Baby Food

Question: Should i make my own babyfood?

(Posted by: lynda8716 on 2010-06-01 08:01:51)

My doctor didn't advise it. I worry about pesticides. Is it a lot of work to make it? What are the pros and cons? Thanks.

Posted by: Hayden's Mommy on 2010-06-01, 08:05:15

I thought about doing the same thing. I am an attachment parent and i wanted to do my own all organic, locally grown baby food. let me tell ya, it isn't worth it!!! the cost of fruits and veggies is significantly higher and it is a pain in the butt!! i use all organic baby food like Earth's Best and Happy Baby. i love it and it has all the same advantages of making your own.

Posted by: Amily C on 2010-06-01, 08:05:58

Its always good to make your own babyfood. Its inexpensive and better than ready made food. The only con here is its a little time consuming otherwise all pros.

Posted by: sarah lane on 2010-06-01, 08:08:27

We made our own baby food for our two daughters and plan on doing the same for our next baby, as well. It's inexpensive and fresh. Those jars of baby food contain preservatives and sit on grocery store shelves for months at a time. All you need is a good processor and you're good to go! Good luck.

Posted by: catrin on 2010-06-01, 08:13:09

Best way to do it. If you're worried about pesticides you're actually more likely to get it in manufactured baby foods. They take all the crap, mash it up, add some chemicals to keep it fresh, add some milk and safe for baby! Only you can control what goes into your baby's mouth. What you could do is buy mis-shaphen food, which is a lot less likely to have chemicals in as most chemicals are added to food to keep them looking right, you could also grow your own in your garden or a small undisturbed piece of land, its not illegal, so hey! Pros - you know whats going into your baby's mouth and its cheaper. You know that you haven't given baby any chemicals to help keep the food dry/ fresh. Cons - More time consuming. Harder to store on the go. Good luck in whatever you decide! :)

Posted by: thehonestlady on 2010-06-01, 08:13:28

Sure you can make your own baby food and use organic products if you like, but you will be making it constantly because you can't keep left-overs in the fridge. You will have to cook, or boil everything before you puree it, and you may loose a lot of the vitamins in the food when you do cook it, so you would want to buy a cookbook specifically written to address all those issues. Another concern is that Bacteria can grow very quickly so you will have to make it fresh daily. When baby is hungry....BABY IS HUNGRY, so you will have to do a lot of planning ahead, and be prepared for a lot of extra work. You won't be able to just pack your food for a visit to Grandma's house or anywhere for that matter because you will have to make sure that it can not spoil and keep it at the correct temperature with carrying a cooler around with you everywhere. (Not very portable, convenient, and again the risk of bacteria) Remember that Gerber foods have been around for a VERY long time and are completely safe. Many companies, like Gerber, also offer "organic " baby food as well, so if you are wanting organic baby food, it is already out there in your local market. Take care :)

Posted by: K on 2010-06-01, 08:24:49

No offense, but your doctor's a moron. Ask 'em next time how a fresh banana is WORSE for your nutritional health than banana mush that will stay "good " in a jar for two years. Ask for a referral to a nutritionist if you're really worried about it. (Traditional docs know almost NOTHING about nutrition, just pathologies. Isn't that weird?) This is a no-brainer. Baby food is totally easy to make and costs about 1/ 4 of what that jarred crap costs. I have two kids and neither of them ever got formula or processed baby food. (And you can buy a new kitchen appliance (fridge, oven) with the money you save from doing that, believe me!) Your first stop can be everyone's favorite: Bananas! Cut one banana in half. Peel that half. Place it on a plate. Mash the living bejesus out of it with a fork. Ta-da! Babyfood! Now wasn't that terribly difficult? Most of the rest of it is just as cumbersome. Try the book "First Meals " by Annabel Karmel for some fancier stuff. And a food mill was a good investment; once you try all the various ingredients and know your kid isn't allergic to any of them, you can introduce them to some fancier food. Like throwing a couple of ravioli squares into the mill with a spoonful of sauce. The food mill grinds it up for you. Baby eats what you eat, you just scoop a little off your plate...and seriously, have you ever TRIED eating processed baby food? Ew! For a special treat, try chowing down on Gerber's "Meat Sticks. " That'll put you on a diet real fast! Some babies also get all hung up on the texture of the super-smooth processed food and then they have a fit and don't want table food because it isn't the consistency of whipped cream. They also freak at the strong tastes as compared to pablum, so they try to live on just one thing. Ever met those kids who will eat nothing but hot dogs, or chicken nuggets? Processed food at its finest. The only cons to it are just a little time that you spend doing it. I'd do it again in a heartbeat, I strongly recommend it. BTW, you can make things in big batches and then freeze it in ice cube trays. One cube is about one ounce. The American Academy of Pediatrics recommends that your baby have no solids before the age of six months (it raises the risk of diabetes), and that you try one food at a time (wait several days before introducing a new one) to make sure your baby doesn't have any allergies. I think meat and dairy have to wait until later, like eight months to a year, I don't recall, exactly. Google the topic, you'll find tons of stuff.

Posted by: Jen on 2010-06-01, 08:25:06

Baby food is much more expensive than making your own. I guess unless you're buying the expensive organic fresh fruits and vegetables... but even then it's cheaper than buying organic baby food... All baby food brands contain non-nutritional fillers. Chemicals and additives to save the company money. They also add a lot of unnecessary sugar and even salt to some foods. You have a lot more options when you make your own baby food. I even made my own rice cereal. All you need is a 10$ coffee grinder from wal mart and a bag of rice. I got a 10$ hand blender and never had problems with either. The only draw back to making it is the time and effort it takes. Which isn't a lot, in reality. You take 1 day and make up enough food for a week or two, blend it and freeze it in ice cube trays and put them in baggies labeled with the date. I always went crazy and spent all day and made up almost a month supply.

Posted by: CD on 2010-06-01, 09:03:05

Also by making your own baby food, you have less waste and your baby may have banana, apples and pear all in the same day because you give him small ice cubes or baby cubes instead of opening a jar that you have to finish. A baby can not finish a whole jar in one seating especially at the beginning. I make baby food only twice a month and freeze it in baby cubes and ice cube trays. I did buy some jars for non seasonal fruits like peaches and my daughter prefers by far home made food. Also my daughter does not gag when their is some little chunks because she is used to it.

Posted by: Boogers on 2010-06-01, 09:50:27

We actually grow our own vegetables and use that. i buy a few things, mostly fruit from the organic section of the store and make the food myself. i put them in ice cube trays to freeze makes a good portion size. cuts out a lot of the packaging waste from buying it and its really easy. we do buy the jars for when we travel though

Posted by: Valerie S on 2010-06-01, 10:26:32

I plan on making my own. I've done some research and it is relatively inexpensive. Basically you just steam your vegetable, then add some breast milk or formula and puree it. Then you can use ice cube trays to make individual servings--just freeze and place the cubes in a baggy in the freezer and just pull what you need.