Updated: 14th Mar, 2018
Completing the 6 months is one of the biggest milestones in baby’s first year because its time to start semi-solid/ solid foods for the baby after 6 months of exclusive breastfeeding (in some cases, formula feeding). Also, water is introduced to the babies only after the completion of 6 months.
As your baby has completed his six months, it’s a time to introduce weaning foods along with breast milk or formula based milk.
Don’t stop breastfeeding your baby even after starting complete solid food. Breast milk or formula based milk should be the major part of a 6 months baby diet.
Your baby will start showing the signs that he is ready for solid foods. Weaning foods mean first food for baby. Your baby’s first food must be home cooked, soft, pureed or mashed and easy to digest.
How to know your baby is ready for solid foods
- Your baby is able to sit on a chair with back support.
- Baby’s head & neck are stable.
- Baby can open and close the mouth around a spoon.
- Baby is ready to chew.
- He is curious and tries to grab & put food in his mouth.
- Baby is still hungry after breastfeeding/formula feeding & shows interest in food.
Click Here to Know the Items You Need to Start Solid Foods To Your Baby
Precautions while you are introducing first solid food to baby
- Start with fruit pureed, as it’s easy to digest.
- Always follow 3 days-wait-rule.
- That means you must keep a gap of 3 days between two new foods.
- This is the best way to check food allergies in babies.
- Stop feeding that particular food in case of food allergy.
- Always feed solid food to your baby when he is sitting on a chair or in your lap. Don’t feed solid when your baby is lying on his back.
- Don’t add breastmilk or formula milk during cooking, it should not be heated directly on the flame. Add breast milk or formula milk once the food is ready to eat for your baby.
- Baby food must be soft, properly cooked and easy to chew.
- Start with a very small quantity and slowly increase the portion.
- Weaning food must be a single grain food.
- Always feed freshly cooked food to your baby.
- Do not add salt, sugar, honey to your baby’s food.
- Introduce new food when a baby is at home only.
- Introducing solid foods can cause constipation in few babies.
- You should be careful about certain foods while giving to your baby before one year.
- Don’t feed your baby forcefully. His solid intakes will increase gradually.
3-Days-Rule for Weaning Food
Recommended is to introduce the new food in breakfast or Lunch. Avoid giving it in a dinner or bedtime. It will help you to check food allergy or discomfort your baby has after having a particular food.
Foods Which You Can Introduce to Your 6 Months Old Baby
- Breast milk or formula milk
- Mashed banana
- Stewed apple
- Well steamed and pureed vegetables like carrots, sweet potato, pumpkin , french beans
- Pulse soup (moong dal ka pani)
- Rice Water (Chawal ka pani)
- Homemade single-grain cereals like rice, barley, oats mixed with breastmilk or formula milk
- Steamed and pureed fruits like pear, avocado, peach, chikoo.
- You can try the homemade vegetable soup for your baby.
Weekly sample food chart for your 6 months baby
#1 Week 1
You need to follow three days rule strictly in the first week. As you are just introducing new foods along with breast milk or formula milk. So start with a very small quantity. Initially, it’s a complimentary food so feed your baby enough amount of breastmilk or formula milk.
You can get Nestle Nan Pro 1 for upto 6 month babies.
#2 Week 2
You have already tested two semi-solid foods for your baby. In the second week, you are going to introduce two new foods to your infant. Let’s explore two new foods for this week.
By the end of 2nd week, your infant has been introduced four new baby foods.
Mom Pro Tip: Try to fix baby activity time, sleep time and meal time. Once your baby adopted the schedule, your job will be easy to do.
#3 Week 3
By the end of 3rd week, your baby has been introduced 6 new foods. It is possible that your baby doesn’t like certain puree or soup. Don’t feed your baby forcefully. Be patient.
#4 Week 4
Continue giving mashed/pureed foods to your baby in the 4th week also.
By the end of 4th week, your baby has been introduced to at least 8 new foods. You can feed food at any time of the day, based on your baby’s schedule.
If your baby likes to have solid in dinner time, then you can feed solid food in the dinner as well.
Click Here to Know the Items You Need to Start Solid Foods To Your Baby.
Food Allergies
If your baby has food allergy after having any particular food then stop feeding that food immediately. Consult pediatric and follow instructions.
Common symptoms of food allergies are
- Running nose
- Rashes
- Stomach pain
- Baby discomfort
- Cranky baby
- Diarrhea
- Vomiting
Conclusion
This is the just sample food chart based on my personal experience. You can alter the food chart according to your baby’s preferences. Like if your baby like mashed apple than mashed pear then feed him a mashed apple. The purpose of this food chart is to guide you about food schedule and quantity.
Also, Read the Food Chart for 7 to 9 Months Baby
Leave a comment if you have any query or doubt related to food chart.
Very help ful
Thank you Sayama… How old your baby is? Let me know if you have any other query.
Nice
Thank you! The charts are amazing, I just got some inspiration.
My little one is a little over 6 months and he already dried banana and carrot puree. So far, he liked both of it. Also, we slowly introduced HiPP’s follow-on milk, because I have to get back to work in a few weeks. It was an easy transition, but the last breastfeeding session comes closer and I get a little bit sentimental. He will be fine on the follow-on milk it’s fortified with vitamins and iron. If you’re interested you can find everything around nutrition and organic infant products on myorganicformula.com.
Do you have some tips on what to introduce next to my little one?
All the best,
Jaya
Very nice such a helpful
When do we introduce khichri( rice and dal mixed) to the babies and cerelac
Hello Khushboo,
How old your baby is?
