Can i add salt to my baby's food?

Can i add salt to my baby's food, if not, when can i begin and what quantity?

You mustn't add salt to your baby's food throughout her first year, but babies normally need an intake of less than 1.g of salt during her first six months, which will be met by breast or formula milk. While babies more than 6 months to 12 months need just about 1.g per day, toddlers till three years old kids need about 2.g per day.

Excess consumption of salt could result in baby's damaged kidneys. Also, lead to high blood pressure in the later stages of life, specially in those families with hypertension history.

Follow these recommendations and tips, and all will be fine:

Limit the intake of salty foods in your baby's diet, or avoid adding salt at all to foods while cooking.

As babies are sensitive to taste so endure your baby has 'salt free' foods which don't necessary have to be 'flavor free'. Some steps to make babies enjoy enriching and flavored foods(salt free)

1. Herbs, aromatic spices or garlic- adds flavor and have their own benefits!

2. A little black pepper- good for indigestion

Babies foods like cereals and jar foods already come with low salt content from during the processing itself and should not be confused with foods aimed for older children. In other words, feed foods labeled as appropriate to babies and kids of their own age group.

Read food labels in order to understand how much salt content is present in foods meant for babies and feed them only those that contain salts no more than 0.1g of sodium per 100g. Remember: 1g of sodium is equivalent to 2.55g of salt.

Fruits, vegetables, salads, plain meat, poultry and fish, eggs, pulses and milk are some foods which contain low salt naturally. Don't add salt to rice and pastas while cooking!


Photo courtesy: BBC News, also read the death of a baby due to overdose of salts!