First Foods for Your Baby: The Solid Truth
Transitioning your baby from breastmilk or formula to solid foods is a big milestone. Your baby gets to try new tastes and textures and feel more independent as they start to feed themselves. Knowing when it’s time to start trying solid foods and what’s best for your baby helps you and your little one navigate this new phase of life together.
When to Start Solids
“Generally, we recommend starting solid foods between 4 and 6 months of age,” says Elizabeth Odom, M.D., instructor in pediatrics at Weill Cornell Medical College and assistant attending pediatrician at NewYork-Presbyterian Hospital. “The biggest thing we’re looking for is babies having really good head control and sitting upright with support.”
Other signs that babies are developmentally ready for solid foods include:
- Grabbing small objects, such as toys or food
- Opening their mouths when offered food
- Showing interest in the foods you eat
For the first year of life, babies should get most of their nutrition from formula or breast milk, but introducing solid food gives them a chance to explore new tastes and start enjoying healthy fruits and vegetables.
What Foods First, When and Why
The best first foods are baby cereals fortified with iron. Iron-fortified cereals and foods are a good choice because, though we all have iron stores in our bodies, babies’ iron levels start dropping between 4 and 6 months old. Iron-rich foods help replenish their iron stores.
Baby oatmeal cereal is a great choice. Mix it with breastmilk or formula to a soupy consistency and spoon-feed your baby. Note that rice cereal is no longer recommended because it can contain arsenic, a harmful compound.
After several successful cereal feedings, you can start trying pureed vegetables and fruits. Some options include sweet potatoes, carrots, avocados and peas.
“I recommend babies wait three to four days after trying a new food before introducing anything else that’s new,” Dr. Odom says. “We want to watch really closely for an allergic reaction. The biggest signs of an allergic reaction are rashes, hives, vomiting, swelling of the lips or tongue, and difficulty breathing. If you see any of these reactions, I recommend talking to your child’s doctor before you try giving that food again.”
You can choose store-bought baby food or make your own in a blender. If you decide to prepare foods at home, be sure to cook hard vegetables to make them easier to puree or mash foods until they’re smooth.
Introducing Milk and Juice to Baby
Until babies are 6 months old, they should drink only breast milk or formula. When they are between 6 and 12 months old, you can begin offering them 4–8 ounces of water per day.
After the first year, you can introduce milk, preferably dairy, because it contains so much nutrition. If your little one has a milk allergy or you prefer nondairy milk, soy milk is the next best choice.
Babies younger than 12 months should avoid fruit juices and foods and drinks with added sugar. Whole fruits are more nutritious. Toddlers 1 to 3 years old can have up to 4 ounces of 100% fruit juice a day.
Have questions about your infant’s nutrition? Find a pediatrician at Weill Cornell Medicine.