Family Meals with a Little One: App Recommendation
September is Family Meals Month. Family meals look different throughout the various ages and stages of raising kids. As both a dietitian and a human who loves food, when I became a parent, one of the things that I looked forward to the most was introducing new foods to my son. This is an area I felt confident in for the most part, especially when it came to removing any pressure to try new foods, allowing him to learn to feed himself even if it makes a mess, and providing him with a variety of nutritious options. Something I hadn’t considered until we hit the 6-month mark and he was ready to try solids, though, was how to physically modify what my husband and I were eating to reduce the risk of choking. I was so excited to share something like pasta or a salad with him that I hadn’t stopped to think what that would actually look like. Something that helped me immensely is the Solid Starts app. The paid version allows you to keep track of which foods you have introduced, but my favorite part, which is free, enables you to look up a food and learn the appropriate way to serve it based on your child’s age.
For example, if we were having spaghetti for dinner, I could look up pasta and find that for a 6-month-old, it can be served as whole pieces of a tubular pasta like penne, or spaghetti noodles can be chopped and served in a bowl.
Photo from Solid Starts.
Then I could look up ground beef and see that soft meatballs that are at least 2 inches in diameter are recommended for this age.
Photo from Solid Starts.
As he gets closer to 9 months and can use a pincer grasp (thumb and forefinger), the app indicates that bite-sized pieces can be offered, such as macaroni and pieces of meatballs. I have stood in the produce section multiple times thinking “Can he eat ___?” and this app has been a lifesaver in those cases. As you’ll find out, the answer to that question is almost always yes! It’s just about modifying that food appropriately to help develop his feeding skills and reduce the risk of choking.
All of this is to say, there is not one “correct” way to feed your child – you know them best, and it’s always recommended to consult your dietitian and/or pediatrician for guidance. If you’ve confirmed that your child is developing at a typical rate and are looking for both peace of mind and a way to feed one meal to the whole family, this app is my pick!