Question
Why is introducing a variety of flavours important?
Answer
By introducing your baby to a wide variety of flavours early on,
you will help make your baby more receptive to new tastes as they
get older. It can also help them to become confident, happy eaters.
Babies and toddlers who experience a wide variety of flavours are
less likely to become fussy eaters, and eating a varied diet
increases the chances that your child is getting everything they
need nutritionally.
Handy tips for introducing your baby to new
flavours:
- Offering your baby food in a variety of colours can help to
encourage your baby to get used to lots of flavours. Once you have
started to introduce texture, you may also like to experiment with
different shapes, for example little pasta stars. If food is
interesting to look at, your baby may be more likely to want to
explore the taste
- It is important to keep offering a food too, even if it is
initially rejected. Some foods may need to be offered on up to
eight occasions before they are accepted by your baby
- In the meantime, try not to react or make a fuss if your baby
rejects a particular food
Moving on to more complex flavours
From about 10 months, you can start to introduce increasingly
complex flavours to your baby's diet. Use interesting combinations
of ingredients to bring a variety of new tastes to their palate.
You may want to offer your baby's food on a plate too, so they can
learn to recognise what is on offer.
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