What is the best first food for a baby?

There really is no ideal ‘first food’ and anything you read claiming to tell you otherwise is in fact merely making a suggestion on what they perceive to be a good ‘option’ as a first food. This could be based on a particular food possessing a certain texture, nutritional value or some other factor such as being low risk of food allergy.

But, provided you offer the food in a safe way, ensure it is well cooked, and not an obvious choking hazard, then most foods can be made safe to offer a baby starting its weaning journey!

If a food is highlighted as a common choking hazard such as whole nuts, it doesn’t mean your baby cannot have this food, it just means you need to prepare it in a way that minimises this risk for example blending, mashing, chopping or slicing. For example, in the case of whole nuts – I would recommend offering smooth nut butter or ground nuts instead.

Many feeding professionals and weaning guides will instruct you on how to prepare a food safely based on the age and weaning stage of a child. However, all babies are individuals and will develop the skills to feed at different times. It is important that you assess your little one as an individual and progress with feeding at their own pace. 

All that said, there are some foods which can provide nutritional and other benefits for babies and would be good to include as first foods for your baby. There are key nutrients which babies need in the first year of life and it is important to include them in your weaning plan. 

Here on the blog and over on my instagram page you will find dietitian designed weaning plans, including my 30-days of weaning, and tonnes of tips for selecting first foods which will nourish your baby and also tips on how to feel confident preparing them safely