When should your baby start using a spoon

When should your baby start using a spoon

Lucille Beseler, RDN

Is co-author of Nurturing with Nutrition and a former president of the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics representing over 100,000 Nutrition professionals, while also active as a clinical dietitian in South Florida.

Article in collaboration with: Melanie Bazarte, PhD

Expect a Mess

  • Babies need to touch and feel food to learn about it.
    • Expect squishing, mashing, tossing, and pouring. It's exciting to see what can be done with food.
    • HOWEVER, if you see too much playing and not enough eating, then your baby is not hungry and can be taken out of the highchair.
  • Practicing with a spoon
    • Give your baby her own spoon as soon as she can sit up well and is interested in your spoon when you feed her.
    • Let her practice, but expect a mess until she get good at this skill between 9 and 14 months.
    • Notice how she chews, swallows, and how she holds her finger food to tell when she needs your help, when she doesn't, and when she's ready for chunkier foods.
    • Cut back on smooth baby food, give her plenty of sticky foods (like veggies in mashed potatoes), and load the spoon for her.
baby start using a spoon

Adapted from Nurturing with Nutrition by Dr. Melanie Bezarte and Lucille Beseler, RDN

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