10 Best Summer Foods For Babies

Summer Foods For Babies

Summer is the time to bother us with heat. However, it completely depends on us how to treat the season. We can spend the summer days drenched in sweat and having digestion issues, or have fun-filled sunny days and enjoy the juicy summer fruits. But, when it comes to babies, the scenario becomes completely different. 

It is obvious that parents will do everything to keep the babies comfortable and safe from sweat and heat. It is the food that becomes a matter of concern for most parents. Children become cranky due to the excessive summer heat and humidity. The troubles caused to the digestive system add to their discomfort levels and make the happiest kid cranky. Mothers find it hard to choose the right food that will keep the baby’s tummy full and comfortable. Such wonder food must also be nutritious enough to meet the child’s necessities.

10 Healthy summer foods for babies:

We are here to discuss the best summer foods for the baby’s health. Most of these are the common ones that we know. The only thing is that we might not have known the wonderful benefits of these foods before. Here are some summer food ideas for babies over six months of age.

• Melons

Melons are truly super foods. Summer is the time when you can have ripe watermelon and musk melon. We generally consider watermelon to be the best summer food. However, musk melon is also nutritious and tasty. Water content in melons is high and thus provides proper hydration for babies. If the baby is ready to have finger foods, you can easily offer slices of melons to them. If they are still on a liquid or semi-solid diet, you can try watermelon or musk melon smoothies.

• Cucumber

The most popular summer food is cucumber, and this popularity applies to both kids and adults. Cucumber must be eaten raw and given to children above the age of eight months to avoid digestion troubles. Cucumber slices can be given as finger foods or can be made into smoothies.

• Tomatoes

Having 95% water in it, tomato is extremely suitable to keep babies hydrated. Though we consider tomato as a winter vegetable but it is actually available throughout the year. The nutrients in tomatoes help in increasing immunity in children. This immunity factor has become very important in this pandemic situation. It is thus wise for mothers to include this super-nutritious food in their baby’s diet.

• Yogurt

Home-made yogurt is full of healthy probiotics. The healthy bacteria present in yogurt helps in keeping the guts healthy. It is easy to digest and provides relief to the baby’s stomach during the scorching summer heat. The presence of protein, calcium, and Vitamin C in yogurt makes it a super-healthy food.

• Barley

Barley is a traditional food that is extremely nutritious for babies. The prime factor that makes barley suitable as summer food is the ability to reduce water retention in the body and to maintain the natural balance of water. It is safe to give barley to babies over six months of age. It is easy to digest and keeps the tummy full.

• Mango

We can never forget about the king of fruits – mango! It’s juice, tasty, and nutritious. Mango is full of healthy nutrients necessary for babies like Vitamins A, Vitamin C, calcium, and magnesium. Fresh mango cubes, mashed mango, mango shake, mango ice cream can be given to children. 

• Banana

Banana can be given to babies throughout the year. There is a misconception that banana has to be avoided if the child is suffering from cough and cold. However, this is not true as ingredients present in bananas have nothing to do with cough and cold. Banana is a super-food that can be digested easily. It is rich in potassium, Vitamin B6, Vitamin C, magnesium, and antioxidants.

• Coconut water

Babies can be easily fed with juices. Small kids love soft drinks and juices. However, providing them with natural drinks will be the best option when we are considering healthy summer foods. Coconut water is one such drink that you can give to your child without any hesitation. It is rich in potassium and helps in regulating body temperature during summer. You can give fresh coconut water to kids or can prepare fruit smoothies with it.

• Bottle gourd

Bottle gourd is a very common vegetable available during summer. It is rich in Vitamins A and C. Other healthy nutrients present in bottle gourd are calcium, magnesium, and folate. Bottle gourd can be cooked into several tasty dishes. You can simply make vegetable soup with bottle gourd for your baby.

• Cumin

You may wonder that how a spice can be considered as healthy food for babies during summer. However, cumin is such a spice that helps in regulating body heat. You can simply soak cumin seeds in water and give two to three teaspoons of that water to your baby twice or thrice a week. This will help in keeping the digestive system healthy.

The bottom line

In the end, it is important to mention that parents must take great care while introducing any new food for the babies. It will be best to give a very small amount of new food for the first few days and check if the child develops any allergies. 

If you would like to learn more about what you can and cannot feed your baby, click here!