Start around 6 months, once your baby can hold their head up and take food from a spoon. Lead with iron-rich foods. Introduce one new food at a time and wait at least a day before the next. Breast milk or formula stays the main nutrition until 12 months.
That's the whole answer. Everything below is the detail that makes it workable at 5pm on a Tuesday with a baby who has opinions.
Here's the thing nobody tells you: the first month of solids is not really about food. It's about your baby learning that things go in the mouth, get moved around, and get swallowed. Most of dinner ends up on the floor. That is the process working correctly.
How do I know my baby is ready for solids?
The American Academy of Pediatrics recommends only breast milk for approximately 6 months after birth, then adding complementary foods. Readiness is about skills, not the calendar. The AAP asks four questions:
- Can they hold their head up?
- Do they open their mouth when food comes their way?
- Can they move food from a spoon into their throat?
- Are they big enough? Most babies double their birth weight by around 4 months.
If your baby is 6 months old and still flopping their head or pushing everything back out with their tongue, wait a week or two and try again. Nothing is behind schedule.
What should I feed my baby first?
There is no required order, and the old "rice cereal first" rule is gone.
Iron is the priority. The AAP specifically says to include foods that provide iron and zinc, such as baby food made with meat or iron-fortified cereals. Around 6 months, the iron stores your baby was born with are running down, and breast milk alone no longer covers what they need.
Good starting places:
- Iron and zinc: pureed or finely minced meat, iron-fortified infant cereal, mashed lentils or beans, well-mashed tofu
- Vegetables: sweet potato, avocado, peas, butternut squash
- Fruits: banana, pear, cooked and mashed apple
Pairing iron-rich plant foods with something high in vitamin C helps absorption — the CDC names citrus, broccoli, berries, tomatoes and sweet potatoes as good partners.
How much do I offer, and how often?
Start with 1–2 tablespoons once a day and build from there. Breast milk or formula remains the main source of nutrition until 12 months, so a rejected meal changes nothing nutritionally at this stage.
Do not push. Your role is to put food in front of them on a reasonable schedule. Theirs is to decide whether and how much to eat.
How long should I wait between new foods?
The AAP's food-allergy guidance is direct: give your baby one new food at a time, and wait at least a day before starting another. A day gives you a clean window to spot a reaction without stretching the introduction of a full diet across months.
Evidence note: The AAP's own consumer materials are not fully consistent here. Its allergen-introduction page says to wait at least a day; its older general "Starting Solid Foods" page still advises a new single-ingredient food "every 3 to 5 days." The longer interval is a holdover from an era when delaying allergens was standard advice. The current allergy-prevention guidance is the one to follow. If your pediatrician gives you a different interval for a specific reason, follow them.
When should I introduce peanut, egg and other allergens?
Early, not late. Delaying common allergens does not prevent allergy, and there is good evidence early introduction helps prevent it. The AAP groups babies by risk:
Higher-risk babies — those who have or have had severe, persistent eczema (the kind needing prescription creams often) and/or an immediate allergic reaction to a food, especially egg. For these babies, the AAP says peanut-containing products should be introduced as early as 4 to 6 months, after talking with your pediatrician first. Testing before introduction is often recommended for this group.
Babies with mild to moderate eczema: no testing needed. Introduce peanut products at around 6 months, after a conversation with your pediatrician.
Babies with no eczema and no food allergies: peanut and other allergens can go in alongside other foods, on your family's own schedule.
Notice what is not on that list: a family history of allergies. It is a common belief that a sibling's or parent's allergy is the trigger for special caution, and it is not the AAP's criterion. The criteria are severe persistent eczema and an existing food allergy. Mention family history to your pediatrician, absolutely — it is useful context — but it does not by itself put your baby in the high-risk group.
How to actually do it: never give whole peanuts or chunks of peanut butter — the AAP flags both as choking risks. Thin smooth peanut butter into a warm puree or mix it with breast milk or formula. Cook eggs well. Offer a small amount early in the day, at home, when you can watch your baby for a couple of hours.
Do I keep breastfeeding after starting solids?
Yes, for as long as it works for both of you. The AAP's 2022 policy recommends exclusive breastfeeding for approximately 6 months, then continued breastfeeding alongside complementary foods "as long as mutually desired by mother and child for 2 years or beyond" — consistent with the World Health Organization.
Read that as permission, not pressure. Two years is an upper bound the AAP is comfortable endorsing, not a target you are failing to hit. Formula feeding, combination feeding and weaning at 7 months are all fine ways to feed a baby. What matters is that your baby is fed and growing.
One number worth writing down: the AAP recommends 400 IU of vitamin D per day for any infant taking less than 28 ounces of formula daily — starting at hospital discharge and continuing throughout breastfeeding. Breast milk is low in vitamin D. This is the supplement most commonly forgotten, and it is easy to fix with a daily drop.
What foods should I avoid before 12 months?
Per the CDC:
- Honey — can cause infant botulism, a severe illness, in babies under 12 months
- Cow's milk as a drink — before 12 months it can put babies at risk for intestinal bleeding (cow's milk in cooking, and yogurt or cheese, are fine)
- Fruit or vegetable juice — none at all under 12 months
- Added sugars — none for infants and young children
- High-salt foods
- Unpasteurized drinks and foods
And the choking list, which matters more than parents expect: the AAP says to cut food for infants and young children into pieces no larger than one-half inch, and to keep whole grapes, nuts and seeds, popcorn, raw carrot sticks, hot dogs, chunks of meat or cheese, and thick spoonfuls of nut butter away from young children entirely. Round, firm foods can be offered only when chopped very small.
The bottom line
Starting solids is messier and lower-stakes than it feels. Offer iron-rich food, one new thing at a time with a day in between, allergens early rather than late, and vitamin D if you are breastfeeding. Your baby will figure out the rest.
Not sure what to introduce next? ParentingAI gives you personalized feeding guidance based on your baby's exact age. [Try it free.]
Sources
- AAP / HealthyChildren.org — When to Introduce Egg, Peanut Butter & Other Common Food Allergens to a Baby
- AAP / HealthyChildren.org — Peanut Allergy: What to Know About the Latest Prevention Guidelines
- AAP / HealthyChildren.org — Starting Solid Foods
- AAP — Policy Statement: Breastfeeding and the Use of Human Milk, Pediatrics 2022;150(1):e2022057988
- CDC — Foods and Drinks to Avoid or Limit (Infant and Toddler Nutrition)
- CDC — Iron (Infant and Toddler Nutrition)
- AAP / HealthyChildren.org — Choking Prevention for Babies & Children
Last medically reviewed: August 2026 Last updated: August 2026
For informational purposes only — not medical advice. This article does not replace guidance from your pediatrician, who knows your baby. Always consult your healthcare provider for medical questions about your child.
In an emergency, call 911. For a suspected poisoning or a swallowed substance, call Poison Control at 1-800-222-1222 (free, 24/7).