FEEDING

Any decisions regarding your child's health should be made in consultation with your qualified health care provider.

How much should my baby eat?

When you begin, you are introducing your baby to the idea of eating something other than breast milk or formula, more than supplementing your baby's diet. For that reason, it is not necessary at first for your baby to eat a certain amount.

Babies differ so much in their preferences and their readiness for solids that it's difficult to make hard and fast rules about the consistency, amount, and type of solid foods to offer.  You and your pediatrician should discuss your individual child’s needs as they grow and develop.

What is the difference between 1st stage and 2nd stage foods?

1st Stage

Single Ingredients:

It is recommended that parents try new foods one at a time for 3 to 5 days to test for allergies to any food ingredient. 

Texture:

The texture of 1st stage foods is designed to be easier to handle for solid food beginners, but can be customized to your baby’s preference.  Some parents like to add baby’s usual breast milk or formula to a 1st stage food to ease the transition and add a bit of familiarity to a new experience.

2nd Stage

Multiple Ingredients:

These recipes are combinations of two or more ingredients.  Most of our 2nd stage foods have at least one 1st stage predecessor. One exception is Sweet Baby Carrots, which we introduce as a single ingredient in the 2nd stage.

My pediatrician says I can start feeding solid foods now, and my child is not yet 6 months old, does that mean Sprout Baby Food is not appropriate for my child?

6 months is the current average recommended age for starting solid foods, and our product labeling is based on this recommendation.  Babies reach milestones at different ages, and your child’s doctor will discuss with you the signs indicating that your baby might be ready.  Sprout Baby Food can be used starting at any age that you and your pediatrician decide is appropriate for your child to start solid foods.

What about spices? How do I know my child can have them?

Allergies to spices are uncommon, and the quantity used in Sprout Baby Food per serving is very small.  Different cultures incorporate spices into their babies’ diets earlier than others.  A child’s familiarity with spices will vary depending on things like how “spicy” and varied the diet of a breastfeeding mother was, or if the child was primarily formula-fed.  If there is any history of allergies to a particular ingredient in your family, you may want to exercise caution and do a 3-5 day allergy trial, as you would with any other food.  For example, you could add a sprinkle of cinnamon to any of the Sprout Baby Food 1st stage products your baby already enjoys.

Our foods are designed to encourage children to eat a variety of flavors and a variety of foods starting from their first bites.  Eating an assortment of foods is part of a healthy, balanced diet, and is something we believe children will carry with them as they grow older.

Sometimes when I am trying a new flavor my baby doesn’t seem to accept it, what should I do?

It can take some time for a child to get used to a new flavor, sometimes up to 10 tries.  We don’t suggest that you in any way force a new flavor, but instead, try this method: make the new food the first bite of the day.  If the child reacts with a face, or spits the food out, move on to a preferred food, and repeat the process the next day.  If after 10 days, you still don’t get a positive response, your child may not have a preference for that flavor for now, and you can wait a month to try and reintroduce it, but babies will have preferences for food tastes and textures just like most adults.