Your baby’s first foods: Dos and don’ts
In the early months of feeding your baby solids, there are a few foods and specific nutrients you’ll want to keep in mind. It isn’t hard to give babies everything they need during this introductory period, especially when exposing them to a variety of foods while continuing to feed them breast milk or formula. Here’s what to make sure you include, and ingredients and foods to steer clear of, during this 4- to 7-month-old time frame.
Do: Offer foods rich in iron
Iron, which supports proper neurological development and helps move oxygen around the body, is one of the most important nutrients to introduce with your baby’s new foods. Because the iron stores that babies are born with become depleted around 6 months old, they need to start consuming much more of it at this age, regardless of whether they are drinking formula, breast milk, or a combination of the two.
Whether you’re feeding your baby purees, finger foods (through a process called baby led weaning), or a combination of the two, you should aim to introduce iron-rich foods first. Meat is a great first food because it also includes zinc. The American Academy of Pediatrics recommends iron-fortified baby cereals (opt from a variety of rice, oats, or multigrain), as well as pureed meats, as they’re both good sources of iron, zinc, and protein.
Some ideas:
- Commercially produced baby cereals are typically fortified with iron and are commonly used to meet infants’ iron needs. You can mix it with breast milk or formula. To create a finger food option, you can also roll pieces of banana or avocado in baby cereal.
- Animal proteins such as beef and chicken are excellent sources of iron. You can puree any meat, and mix it with breast milk or formula. You can also serve a larger piece, such as a drum stick, that your baby can hold and gnaw on.
- Plant sources such as lentils, beans, quinoa, broccoli, hemp seeds, and spinach are also great sources of iron, but should be paired with a source of vitamin C to improve iron absorption. Puree any of these foods with a squeeze of lemon or orange for a boost of flavor and vitamin C.
Do: Talk to your pediatrician about iron supplementation
Because iron stores get depleted around 6 months of age, the AAP recommends giving babies an oral supplement of a milligram of iron per day beginning at age 4 months. You can feed supplement drops directly into your baby’s mouth or place them on your nipple before breastfeeding; adding them to a bottle is not recommended because babies may dislike (and reject) the flavor change.
“Iron supplementation should continue until appropriate complementary foods that contain iron are included in the child's diet,” Dr. Panchal says. “Vitamin C-rich foods should be included in the diet, to help improve iron absorption.”
Do: Offer foods rich in vitamin D
Vitamin D is necessary to support healthy bone development and prevent rickets, a condition that causes weak, deformed bones. Because breast milk is low in vitamin D, breast-fed babies should supplement with vitamin D drops until they are a year old. Talk to your child’s pediatrician to figure out what’s right for your baby.
Tip: You can get oral drops containing both iron and Vitamin D. Keep a bottle next to where you feed so you remember. If you are breastfeeding, you can put a drop on your nipple before one feed every day.
Some ideas:
- Hard-boiled egg mashed with breast milk or formula
- Full-fat plain Greek yogurt
- Chicken liver pate
- Infant cereal mixed with breast milk or formula, or rolled around a piece of banana
- Baked salmon pureed with breast milk
- Soft tofu pureed with breast milk, or a firm strip of tofu
Do: Offer healthy fats
Infants also have very high fat needs for their development and growth (especially of the brain), so it is important to introduce healthy fats early on in the transition to solids. Don’t shy away from cooking your own baby food with fats such as olive oil, unsalted butter, or ghee (clarified butter).
Another way to boost fat is to buy full-fat yogurt, ricotta, and other foods that have the option. Babies don’t need low-fat anything in their diets. Bonus: Adults can eat full-fat ingredients too—and they usually taste better!
Some ideas:
- Large strip of flank steak or other red meat (such as bison)
- Carrots steamed and blended with olive oil
- Broccoli steamed and blended with unsalted butter
- Full-fat ricotta cheese
- Full-fat plain yogurt (often labeled whole-milk plain yogurt)
- Baked salmon served in strips
- Smashed avocado on a strip of soft bread
Do: Offer fruits and veggies
Fruits and veggies are loaded with micronutrients, fiber, and other good things for your baby’s growing body and brain. Try to mix up the produce you serve to ensure that your baby gets a wide variety of tastes, textures, colors, and antioxidants.
Keep in mind that different-colored natural foods contain different vitamins. Orange foods like carrots or sweet potatoes, for example, typically contain vitamins A and C, which support vision. Generally, you’ll want to either roast or steam vegetables or fruit. Avoid boiling them because some of the nutrients will seep into the water you toss out. From there, you can puree or slice them as single ingredients or in combinations.
Some ideas:
- Smashed banana or avocado with breast milk (or formula)
- Applesauce
- A whole strawberry (stem removed)
- Any vegetable, pureed
- A half of a peach or plum (pit removed), or mashed peach mixed in plain yogurt
Introduce veggies first so your baby doesn’t develop a sweet tooth.
Don’t: Add salt
Babies only need a pinch of salt per day (to support proper nerve, muscle, and fluid balance functions), and it’s most likely already in the food you are offering. Too much salt can negatively impact kidney function. Opt for ingredients that don’t have added salt, including unsalted butter. And if you want to add salt to your full-family meal, set aside your baby’s portion before adding it.
Don’t: Add sugar
The American Academy of Pediatrics says children should not consume sugar until they are 2 years old. That said, sweets on occasion—a little bit of smashed cake on their first birthday, or nibbles of sweetened breads or other baked goods—are fine to offer before this age.
Don’t: Offer cow, goat, or plant-based milk to drink
Cow’s milk, goat’s milk, or other milky beverages derived from soy, oats, or other nondairy ingredients, are not appropriate to feed kids younger than a year old because their digestive systems aren’t yet ready for them. But cheese and yogurt are OK, because those milk proteins undergo a culturing process that makes them easier for babies to digest. Until their first birthday, the only milk children should drink is breast milk or formula.
Don’t: Offer honey
Honey isn’t safe to feed children until their first birthday. It should be avoided because of the risk of botulism, a disease that can cause paralysis and breathing problems in children.
Don’t: Offer juice
The AAP recommends that parents try to avoid juice as long as possible—even diluted with water—until their children are at least a year old1. The only liquids recommended for babies are water (after beginning to eat solid foods), breast milk, and formula.
References
1 https://www.healthychildren.org/English/news/Pages/AAP-Recommends-No-Fruit-Juice-for-Children-Under-1-Year.aspx#:~:text=Intake%20of%20juice%20should%20be,of%20fruit%20servings%20per%20day
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