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No, you cannot give your baby apple at night or in the evening. Give them during the day. The reason is that apple is not easy to digest and the baby’s digest system is not developed yet, so the baby can develop a reaction to it. If it is during the day, you can easily take care of it, but it may be difficult to monitor them at night. You can give them apple (in puree form) at the age of 7 months and slices of apple ( at 12 – 18 months) before 5pm.
A baby’s digestive system is just developing and as a parent, you should be conscious of what your little one eats. There’s an excitement that comes with giving your baby solid meals as you can’t wait to give your baby varieties of meals.
It has been recommended that babies should be given solid means from six months of age because they need the nutrients gotten from this solid food to compliment the ones gotten from either the breast milk or formula. Apples are known to be a great fruit to consume daily due to its many health benefits.
Apple is indeed good for the body and maybe one of your baby’s first meal since it is full of nutrients and also easy to prepare. Apples contain fibre which helps to maintain your little one’s bowel movement, prevents constipation and diarrhoea. Apples also contain essential vitamins that promote a healthy development of your baby’s lungs, liver and bone. It is key in the development of your baby’s immune system. It is important to understand when you can give your baby solid meals and also know the peculiarities around what your little one is eating to avoid putting your little one at risk of serious complications.
Can you give baby raw apples?
Yes, you can give a baby raw apples provided they are between the age of 18 to 24 months. Ensure you saw the raw apples in slices and not the whole fruit. Pay close attention to them when eating to monitor them and to avoid choking hazards.
Babies don’t understand that they need to take small bites gradually and eat slowly. Therefore, when giving your baby apples for the first time, ensure you give your baby a little mashed piece to avoid a choking hazard. Although most babies do not have allergic reactions to eating apples, it is important to monitor if your little one has any reaction to eating apples. Apples can be added to almost any baby food recipe you find online or in any recipe book. It can be mixed with your little one’s cereal, puree, yoghurt and many more.
How to give apples to babies
At 6 months of age, a baby cannot chew or swallow solid food properly. Different age range requires different preparation for serving apples to your little one. Below are some age range and how to give apples to them
- 6-9 months: Your baby is still developing at this age and might not be able to handle the apple peels. Therefore, the apple must be peeled and cut into halves or smaller pieces. Remove the seeds and stem. Place apple in a saucepan, add a little water and cook until it is tender. When the apple becomes tender, cool it for 3-5 minutes and serve it to your little one in small pieces. You can also mash it to make an apple sauce and add any other baby-friendly ingredient to spice it up.
- 9-12 months: At this age, you can still cook the apple till tender but your baby can now eat larger chunks of the tender apple.
- 12-18 months: Your baby can now chew apples with the peel since they have developed their eating skills. You should ensure that you cut the apple into paper-thin slices to prevent any choking hazards.
It is necessary to peel apples that will be served to your baby until your baby can handle eating apple peels.
Can you give raw apple juice to a baby?
It can be tricky for a parent to know the right time to give a baby juice since the breast milk and formula is in liquid form. Although an apple juice is in a liquid form, it is best to wait till your baby is 6 months old before introducing raw apple juice. Apple juice has lots of vitamins and fibre which your baby needs for a healthy development. It does not contain added preservatives or sugar since it will be freshly made. When your baby is 6 months old and can now take raw apple juice, ensure to make the apple thoroughly clean before juicing it. It is also important that your baby does not take more than 4 ounces per day.
How to avoid apple choking hazard
Parents need to be mindful of giving their baby any food that can cause a choking hazard. It is also important to know how to avoid an apple choking hazard for your little one. Below are a few ways to avoid apple choking hazards.
- When preventing your baby from choking on food, you have to be deliberate on how you modify the food to be tender for your little one to swallow with ease. Ensure you cut or mash apple into smaller bits before cooking till tender for babies less than 9 months.
- Although some food can be modified to avoid choking hazard, it is best to stay with your little one during mealtime to prevent or minimize any occurrence of choking hazard. Ensure you strictly monitor your baby while eating so you can quickly respond if a choking hazard occurs
- Avoid giving babies less than 12 months of age apple peels to eat. You should peel the skin of the apple away before giving your baby since his or her eating skills haven’t been developed.
- Ensure your baby is seated in an upright position while eating to avoid a choking hazard. Also, avoid your baby humming or playing around while eating an apple
Can you give a baby apple at night?
No, you cannot give a baby apple at night. It is better to give them during the day. An apple is good for the body due to its many benefits and it can be one of your baby’s first solid meals. Your baby is just developing the skills of eating and might choke on any large chunk of food if not supervised. You can give your baby an apple to eat at any time of the day, even at night if all precautions against choking hazards are done.
The above guidelines would help you know how to give your baby an apple to eat based on age range and also how to avoid your baby from having an apple choking hazard. Ensure you strictly monitor your baby during mealtime to prevent an occurrence of an apple choking hazard.
