Babies (0 to 12 months)

Is your baby ready for solid foods? 

Ask yourself these questions:

• Is my baby about 6 months old (or older)?
• Can they hold their head steady without any support?
• Can they sit up in a highchair and lean forward without any support?
• Can they open their mouth wide if offered food?
• Can they turn their head away when they are full?
• Can they pick up food and try to put it in their mouth?

If you answered yes to all of these questions, your baby is ready for solid foods.

If you answered no to one or more, your baby is not ready for solid foods. Talk to your health care provider if your baby is not ready for solid foods, but you think they should be.

Signs of fullness and hunger 

You’ll know your baby is hungry when they:

• lean forward
• reach for food
• smack or suck their lips
• open their mouth when food is offered
• put their fist in their mouth

You’ll know your baby is full when they:

• turn their head away
• close their mouth when food is offered
• cover their mouth with their hand
• fuss or cry

Start with foods high in iron

Offer solid foods that are high in iron first. Your baby was born with a supply of iron, but at around 6 months of age that supply is almost used up. They need to get iron from food now. From 6 to 12 months, offer foods high in iron 2 or more times every day. 

Foods that are high in iron:

• Lentils, peas, and beans
• Tofu
• Nut and seed butters
• Meat and poultry
• Wild game
• Fish and shellfish
• Egg
• Iron-fortified infant cereals

Introduce other foods once your baby is eating foods high in iron at least two times a day

Vegetables and fruit

Fresh, frozen, and canned vegetables and fruit are all good choices. Choose frozen and canned vegetables and fruit without added sugar or salt.

• Soft, ripe, peeled fruit (e.g., peach, banana, cantaloupe, kiwi)

• Soft cooked vegetables (e.g., carrot, broccoli, cauliflower, sweet potato)

• Grated raw vegetables and fruit (e.g., zucchini, carrot, apple, beet)

Grains

Choose whole grain foods. Whole grain foods have more fibre, vitamins, and minerals than refined grain foods.

• Whole grain pasta
• Whole grain bread
• Whole oats
• Brown rice
• Barley
• Millet
• Bulgur
• Wild rice

Milk products

Milk products such as yogurt and cheese can be offered at 6 months of age. Choose milk products with at least 3% milk fat. At 2 years of age, switch to lower fat milk products.

• Yogurt
• Shredded, grated, or cubed cheese
• Cottage cheese

Offer different textures and finger foods

At around 6 months of age, you can offer your baby a variety of soft textures and finger foods. Even if your baby doesn’t have teeth, they can chew soft foods by munching up and down. 

Offer a variety of textures by 9 months of age so that your baby learns to eat and enjoy lumpier textures. If your baby stays on puréed texture too long, they may have feeding difficulties as they get older. 

Textures that are safe for your baby to eat:

• Puréed
• Mashed
• Finely minced
• Ground
• Lumpy
• Small pieces 

Finger foods

Finger foods help your baby learn to feed themselves. Let your baby practice even if it gets messy. The more changes your baby gets to try finger foods, they better they will be at eating them.

Finger foods that are safe for your baby to eat:

• Soft-cooked lentils, peas, and beans
• Finely minced, ground, or mashed meat, poultry, and wild game
• Boneless cooked fish
• Chopped hard-cooked egg
• Pieces of soft, ripe fruit
• Pieces of soft-cooked vegetables
• Soft-cooked pasta
• Bread crusts or toasts
• Grated cheese

Introduce cow's milk between 9 to 12 months of age

Wait until 9 to12 months to introduce cow’s milk to drink. If you introduce cow’s milk too early, your baby may not get enough of other foods. Offer whole milk with 3.25% milk fat. Limit to 3 cups per day so that your baby is still hungry for other foods.

Plant-based milks are not recommended as the main source of milk for children under 2 years of age. These milks do not contain enough protein and fat to meet your baby’s nutrition needs.

Offer water and other drinks in an open cup

Breastmilk provides enough for your baby to drink, but at 6 months of age you can offer water in an open cup. Drinking water from an open cup lets your baby lean important drinking skills.

Offer drinks in an open cup instead of a bottle or “sippy cup”. Drinking from an open cup lowers the risk of cavities. It also keeps your baby from filling up on liquids, so they are still hungry for other foods. If your baby drinks from a bottle, switch to an open cup by about 12 months and no later than 18 months of age.

Avoid sugary drinks. Babies do not need juice or other sugary drinks.

Sugar, salt, and spices

Babies do not need sugar and salt added to their food. Read the label on packages foods and choose foods with little to no added sugar or salt.

It is safe for your baby to eat foods flavoured with other spices and seasonings.

Honey

Do not feed your baby honey before they are 12 months of age. This includes honey that has been pasteurized, cooked, or in baked goods. Honey may contain botulism bacteria which can make your baby sick.

Some yogurts and other foods are sweetened with honey. Rad the ingredient list before offering packaged foods to your baby.

