Looking for Food Suggestions/experiences for a 5 Month Old.

You can really do whatever you want. If it is a fruit or veggie that you and daddy eat, then throw some in a blender to puree it and there you go. If you breastfeed or ate it during pregnancy, then chances are the baby will love it too. You can also save TONS of money by pureeing it youself. Just throw the extras in a tubaware container and there you go, ready for the next mealtime. Just make sure that you introduce the single ingredients before mixed ones.

Hi E.,

Make sure that you put enough vegetables in the meals that her primary food won't be starches and fruits. The amount of sugar that is in these foods can cause difficulty widening your choices later. There are numerous vegetables that can be pureed. Green, yellow and orange are the key colors. Green beans, broccoli, avocado, squash, carrots, yams. Fruits are fine just make sure they are no more than 1/4 of each meal.

God bless and enjoy that little one!

M.

I raised my three children to love a variety of foods. My pediatrician was wonderful about explaining to me the ways to introduce new foods. She told me to limit the sweet things at first because then the child will only want to eat sweet things. So veggies are a must. Also, when introducing meats, it really helps to go to the meat dept. of your grocery store and order very thinly shaved meats. I tried turkey or chicken first, ordering 1/4 lb. shaved as thin as they could get it. When I had my child in the high chair I just put a little on the tray and let them go for it. I did the same thing with ham and any other meat you may want to try. I used baby jar vegetables until they had enough teeth and then I went to canned veggies like green beans and peas. I had fun introducing "real" food to my kids. They're wonderful eaters now. Of course two of them are teenagers and I have one "tween", but they're good kids.

Hi E., we have been feeding our son solids for around 3 months now and like Taylor he LOVES pears, he has a big smile on his face every time he gets them! We've found that apples, bananas, sweet potato, prunes (very good for clearing any 'blockages'!!), swede and carrots, swede and potatoes, and mushed up peas work well. There is a line of prepared food offered by Publix that takes 10 seconds in the microwave that he really likes that you can look for. He isn't very impressed with carrots on their own, and doesn't really like avocado either, maybe that'll come when he's older. Good news is that he seems to largely take after his mother, who eats pretty much everything, whereas his father would be totally carnivorous if he could get away with it!!

I agree with the other posters that you should try to introduce the veggies before the fruits. The fruits are very sweet and it is harder to get them to eat "unsweet" once they learn that "sweet" exists! I would start out with the green beans, potatoes, squash, etc. then move into the "sweeter" veggies like corn and carrots, THEN after she's eating all the veggies well, you could add some fruits. I would always offer the fruits as "dessert"... at the end of the meal. Unless it is breakfast, then you can mix in blueberries or whatever with the "cereal"... Don't try to introduce too much at once. (I know it is hard b/c its fun to see what they do with them, but mommies must have patience! lol). Give her at least a week, maybe more with each new food. She'll have some favorites, and some she may NEVER like, but give her many opportunities with each one so that she has a chance to decide about the actual food, and not refuse it just that it is "different"... My kids had the hardest time with the baby food ground up meats... they just never liked them. But they both LOVE "real" meat now! Some times texture is more important than taste. So, even if she refuses some things now, remember to try them again when she is old enough to eat them in a different form (actual pieces of banana, instead of pureed, for example).
Enjoy this time... it's a new experience every day!

I puree foods for my daughter, and that has opened us up to a whole "new" world of foods. She is a little different, because she has eating issues and has difficulty chewing, and she is older. But I see no reason the same principle can't be used for a younger child and willing mother. She can have anything, really. I would advise a decent food processor right off that bat, if you intend to be inventive (I've gone through 3 so far). My daughter, now 2, LOVES to go to a fruit stand, or the produce section of any grocery store. Unlike other kids, she gets to pick a fruit as a treat at the store, and not candy. But she is always thrilled with her choice and doesn't feel cheated at all. Her current favorite mango. Also, if you do it yourself, you don't have to worry about company policies and where the food was grown, or bottled or what recall may be next. I, personally, like organically grown produce and if you go that route as well, you'll have really covered all safety issues with baby food. Happy eating! :)

one way to help make sure she won't be very picky is to show her that you and Dad eat a wide variety of food. We eat all kinds of fruits and veggies and now my 1 1/2 old son does too- he loves mangoes, kiwis, brussel sprouts, pretty much anything! The only thing he doesn't like is plain strawberries, but he likes them cut up in his oatmeal. My husband HATES peas, but whenever we have them he will eat at least one spoonful with no fuss to show Mac that they are good and that it is fun and important to try all kinds of foods. We just don't make a big deal about him not liking them. Good luck!

For variety, our Super Target carries organic baby foods that I've seen in the Freezer section. Earth's Best is one brand, and they have another brand that is actually Stage 1 foods with different flavors.

