A lot of the time, early baby food is a soft, pureed version of whatever fruits and vegetables the rest of the family is eating, but just like how you might pick up something prepared – or order takeout – for yourself, once in a while, it can be nice to pick up jarred, prepared baby food from the store that’s ready to serve without much, or any, work. Unlike adult on-the-go foods, though, prepared baby foods are often coded into “stages” that correspond roughly with the Baby‘s age and experience with food.
When do babies start eating prepared baby food from a jar?
Here’s more information about the different types of prepared baby food you can feed your little one.
Stage 1:
The simplest form of baby food is designed for babies transitioning away from breastfeeding. Inside the average jar, you’ll find a single ingredient food, smoothly pureed. A few Stage 1 staples include bananas, sweet potatoes, and green beans. Stage 1 is the easiest for babies to handle.
Stage 2:
After mastering the softer foods that correspond with of Stage 1 foods, Baby should be ready to start mixing and matching food groups. Stage 2 baby food offers combinations such as veggie medleys and two to three ingredient fruit salads. The other distinction here is that Stage 2 baby food isn’t pureed, it’s strained. This gentle escalation in food texture will allow Baby to become familiar with variations in texture, and begin to experiment with chewing.
Stage 3:
Once Baby has passed the average teething age, it’s time to adjust their diet accordingly. Stage 3 baby food takes infant edibles to the next level by combining strained foods and small chunks of solids. Jars of Stage 3 tend to be slightly larger than earlier stages to compliment the average baby’s increased appetite, and you’ll also notice several options in the baby food aisle that contain meat ingredients.
