The type of food a child has to eat        ';
   determines what the system must digest.      ';
                                                ';
Formulas based on vegetable proteins present a  ';
different challenge to the digestive system than';
do those based on animal proteins.  Still other ';
challenges are presented by a mother's milk.    ';
                                                ';
If one type of food is hard to digest, changing ';
to another with a different base may be enough. ';
    A child has no way to know when the         ';
 capacity of the system has been exceeded.      ';
                                                ';
The amount fed at each feeding may be more than ';
a child can handle but less than enough to sat- ';
isfy hunger.  More frequent, but smaller feed-  ';
ings may provide enough food over the period of ';
a day without straining the child's immature    ';
system.  It is important to provide enough food ';
and to do it in a way that a child can benefit. ';
    The way nourishment is provided to a        ';
child can be as important as the content of it. ';
                                                ';
The consistency, how thick or thin the formula  ';
is can make a difference in how easily it can be';
digested.                                       ';
                                                ';
Adding corn starch in small amounts or water in ';
small amounts can show alter the consistency to ';
to the point that it is easily digested.        ';
   A nursing mother's diet is passed on         ';
to the child through the milk she supplies.     ';
                                                ';
When the mother seeks variety in her diet, the  ';
child gets variety as well.  Some of the variety';
the child receives may be more than a delicate  ';
system can handle.                              ';
                                                ';
Keeping the mother's diet constant can allow the';
chemical composition of the milk to stabilize.  ';
    The type of food a nursing mother eats      ';
can change the chemical composition of her milk.';
                                                ';
Spicy foods, or foods that are difficult for the';
mother to digest can allow the chemical composi-';
tion of the milk to alter radically in a short  ';
period of time.                                 ';
                                                ';
The mother's mature digestive system can handle ';
the changes well while the child may suffer.    ';
     Many types of food present the digestive   ';
system with challenges that produce by-products ';
with distructive results.  Some can even bring  ';
    on violent reactions or discomfort.         ';
                                                ';
Some types of foods like chocolate, nuts or     ';
shell fish are common producers of such allergic';
reactions.  Even if the nursing mother does not ';
have an allergic reaction, the child might from ';
her milk.  Formulas can produce reactions too.  ';
     The milk sugars and proteins in diary      ';
   products are often difficult for digestive   ';
              systems to manage.                ';
                                                ';
A nursing mother may have trouble digesting     ';
diary products and having her milk change as a  ';
result.                                         ';
                                                ';
Formulas based on diary products may be a source';
of discomfort that soy based formula would not. ';
     Sugars in a child's diet, refined or       ';
      otherwise, can impact on digestion.       ';
                                                ';
Sugars impact on things other than taste.  While';
they may be included in foods or a formula in   ';
order to enhance taste, they also make things   ';
easier or more difficult to digest depending on ';
a child's system.  Look at packages for sugar   ';
content and then for formula with less sugar or ';
add small amounts of sugar to see if it helps.  ';
     Our digestive systems were designed to     ';
       process foods that occur naturally.      ';
                                                ';
Many of the foods and formulas that are avail-  ';
able are complex combinations of things that do ';
not occur naturally or are processed to alter   ';
their natural chemical composition.  Be sensi-  ';
tive to what you eat if you are nursing, and to ';
the ingredients in the formula that you feed    ';
your child-- if possible, natural is better.    ';
                                                ';
                                                ';