A 8- To 12-month-old Video

An eight to twelve month old is still transitioning from formula or breast milk to solid food. Protein is often added to the diet at this age. Learn more about the diet of an eight to twelve month old baby in this parenting video.

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Add lots of variety for food choices
Offer grains & biscuits at this age
Protein can be added to the diet
Keep food choices soft & mushy

About this Author

David Hill is Adjunct Assistant Professor of Pediatrics at University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. He also works as the vice-president of Cape Fear Pediatrics, and is a fellow of the American Academy of Pediatrics. David attended Rice University and Texas Medical School of Houston. He writes a monthly column for the Wilmington Parent, as well as, grant regular interviews with television channel WWAY regarding health topics. Sharing his extensive knowledge in a way that is accessible, and maintains healthy lifestyles is what Dr. Hill strives to achieve.

DR. DAVID HILL: Today, we're going to talk about what to feed your eight to 12-month old infant. It's important to remember that breast milk are an appropriate iron fortified formula is still an important part of your baby's diet at this point. She'll probably want three or four feeds a day of six to eight ounces at a time. However, she's also transitioning more and more to solid foods. What's new at this age is protein. She's going to start taking proteins from dried beans or from pureed meats. You want to stay away from hotdogs or other meats that require chewing. Everything at this point still needs to be mushy. There's also a big role for fruits and vegetables. Does it matter how much fruit or how much vegetable? Not really. As far as nutritionists and doctors are concern, it's all the same. However, the more variety you offer at this age, the more variety they're likely to enjoy later in life. Remember to keep things roughly at pureed texture. They'll probably want about two to four tablespoons, two to four times a day. Grains are important and something new you can do now is offer biter biscuits or puffs or other grains that sort of melt in the mouth and it turn quickly into mush. It's a messy process but your child is going to love picking these things up and putting them in her own mouth. The fluids that she gets is important as well. In addition to breast milk or formula, you're going to want to supply water occasionally, especially if it's hot, and even a little bit of juice. But you don't want to over do the juice. Four ounces a day should be fine and you want to stick with the 100% pure fruit juice if you can. We think that's a little healthier. How they get what they drink is also important. Babies at this age are beginning to experiment with using a cup and they should become comfortable using a sippy cup with big handles and a spout on it. You don't want a baby now taking a bottle or cup to bed unless there's only water in it. These babies are developing teeth, and leaving that sugar on the teeth all night long can lead very quickly to severe tooth decay. To review, between eight to 12 months, your baby is still going to need formula or breast milk as opposed to whole milk for much of her nutrition. She's going to explore forms of carbohydrates that melt in her mouth, things like puffs or biter biscuits. She's going to start adding protein, including dried beans or low-fat meats that are pureed in texture. She's going to have plenty of fruits and vegetables, although it doesn't matter that much whether they're fruits or vegetables. And she's going to start taking some of her fluids from a sippy cup, but no cups or bottles go to bed unless the only thing in them is water. And that is what to feed your eight to 12-month old infant.

Healthy Food Choices for a 8- to 12-Month-Old Video

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