The calorie count in Gerber Baby foods can vary widely depending on your baby's eating stage and the types of food eaten. Gerber foods generally divide into three stages. There are first foods, for introducing baby to solids; second foods, which introduce combination foods; and third foods, which are thicker and pureed, often with solid chunks intended to help baby to learn chewing.
Dry Cereals and Mixed Fruits
At around 4 to 6 months, many parents begin to introduce dry cereals such as barley, which has 15 calories per jar, oatmeal with 16 calories, and rice cereal at 15 calories per jar. Gerber makes several types of dry mixed and fruit cereals, where rice and oatmeal are mixed with banana, apple and mixed fruits. The calorie count for these mixed cereals usually ranges from 15 to 17 calories.
First Foods
When your baby is ready to eat something beyond cereal, Gerber provides a line of pureed fruits and vegetables. The calorie count for fruit choices ranges from 30 calories for peaches, to 40 calories for applesauce and pears, and 70 calories for bananas and prunes. The vegetable choices, because they are just vegetables and water, do not contain as many calories as the fruits. Vegetables include carrots, squash and green beans at 25 calories each, peas and potatoes with 35 calories, and sweet potatoes at 45 calories.
Second Foods
Once your baby is ready for complex foods, Gerber's second food choices combine a wide variety of fruits, vegetables and cereals, as well as introducing meats and yogurt. Second foods also include several dinners with added DHA and antioxidants.
With dozens of combinations now available to your baby, the calorie counts can range all over the map. Jarred cereals range from oatmeal cereal with pears and cinnamon having 60 calories apiece, to rice cereal with applesauce, and mixed cereal with applesauce and bananas at 100 calories each. Fruits range from applesauce and pear pineapple, containing 60 calories, to prunes with apples at 90 calories, and banana orange medley with 110 calories.
Vegetables range from carrots and green beans having 35 calories apiece, to creamed corn at 70 calories, and sweet potatoes with 80 calories. Dinners range from turkey rice and vegetable bacon at 60 calories, to chicken noodle and macaroni and cheese with 80 calories. Desserts range from cherry vanilla pudding containing 80 calories to vanilla custard pudding at 110 calories.
Third Foods
Gerber's third foods continue to introduce more complex foods to your baby, preparing her for foods she will need to chew. The third food line includes fruits, vegetables, dinners, cereals and smoothies, often with chunks of solid food mixed with the pureed material. Because of this, the calorie counts will be significantly higher than in the previous two lines.
Third food jarred foods range from oatmeal cereal with apples and cinnamon having 110 calories, to mixed cereal with applesauce and bananas at 130 calories. Fruits range from applesauce with 90 calories to banana strawberry with 160. Vegetables range from carrots and squash with 60 calories apiece, to sweet potatoes packing 100 calories. Dinners can get as high as spaghetti in tomato sauce with beef at 140 calories. All desserts have a number of calories, from blueberry buckle at 120, to vanilla custard pudding having 160 calories.
Tips
Always check the side of the Gerber jar for nutrient information. In general, the vegetable dishes will have fewer calories, while the dinners and desserts in the later stages will have considerably more.
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