After the completion of 6 months, your baby is now ready to start solids! Introducing solids to babies is yet another milestone and parents begin to look for a “6 month food chart” to follow. Most parents have the following questions when it comes to feeding:
- What should be a 6 month old feeding schedule?
- What food to give to a six month old?
- What is a good Indian food chart for a six month old baby?
- When to give food? How much to give?
- Can I give my baby this food? Will that food cause allergy?
While 6 months is the right time to start weaning don’t stop breastfeeding your baby even after starting solids. Breast milk should be the major part of a 6 months baby diet and this should continue until 1 year of age. Weaning foods refer to the first food for babies. Babies first food must be home cooked, soft and easy to digest. You can start with fruits and steamed fruits and then progress to grains.
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How to know if your baby is ready for solids
- Your baby is able to sit on a high chair.
- Baby’s neck is stable and baby shows interest in food.
- Baby can comfortably open and close the mouth.
Precautions to keep in mind when staring with solids
1. Start with diluted purees and then gradually increase the consistency.
2. Always follow 3-day wait rule to look out for allergies, rashes or uneasiness in babies.
3. Always keep a gap of 3 days between two new food variants to rule out the chances of food allergies.
4. Never feed solid food when the baby is lying on his back or sides. Make sure the baby food is soft, without any lumps and ready to eat.
5. Start with easy to digest fruits, steamed vegetables, and then grains. Don’t mix any two fruits together. First get baby accustomed to all the food items individually and then begin combinations.
6. Don’t add salt or sugar to the baby’s food till one year.
7. Don’t add honey to your baby’s food until one year.
8. Always feed freshly cooked home food to your baby.
9. Don’t feed your baby forcefully. Don’t worry if he is eating less, his solid intakes will increase gradually.
10. Introducing solids can cause constipation, loose motion and some kind of tummy upset in babies. As the diet changes, babies digestive system is still learning to make feeding a pleasant journey.
What is the 3 Days Rule?
The 3 Days Rule means that you should introduce a new food slowly over 3 days and keep an eye out for any signs of allergies. You can also try to avoid giving new foods during dinner initially. Always give baby food only for breakfast and lunch, as this will help you to detect any discomfort or allergies in your baby.
| Day | Food Quantity | Time |
| Day 1 | 1 Tablespoon | Lunch |
| Day 2 | 2 Tablespoon | Lunch and Breakfast |
| Day 3 | 3 Tablespoon | Lunch and Breakfast |
Food Chart For 6 Month Baby – 1st Week
Day 1: Start with a single spoon of apple puree.
Day 2: Gradually increase the apple puree to 2 tablespoons and feed the baby twice a day. At morning and evening.
Day 3: You can gradually increase it to 3 tablespoons.
Day 4: Introduce a new vegetable like Pumpkin Puree. Start with 1 tablespoon a day. You can give apple puree in the morning and Pumpkin puree in the evening.
Day 5: Gradually increase to 2 tablespoons of Pumpkin Puree a day. You can continue with apple puree at morning.
Day 6: Increase to 3 tablespoons of Pumpkin Puree a day and you can continue with apple puree in the morning.
Day 7: Pumpkin Puree at morning and apple puree in the morning.
Food Chart For 6 Month Baby – 2nd Week
Now your baby would have become comfortable with tastes and textures other than breastmilk, you can start giving solids twice a day. The meal timings can be modified as per your convenience, a sample is given below.
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10 AM 4 PM Apple Puree Carrot Puree Sweet Potato Puree Apple Puree Pumpkin Puree Carrot Puree Banana Puree Pumpkin Puree Bottle Groud Puree Sweet potato Puree Papaya Puree Carrot Puree Mango Puree Bottle Groud Puree
Food Chart For 6 Month Baby – 3rd Week
You can now slowly start giving two solid meals.
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10 AM 1 PM 6 PM Apple Puree Sweet potato puree Potato Puree Pumpkin Puree Moong Dal Water Sabudand Porridge Banana Puree Pumpkin Soup Bajra porridge Bottlegourd Puree Banana Puree Green Moong Dal porridge Papaya Puree Mashed Pear Oats Porridge Green Peas Puree Mango Puree Wheat Dalia Porridge Sooji Porridge Chikoo Puree Carrot and Potato Puree
Food Chart For 6 Month Baby – 4th Week
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10 AM 1 PM 6 PM Green Moong dal porridge Sweet Potato puree Papaya puree Apple Puree Pumpkin Puree Sago Porridge Chikoo Puree Rice Porridge Bottlegourd and Potato Puree Pumpkin Puree Banana Puree Green Moong Dal Porridge Bottlegourd Puree Dal Ka Pani Sago Porridge Carrot and Potato Puree Bottlegourd Puree Wheat Dalia Porridge Papaya Puree Sweet potato Puree Suji Porridge
While following these food charts you can also try to follow the following routine, along with food suggestions.
Sample 6 month Baby Timetable or Routine
| Time/Day | Monday | Tuesday | Wednesday | Thursday | Friday | Saturday | Sunday |
| 07 AM | Breastmilk | Breastmilk | Breastmilk | Breastmilk | Breastmilk | Breastmilk | Breastmilk |
| 09 AM | Apple Puree | Banana Puree | Papaya Puree | Chikoo Puree | Mango Puree | Carrot Puree | Pumpkin Puree |
| 10 AM | Breastmilk | Breastmilk | Breastmilk | Breastmilk | Breastmilk | Breastmilk | Breastmilk |
| 10:30AM | Nap time | Nap time | Nap time | Nap time | Nap time | Nap time | Nap time |
| 1 PM | Mashed Pear | Dal Ka Pani | Peas Puree | Pumpkin Puree | Bottlegourd Puree | Papaya Puree | Dal Ka Pani |
| 3:PM | Breastmilk | Breastmilk | Breastmilk | Breastmilk | Breastmilk | Breastmilk | Breastmilk |
| 3:30PM | Nap time | Nap time | Nap time | Nap time | Nap time | Nap time | Nap time |
| 5PM | Sago Porridge | Bottlegourd and Potato Puree | Green Moong Dal Porridge | Wheat Dalia Porridge | Suji Porridge | Sweet potato Puree | Rice Porridge |
| 7:30 PM | Breastmilk | Breastmilk | Breastmilk | Breastmilk | Breastmilk | Breastmilk | Breastmilk |
| 8 pM | Bed Time | Bed Time | Bed Time | Bed Time | Bed Time | Bed Time | Bed Time |
By the end of the 4th week your baby would have sampled a variety of new foods – new fruits, new vegetables and some new grains. According to your baby’s schedule, you can feed her and give naps after that. For a good night’s sleep you can try to move solids during dinner time as well – so that baby sleeps on a full tummy!
Common Food Allergies Symptoms To Watch Out For:
- Any kinds of rashes on the skin.
- Upset tummy or stomach pain.
- Loose Motions or Diahorrea.
- Vomiting and throwing up
- Running nose
- Baby is uncomfortable and unusually cranky.
You can alter this Indian 6 months food chart for baby as per your baby’s taste and choices. You can also relax the routine and meal timings as per your convenience. This food chart is just a guideline and you can feed whatever fruits and vegetable are available locally and in season.