Usually after six months onwards, you can start giving it to your baby. but start with a very small portion. When your baby completed his first 6 months, you can start with fruit puree or steam and mashed vegetables first.. After that, start with khichdi and cereals.
Thank you, good… It was helpful mgs
For 1st new born baby mom’s
Very useful and easy to understand… Thank u so much…
Thank you Pratiksha, I am glad that you found content useful.
Thanks!
it’s very useful information which can play an important role in babies growth.
I started feeding my baby cerelac (by doctor advise )when he was 5 months old because my breast milk was not sufficient for him at first he was easy to feed.
3 times a day we feed him but later on he doesn’t take it properly and whenever we feed him he had nausea tendency and sometimes he vomit so do I need to stop him feed or what shall I do he doesnt like feeding bottle /formula milk at all he will be 6 months on 27 august plis I need your help
Hello,
As your baby is 6 months old now, you can start offering fruits puree, moong dal soup, different types of cereal, stewed apple, ragi. Sometimes it happen that you may be feeding much quantity more then in that case, vomit and nausea can happen. Don’t force feed/ overfeed a baby. Do tummy time with him. Gently massage his body with oil. Let baby does leg cycling exercise daily.
Its okay if baby doesnt like formula milk, now breastfeed in between. Offer more variety of foods.
Hi neha, can you plz tell me how to make the apple stew and fruits/ veggie steamed purée
Here is the link to know the procedure of stewed apple (point 1 ) and fruit/vegetable puree ( point 6) in this article
https://www.beinghappymom.com/first-solid-food-baby/
Please have a look and let me know if you have any doubt.
Thanks very useful chart
Hi Neha, thank you for the wonderful article, I have a question , my baby just entered her 7th month, can I feed cooked and mashed rice with little water sips in between?
ThankYes, you can feed the rice to your baby. You can consider the food chart of https://www.beinghappymom.com/baby-food-chart-indian-months-plan/
V helpful..thank you for this chart..i am about to follow it!
Hi Neha.. thanks for above guidelines.
But I have one query I’m having low milk supply so I’m giving BM wid FM combination. So when can I follow this chart. After completing 6 months or from 6th month?? Would it be ok if I breastfeed 2-3 in 6th month along wid other food???
Hello Shwetal,
You can start following 6 months food chart after the completion of 6 months. Don’t stop breastfeeding your baby even after starting complete solid food. Breast milk or formula based milk should be the major part of a 6 months baby diet.
Hi neha mam,
Your food chart is really helpful to me.
My daughter will be of 6 months on 20 nov., so along with food, how many times n quantity i can give her water?
Hello Shaily,
Many congratulations on the completion of 6 months of your baby. Initially, just offer 2-3 spoons of water in one go, offer her after every meal and snack. If you think, she needs more water then offer it after 1-2 hours. Like in India, its winters so don’t need much water. As she will grow then you can give her water in sipper to play and drink by herself.
Hello mam… My daughter is 6 month one week old.. my mother in law forcely introduce her chhena.. nd rice .. whole night Shee pooped .. how I cured my daughter.. pls help
Hello Chitra,
I can understand your concern well. Poop thing happened because cheena is too heavy for the little one. when we wean our babies from exclusive milk to solid food then we start with easy to digest, light foods like fruits puree, vegetable puree, dal pani, cereals etc.
You can give her banana, curd with rice, curd, pomegranate juice, ORS solution… you can read more about home remedies here.. https://www.beinghappymom.com/loose-motion-home-remedies-babies/
Hi neha
On 12 Dec my baby completed six month ,now what we start,and we give him Naan.10 days back we start with cereals. Help us what can we give other things to baby.
I have described all the points in this article. Please read it thoroughly.
It’s so helpful but I have a problem mam pls tell me ..dophr me I follow that chart but night me bhi mera baby every 1 hr. Jagta h phr use thoda milk deti hu or bht time lg jati h sulane me kya Kru bar bar jagta h vo har 1 hr me or phr sone me b 1 hr le leta h is trh na uski nind puri Hoti h na meri pls muje btaue m kya Kru pls reply me pls.
how old your bbay is?
Thank you neha, my son is now 5. it is very good chart to start food and very useful to me.
I am glad that you found it helpful
Hi, my baby doesnt like fruit purees or juice. What shall i do? Am giving her cerelac/ragi alternate month for breakfast and khichdi with vegetable for lunch. And 4 times FM.
How old your baby is?
Its okay if he doesnt like purees. You can give stewed apple or mashed banana.
Hi Neha.. my baby is 5and half month. I wish to start with solid food. Gave her kheer 5 to 6 spoons. Can you help me how many times to give cerelac and how to start with solid food. Specially before bed time i want to give her something so that she sleep for long hours as she gets up wvery 2 hours for feed. Thank you
Nidhi.
Hi..my daughter is 5 yrs old n is underweight since a baby..she is a picky eater..
Can u please help me with a food chart for her?
I’m giving food to my 6+month baby but I want to know the quantity after two weeks pl can I add salt to dal water?
So helpful thanks for sharing
thanks
Very useful. Will love to try it as my baby will be if 6 months in few weeks.
Very helpful… quantity is mentioned only for 1 week… how much sud we give in rest weeks. As mentioned no sugar n salt so wat is the reason behind it and wen sud we start giving sugar n salt.
Is it ok to feed a 10 month old baby watermelon or muskmelon?
Yes, you can start giving it but in limited quantity.