Every parent strives to provide a healthy, nourishing diet to their infants. Opting for nutritious food choices like butter for babies may provide sufficient calories and keep them interested in food. Also, babies need abundant food sources and sufficient nourishment to meet their daily energy requirements and support their growth and developmental processes. If your baby has started solid foods, you may plan to introduce some delicious yet power-packed foods like almond or peanut butter in their weaning diet. Keep reading to understand the safety and benefits of introducing butter for babies.
Butter Power For Your Baby
Perhaps you are a vegan family, or you have dairy intolerance running in your family, are worried that your baby might also have inherited it? For either reason, you are considering feeding your baby a mashed banana or some soaked toast with some nut butter for a healthy punch. But wait; is it really good for your baby? Yes, it is! But you do have to keep few things in mind, such as: The most popular non-dairy butters are peanut and almond butter, so let’s see how they can benefit your baby.
Is “Peanut” Butter Good For Babies?
Peanut butter is a very popular nut butter that has a dense, creamy texture. You may love it on your toast as a breakfast, but when it comes to giving it to your baby, there’s a lot of controversy involved.
Some experts believe that it is best to give up idea of introducing peanut butter to baby, while others believe it is safe to introduce it to them at an early age itself (1). Peanut allergies are affecting more and more people, and there is a chance that your baby could be affected by the allergy too. In such a scenario, introducing your already vulnerable baby to a spoonful of peanut butter could turn out to be potentially dangerous. As the parent, you should take the best decision here.
Is Almond Butter Safe For Babies?
Almond butter has a texture and taste that is quite different from that of peanut butter. It is not as thick as peanut butter, and may even contain certain bits of almonds in it.
While almond butter is quite nutritious and does have many health benefits associated with its use, the chunky version may present a choking hazard to smaller babies who are just learning to consume solid food (2). Almond butter is a good source of protein and fats, both of which are needed by your baby, but is safe for consumption only if you or your spouse don’t have a history of almond allergies, and if the butter is smooth. In case you are not really aware of your baby’s sensitivity to particular nuts, offering him almond butter could trigger off allergic reactions, which may turn out to be dangerous. You are therefore advised to be very careful while introducing almond butter during this age.
When To Introduce These Butters To Your Baby?
It is important to first check if you have any history of peanut allergies yourself, or running somewhere in your or your spouse’s family.
Since these butters are sticky, and for many small infants, it may turn out to be a choking hazard, it is recommended that you introduce it to your child only after he crosses 18 months of age. Make sure you use good quality peanut butter from a reputed brand for your child. Keep track of your baby’s bowel movements after you’ve introduced peanut butter to the baby for the first time, and if you do find something unusual (loose stools, diarrhea, etc.), get him to your general practitioner.
We hope this article gave you a clear picture about how to proceed with introducing butter for babies. Do you have any particular recipes for foods that use nut butters and work out wonderfully for children? Do share them in the comments box below.
