Stage 2 -Baby Food
(Food for 8 months old baby)

-If your 8-month-old baby is pouncing on your plate when you are eating, then it’s a sign that your baby is ready to eat something other than mother’s milk.
-Moreover, at this stage, the baby may require more energy as he/she has started to crawl and explore things around.
-It is not necessary that all 8 months old babies have teeth.
-Even if they have no teeth, their jaws are strong enough to tackle small chunks.
-continue breastfeeding as its still very important at this stage.
-Breastfeeding should be done for at least a year.
-You can replace amooth purees with mashed and well-cooked food.
-At this stage, your baby may be eating three meals a day and possibly enjoying a snack or two in between.
-Some babies in this age may be eating only one meal of solids, so don’t pressurise your baby to eat three solid food meals per day.
-The important thing here is to watch your baby’s hunger and try to begin setting a schedule for three meals a day.
-A food schedule may look something like this
(It may vary according to the time your baby gets up and according to their hunger):
Breakfast – 9 am
Mid Morning Snack – 11 am
Lunch – 1 pm
Afternoon Snack – 4 pm
Dinner – 7 pm to 9 pm
-In between these meals, breastfeed the baby as it is still the main source of energy and nutrition for your little one.
-When your baby is around 8 months and has a good pincer grib (able to hold between thumb and index finger) you may think about giving him finger foods.
-Always offer him finger food when the baby is sitting upright and never leave your baby unattended while serving finger foods.
-Finger food should be mashable with gums.
-Fruits like Apple, Banana, Papaya, and Chiku can be given as finger foods. Steamed vegetables like cauliflower, broccoli, sweet potato and pumpkins can be given.
-Tofu or paneer is made out of soy milk and cow’s milk respectively. They are protein-rich and are very good for developing babies. Tofu can be used for babies who have an allergy to panner because of being lactose intolerant.
-You can make sooji kheer and add a little bit of breast milk to it.
-Khichdi with vegetables, Ragi porridge, crushed roti with dal, mashed rice with apple, curd with rice, moong dal soup etc can be given during this stage.