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When do you start feeding babies vegetables


When, What, and How to Introduce Solid Foods | Nutrition

For more information about how to know if your baby is ready to starting eating foods, what first foods to offer, and what to expect, watch these videos from 1,000 Days.

The Dietary Guidelines for Americans and the American Academy of Pediatrics recommend children be introduced to foods other than breast milk or infant formula when they are about 6 months old.  Introducing foods before 4 months old is not recommended. Every child is different. How do you know if your child is ready for foods other than breast milk or infant formula? You can look for these signs that your child is developmentally ready.

Your child:

  • Sits up alone or with support.
  • Is able to control head and neck.
  • Opens the mouth when food is offered.
  • Swallows food rather than pushes it back out onto the chin.
  • Brings objects to the mouth.
  • Tries to grasp small objects, such as toys or food.
  • Transfers food from the front to the back of the tongue to swallow.

What Foods Should I Introduce to My Child First?

The American Academy of Pediatrics says that for most children, you do not need to give foods in a certain order. Your child can begin eating solid foods at about 6 months old. By the time he or she is 7 or 8 months old, your child can eat a variety of foods from different food groups. These foods include infant cereals, meat or other proteins, fruits, vegetables, grains, yogurts and cheeses, and more.

If your child is eating infant cereals, it is important to offer a variety of fortifiedalert icon infant cereals such as oat, barley, and multi-grain instead of only rice cereal. Only providing infant rice cereal is not recommended by the Food and Drug Administration because there is a risk for children to be exposed to arsenic. Visit the U.S. Food & Drug Administrationexternal icon to learn more.

How Should I Introduce My Child to Foods?

Your child needs certain vitamins and minerals to grow healthy and strong.

Now that your child is starting to eat food, be sure to choose foods that give your child all the vitamins and minerals they need.

Click here to learn more about some of these vitamins & minerals.

Let your child try one single-ingredient food at a time at first. This helps you see if your child has any problems with that food, such as food allergies. Wait 3 to 5 days between each new food. Before you know it, your child will be on his or her way to eating and enjoying lots of new foods.

Introduce potentially allergenic foods when other foods are introduced.

Potentially allergenic foods include cow’s milk products, eggs, fish, shellfish, tree nuts, peanuts, wheat, soy, and sesame. Drinking cow’s milk or fortified soy beverages is not recommended until your child is older than 12 months, but other cow’s milk products, such as yogurt, can be introduced before 12 months. If your child has severe eczema and/or egg allergy, talk with your child’s doctor or nurse about when and how to safely introduce foods with peanuts.

How Should I Prepare Food for My Child to Eat?

At first, it’s easier for your child to eat foods that are mashed, pureed, or strained and very smooth in texture. It can take time for your child to adjust to new food textures. Your child might cough, gag, or spit up. As your baby’s oral skills develop, thicker and lumpier foods can be introduced.

Some foods are potential choking hazards, so it is important to feed your child foods that are the right texture for his or her development. To help prevent choking, prepare foods that can be easily dissolved with saliva and do not require chewing. Feed small portions and encourage your baby to eat slowly. Always watch your child while he or she is eating.

Here are some tips for preparing foods:

  • Mix cereals and mashed cooked grains with breast milk, formula, or water to make it smooth and easy for your baby to swallow.
  • Mash or puree vegetables, fruits and other foods until they are smooth.
  • Hard fruits and vegetables, like apples and carrots, usually need to be cooked so they can be easily mashed or pureed.
  • Cook food until it is soft enough to easily mash with a fork.
  • Remove all fat, skin, and bones from poultry, meat, and fish, before cooking.
  • Remove seeds and hard pits from fruit, and then cut the fruit into small pieces.
  • Cut soft food into small pieces or thin slices.
  • Cut cylindrical foods like hot dogs, sausage and string cheese into short thin strips instead of round pieces that could get stuck in the airway.
  • Cut small spherical foods like grapes, cherries, berries and tomatoes into small pieces.
  • Cook and finely grind or mash whole-grain kernels of wheat, barley, rice, and other grains.

Learn more about potential choking hazards and how to prevent your child from choking.

