When you first introduce solid foods, choose a time when you are not rushed and the baby is hungry but not famished. Lunchtime works well for many babies. Your baby should be sitting, not lying down. You can hold him on your lap, but an infant seat or highchair frees both your hands. In the beginning, nurse or bottle- feed your baby a little bit before putting him in the seat so he is not overly hungry. Show him the food and let him touch it, even smear it around if he wants to. (Make sure he wears a bib, and expect a mess—it’s all part of the process.) Then take a small infant spoon (the rubber-coated kind is gentle in the mouth), a demitasse spoon, or a half-teaspoon from a measuring-spoon set. Put a tiny bit of food on the spoon and place the spoon between his lips. Do not put it far back on his tongue, or he may gag.

Once your baby tastes the food, he may suck it off the spoon and open his mouth for more. He may spit it out but seem interested. He may gag, cry, or become upset. He may reach for the spoon himself. (Let him play with it. After a while, you can try to guide it to his mouth, or you can feed him with another spoon while he hangs on to the first.) Once your baby has had a few spoonfuls or seems tired of the process, finish up the feeding by offering more breast milk or formula. In the beginning, very little food will actually be swallowed, but the goal at this point is to teach your baby to eat, not to meet his nutritional needs with solid food.

What Should Your Child Eat?

By the time your child is two years old, he should be getting almost all of his nutrition from solid foods. Like an adult, a child should eat a variety of foods, with balanced amounts of grains, vegetables, fruits, and protein-rich foods such as cheese, meat, dried beans, nuts, and tofu.

One useful guide to choosing foods for the whole family is the Food Guide Pyramid, prepared by the U.S. Department of Agriculture. Keeping the Pyramid in mind can help you make healthy choices, even if you don’t follow it exactly. (An illustration of the Food Guide Pyramid is provided in Chapter 1, “Prenatal Care.”) The serving sizes listed here are supposed to apply to children ages four or older, as well as to adults. For children ages two and three, a serving should be smaller— about one-half of the amounts listed here. The only exception is in the milk group, where children from ages two to six should all get full-size servings. (For adults, increase the number of servings of grains, fruits, and vegetables.) As long as your child is growing normally and seems healthy, don’t worry about exact amounts. Here’s a brief tour of the Pyramid, starting at the bottom:

Grains include cereal, bread, pasta, and rice. These make up the broad base of the Pyramid, meaning the majority of your calories should come from these foods. They are good sources of carbohydrates (the nutrients that provide most of our energy) as well as fiber, iron, and B vitamins. In recent years, many markets and mail-order suppliers have started stocking a far wider array of grains than many of us grew up with—from couscous and millet to quinoa and spelt. Rice alone comes in a fragrant rainbow, from purple Thai rice to brown basmati. Experimenting with foods of this group can make meals more interesting. Whenever possible, choose whole grains, such as brown rice and whole wheat bread, rather than white rice and refined white bread.Recommended daily servings of grain are 6 servings for children ages two to six and 6 to 11 servings after age six. One serving equals the following:

Vegetables

Along with fruit, vegetables are the next level up the Pyramid, meaning they too should be eaten in abundance. They provide rich sources of vitamins and minerals, as well as fiber and carbohydrates. People who eat lots of fruits and vegetables appear to be healthier in many ways, including having lower risks of several kinds of cancer later in life. Eating a variety of fruits and vegetables ensures a good mix of nutrients. Within vegetables, for instance, your child should eat dark leafy greens, such as spinach and collard greens; deep yellow vegetables, such as carrots and sweet potatoes; starchy vegetables, such as peas, potatoes, and corn; and dried peas or beans. If vegetables are not on your child’s short list of things he’ll eat (except for French fries), check Vegetable Strategies later in this chapter for some serving suggestions.

Be careful, however, when you introduce hard raw vegetables, such as carrots or celery, which can pose a choking hazard to young children. If your child is younger than four or seems to have a problem chewing and swallowing hard foods, cook vegetables lightly, even if you are serving them as finger-food snacks. Recommended daily servings of vegetables are three servings for children ages two to six and three to five servings after age six. One serving equals the following:

Fruit

Like vegetables, fruit is toward the base of the Pyramid, meaning your child should eat plenty. It’s always preferable for children to eat fresh fruit rather than fruit juice. In general, children tend to like the sweet taste of many fresh fruits. If yours doesn’t, you can try blending mashed bananas or strawberries with milk for a shake and adding pureed fruit to plain yogurt.Recommended daily servings of fruit are two servings for children ages two tosix and two to four servings after age six. One serving equals the following:

Milk and Other Dairy Products

“Calcium-rich foods” might be a better name for this group, because calcium is the crucial nutrient these foods bring to the table. (They also supply protein, but so do many other foods. Calcium, in contrast, is much less abundant in other foods.) Children who do not eat dairy products may need a supplement to get adequate calcium, which is essential for strong bones now and later in life; consult your child’s doctor. On the other hand, dairy products tend to be high in fat; some children do not tolerate them well, and some vegetarians shun them. So we have included in this group some nondairy sources of calcium.

If portions seem too large, serve partial portions, but try to make sure they add up to four servings a day for all children, starting at age two. The recommended daily servings of dairy are two servings for children ages two to six and two to three servings for children older than age six. One serving equals the following:

Servings from the dairy group are so important to children because they are good sources of calcium. Nondairy sources of calcium include calcium-fortified breakfast cereals, tofu, canned salmon mashed with edible bones, and cooked, chopped kale.

Just as “milk” could be considered the calcium group, “meat” could be regarded as the protein and iron group. Most U.S. children get more than enough protein, but many have trouble getting as much iron as recommended. Beef is the source of the most available form of iron. Recommended servings of protein are two servings a day—the equivalent of about three and a half ounces a day for children ages two and three and four to six ounces a day for children ages four to six. One ounce of protein equals the following:

bFats, Oils, and Sweets

This entry, at the tip of the Pyramid, is not really a food group. It just serves as a reminder that fats, oils, and sweets should be consumed “sparingly”—in small amounts and not very often—but not eliminated. Foods that fall into this category include mayonnaise, most salad dressings and fast-food sauces, as well as fried chips, deep-fried foods, candy, cookies, and doughnuts.