Starting Baby Food

Hi A.,
I have three kids, and we didn't do levels of baby food. I made my own. It is extremely easy and economical (and better tasting). I recommend getting the book Super Baby Food by Ruth Yaron. I still make Super Baby Porridge and Super Pancakes and my oldest is 9! Good Luck!

i found on some of the baby jars it says what age (months ) they are intended for. we didnt start our baby on non jar foods for a while. he only has a few teeth to chew his food with. some great teething bisquets are "baby mum mum's", arrow root cookies, beech nutt has some teether type cookies. my son isnt wasnt a fan of gerber products. he does eat a few of there things but not alot. baby puffs are a good food to learn by. my son never has liked cherrios.

take it slow! I gave my babies only fresh homemade baby food (did organic jarred food in emergencies or on the go)My babies loved pureed avocado and fresh raw apple together, a mashed banana, sweet potato was a huge hit, but don't introduce anything more than fruits, veg. and rice cereal at that age. Not good for their digestive tract at all. Historically moms nursed almost exclusively for two years. And allergies were unheard of.

My oldest had no interest in baby food from a jar. He wanted what we were eating. We just cut it up in to little pieces and let him have it. He never choked and was just fine.

My two younger ones were on jar food for a little longer. I also made them most of their food. I would just cook a extra, run it through the food processor and freeze in ice cube trays.

It just depends on your child. Try them with something a little thicker consistency and see how he likes it.

There isn't really much difference between stages 1 and 2 in terms of textures--stage 1 is obviously a smaller jar, and only contains one food, so it is ideal for introducing foods; stage 2 is a larger jar and gives foods in combination. I usually waited until closer to 6 months to start jarred foods, and even then I only gave my babies one or two small jars a day for awhile--most of their nutrition came from breastmilk (or formula if that's what you used).

Stage 3 foods introduce more textures to get them used to eating table foods. Babies don't need teeth to be able to eat more solid foods, but they do need to be good at mashing things between their gums. You also need to let your baby tell you whether he/she likes the more textured/solid foods. My youngest was completely off of baby foods and eating only table foods by 8 1/2 months or so (she wanted to eat what we were eating!--she was also still nursing), but I've have had several friends with babies who were closer to a year old and would gag when trying to eat stage 3 foods.

My kids have loved the Gerber Puffs and Cheerios (even honey-nut Cheerios are okay; it's just raw honey you have to avoid). Frozen peas also make a good first finger-food. When your son is good at mashing things between his gums, you can try little pieces of chicken, cheese, mashed potatoes, small pieces of macaroni and cheese--really just about anything you might eat (with some judgment!) but cut into teeny-tiny pieces. :)

I have twins and we make baby food. They are 9 months and still on 2nd foods because they were preemies and under 50%. I make tofu and avocado because it does not come in jar but we also make squash, carrots, apples and pears to supplement the jar food because it is so costly feeding 2. Some of the 2nd foods were a little thick and more junky so they would choke a little but now that they have teeth, I think we can cut up small foods to feed them.

You don't have to use the jarred baby food for your child. You can make your own or give him what you are eating (to an extent). You just need a food processor to grind up the food. I did use the jarred veggies and fruits. But, I bought sandwich meat, ham, turkey, and roast beef, then pulverized it in a mini-food processor. You can do the same thing with veggies and fruit. Steam the veggies, grind them in food processor, pour into an ice tray, freeze, put cubes in ziplock bag, then take out a cube at a time to feed to your child.

You can go to Gerber.com and it will tell you when to change the level of foods. There are little pictures to go by on the bottles. You don't have to use Gerber, but you can use this as a guide. You can give him mashed avocado or even blend up your own purees. Don't give him any solids yet. He is still quite young.

Take it slow their digestive track can't handle too much too soon!! Stick with level ones for while just give him oatmeal mixed with fruits or veggies. Don't do protein until about the 10th month they can't break them down like we can and giving them too much can cause kidney problems!! A book called better foods is a good resource.

I breastfed my son for 19 months in awe that I had everything he needed. I started him on rice cereal at 5 months. He was in the 95th percentile in ht and wt, and had a 75th percent on his head. It is not a good practice to start babies on solid food so early. They were created to eat just so much. Even if gerber put beef and chicken in a stage one or stage 2 I refused to believe gerber. Gerber baby food is a great choice if you are not able to make puree at home. So I started my puree of my real food at home at 8 months. Our Pedia warned me early, that starting too early could cause your baby to become allergic to that same favorite food later in life. Just like those preemies who go thru so much at the hospital... end up with latex allergies, from the exposure to so many latex gloves so early in life, your sweet little baby can become allergic to your favorite vegetable that you just couldn't wait to feed her. Please wait. Even if you didnt breast feed... formula has more nutrition in it that is well prepare for your babies tiny new little digestive system to absorb than you will get in a jar of Gerber. Please dont rush. You will have plenty of time to buy all the jars of every flavor they make.... later. Let your baby tell you when she is ready. Let her gum the food on your dinner plate just for fun. There are so many great library books that give great recipies and ideas, and all of them should come with the allergy warnings. Before I weaned my son from breast milk I gave him half of mine and half of cow's milk, till he got used to the flavor. I am in shock that he may now have milk allergies because that was too early or too fast for him. Yes the kid will have a choice. Allergies are like a punishment for the parents who couldnt wait. I know how exciting it is to get your baby to eat and to grow and to see her eat all the good stuff.... but wait.... it is painfull later if you may have caused that allergy. Your baby can happily eat the same foods for months and never tire of them. Remember that same baby drank nothing but milk for months and was OK with that.
Good Luck.
A.

Hi A.,

Although your baby growth is ideally spurring, I don't think it's a good time to start your baby on foods other than what in the jars. Take your time, don't let your baby growth peek over his normal level.

Don't be too concern about taking baby food away from your 5 month old. Continue feeding him the baby food & formula at this time.

Time will tell.

Anita