QOD: Should I avoid rice cereal for my baby?
Iron-fortified rice cereal has traditionally been the first food introduced to babies between 4 and 6 months due to its easy digestibility, low allergen load, iron content, and ability to manipulate its texture.
Recently, its role in infant nutrition has been challenged. The reality is, your baby needs a good source of iron and zinc at 6 months if he or she is breastfed. This can be accomplished with pureed meats, beans, and other whole grain iron-fortified cereals such as oats, barley, and brown rice cereal.
Reviewed by Dr. Sara Connolly, September 2020
Rice cereal made both of my girls very constipated. We opted for oatmeal instead. 🙂