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Feeding Your 4- to 7-Month-Old (for Parents)

Most babies this age are ready to try solid foods. Experts recommend starting solid foods when a baby is about 6 months old, depending on the baby's readiness and nutritional needs.

Be sure to check with your doctor before giving any solid foods.

Is My Baby Ready to Eat Solid Foods?

How can you tell if your baby is ready for solids? Here are a few hints:

  • Does your baby swallow food or push it out of their mouth? Babies have a natural tongue-thrust reflex that pushes food back out. Wait until this reflex disappears (typically when babies are 4–6 months old). 
  • Can your baby support their own head? To eat solid food, an infant needs good head and neck control and should be able to sit up.
  • Is your baby interested in food? Babies who stare, reach and grab, and open their mouths for food are ready to try solid foods.

If your doctor gives the go-ahead but your baby seems frustrated or uninterested in solid foods, try waiting a few days before trying again. Breast milk and formula will still meet nutritional needs as your baby learns to eat solid foods. But after 6 months, babies need the added nutrition — like iron and zinc — that solid foods provide.

Do not add cereal or other food to your baby's bottle because it can lead to too much weight gain.

Watch for signs that your child is hungry or full. Respond to these cues and let your child stop when full. A child who is full may suck with less enthusiasm, stop, or turn away from the breast or the bottle. With solid foods, they may turn away, refuse to open their mouth, or spit the food out.

How Should I Start Feeding My Baby Solid Foods?

When your baby is ready and the doctor says it’s OK to try solid foods, pick a time of day when your baby is not tired or cranky. You want your baby to be a little hungry, but not so hungry that they’re upset. So you might want to give your baby a little breast milk or formula first.

Have your baby sit supported in your lap or in a high chair with a safety strap.

Most babies' first food is iron-fortified infant single-grain cereal mixed with breast milk or formula. Place the spoon near your baby's lips, and let the baby smell and taste it. Don't be surprised if this first spoonful is rejected. Wait a minute and try again. Most food offered to your baby at this age will end up on the baby's chin, bib, or high-chair tray. Again, this is just an introduction.

When your little one gets the hang of eating cereal off a spoon, it may be time to try single-ingredient puréed meat, vegetables, or fruit. The order in which you give them doesn't matter, but go slow. Offer foods that are high in iron and zinc — such as meat, poultry, eggs, and beans — especially if your baby is breastfeeding. Try one food at a time and wait several days before trying something else new. This will let you identify any foods that your baby may be allergic to.

Which Foods Should I Avoid?

Foods that are more likely to cause allergies can be among the foods you introduce to your baby. These include peanuts, eggs, cow’s milk, seafood, nuts, wheat, and soy. Waiting to start these foods does not prevent food allergies. Talk to your doctor if you’re concerned about food allergies, especially if any close family members have allergies, food allergies, or allergy-related conditions, like eczema or asthma.

Infants with severe eczema or egg allergies are more likely to have allergies to peanuts. Talk to your doctor about how and when to introduce these foods to your child. 

Possible signs of food allergy or allergic reactions include:

  • rash
  • bloating or an increase in gassiness
  • diarrhea
  • vomiting

Get medical care right away if your baby has a more severe allergic reaction, like hives, drooling, wheezing, or trouble breathing.

If your child has any type of reaction to a food, don't offer that food again until you talk with your doctor.

Babies shouldn't have:

  • foods with added sugars and no-calorie sweeteners
  • high-sodium foods
  • honey, until after the first birthday. It can cause botulism in babies.
  • unpasteurized juice, milk, yogurt, or cheese 
  • regular cow's milk or soy beverages before 12 months instead of breast milk or formula. It’s OK to offer pasteurized yogurt and cheese.
  • foods that may cause choking, such as hot dogs, raw carrots, grapes, popcorn, and nuts

Tips for Feeding Your Baby Solid Foods

With the hectic pace of family life, most parents try commercially prepared baby foods at first. They come in small, convenient containers, and manufacturers must meet strict safety and nutrition guidelines.