Make food safety a priority

• Follow general food safety tips to keep you and your family safe. Visit Canada.ca/FoodSafety for more information.
• Give your baby their own portion of food rather than sharing from your dish.
• Throw out any food that has touched your baby’s mouth or saliva.

 Do not offer your baby these foods:

• under-cooked or raw meat, poultry, or seafood
• raw, runny, or soft-cooked eggs
• unpasteurized juice or ciders
• raw or unpasteurized milk products
• raw sprouts (e.g., alfalfa, clover, radish, and mung bean)

Arsenic

Arsenic is a natural element that can be toxic to humans, especially infants and children. Infants and children do not break down arsenic as well as adults, so it stays in their bodies longer. Exposure to high amounts of arsenic in childhood can affect growth and development.

Arsenic can enter water through the natural breakdown of soil. Water and soil can also become contaminated through manufacturing and agricultural processes.

Arsenic can enter foods through contaminated water and soil. Many foods contain a small amount of arsenic, including vegetables, fruit, protein foods, and grains.

Some foods contain more arsenic than others. For example, rice and rice products tend to contain higher amounts of arsenic. Many store-bought baby foods are made with rice. If babies are not fed a variety of foods, they may be at risk of consuming too much arsenic.

To reduce the amount of arsenic your baby may get from food, follow these tips:

• Offer your baby a variety of foods, including foods rich in iron. Beef, fish, lentils, beans, tofu, eggs, nuts, and seeds are all good sources of iron.
• If you give your baby fortified infant cereal, offer a variety of grains rather than only rice cereal.
• Limit store-bought grain products for infants like biscuits, wafers, crackers, rusks, and puffs. These foods may contain arsenic, are highly processed, and can lead to tooth decay.

Arsenic in drinking water

Drinking water from private water systems, such as wells, cisterns, and treated lake water, may contain arsenic. If you use a private drinking water system, you can test for arsenic and other contaminants. Private licensed labs offer this service for a fee.

For more information, please contact a public health inspector through our Environmental Health Division by calling 613-549-1232.

Prevent choking

Choking happens when your baby’s airway is blocked. Hard foods, small and round foods, and smooth and sticky foods can block your baby’s airway. Your baby may cough or gag in food as they try different textures and finger foods. This is normal and part of learning how to eat solid foods.

• Always supervise your baby while they are eating.
• Make sure your baby is sitting upright. Car seats and rockers are not a safe place for your baby or child to eat.
• Know what to do if choking occurs. Take training in first aid and cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR).

 Never offer these foods to babies and children younger than 4 years of age:

• Big pieces of raw vegetables and hard fruits
• Small, round, or oval shaped food (e.g., whole grapes and small tomatoes)
• Dried fruit (e.g., raisins)
• Whole nuts or seeds
• Nut butters, spread thickly
• Fish, meat, or poultry with bones
• Hot dogs and sausages
• Hard candies, suckers, cough drops, or gum
• Popcorn
• Marshmallows
• Snacks using toothpick or skewers

 To make foods safer for your baby:

• Grate or thinly slice raw vegetables or hard fruit.
• Cut small, round or oval shaped food into quarters.
• Spread nut or seed butters thinly on crackers or toast.

Help to prevent food allergy

Introduce common food allergens at around 6 months of age to help prevent food allergy. Common food allergens are those foods that people are more likely to be allergic to.

There are 10 common food allergens. Introduce these foods as part of your baby’s first foods:

• Eggs

• Milk
• Wheat
• Sesame
• Fish
• Shellfish
• Soy
• Peanuts
• Tree nuts
• Mustard

How to introduce common food allergens

• Offer one new common food allergen at a time (e.g., do not offer wheat and peanuts at the same time).
• Choose a time when your baby will be awake for at least 2 hours in case they have an allergic reaction.
• Feed common food allergens on a spoon, rather than having your baby feed themselves. Food smeared on your baby’s skin may cause skin irritation and can be mistaken for allergy.

While introducing common food allergens, continue to offer other foods to your baby. You do not need to follow the common food allergen guidelines for other foods you offer.

Possible signs of food allergy

• rash, hives (raised red, itchy bumps on the skin)
• water eyes
• vomiting, diarrhea
• runny nose
• irritability, inconsolable crying
• swelling of face or tongue
• difficulty breathing

If your baby shows signs of food allergy:

Stop offering that food and talk to your health care provider. If your baby is having difficulty breathing, call 9-1-1

If your baby doesn’t show signs of food allergy:

Keep offering that food regularly, 2 to 3 times a week.

Some babies are at higher risk of food allergy.

Ask yourself these questions:

• Does my baby have a food allergy I already know about?
• Does my baby have eczema?
• Does my baby have a parent or sibling with a food allergy, eczema, or seasonal allergies?

If you answered yes to any of these questions, your baby may be at higher risk of food allergy. Talk with your health care provider about introducing common food allergens. Even if your baby is at higher risk of food allergy, you should introduce common food allergens at about 6 months of age.

For more information on food allergies, visit Food Allergy Canada.