Diet for the Baby After 6 Months

After breastfeeding the baby for 6 months, the food diet given to the baby is known as complementary Food or Solid Food. So, read further to know about the foods given to the baby.

As recommended by WHO, you need to breastfeed the baby for continues 6 months. After completing this duration, you can start a complementary food diet for the baby. But, breastfeeding should also be continued along with the diet for at least 2 years.

The food given to the baby should be nutritious enough to provide proper nutrition to the baby. The food should be freshly cooked at home and should be considered to provide the baby with all the required nutrients.

Listed below are the methods that will help the baby easily consume complementary food after 6 months of continuous feeding on milk. 

Taste Programming –

When breastfeeding, make sure to eat properly because the food you eat will get to the baby in breast milk. The baby gets the taste or flavour of the food.

During your first 6 months of breastfeeding, the baby understands different tastes. When you start their food diet, they will eat it without causing any trouble.

When your baby is 6 months old, you are usually told to feed him with rice water, barley water, and so on, which is not correct as these food items do not provide any nutrients to the baby.

Therefore, starting a complementary food diet provides more nutrients to the baby than milk. Hence, giving liquid things to the baby will lead to an insufficient supply of nutrients.

Feed cooked food –

You should completely cook the food before giving it to the baby. You should avoid any half-boiled or half-cooked food for the baby.

Prepare the food at home with thick consistency (thick puree form). Make sure to mash the food properly for better eating and digestion. Ensure that the food you prepare is fresh and contains nutrients. There should not be any lumps in the food that make the baby choke.

Have queries or concern ?

Here is a list of solid foods for a 6-month-old baby.

• Baby rice – While preparing baby rice, make sure to boil the rice properly. Then mash it completely, add mother’s milk, and mix it well. As your baby is aware of your breast milk taste, he will like the food, and it will be easy for him to consume it.
• Pulses – Next, you can start with giving him moong dal. 
• Vegetables – You can also give the baby various vegetables such as carrots, cabbage, cauliflower, potato, beans, and green vegetables. While giving this food, make sure to boil and mash them properly. At first, you can consider using the grinder to mash it thoroughly, but as your baby starts growing, use a spoon to mash the food.
• Proteins – To ensure that the baby is getting enough proteins, you can give pulses or sprouts. Sprouts are good for health; hence, you need to soak the pulses till it sprouts, dry them under the sun, and roast them on the Tawa to remove the moisture and make powder of it last to store it for a longer duration. Doing this will help you to provide fresh food to the baby. During consumption, boil the sprout powder to feed easily.

1. Do not rush with the food items.
2. Start one by one to build good acceptance of the food in the baby.
3. Don’t switch to different options for breakfast, lunch, or dinner.

Till 9 months, you can provide 2 or 3 diet meals; after 9 months, the proportion of milk and solid food is 50-50% both. After 1 year, this proportion increases to 70% solid food and 30% breastfeeding.

After your baby starts consuming 2-3 food items, you can mix them to form a good diet. For instance, if the baby is feeding well with rice, dal, and vegetables separately, then you can try to combine all of them to give him complete nutrients.

Make sure the food you provide is nutritionally dense. Besides, you can prefer to give fruits to the baby apart from vegetables. But the best would be to start with vegetables.

Listed below are the foods to be avoided for a 6-months-old baby.

• Make sure not to add salt or sugar to the baby’s food.
• Do not give honey to the baby for at least 1 year.
• Avoid giving animal milk like buffalo, cow, and goat.
• Do not give the white part of the egg to the baby. Instead, after 6 months, you can give the egg yolk to the baby.
• You should not give the baby seafood and red meats like mutton before 1 year.
• You should avoid dry fruits, grapes, or other chunky foods before 1 year.

Make sure to follow these tips to ensure healthy growth of the baby post 6 months.

Sahyadri Child Healthcare Hospital offers a full range of pediatric services along with surgery and vaccination. We have the best Pediatrician in Pune. He can assist you in every way.

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