If you prepare your own baby foods at home, here are some things to keep in mind:

  • Follow the rules for food safety, including washing your hands well and often.
  • To preserve the nutrients in your baby's food, cook it in ways that keep the most vitamins and minerals. Try steaming or baking fruits and vegetables instead of boiling, which washes away the nutrients.
  • Freeze portions that you aren't going to use right away.
  • Whether you buy the baby food or make it yourself, texture and consistency are important. At first, babies should have finely puréed single-ingredient foods. (Just applesauce, for example, not apples and pears mixed together.)
  • After your baby is eating individual foods, it's OK to offer a puréed mix of two foods. As babies get older, they will learn to eat a greater variety of tastes and textures. 
  • If you use prepared baby food in jars, spoon some of the food into a bowl to feed your baby. Do not feed your baby right from the jar — bacteria from the baby's mouth can contaminate the remaining food. If you refrigerate opened jars of baby food, it's best to throw away anything not eaten within a day or two.
  • Around 6 months of age is a good time for your baby to try a cup. You might need to try a few cups to find one that works for your child. Use water at first to avoid messy clean-ups. Do not give juice to infants younger than 12 months.

Over the next few months, introduce a variety of foods from all the food groups. If your baby doesn't seem to like something, don’t give up. It can take 8 to 10 tries or more before babies learn to like new foods.

How to teach a child to eat vegetables / Tips and life hacks - an article from the "How to feed" section on Food.ru

In order to introduce healthy vegetables into a child's diet, one has to use cunning, ingenuity, and sometimes take extreme measures. We will try to do without them and tell you which vegetables are better to start complementary foods with and what to do if the child does not like vegetables at all.

How to start vegetable complementary foods

According to WHO recommendations, when breastfeeding, vegetable complementary foods are introduced at the age of six months, and if the child is bottle-fed or mixed-fed, from four. Experts recommend choosing white and green vegetables as they are hypoallergenic.

For a six-month-old child to get acquainted with vegetables:

  • Zucchini;

  • Cauliflower;

  • Broccoli.

According to research, it is worth offering the same product to a child at least 10-15 times before concluding that he really does not like him.

Vegetable puree is introduced according to the rules:

  • One vegetable at a time;

  • Two to three days to track response;

  • The first serving of puree should be no more than half a teaspoon.

Following these vegetables, you can offer:

  • Pumpkin;

  • Carrots;

  • Potato.

To teach a child to eat vegetables, in the first year of life, you can use life hacks:

  • Try to eat as many different types of vegetables as possible during pregnancy. The baby begins to get acquainted with tastes in the womb.

  • Start complementary foods with vegetables. If fruits are the first on the child's table, you run the risk of not introducing the child to vegetables. Zucchini definitely loses to an apple or a pear.

  • Starting at eight months, mix flavors. You can use ready-made fruit and vegetable purees or mix it yourself. Remember that you cannot introduce a new product in this way - you will not be able to track an allergic reaction.

  • Add vegetables to cereals. Pumpkin and carrots are more popular.

Do not offer chopped vegetables until your child has learned to chew solid foods. Until this moment, it is worth using a nibbler - a special device with a container for a vegetable, fruit or meat, which allows you to train chewing skills without the risk of choking.

What to do if the child does not eat vegetables at all

It also happens that the child's first acquaintance with vegetables was unsuccessful. But do not despair, there are several more ways to still introduce vegetables and herbs into the child's diet.

Offer vegetables in different forms. So, a child may refuse boiled carrots, but eat raw carrots with pleasure.

  • Cut vegetables and leave in clear glasses on the table;

  • Prepare fresh vegetable salads;

  • Learn carving. Vegetables cut in the form of roses, spirals and petals will be in the mouth, if only out of curiosity.

Potatoes, fresh cucumbers, carrots and squash are usually the child's favorite vegetables. So, you can cook dishes from these ingredients, adding others.

Potato-based vegetable stews and mashed soups can be used to mask white cabbage, zucchini, eggplant, peppers, onions, white onions, squash, turnips and other vegetables.

Hearty pies can hide an infinite number of vegetables.

Other things you can do to make kids love vegetables

  • Prepare vegetables in serving pots;

  • Make fruit and vegetable smoothies;

  • Grow vegetables on the windowsill or in the garden. Trying what you have grown with your own hands is insanely interesting.

