The best first foods to introduce are vegetables. Letting the baby
play with a fresh raw carrot, zucchini or other raw vegetable (except
potatoes since even a small amount of hidden sprout can be toxic) can
be a great way to introduce food. Use larger vegetables, or pieces, so
the baby can’t get it stuck in the mouth. Regardless, you’ll want to
keep close — infants seem to get any size item into their mouths one
way or another. Eventually they’ll figure out they can get pieces of the
vegetables with their new teeth. Try one vegetable at a time and see
which they like, which, if any, they react badly to, and if they really
have an interest. Some babies just want to play with food, just as with
everything else around them. If they don’t seem ready to eat, don’t
push it. Wait a couple of weeks and introduce some raw vegetables
again.
Next move on to cooked vegetables — peas, squash, carrots or
whatever you’re eating. Just mash up the vegetables you cook for
yourself and feed them to the baby. Hold the butter and salt until a
couple of months later. Also keep away from rough or hard-to-digest
vegetables like those in the cabbage family, including broccoli, cauli-
flower and Brussels sprouts. You’ll gradually see what your baby
likes and dislike, especially when you change diapers.
Once a variety of vegetables are tolerated, start next with fruits.
Try a large piece of apple, pear or peach. Don’t forget, the baby’s goal
is to get it into his or her mouth — whole, of course. Move on to
homemade applesauce, and try pear and peach sauce too. Avoid
using fruit juice; it’s too concentrated, and even if you dilute it you’ll
increase acidity in the baby’s mouth that can have a devastating effect
on the teeth, leading to tooth decay later.
Now that the baby is eating fresh vegetables and fruits, you’re
ready to experiment with cooked eggs. Initially, try the yolk and
white separately in case there’s a reaction to either. Next, organic
meats. Buy everything as fresh as possible, avoiding processed meats
and canned foods. Make dairy and grains the very last foods you
introduce. Milk and wheat are the most common allergies in children,
followed by soy and corn. Why not hold off on these potential prob-
lems as long as possible since the baby will get everything he or she
needs nutritionally from the other foods?
184 • IN FITNESS AND IN HEALTH