Re:Does Homemade Baby Food Have Any Risks?
Any home canning can run the risk of botulism (a type of food poisoning). But, these days, people aren’t canning their homemade baby food – they’re usually freezing it if storing it at all. Botulism is a known risk for young babies ingesting honey though. So, don’t try to sweeten your homemade baby food with honey.
Another risk is e. coli bacteria. Pureed meats should be defrosted in the refrigerator to avoid the growth of e. coli bacteria. Any vegetables which might be affected (as sometimes occurs, if you recall media reports over the last few years regarding spinach and tomatoes) should be fine if they are cooked well before processing them into baby food.
The final concern that some people have is nitrates. Nitrates are chemicals which come from soil and water. Infants who ingest too many nitrates can develop a form of anemia. The usual culprit for high nitrate levels is well water. However, veggies like beets, squash, carrots, green beans and spinach can also contain nitrates. The American Academy of Pediatrics recommends that parents do not feed these vegetables to babies three months and younger. Since you probably won’t start baby food until your baby is at least four months old, this shouldn’t be a big problem. One way to limit the nitrates for these veggies is to make the baby food from frozen vegetables instead of fresh, to freeze the baby food immediately after making it or to use only organic vegetables (organic farms don’t use nitrate fertilizers).
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