  • Add vegetables to cutlets, meatballs and cook vegetable pancakes;

  • Serve vegetable sticks with homemade sauces;

  • Make vegetable chips with potatoes, beets, carrots, pumpkins and other vegetables;

  • Experiment with spices;

  • Grill: vegetable skewers, hot corn, warm roasted vegetable salad.

  • Make it a rule to go to a restaurant with the whole family for lunch or dinner at least once every couple of weeks. Just agree in advance that each time you need to try a new dish and eat it whole. Not a bad way to grow a real gourmet.

What can be done?

Make carrot chips, bake zucchini pancakes and mask all the vegetables in the puree soup.

Read also

  • What to prepare from zucchini

  • What meat is useful for a preschooler

  • 5 dishes for what is growing at the dacha

The first feeding of the baby at 4-6 months - Why start with porridge or vegetable puree? Principles, schemes for the introduction of complementary foods

At what age and when should complementary foods be started? What do you think? At 4 months, at 5, 6 months , later? And where to start, what to give preference to: cereals or vegetable puree? Or maybe first give tasty and healthy fruits?

We have already made a whole series of video lectures on complementary foods for children, by months and products, but we are faced with the fact that many parents ask what is the best way to start complementary foods and at what age it is advisable to introduce it.

Especially a lot of questions and uncertainties, oddly enough, parents, whose children are breastfeeding . You quite often confuse the two concepts until what age it is advisable to breastfeed and at what age it is worth introducing complementary foods.
Valid according to all recommendations, breastfeeding is necessary for the baby at least up to 6 months , and if possible longer. But this does not mean at all that a child at 5 or 6 months does not need complementary foods that will not allow the development of deficient conditions in a child, for example iron deficiency . Modern principles of introducing complementary foods to children are a kind of fusion of practical experience and the latest scientific developments. They are based on the recommendations of the European Association of Pediatric Gastroenterologists, Hepatologists and Nutritionists " ESPGHAN " 2017, the American Academy of Pediatrics " AAP " and national recommendations of relevant ministries and associations.

According to European recommendations, which also apply to our countries, the first complementary foods should be started:

  • Not later than the 26th week is the beginning of the 7th month

    • That is optimal, Complementary foods should be introduced within 5-6 months lives. There is no specific, clear, unambiguous age at which complementary foods should be introduced. You have a certain corridor - 2 months and you and your pediatrician must decide when to start complementary foods, focusing on how the child develops, how he gains weight, whether he has signs of readiness for complementary foods, which we have already talked about in previous our videos, what hemoglobin is, and even if you have enough milk if the baby is breastfed. At the same time, there is a kind of paradoxical situation, despite the fact that 9 breast milk is the best food for babies including iron, and in breast milk for a child aged 5-6 months, it may already be a little lacking.

    At the same time, there are no separate recommendations for the introduction of complementary foods for breastfed or formula-fed children, the approaches in these cases are the same . Thus, I hope that we have understood when to introduce complementary foods to healthy full-term babies who do not have serious diseases. Timely introduction of complementary foods contributes to the optimal development of all systems and organs of the child, physical parameters, psychomotor development, and the activity of the nervous system. The period of introduction of complementary foods, on the one hand, is very important for the growth and development of the child, on the other hand, it is a kind of stage in the transition of the child from breastfeeding to food from the general table.

    First complementary foods - where to start?
    • If the child develops normally , has a good or even excessive weight gain, it is better to start with one-component vegetable puree .

    • If the child is not gaining weight well enough, then gluten-free cereals are better: rice, buckwheat, corn

    • Not recommended

    The child is very smart and if he tries sweet fruit puree, he can refuse relatively tasteless vegetable foods and cereals for a long time, and you may have difficulty introducing these healthy dishes.

    Which is better factory-made or homemade?

    Quite often we are asked what is better to give: ready-made vegetable purees and cereals, that is, factory-made, or making them yourself at home. It's up to you to decide. I often recommend industrial products from European manufacturers to my patients, because I am confident in the very strict quality control of baby food in Europe, but if you are confident in the products and water that you have at home, you can do everything yourself.

    What is useful in vegetable supplements and what is the best way to prepare it?