Hi,

I don't know if you've started feeding your daughter fruits or veggies first, but my advice would be to start with veggies.....my pediatrician said use the same color veggie for 2 weeks or so, before introducting another one....so, start with squash, then go to sweet potatoes, then go to carrots.....then try green veggies, green beans and peas for 2 weeks....then you can add a fruit in....My 3 year old son will not eat veggies, because we started him on fruit first...my 6 month old son will eat anything. Just some advice.

S.

Hi Emaily,
What I did when my daughter was young is I started her on a diffrent veggie each week such as plain baked sweet potato or peas anything you see in the grocery you can pretty much do.I only try one new thing a week and we pretty well at that all week.I was lucky I had alot of fresh options you can put all of them through a food mill and they will be baby food consistancey.
I Hope that help but be creative and prepare what you like to eat as long as it is not to acidy and you do not introduce to much at once.
Best of luck
J. at A Better Birth Way Doula Services
www.abetterbirthway.vpweb.com

You might want to check with your babies' doctor, but 5 months old is very young to be introducing a variety of foods to your baby. They are suppose to be on one thing for a while before you introduce another food. Go slowly. Later when she can eat more you can take raw veggies, slice them and put them in the microwave, mash them up w/o the peeling when she is younger and with for when she is older w/ teeth.
I was a nanny for triplets and they loved the veggies this way, they even loved zucchini squash. Have fun with your little one, time goes very fast.

It's so good that you want your baby to enjoy a variety of fruits and veggies. Many people stick with basics and say "my kid doesn't like this or that" and then we wonder why these spoiled children will only eat really bad for you foods like mac n cheese and hot dogs. I have a Magic Bullet and I would steam and blend all sorts of foods. The frozen veggies are best because they have the most nutrients left in them. The mixed veggies ( cron, peas, green beans and carrots) are the sweetest blend and babies love them. You can start by mixing her pears with carrots or sweet potatoes. Then add other items like asparagus, brocolli, etc. Just keep adding new foods and you can mix corn and carrots with other not so sweet veggies, until she adjusts to the new tastes and textures. My kids all loved chicken mixed with pears or apples and carrots or corn. You can blend noodles with spaghetti sauce, zuchini, squash and carrots with cheese. Get the tupperware ice cube trays with a lid. Place the food you have made in the cubes and freeze them, when they are frozen, put them in a ziploc and label them. At first she will eat one cube per meal and when she gets up to eating three cubes per meal, you can ove up to smashed food, rather than pureed food. Good Luck, keep giving her a variety and remember that she will need to try a new food at least 20 times before she adapts to it's flavor. Don't add butter and salt, but do add seasonings that your family likes.

E.,

First thing, don't rush it. Your daughter is still young and doesn't need to experience too many tastes right now. She really should stick with her milk and one or two other tastes at the most. I would say rice cereal with her milk mixed in and applesauce. I would wait a couple of months before adding another item. 7-8 months is a better age to begin experimenting. She may respond well now, but her body doesn't need it yet. She really need to get as much milk as needed right now without filling her up with other stuff. It will provider her the nutrients she needs at this age. It is also healthier for her.
Giving a baby baby food should be a gradual thing and too many parents try to rush their babies to eat things their bodies are really not meant to eat yet.
Take Care,
T., mother of 4 healthy children.

I would slow down there. You can be potentially leading her down the road of food allergies because experts don't recommend solids until a minimum of 6 months. At 6 months it should only be rice cereal and otmeal and then gradually adding different foods into the mix. I was excited about feeding my little one food too but you don't want it to be a problem later.

When I fed him solids I bought organic (mostly) veggies & meat and steamed or boiled and mashed it up. I tried everything. Spinach, peas, beans, tofu was great (soft). Good Luck!

My son is 8 months old and we have pureed all of his food since 5 1/2 months. We started with sweet potatoes, and ground organic brown rice for his rice cereal. We did green beans , peas, squash, avocado (doesn't have to be cooked, just mashed!) We slowly introduced fruit, apples, pears, peaches, bananas and recently melons(a great finger food). I strongly prefered to make his food because that way I know what is in it. You can buy frozen veggies, just check to make sure that it is ONLY veggies, no salt.

Hi i am in the same boat, any suggestions you receive would be helpful. For me i have given my little one so far, peas (she doesn't like so much) green beans (she likes) pears (she loves) apples (she loves) sweet potato (one of her favorites)squash (okay) bananas (her favorite)

just try all flavors at first. alternate which ones you give to figure out which ones your baby will like to eat and which one she won't like and while you are doing this watch out for any signs of sudden rash immediately following her feedings because that is a sign of possible allergic reaction. my oldest was allergic to cranberries and my youngest was allergic to bananas. sometimes they will outgrow these reactions as they get older and sometimes not. you just have to wait and see as your baby ages.

I always made my children's baby food, you just whip it in the blender. Taste great and you also save lots of money.