Giving birth to a baby is only one percent of the task accomplished. You have to devote more time to your baby, to know what suits it and how to go about bringing up the baby. Providing the best nutrition to your baby is a huge task. To make things easy for you, we are taking you on a journey of foods for weaning babies.
In this article:
The 5 Best Baby Led Weaning Foods
You should start giving your baby weaning food from 5-6 months onwards. After your baby is ready to switch from breast milk to baby foods, it is time you will be running helter-skelter to get your baby the food he needs. However, one word of caution here – You have to keep breastfeeding the baby, if it’s prematurely born, till six months of age. You have to identify your baby’s digestive system to ascertain what kind of food will suit him. The baby will give various signs to ascertain when to stop giving him breast milk.
- Observe when your baby is able to sit up straight and hold his head.
- Your baby is trying to get hold of things around him, with his hands.
- Your baby is not making a mess anymore and is eating everything.
These are the signs that your baby is ready for weaning foods. Today, we will find out the best weaning foods for babies.
What is the best food for weaning babies? The baby’s best weaning foods include mashed rice, root vegetables, and fruits to start with. Once you see that your baby has started digesting these properly, you can move onto starch-based food, dairy products, meat and fish, fruits, eggs, and vegetables.
Eating The Best Baby-Led Weaning First Foods
Mashed rice is extremely good for your baby, as it provides the carbohydrates. Your baby can start digesting heavy food now. You can give your baby mashed potatoes, carrots, and beets. But, make sure to wash the vegetables before you feed them to your baby. You can select organic options if you feel it will do a whole lot of good. Fruits are a complete form of nutrition. They are a great way to start on weaning foods. The fruits are packed with natural sweeteners that are extremely beneficial for your baby’s body. You can start to feed him mashed apples, apart from feeding boiled apples. If your baby likes these mashed apples, then you can slowly put him on boiled or mashed pears, mangoes, and other fruits.
Apart from the food items listed above, there are more options. You need to understand your baby’s pulse and feed him accordingly. Do not feed your baby, canned, or preserved fruit juices, though, as they contain preservatives and added sugars. Moreover, they may contain harmful flavorings and agents. Give your baby soups and legumes. Soups will hydrate your baby’s body, and legumes will provide the much-needed proteins. You can prepare over-boiled legumes for your baby.
Now, you should not forget about the water. Water is an important nutrient. It will help your baby’s body to detoxify. Hydration is also very important. Animal proteins are also good food for your baby. You should also feed eggs as a part of a baby’s weaning foods. You should follow all of these to provide your baby, the balanced nutrition it so deserves.
Foods To Avoid Giving To Weaning Babies
You should keep in mind that there are certain foods that you need to avoid. They are salt, sugar, honey, whole nuts, fish, tea or coffee, and cow’s milk. Some foods carry the risk of food poisoning as well. Soft-boiled eggs, raw fish, and cheeses are a strict no-no.
