Can my baby have herbs and spices?

Absolutely! This is one of the easiest ways to increase diversity in your baby’s diet whilst enhancing their palate. A common myth is that baby food should be bland or lack flavour, but this really isn’t the case, herbs and spices can be used right from the weaning get-go, usually around 6 months of age.

Interestingly, your little one will have already been exposed to a variety of flavours in pregnancy as different foods and flavours consumed by the mother can pass into the amniotic fluid. This is also the case from birth where infants learn different tastes and flavours found in breast milk and formula too, the more variety in a mothers diet the more diverse flavours there will be, with research suggesting this can affect food preferences in later life too.

What are the benefits of herbs and spices?

Theres plenty! But if I’ve not convinced you already, let’s go through some details…

• Increased diet diversity and plant points – this goes without saying, the first 1000 days is a critical window for shaping a child’s future, nutrition plays a fundamental role and the more diverse a diet the more likely to meet nutritional needs as well as promoting good gut health.
• Transition to family meals - anything to make life easier right? Herbs and spices found in family meals can make that transition that much easier and seamless.
• Not having to use salt and sugar – we know there is over consumption of salt and sugar within UK diets and dietary habits are shaped in the first years of life so the less salt and sugar the better.
• Added nutrients and health benefits. Although there is limited research in children, herbs and spices in general have shown to have anti-inflammatory and anticarcinogenic properties as well impacting on cognition and mood.

What should I avoid?

Salt

Babies should have no more than 1g of salt a day which is less than ¼ teaspoon. This is because a baby’s kidneys are small and developing, making them less able to cope with large volumes. Avoid foods that are higher in salt such as processed meats, crisps, and ready meals. Tips for keeping salt low in baby’s diet include:

• Cooking from scratch so you can control exactly what’s in your baby’s food.
• Avoid adding salt to meals and using no salt/low salt stock cubes.
• Check food labels and choose those with under 0.3g of salt per 100g as these are considered low salt products.
• Stick with herbs and spices to flavour.

Allergens

Single herbs and spices are unlikely to contain allergens, however any mixed flavourings or blends can contain common allergens such as milk or wheat. If your child has an allergy ensure you check every label, every time.

Seasoning mixes with salt and sugar

Similar to allergens, unlike little supper clubs seasonings, a lot of seasoning mixes can contain unwanted ingredients such as sugar and salt and need to be avoided especially in little ones.  Double check the ingredients list at the back of the food label.

What about chilli?

There is no guidance when chilli should or shouldn’t be introduced, some cultures will introduce much earlier and others will er on the side of caution nearer to 12 months of age. Always start with small amounts, especially with ‘hot’ spices, and build up.

Top tips for introducing herbs and spices

Start small such as a pinch, don’t be alarmed if it’s not accepted on the first few tries, we know it can take over 15+ times for new foods and flavours to be accepted.

Offer with familiar foods first as these are more likely to be accepted.

Expect grimaces and funny faces this is all part of the weaning process, it doesn’t necessarily mean you baby doesn’t like them, keep trying.

Exposure – let your little one watch you add spices and herbs either at the table or cooking. In older children, getting them involved with cooking by adding the spices for themselves or smelling initially can all aid in exposure and acceptance.

Things will get messy and if you are using spices such as saffron or turmeric they may stain so I recommend a cover up and/or floor mat.

Thank you to Lydia Collins-Hussey, Specialist Paediatric Dietitian for writing this blog.

Lydia has over 11 years’ experience in working in the NHS, charity sector, and private practice and her passion is helping families cut through the nutrition noise so that they feel confident feeding their baby.

Lydia has her own private practice, visit her website here http://www.themilkallergydietitian.com and follow her on Instagram here @themilkallergydietitian.