The best foods to start your baby on solids

Parents often wonder which foods to start with and whether there's an order to follow. In practice, there's no set order for introducing foods. From a nutritional standpoint, though, at around 6 months of age a baby's iron stores gradually run down and their needs go up. Iron plays several important roles in a child's development. For that reason, it's recommended to serve iron-rich foods first, such as:

• iron-fortified infant cereal and protein foods
• meat
• poultry
• fish
• eggs
• legumes and tofu

Once your child is eating iron-rich foods twice a day, you can introduce other foods (vegetables and fruit, grain products that aren't iron-fortified, and dairy products) to add variety to their diet. Even though meat is the richest source of iron, a vegetarian diet can also meet a baby's iron needs. Plant foods that contain iron (e.g. legumes, tofu) are well absorbed by a baby's body when they're eaten together with fruit or vegetables that are high in vitamin C. In general, foods are introduced following a certain progression in texture. The next section gives you some examples.

Texture progression

At around 6 months of age, the vast majority of babies will be ready to eat smooth pureed foods. Your baby will probably start with about 1 to 2 teaspoons of infant cereal mixed with breast milk or infant formula. As soon as your baby has accepted this new texture, you can gradually increase the amount of food you offer and reduce the amount of milk you add. Shortly after complementary feeding begins, at the end of the 6th month or the start of the 7th month, you can begin gradually changing the texture of foods, following your baby's pace. So once you see that your baby swallows smooth foods easily, you can move on to a thick puree texture. Later on, you'll be able to offer your baby foods in pieces and foods they can pick up with their fingers, as recommended in Canada's Food Guide.

Smooth puree

Iron-fortified infant cereal (rice, barley, oat, wheat), Well-cooked pureed meats (beef, chicken, lamb, veal, pork, etc.), Well-cooked pureed fish (salmon, trout, etc.), Pureed tofu, Hard-boiled eggs, pureed yolk, Well-cooked pureed legumes (kidney beans, chickpeas, lentils, etc.), Well-cooked pureed vegetables (squash, carrots, sweet potatoes, green beans, broccoli, asparagus, etc.), Fresh or cooked ripe pureed fruit (bananas, peaches, pears, apples, etc.)

Thick puree (lumpy)

This texture is a puree with small pieces in it that mash easily. Every food offered as a smooth puree can also be offered as a thick puree.

Foods in pieces

Once your baby is able to chew, you can offer them foods cut into small pieces and foods prepared using baby-led weaning (also called BLW), if they're able to manage it. Foods in pieces can be described as foods that mash easily with the gums.

Examples:

• Well-cooked ground meat balls
• Strips of roast chicken
• Well-cooked fish fillets
• Tofu cut into cubes or strips
• Scrambled eggs
• Strips of well-cooked omelette
• Legume patties
• Tender vegetables cut into pieces or strips (sweet potato, carrot, zucchini, squash, broccoli, green beans, etc.)
• Tender fruit cut into pieces or strips (banana, mango, peach, pear, melon, etc.)
• Toasted whole wheat bread in strips (crust removed) spread with mashed avocado, smooth peanut butter or hummus
• Well-cooked pasta
• Whole wheat pancakes or flatbreads
• Pieces of pancake
• Pieces of whole wheat muffin
• Cheese cut into cubes or strips
• Plain yogurt (made with whole milk, 3.25% M.F.)

Foods to favour

The foods offered to a baby should be rich in energy and nutrients in order to meet their growing needs. In particular, a baby needs enough iron, zinc, protein and fat. The following foods provide several of these nutrients:

• Iron-fortified infant cereal
• Meat, poultry and fish
• Eggs
• Legumes and tofu
• Whole milk dairy products (cheese and plain yogurt)

Don't forget to offer a variety of vegetables, fruit and grain products as well. Canada's Food Guide also recommends offering foods that contain mostly unsaturated fats rather than saturated fats. These nutritious foods include:

• Fish (such as salmon, herring, mackerel, char, trout and sardines)
• Ground flaxseed or chia seeds
• Unsalted nuts and seeds, or their butters
• Vegetable oils (canola, olive, soybean)
• Salad dressings and mayonnaise low in saturated fat
• Non-hydrogenated soft margarines
• Avocado

It's also recommended that your baby eat 150 grams of fish per week to support healthy development. As well, offering foods high in vitamin C at the same meal as plant-based iron-rich foods helps the body absorb the iron. Foods high in vitamin C include tomatoes, strawberries, citrus fruit (oranges and grapefruit), broccoli and peppers.

What to avoid?

Certain foods and drinks should be avoided until your baby reaches a certain age:

• Honey and maple syrup: do not offer before the age of 1 to avoid infant botulism
• Rice beverages, almond beverages and other plant-based beverages: cannot replace breast milk or infant formula before the age of 2
• Cow's milk: can be used in foods offered to your baby, but cannot replace breast milk or infant formula before 9 to 12 months of age
• Sweetened drinks (juice, soft drinks, energy drinks, sports drinks, flavoured drinks, etc.): offer water instead of these drinks to quench thirst
• Very salty foods: limit salt and foods high in sodium (e.g. deli meats, cheeses high in sodium, etc.)
• Foods with a lot of added sugar: limit foods with little nutritional value such as candy, pastries, granola bars, etc.)

If you have questions about your baby's diet or about the progression of textures, don't hesitate to consult a dietitian or your health professional.