I've been feeding my 9.5 month old foods without any seasonings (i.e. salt, sugar, etc.). At what age can I just puree up what the rest of the family is eating (which is obviously seasoned with soy sauce, oils, etc.)? I can't remember what I did with my older son....
From my experience, I would start sooner than we did.
I served what we were eating at that age, but I used to take baby's portion out before I seasoned it. My kids unfortunately all prefer bland non-spiced foods. So I think if I had to do it again, I wouldn't do their portions separately.
I wouldn't do a lot of sugar - because they don't really need it - but some flavoring, probably a good thing.
From the moment we started solids they got what we were eating, cut or mashed appropriately. My youngest's favorite food at 6 or 7 months was mild curry rice! I wouldn't give them something with lots of hot sauce, an overload of salt or something like that but there is no reason at all to not feed them regularly seasoned food.
I've often wondered if picky eaters are in part because they aren't fed regular food, they are fed bland, simple foods at exactly the time they are learning how to taste.
When you are pregnant they get a taste of everything you eat and if you are breastfeeding they also get a beginning taste of different flavor profiles.
i'd start any time now. obviously if you're having something heavily salted or spicy you don't give them that, but as soon as babies are on solid food they can start having mild to moderately seasoned food.
khairete
S.
I'm a mild seasoner so unless you're a heavy seasoner, your 9.5 mo old can have what the rest of the family has.
At that age my kids were eating what we were eating. I cut things into bite sized pieces but never purée. They both loved being able to feed themselves and ate whatever I gave them with their fingers. I didn't worry about their food being seasoned.
I fed both my kids the same thing we ate...if I could mash it up soft. I make things from scratch and there is no added sugar, but I remember them having their first licks of an ice cream cone when we all went out for ice cream! If we went out for Indian food, they both got Indian food that was soft and mashable. If I made spaghetti, homemade meatballs, and squash basil pesto casserole they both got mashed up meatball with sauce, mashed up pesto squash. My daughter loved finger foods very early and could eat fine without problem. It took my son longer. She would get tiny bits of bread or soft foods she could pick up. I remember she could do this before age 1. She just loved eating whatever she saw her big brother eating. Good luck...I hope your baby loves trying new foods! Added: My son is a picky eater and my daughter has always loved almost everything.
at that age my second was gumming finly chopped table food, but my hubbs has food allergies to onion and many spices so our foods aren;t that spiced up.
she refused all baby purees. and anything i tried to puree myself it had to be chopped fine and she had to pick it up herself or she refused it all
My kid ate what I ate, spices,seasonings, and all, from the time she started reaching for my plate.
At that age, both of my babies were eating a mushed up version of what the rest of us ate, and as long as it wasn't smoking hot, it was seasoned the way the rest of us like it. I figured that if they'd been experiencing those same flavors in breast milk ( and maybe even in utero), having them in real food wouldn't be a problem. And it wasn't. I think that unless there are concerns about allergies or stomach problems, you could feed your baby the same foods that the rest of you like.
Some of the advice we're given about what to feed babies is cultural, not medical, even if it comes from doctors. For example, American doctors often advise breastfeeding moms to avoid onions and garlic. My Korean doctor, on the other hand, told me that if I wanted my breast milk to come in strong and my baby to like it, I should fry up TEN cloves of garlic for my lunch every day. :-) My daughter started eating solid foods while we were in Japan, so her first foods, given to her by a dear Japanese friend, were rice, miso, and diluted green tea.
Obviously you should ask your doctor first, call the nurse line (you don't need to go in) but what I did with my babies is I just mushed up their food BEFORE I seasoned it. Veges, rice, beans, potatoes, soft fruit. Strong spices can be very upsetting to small tummies and sometimes even cause reactions.
So when you're cooking just put a few little pieces of soft, healthy food to the side and finish making your meal, super easy.
It's an American thing not to spice up food for kids. They don't hold back in Thailand and India!
Why wouldn't you give them seasoning? We always just give them what we are eating. I don't go crazy on any of those fronts, but as long as you don't add a ton of salt or sugar or super spicy additions, it's perfectly fine.
I am that one mom that is pretty strict about foods for little ones but when they are around 10-11 months old I don't see much reason to but flavored goo that has vitamins added. No nutrition at all according the their own company.
I do recommend you cook good foods and then blend it well.
When they kids got to the point they could start trying to chew up 1/4 inch bits I used a Pampered Chef Food Chopper. I'd whack it about 15 times and that would be small enough.
Even up to age 2 they still have a throat about the size of a McDonald's soft drink straw so 1/4" to 1/2" bites or less for every item.
Please google choke hazard foods. It's amazing what people feed their kids and then when they choke to death it's "I had no idea it was bad for my kids".
Marshmallows, raisins, peanut butter that isn't spread very very thin, gummy fruits, and more.
