The recommended guideline for starting a baby on solid foods is sometime between 4 and 6 months. But what should you feed your infant when it's time to introduce them to solids? (See Switching to Solids for more advice)
While there are many healthy options to choose from, there are also several foods to avoid because they are unhealthy and even dangerous. The following foods should not be fed to infants.
Honey: Babies should not be fed honey before their first birthday because of the risk of infant botulism, a rare but life-threatening condition that occurs when an infant ingests poisonous botulism spores. Honey can cause this disease because it often contains the spores of the harmful bacteria, known as C. botulinum. While toddlers, older children and adults are typically unaffected by the spores and do not get sick, an infant can get very ill after eating honey.
Peanut Butter: For many years pediatricians were advised to tell patients not to feed a child peanut butter before age 2 because of the risk of developing allergies to food introduced too early. Now many allergy experts believe avoidance of certain foods in the first two years does not prevent allergies, but peanut butter is still off limits because of its sticky texture, which is difficult for babies to swallow.
Cow's Milk: Pediatricians recommend breast or formula feeding through the first year of life. According to the American Academy of Pediatrics, cow's milk does not have the proper nutrients that infants need in their diet. Infants fed whole cow's milk don't get enough vitamin E, iron and essential fatty acids. They also get too much protein, sodium and potassium. These levels may be too high for the infant's system to handle. Also, whole cow's milk protein and fat are more difficult for an infant to digest and absorb.
Small, Hard Foods: Raw vegetables and hard candies are two examples. With few or no teeth to chew, giving a baby hard food poses a serious choking hazard. In fact, these foods should be avoided until children are older and are experienced with chewing. Some guidelines recommend holding off until age four on hard foods.
Popcorn: Another choking hazard, popcorn is difficult for children to swallow and is not recommended for babies or toddlers.
Unpasteurized Cheese: Cheese made with unpasteurized milk may be contaminated with listeria monocytogenes, a form of bacteria that can cause fatal food-borne illness.
Marshmallows: While soft, marshmallows can become stuck in an infant or toddler's throat.
Nuts: The shape of many nuts make it easy for pieces to lodge in infant airways and cause an obstruction that could lead to infant suffocation. In fact, in a study done by The Federal Institute for Risk Assessment, researchers found that the health risk of infants choking on nuts was greater than the risk of a swallowing a piece of a toy. The choking hazard nuts pose has prompted some experts to push for labeling on packages of nuts that warn of the potential risks to babies.
Fish : Fish such as grouper, marlin, swordfish, shark and king mackerel tend to have high levels of mercury. Shellfish is also not recommended in the first year of life.
Juice: Juice has few nutrients and too much can cause diarrhea in infants. If you must feed your baby juice, keep it to four ounces a day.
