Complementary feeding adds foods to breast milk or infant formula, usually around six months when a baby is developmentally ready. Build variety gradually, make iron-containing foods a regular part of meals, and prepare each food for the baby's current chewing and swallowing skills.
Here, “weaning foods” means complementary foods; starting them does not require ending breastfeeding. This U.S.-focused guide develops meal choices after the starting-solids guide's readiness, allergy, and choking precautions. Ask the care team about feeding difficulties, premature birth, restricted diets, or suspected food reactions.
Give iron a regular place at the table
Iron supports growth and development. Needs depend partly on milk feeding and birth history. CDC's infant iron guidance advises discussing supplements with the clinician when appropriate, introducing iron-containing foods as solids begin, and choosing iron-fortified formula when formula feeding.
Useful options include appropriately prepared meat or poultry, iron-fortified infant cereal, beans, lentils, and tofu. Vitamin C-containing foods can help the body absorb iron from plant foods. Offer variety across meals rather than expecting one ingredient to meet every nutritional need.
Ask specifically about iron if your baby was born early, eats a limited range of foods, receives a restricted diet, or has a feeding or growth concern. Use a prescribed supplement only as directed; food suggestions cannot determine whether an individual child needs one.
Plan a manageable combination
Choose one iron-containing food, add a suitable fruit or vegetable, and adjust texture. Start with small servings, offer more when the baby shows interest, and let fullness cues end the meal. Milk feeds continue through this learning period.
The examples below are possible food combinations, not daily menus or portion targets. Use foods already introduced safely and adapt them for allergies and the care plan. On a small screen, scroll the table or focus it and use the arrow keys.
| Starting food | Possible companion | Preparation check |
|---|---|---|
| Iron-fortified infant cereal | Smooth or mashed fruit. | Prepare according to the label and offer by spoon, at a texture the baby manages. |
| Lentils or beans | Soft cooked broccoli or another suitable vegetable. | Cook thoroughly and mash; adapt skins and lumps to the baby's skills. |
| Meat or poultry | Soft cooked vegetables. | Cook thoroughly; remove bones and tough parts and puree, mash, or finely shred as appropriate. |
| Fully cooked egg | A familiar soft vegetable and other foods across the day's meals. | Mash or prepare in a soft, manageable form; treat egg as part of variety, not the sole iron strategy. |
As skills develop, vary suitable textures instead of staying indefinitely with a single smooth food. Read CDC's choking-hazard guidance: keep the child seated upright and supervised, and modify hard, round, sticky, or difficult-to-chew foods. Whole nuts, whole grapes, and raw hard vegetable pieces are unsuitable examples for an infant meal.
Introduce egg in a safe, usable form
Egg can join other complementary foods once the baby is ready. CDC guidance on introducing foods includes potentially allergenic foods with other foods, with clinician guidance for children who need an individual plan. If egg has caused a reaction or allergy is suspected, seek medical advice before offering it again.
Cook both white and yolk until firm; scrambled egg should be fully set. The FDA's egg-safety advice also covers refrigeration, clean preparation, and avoiding raw egg. Cool cooked food to an appropriate eating temperature and mash or modify it for the baby. A soft texture needs to come from preparation, not undercooking.
Offer a small amount when an adult can observe the baby and record what was eaten. Stop the food and seek advice for a suspected reaction; breathing difficulty, collapse, or a severe allergic reaction requires emergency help. The starting-solids allergy section explains planning and response in more detail.
What the 2002 egg-yolk study actually measured
Makrides and colleagues' randomized trial compared regular egg yolks, omega-3-enriched yolks, and no egg intervention from six to twelve months. Enriched yolks increased red-cell DHA. Some iron measures improved, while hemoglobin and ferritin did not differ significantly; plasma cholesterol also showed no significant treatment effect.
Those are specific laboratory findings from a particular trial. They do not establish an ideal egg schedule for every baby, show that enriched eggs improve intelligence, or make egg yolk a treatment for iron deficiency. Current feeding decisions should combine a varied diet, suitable textures, allergy planning, and the child's care needs. For interpreting fatty-acid claims more broadly, see DHA and ARA evidence in infant formula.
Keep observations that help you adapt
Write down the food and ingredients, texture, the baby's response, and any suspected symptoms with their timing. Record a refusal neutrally and try another calm opportunity; a single uneaten serving does not tell you whether the child will accept that food later.
Use the first-foods observation sheet for new foods. At the next visit, bring questions about iron, variety, textures, or foods repeatedly avoided. This gives the care team concrete information to work with while keeping meals responsive and manageable.
Continue exploring
Explore baby care, feeding, and safety. Sources are linked beside the guidance they support. Updated October 11, 2026.