What should 5 month old babies be eating

Your baby's healthcare provider can recommend the proper type and amount of vitamin D supplement for your baby.

When starting solid foods, give your baby one new food at a time — not mixtures like cereal and fruit or meat dinners. Give the new food for 3 to 5 days before adding another new food. This way you can tell what foods your baby may be allergic to or can't tolerate. Start with small amounts of new solid foods — a teaspoon at first and slowly increase to a tablespoon. Start with dry infant rice cereal first, mixed as directed, followed by vegetables, fruits, and then meats. Don't use salt or sugar when making homemade infant foods.

Canned foods may contain large amounts of salt and sugar and shouldn't be used for baby food. Always wash and peel fruits and vegetables and remove seeds or pits. Take special care with fruits and vegetables that come into contact with the ground. They may contain botulism spores that cause food poisoning. Cow's milk shouldn't be added to the diet until your baby is age 1. Cow's milk doesn't provide the proper nutrients for your baby.

The AAP recommends not giving fruit juices to infants younger than 1 year old. Dilute the juice with water and offer it in a cup with a meal.

Feed all food with a spoon. Your baby needs to learn to eat from a spoon. Don't use an infant feeder. Only formula and water should go into the bottle. Sources BabyCenter's editorial team is committed to providing the most helpful and trustworthy pregnancy and parenting information in the world.

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Your baby has been working hard to develop strong neck and shoulder muscles. Over the coming months, she will use these muscles to stay sitting up, roll over, crawl, and eventually walk.

Continue with providing daily tummy time sessions to help your little one build up these skills. Try to do it two or three times a day if you can. As she gets used to tummy time, you can do it more often to help her gain strength and confidence. Make sure she is awake during tummy time and never leave her unattended.

At 5 months old, your baby may be taking four to six ounces of breast milk or formula at each feeding, or perhaps even more. She may need to eat more when she goes through a growth spurt, which can happen at any time; you may notice one when your baby turns about 6 months old. Whenever she seems hungry, follow her hunger cues and feed her on demand. What goes hand-in-hand with feeding? Diaper changes! Although diaper changes may not be too exciting, all those dirty diapers sure can be rewarding!

Download the Pampers Club app and turn diapers and wipes into fun toys for your 5-month-old, lovely treats for you, or useful coupons to put toward your next Pampers purchase. Around this time your baby will sleep 12 to 16 hours a day. This includes an extended stretch at night with perhaps only a few brief awakenings. Five-month-old babies still need a couple of naps and will sleep around three to four hours during the day.

If you need some help getting your baby to sleep, watch our video guide for tips on establishing a good bedtime routine. By now you have probably settled into a daily routine that works well for you and your baby, but here is an example for how you might choose to break up the average day:. You try everything as a parent to make sure your little one is safe and healthy, but there are times when he feels sick, no matter how careful you are.

Some common health concerns that may affect a 5-month-old baby include:. You may notice your baby is drooling, cranky, or crying from discomfort this month.