Let Your Baby Try These Baby Food Jars To Grow Up Healthy

Yes, there are many stages in fact.  Below are descriptions of each stage.

Stage 1

If you’re a new parent, you may be wondering what types of food you should be feeding your baby.

One option is to start with stage 1 foods. These are usually single-ingredient items that have been puréed for easy swallowing.

Popular vegetables at this stage include peas, carrots, green beans, squash, and butternut squash.

For fruits, you might give apples, bananas, peaches, pears, or prunes a try. Stage 1 foods have the plainest formulations, without sauces or additional flavorings.

This can be helpful if you’re not sure how your baby will react to new tastes and textures.

Plus, it’s easy to add more variety as your baby grows and becomes more adventurous with their eating habits.

Talk to your pediatrician if you have any questions about starting your baby on solid foods.

Stage 2

These have a smooth texture but are not as finely puréed as beginner foods.

Intermediate (stage 2) foods are for more experienced eaters, about 7 to 8 months old. At this point, the choices are more interesting because two or more ingredients may be combined to improve taste and offer new textures, such as vegetables and quinoa or chicken and noodles—and you don’t have to open two jars.

Remember to continue to provide fluids in the form of breast milk or formula as well.

Also remember that although your baby may be eating table foods, she still needs 25 to 30 calories per pound of body weight a day from breast milk or formula.

So if your baby weighs 16 pounds, she needs about 400 calories a day, which is the equivalent of about four 6-ounce jars of stage 2 food.

Stage 3

At some point, you may want to start giving your baby what the family is eating. This can be done by pureeing or mashing the food, and gradually increasing the chunkiness.

They’re for children about 7 to 9 months and older—babies who are learning to chew and mash their food with their gums or early teeth. Infant juices are also available, but

The American Academy of Pediatrics recommends not giving any fruit juice to babies in the first year of life, and limiting juice to 4 ounces a day for kids ages 1 to 3 years and 6 ounces for 4- to 6-year-olds.

By the time your child is old enough for this stage, you might decide to simply give her table food that’s mashed or cut up for easy chewing and swallowing.

Gradually adding new foods will help them develop a taste for different flavors.

It’s important not to get discouraged if your baby doesn’t like a particular food at first; it may take several tries before he or she acquires a taste for it.

Stage 4

Companies like Gerber and Beechnut offers ready-to-heat meals for toddlers 12 months and older, such as lasagna or a turkey- vegetable combination.

They’re intended to be easy-to-chew, one-stop meals that provide the necessary nutrients.

They feature more texture for older babies and toddlers, and most are also made for children who are comfortable with a fork or spoon.

These meals are convenient, and may be handy for families on the go. But soft table food is also an option for babies this age.