    Vegetable puree - for the first feeding can be prepared from cauliflower, zucchini, pumpkin, broccoli and vitamins and microelements! Fiber helps move food through the digestive tract and promote beneficial microflora in the gut. Pectins absorb and remove toxins from the baby's body. Vegetables have a positive effect on the acid-base balance of the body, creating conditions for the proper functioning of all organs and systems.


    Cauliflower - is a source of fiber, protein, minerals and various vitamins, it contains a lot of magnesium, sodium, potassium, phosphorus, calcium, iron.

    Iron it contains twice as much as green peas, peppers and lettuce. Cauliflower protein is easily digestible and its content is quite significant. The cauliflower protein contains methionine . It is one of the essential amino acids that cannot be synthesized by the human body. Other essential amino acids are also present in a small amount: arginine, tryptophan.

    Zucchini - rich in vitamins and microelements. It contains potassium, magnesium, phosphorus, calcium, vitamins, folic acid. The latter plays an important role in the processes of hematopoiesis. Zucchini is rich in trace elements that are necessary for the formation of nervous tissue, normal metabolism, and the formation of hemoglobin.

    Broccoli is a very healthy vegetable that is a type of cauliflower. Pleasant soft taste and good digestibility of the product, the unique composition has a positive effect on the health of children. Eat unopened cabbage inflorescences.

    This is also a low-allergenic vegetable rich in protein, fiber, vitamins, calcium, iron, trace elements and even phytoncides. The content of calcium and magnesium in broccoli is enough to balance the functioning of the nervous system, ensure the normal regulation of the child's sleep cycle, good resistance to stress. When eating this vegetable, the child becomes calmer, less excited and naughty. In addition, broccoli is the leader in content choline and methionine that the child needs.

    Pumpkin is the largest vegetable on Earth. It is one of the ten most useful vegetables in the diet of children, contains a large amount of healthy proteins, fiber and vitamins, iron, potassium, magnesium and trace elements, which are indispensable for children's nutrition, as they strengthen the immune system and help fight inflammation, have a positive effect on the nervous system .

    Vitamins and microelements contained in pumpkin help the child grow, provide healthy sleep, are responsible for the condition of the skin and eyes, improve metabolic processes, and accelerate the removal of harmful substances from the child's body. Due to its beneficial qualities, pumpkin can be one of the first types of complementary foods for a baby. All vegetable purees have a specific vegetable smell, this is absolutely normal.

    Scheme for the introduction of vegetables in baby food
    You need to introduce vegetables into the child's menu gradually. Each new vegetable should be started as a single-component puree in the amount of ½ teaspoon , preferably at breakfast, so you can track the manifestations of a food allergy or intolerance reaction to the product. If all is well, then the next day offer him a teaspoon .

    So, gradually, you need to bring the portion to the age norm. Serving of vegetable puree per day for a child 6 months old - is about 100 grams, at this age you can start adding vegetable oil to vegetable puree and gradually increase to 1 teaspoon ), the rest of the portion is replenished with breast milk or formula. A serving of vegetable puree is 200 grams per year. The next vegetable product can be introduced no earlier than 4-5 days later, when the child gets used to the one he is already eating. In the future, you can make mashed potatoes from several vegetables. But don't be too hasty. If the child has a rash on the skin, diarrhea or constipation, then you need to temporarily remove the product from the diet, and after a while try again. If an undesirable reaction occurs again, it is better to exclude such a product from the child's diet for 6 months and consult a pediatrician.

    If the child did not like the dish, for example, did not like broccoli, do not refuse what was planned and continue to offer it in small quantities - 1-2 spoons a day, you can even not just once, but 2-3 times before meals, and after 7 - 10, and sometimes 15 days, the baby will get used to the new taste.

    This diversifies the diet, helps to form the right taste habits in the child. Porridges, as a rule, are the second complementary food after vegetable puree.

    How and when to introduce porridge as the first complementary food?
    If your child is not gaining weight very well, then complementary foods can be started with the introduction of cereals. It is important to start by choosing one-component, low-allergenic cereals , which do not contain gluten: these are buckwheat, rice, corn porridges .

    gluten-containing cereals include: wheat, oats, rye, barley, millet.


