyone else in the family. At this stage, as your child begins to develop a more profound sense of taste, there are chances that he/she might start preferring some food items over others. Here, maple syrup comes in handy as it enhances the taste of food in many ways. It can be used in a variety of Indian dishes – both sweet and savoury.
We do not promote an increase of sugar consumption. When choosing a sweetener for moderate use, pure maple syrup has more potential health benefits than some other sources of sugar. It is advised that people having any health condition, should consult a physician for assertaining best sources of sugar for them.