Do you buy organic baby food? Apparently, the sales of organic baby food has increased by 55% while the sales of regular jarred baby food has decreased. It definitely is nice to know organic food is free of pesticides, but there has been no definitive research to show it's healthier.
We just watched a recent Today Show episode on the myriad of choices for today's parents over at iVillage.com.
One mother in the video commented that she just didn't feel right purchasing jars of food that sit on a shelf for 2-3 years and could be older than her baby. Good point!
Today there are actually personal baby chefs that will prepare fresh organic meals for your baby. There's even a "Baby Food Tasting Room" at Homemade Baby in LA. Babies can try free samples of their newest creations.
But they also demonstrate how it's fairly simple to make your own baby food. Boil some sweet potatoes, peel them, and mash them with a little cinnamon. Throw some peas in the food processor with a little mint and water. Sounds simple right?
Everyone agrees, the most important thing is to be sure baby gets a wide variety of fruits and vegetables, and a variety of tastes. If you can't buy everything organic, be sure to stay away from what has been called "The Dirty Dozen" in recent years. You can find that list right here.
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I think with our next baby we'll skip baby food altogether. We delayed solids with Travis for a good 7 or 8 months, and he only had baby food a handful of times. He quit wanting it for a few months, wanting to just nurse. Then he would eat a few bites of applesauce from my MIL every few days. Now, at 15 months, he gnaws on a variety of table foods while we eat meals as a family, and he loves self-feeding and has a few "favorites." He also drinks diluted organic apple juice. I still have some jars of organic baby food that I bought that he hasn't ever eaten and probably never will. Trying to give him baby food caused me a lot of anxiety that was all for nothing - he is growing and thriving and nursing, and everything about him is healthy and normal. Baby food was, for us, a source of unnecessary worry and headaches!
view exxon23's profile
We skipped baby food, too, with the second one. She wanted to eat what her big brother was eating, so she did.
At any rate, the chemist in me must point out that all food is organic.
view avimom's profile
Baby #1 had everything home-made and organic (sorry avimom, but it is the generally-accepted label for what is technically "pesticide-free" food -- no way we're going to change that one!...). Baby #2 hated my cooking and likes the bottled organic food. Since it comes from France, it has a soupçon of sea salt and crême fraiche (they put chocolate in formula and cereal here!!!), so it is no surprise he likes it better! He's now starting to chew solids, and so won't be eating it much longer. It is difficultto get everything organic here like I did back home; I still haven't found all the organic fruit and veg on that dirty dozen list here. And if you think organic meat is expensive in North America, try France... 2 small chicken breasts -- 30 Euros!
view mschatelaine's profile
...oops, that was beef (1 very small steak), not chicken...
...shouldn't post this late, too tired...
view mschatelaine's profile
Now that I have slept, I realize my post didn't come out right (shouldn't post when I am sleepy!)... The gyst of what I was trying to say was that "organic" has always struck me as inaccurate too; here in Europe, they use the term "bio", although that is not entirely correct either, but at least it works in many languages, and is more appropriate... But we're stuck with it now, whether we like it or not...
view mschatelaine's profile
Organic baby food is definitely healthier! Pesticides can have horrible adverse affect kids. Read more here.
view poopmama's profile