Solid Foods for 9 Month Old

Your baby has just entered his/her 9th month, and it's time to start solid food. Along with fulfilling the nutritional needs, solid foods for 9 month olds should also be light and easy to digest.

Feeding babies according to their age is essential to fulfill their dietary requirements, and ensure proper growth and development. Newborns have to be breastfed, and till 5 months of age, they can be only given a liquid diet like fresh fruit juice and vegetables soups apart from breast milk. At 6 months, it is time to give them semi-solid and solid foods. Introducing solid foods in your baby's diet will depend on his growth and development. Solid food should be introduced only after the baby is 6 months old, since the intestines are not developed completely. Swallowing and digesting solid food becomes easier as the child grows. Hence, you can surely feed proper solid food that is easily digestible to a 9-month-old infant. Apart from the normal foods, feeding the infant with baby formula and breast milk as well is essential.

Best Foods for 9 Month Old

Before giving any solid food, it is necessary to check if the child shows any allergic reactions to any food, like vomiting, developing rashes, or having diarrhea. Given below is a list of solid food for 9 month olds.

Cereals: Iron-fortified rice and oats, can be introduced as the first of solid foods. Baby rice cereal is an excellent option, since it is rich in iron, and helps in proper growth and development. You can boil these cereals in water or milk, and mash them properly before feeding the baby. Cereals make perfect finger foods to introduce self eating.

Fruits: This is another great option for finger foods for babies. Soft fruits like bananas and papayas can be cut into very small pieces, while those like apples, pears, and peaches can be mashed or pureed to avoid choking.

Vegetables: Make sure these are properly cooked and mashed. Half-cooked vegetables can cause indigestion problems to infants. You can feed them well-cooked potatoes, carrots, zucchini, pumpkins, etc., that are rich sources of vitamins and minerals. Feed small morsels to ensure proper chewing, for easy digestion.

Other Foods: Apart from the above edibles, you can even feed the little one with very thin slices of cooked chicken or fish. Other finger foods that can be given to the baby include cheese cubes, crackers, cooked pasta, and toasted bread.

Foods to be Avoided

It is better to avoid foods that are hard to chew. Peas and any kind of nuts are also a strict no, since they can easily choke the wind pipe. Other foods that should not be given to a 9 month old are raw carrots, popcorn, meat chunks, hard candy, hotdogs, cookies, and peanut butter. Citrus fruits must be given only after the infant turns a year old, since the acid content can be too harsh for the baby's stomach. Bite-sized pieces of food must be given, and that too, only under parental supervision.

Solid foods will aid in the proper growth and nourishment of the baby. But before giving any kind of solid food to your 9 month old child, consult a pediatrician who may advice you on the best foods.

Disclaimer: This article is solely for informative purpose, and not intended to replace the advice of experts.

Author,

 

Marlene Alphonse