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First foods

Ragi, kambu, thinai and pasi paruppu - what to start when, in what form, and what to keep off the plate until they're older.

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First foods

Ragi, kambu, thinai, pasi paruppu - what to start, when, and in what form. Every stage is a range your baby moves through at their own pace, not a date they are late for.

Right now
6 months - first tastes

The first month is practice, not nutrition. Milk is still the main food and will be for months; what is being learned here is the spoon, the sitting, and the swallowing.

Texture
Smooth, thin - it should pour off the spoon
Meals a day
1-2 a day, starting at 2-3 spoons

Next: 7-8 months - thicker, and more of it - mashed with lumps - not smooth any more.

Not yet, whatever the age

  • Honeyuntil 12 months

    It can carry the spores that cause infant botulism. Cooking does not destroy them.

  • Whole nuts, whole grapes, popcorn, raw carrot roundsuntil 4-5 years

    Exactly the size and shape of a small airway. Nuts as a smooth paste and grapes quartered lengthways are fine.

  • Cow's milk as a drinkuntil 12 months

    It is low in iron and makes it harder to absorb what else they eat. In cooking, and as curd, it is fine from 7-8 months.

  • Added saltuntil 12 months

    Their kidneys cannot clear it. Food tastes bland to you long before it does to them.

  • Added sugar, including in juicefor as long as you can

    It sets a preference early and does nothing for them. Whole fruit instead of juice.

Every stage

6 months - first tastes

Where you are
  • Ragi · kezhvaragu
    kanji, thin
    Sprouted and roasted digests easiest. The classic first food, and high in calcium and iron.
  • Rice · arisi
    kanji, well cooked and mashed
  • Moong dal · pasi paruppu
    boiled soft, mashed with its water
  • Banana · vazhaipazham
    mashed ripe, nothing added
  • Apple
    steamed, then mashed
    Raw apple is too hard at this stage.
  • Carrot
    steamed and puréed
  • Pumpkin · parangikai
    steamed and mashed
  • Potato / sweet potato
    boiled and mashed

One new food at a time, then the same food for 3 days before the next. If something disagrees you will know which thing it was.

Everything your baby can eat by now

8 foods, adding up across the stages so far.

Ragi · kezhvaraguRice · arisiMoong dal · pasi paruppuBanana · vazhaipazhamAppleCarrotPumpkin · parangikaiPotato / sweet potato

Not medical advice. These figures are a guide - your paediatrician knows your baby. Source: WHO and IAP infant feeding guidance.