HOW TO INTRODUCE BABY FOOD

Cues to know when baby is ready

While a lot of pediatricians (mine included) recommend waiting until at least 4-6 months old before you start introducing baby food, there are a few cues to look for to know they are ready

1. They look interested when you eat in front of them
2. They are starting to sit up with assistance, and would be able to do alright in a high chair

What to start first and stages of baby food

Introducing baby food can come with its own set of challenges like what baby food should you start first? The first food I tried with both of my kids was baby cereal

Now, some kids like the baby cereal and others don’t

If your baby falls into the not a fan category, the next food you should try would be a simple fruit or vegetable (apples/bananas/greenbeans/peas)

After you are comfortable with the simple foods, you can move on to baby food with more than one thing in it. One of my son’s favorite Beechnut baby foods is sweet corn and green beans!

If you opt for the already made baby food, they have numbers on the containers for certain age groups. Stage 1 is for 4 months old, stage 2 is for 6 months old, and stage 3 is 8 months old

Now these age groups are not set in stone. You can try a new stage out when you feel your baby is ready

The exception is to avoid starting stage 3 until they are really good at eating food. Usually stage 3 food has bits for them to chew up, and it is no longer just a puree

Start slow and expect messes

When baby is just starting out on baby foods, they do this thing with their tongue to swallow and it ends up pushing a lot of the baby food back out of their mouth

This is why you should start slow

You don’t want to put a lot of food in your baby’s mouth when you are introducing baby foods, or they could choke

As you can imagine, this tongue reflex is also the cause of a lot of messes. Stay calm

Messes can be cleaned up

This is one of the reasons why you will want bibs to save those adorable outfits from stains. That leads me into my next point about know the foods that stain

Know your food

When it comes to introducing baby food, it is important to know your food. In particular, know which food stains, which food causes constipation, and which food makes baby go #2

Which food stain?

The list is rather long, which is why bibs will be a clothing saver for sure!

What I have found to be the worst culprit of stains are any food groups that are red and orange (beets, pomegranates, raspberries, pasta sauce, cranberries, sweet potatoes, carrots, and squash) and also blueberries

Now, it’s not to say that you shouldn’t avoid introducing these baby foods, but just try to get it washed off right away!

Which baby food constipates?

One thing you will want to know when you are introducing baby food is which food constipates a baby. Constipated babies are fussy, and it’s really no fun for anyone

These are the worst offenders of constipation: bananas, baby cereal, apples, and anything dairy. I would recommend that if you are feeding your baby one of these, to also give him/her a food that does the opposite

Which foods help baby go number two?

Having a constipated baby is no fun, but these foods can help alleviate the constipation: prunes, green vegetables, prune juice, and apple juice

What you can do to prevent constipation is that if you are feeding baby bananas (or another food that causes constipation), give him/her some apple/prune juice (1 mL juice + 2 mL water)

This helps proactively prevent constipation from occurring when you are introducing baby food to your baby’s diet

Alternate between fruits and vegetables

When introducing baby food, it’s important to alternate between fruits and vegetables. This way your baby gets a variety of healthy foods, and doesn’t start to favor the sweeter foods and refuse the veggies

Some baby foods like Beechnut offer a blend of both fruits and veggies which even some of the pickiest eaters will eat!

Be prepared with these items

There are a few necessities you will need when it comes to introducing baby food to your little one’s diet

Bibs

I have hit hard on bibs because these are such an important thing to have

They keep food (mostly) off baby’s outfit and also work as a napkin when wiping the food off of your baby when you have no other napkins around

Highchair

The next thing you will need when you begin introducing baby food is a highchair. It holds baby in a chair that is more up to your level which makes feeding your baby easier.

Not only that, highchairs are nice to have when you are preparing dinner, and can’t hold baby. I did this a lot with both of my kids

I would put some toys on the tray and they could play and still see where I was at

Spoons and bowls

The last things you will need to make introducing baby food easy will be spoons and bowls. Baby spoons are nice because they are small and soft on your baby’s gums

Not only that, some will actually change colors if the food is too hot

I personally like the munchkin baby spoons which turn white when it’s holding something too hot

Baby Brezza baby food maker

Maybe you have often thought about making your own baby food, and if so a Baby Brezza might be the way to go for you

It’s a lot of information to absorb at once

If you take anything away, it should be that you should look for cues before you start introducing baby food

Start slow with simple fruits and vegetables, and make sure you have the necessary items to start feeding baby food to your little one