My Baby Now App
A new app helping parents and caregivers cut through conflicting information.
New parents often feel overwhelmed with so much conflicting information – it’s not easy to sort fact from fiction.
The INfant Feeding, Active play and NuTrition (INFANT) program and My Baby Now app have been developed to help parents with this. INFANT and My Baby Now are evidence-based resources for parents and caregivers, providing trustworthy, up-to-date and easily accessible information about feeding and active play with their baby.
My Baby Now is an app developed by experts in child nutrition and active play at Deakin University, RMIT and the University of Sydney, and with input from parents and Maternal and Child Health (MCH) Nurses. My Baby Now also complements the information and resources provided through existing services. For example, the MCH app used by Victorian parents and MCH nurses covers broader topics around development, while the My Baby Now app provides a more detailed focus on feeding and active play. Both are trusted sources of information for parents and caregivers.
The My Baby Now app offers information, forums and quizzes about:
- Breastfeeding, best-practice formula feeding and mixed feeding
- Introducing solids, including articles/videos on baby led weaning and vegetarian/vegan diets
- Understanding and responding to their baby’s cues/signs
- When and how to introduce solid foods and a sippy cup
- Family meal and recipe ideas
- Active play ideas
- Strategies for limiting screens
- Experiences, strategies and tips from other parents
The My Baby Now app and INFANT
INFANT consists of group sessions led by a nurse or other practitioner with content reinforced by the My Baby Now app. INFANT is an evidence-based program based on more than 10 years of research, led by experts at Deakin University. INFANT is designed to promote healthy eating, increase active play and reduce screen time for infants from birth until 18 months of age.
To find out where INFANT sessions are offered click here: https://www.infantprogram.org/parents/
Contribute to the research
INFANT researchers at the Institute for Physical Activity and Nutrition (IPAN) are now recruiting families to help evaluate the INFANT program (sessions and/or app, My Baby Now). This evaluation will be used to further improve the usefulness of the program for parents/ caregivers regarding the health, feeding and activity of their baby.
First-time parents with a baby less than 4 months can sign up to access the My Baby Now app and opt to be a part of the INFANT research. The research includes two brief 20-minute online surveys when their child is around 12 months then 18 months. The surveys ask about parents/caregivers, their baby and their baby’s feeding and play. All participants are compensated for their time, receiving a $10 voucher (two total) for each completed survey.
To find out more about the My Baby Now app click here or check out this video.
You can also download the app from the App Store or Google Play and register for a new account.
