Nutritious and Tasty: The Best Baby Cereal

Best Baby Cereal Buying Guide

We understand that you like knowing all the key facts before pulling the trigger on the purchase of anything for your baby. So, here is a great buying guide section that will take you through all there is to know about baby cereals and things to consider when you buy one for your little one.

Benefits of Baby Cereal

Baby cereals are not only there to fill the tummy of your little one. You’ll definitely be amazed to know about their hidden wonders but, any idea what they could be? Well, so here’s the thing! Baby cereals secretly work on promoting your child’s metabolism and providing healthier growth. So, let’s know more about how they do so much for your baby!

Iron Supplement

Iron is one of the most important nutrients for newborns as it helps in healthier and quicker brain development. It is especially important for breastfeeding babies since breast milk isn't enough when it comes to providing your little one with sufficient amounts of iron that they need.

Baby cereals come to the rescue here by not only fulfilling the daily iron requirements of your child but also providing them with other nutrients like calcium and vitamins B,C and E.

A Learning Curve

When you observe that your baby is getting used to the soft and lumpy texture of baby cereal, you can start making it thicker by putting in more solid food and less liquid formula. The thicker texture will help teach your baby how to chew and swallow food and ultimately transition to solid foods like fruits, veggies and chicken etc.

Trust us when we say that you won’t have to make any effort when it comes to convincing your baby to eat it since he will still crave it because of its familiar taste.

Things To Consider When Buying Best Baby Cereal

It is important that you consider these two factors before going about buying a new box of cereal for your baby.

Organic or Non-Organic Cereals?

Organic baby cereals are grown without synthetic chemicals and GMOs. So, your child will be safe from the potential harm caused by the pesticides and fertilizers present in non-organic cereals. However, you should also know that most non-organic cereals also include a non-toxic amount of these chemicals due to government policies. So, rest assured that either way, your child would be safe and it all comes down to your preferences.

Type of Grains

There are a variety of grains present in baby cereals and each of them has its own advantages. For instance, wheat has plenty of fibers, oatmeal has high levels of iron and rice is useful in improving the digestive system.

Every baby should be given a cereal based on what their body requires the most and this should be left up to the pediatrician’s recommendation.

Best Baby Cereal Buying Tips

We have come up with two expert tips to ensure that this purchase of yours goes like a breeze.

Variety of Nutrients

Keep trying different cereals with different grains to balance the intake of various nutrients. For instance, all baby cereals have vitamins but every cereal is specialized in a different vitamin. So, you should aim to maintain a balance of all vitamins for best nutrition. This will also help your child learn to adapt to different tastes and reduce their consumption of artificial chemicals.

Safe-to-use ingredients

There must be no GMOs present in the cereal. Always make sure that the cereal is free of any artificial flavors, colors and harmful chemicals. Any fats and excessive sugar should also be avoided. Furthermore, you never know which ingredient might or might not be suitable for your baby so it is always better to consult their pediatrician before giving the cereal to your little one.

Another important aspect to look out for are the ingredients that are organic. Also make sure to read the label for ingredients, there might be an ingredient that your baby can be allergic to.

How We Choose the Best Baby Cereal?

Remember that best of list we talked about? Well, here are the two ingredients that we used when cooking up those top picks.

Allergen Levels

The cereal that you choose for your baby must not cause any allergic reactions, right? So, The best cereals, like the ones in our article, should have no allergens such as gluten, egg, soy and dairy. Rice cereals are gluten-free but they should still be avoided more than once per day because increased exposure of arsenic may be injurious for the baby’s health.

Iron-Fortified Cereal are a Plus

Babies of around six months usually need lots of iron due to the iron deficiency that might have been passed through the mother during pregnancy. So, we prioritized iron-fortified cereals to cover up for this deficit and meet the daily iron requirement of your baby.

Best Baby Cereal FAQ

Let's end things with a brief FAQ section regarding baby cereals.

What age do you start cereal for babies?

You can start feeding your kid cereal when they are 6-7 months old. This age is generally considered adequate for solid foods. Furthermore, it is important that you ensure that your baby can move the food from the front to the back of their mouth before you start feeding them rice-based baby cereal.

Is cereal healthy for babies?

Cereal, depending on the one you go for, can hold great benefits for your little champ. It will not only help them transition to more solid foods but will also ensure that their nutrient requirements are met, depending on the cereal's ingredients. Let's also not forget that it will keep your baby's tummy full and happy.

What are the Best Kinds of Cereal?

If you're just beginning to feed your baby cereal, we recommend that you stick to the basic ones made of barley, oat, and rice. They are rich in nutrients and are super easy to digest. Always start slow and then build up on the ingredients.