    According to modern data , the period of introduction of gluten into the child's diet is not of fundamental importance, but the latest recommendations draw attention to the fact that the amount of gluten in the diet of a baby up to a year old should not be large. Therefore it is better to add semolina and oatmeal porridge to other porridge in a limited amount , and not to give a whole separate portion of such porridge. If your child hasn't tried porridge yet, start with a dairy-free, gluten-free, one-ingredient buckwheat or rice porridge. Please note that completely eliminating cereals containing gluten from the child's diet is also a bad idea, the child should familiarize himself with such cereals before 8 months of age.

    Rice - very useful for growing baby. It has a low content of vegetable proteins, so it is easy to digest and is especially useful for children with loose stools . Rice has a high nutritional value and protects the baby's delicate intestines to a certain extent thanks to its enveloping effect . This is a hearty and nutritious dish with a good content of carbohydrates and proteins, potassium and magnesium, calcium and phosphorus, beneficial amino acids and vitamins. It covers energy costs, energizes and gives strength. But rice is not recommended for overweight children and those who suffer from severe constipation.

    Gluten-free buckwheat porridge - very nutritious and rich in iron, fiber, rich in various vitamins and microelements. This is a very good option for to introduce a child to adult food . All porridges can be prepared with water, breast milk, or formula that your child is accustomed to. It is not recommended to give ordinary cow's milk to a child under one year old and use it to make cereals. No need to add salt and sugar.

    If a child already eats porridge from 5 months - then at 6 months you can offer a more complex porridge, for example: rice porridge with apricot or raspberries, rice porridge with banana

    is very successful

    combination both in taste and properties) or even more complex porridge - corn-rice with banana .

    Subsequently, apple, banana, pear, plum and prunes, apricot and dried apricots, broccoli, carrots, berries can be added to the porridge, provided that the child is not allergic to them.

    Rules for the introduction of cereals as complementary foods for the baby

    The same as for vegetable puree. To make it easier for the child to get used to the new product and its consistency, first prepare 5% porridge: 5 g of cereal per 100 g of water if you make it yourself. Porridge is usually cooked with water, but can be made with breast milk, infant formula. First, give the baby one teaspoon of porridge, then during 7-10 days bring the volume of porridge of the same percentage to the full volume of feeding, for example 150 g.

    there are no skin rashes, the child has a normal stool - they switch to the gradual introduction of porridge of the same cereal, but already 10% concentration: 10 g of cereal per 100 g of water . The complete introduction of 10% porridge to the baby is also carried out for 7-8 days . The third week falls on the complete addiction of the child to a new dish. Only after that you can introduce a new cereal in the form of 10% porridge or the next complementary foods. Give porridge with a spoon, preferably in the morning, for breakfast . After porridge, at the stage of its introduction, the child should be offered breast or milk formula.
    When formula-fed - the volume of the mixture after a portion of porridge should be such that together with porridge it is 200 ml for five feedings. In the future, the volume of a serving of porridge gradually increases, amounting to 160-170 ml at 7-8 months, 170-180 ml at 8-9 months, and up to 200 ml after 9 months (there is a complete replacement of one feeding of the child with complementary foods.

    Cereal schedule

    1. day - 1 teaspoon 5 g
    2. day - 2 teaspoons 10 g
    3. day - 3 teaspoons 15 g
    4. day - 4 teaspoons 20 g
    5. day - 50 ml 50 g
    6. day - 100 ml 100 g
    7. day - 150 ml 150 g


    General rules for the introduction of first complementary foods

    Concluding our meeting, I would like to dwell on the general rules for the introduction of complementary foods to children in the first year of life, 10 tips from the professor:

    1. It is better to introduce the first complementary foods in the morning 9-11 am
    2. Do not add sugar or salt .
    3. When the child is calm and not tired.
    4. Start with 0.5-2 teaspoons . If the child refuses, do not insist.
    5. If there is no rash, skin changes, stool changes, double the dose the next day. Gradually, in 7-10 days bring the first complementary foods of the child to the age norm : 100-200 g
    6. If there is an allergic reaction - refuse for 3 days
    7. Each subsequent new complementary food must be single-ingredient
    8. A dish of mixed foods give when the child has already become familiar with all foods separately.
    9. It is not advisable to introduce new products 3 days before and after vaccinations.
    10. Start feeding your baby at ode when you start feeding.

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