21 High Calorie Foods For Babies To Gain Weight - Baby Led Weaning For Beginners - Low Stress Motherhood

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21 High Calorie Foods For Babies To Gain Weight - Baby Led Weaning For Beginners

high calorie foods for babies to gain weight

If your doctor is advising you to beef up on calories and healthy fats so your baby can gain some weight and keep that brain developing sharply, there are some foods that will help you do that, quicker and better than others.

Babies tummies are tiny, and many don’t take to eating solids right away, so you’ll want to maximize on serving these foods as often as possible – for meals and even snacks, until your baby is on track.

These foods are great for 6 months through toddlerhood and beyond.

If your baby is just starting out with solid foods, you can read this article: Everything You Need To Know Before Starting Solids With Baby Led Weaning.

Not many parents know that you can serve solids first, then their milk. Many believe it has to be the other way around but, according to Registered Dietitian and baby led weaning expert, Katie Ferraro, whichever way works best for your family is fine!

It’s also important to properly prepare for serving allergens when just starting out. Consult your pediatrician around the time you want to start solids with any of your concerns. If you have family history or allergies or your baby has eczema, they may be predisposed for allergies. You can read more about allergens here: Introducing Allergens With Baby Led Weaning

Read this next:

16 Simple & Sensory Ways To Serve Foods To Your Hesitant Eater

Master List! 30+ Starter Baby Led Weaning Foods For 6 Month Olds

The Top 6 Baby Led Weaning Essentials Every Moms Need To Keep It Low Stress

High Calorie Foods For Babies

Avocados
Eggs
Bananas
Mangoes
Beans
Lentils
Poultry
Beef
Full fat cottage cheese (rinse for easier grabbing and use 4% fat)
Sweet potatoes
Whole milk yogurt
Potatoes
Squash
Nut butters (see allergens post on introducing safely)
Quinoa
Salmon
Veggie or fruit breads/muffins (homemade with minimal additives)
Cheese (opt for low in sodium, pasteurized, not mold-ripened)
Pancakes or waffles (homemade with minimal additives)
Adding butter to foods
Adding olive or coconut oil to foods

Want some ideas on how to serve foods? Sometimes a different presentation is all it takes to get a baby more interested in or comfortable holding a food! See this article for inspiration on how to cut foods, depending on your baby’s abilities and interests: 21 Picture Examples Of How To Serve Solids For Baby Led Weaning

Check out these starting solids supplies that help with finger foods:

Want a FREE instant download of my Baby Led Weaning Starter Guide that includes a first foods list and a feeding schedule example? Drop your name & email below! We never spam.

Everything you need to know to start serving solids with baby led weaning with confidence, today.

Other key feeding tips

When just starting with solids and incorporating high calorie foods for babies to gain weight, watch for hunger and full cues. Doing this will help you build the best feeding schedule for your baby where they eagerly eat.

Babies are naturally intuitive eaters and timing can vary. A great rule of thumb is keep 3 hours between snacks and a main meal. This way their tiny tummies are ready for food when you feed them

It’s also very helpful to know that MANY babies don’t just gobble foods down right away. Some do, some are more hesitant and really soak in the learning part of engaging with solids foods. I like to call it ‘learning solids’ more than ‘eating solids’ because many babies don’t just dive in right away and a lot of first time moms don’t know this is normal. They worry. To keep ease your mind, take a look at this article: 7 Common Things Babies Do With Solids (Besides Eat Them!)

Additionally, if you are here looking for high calorie foods for your toddler, not infant, this list is great. And, there are some additional resources I have if your toddler is picky. Check out these 2 articles if you have a hard time getting your toddler to eat variety:

Food Chaining – How To Use Food Chaining To Expand Your Picky Toddler’s Diet

How To Get Toddlers To Eat Anything

Lastly, remember from 6-12 months, solid foods are ‘complimentary foods’, meaning they simply add on to the nutrition your baby is receiving from their milk.

A meal for a 6 month old might be 3 slivers of banana or a 3 tbsp of ground beef and a stalk of broccoli. Again, paying attention to hunger and fullness cues, your baby will tell you what portions they need.

By the time a baby is 12 months old, they are typically eating breakfast around 730am, a morning snack at 930am, lunch at 12pm, an afternoon snack at 330pm and then dinner between 530-630pm. This is the schedule we follow here at my daycare and preschool that goes by the USDA’s Food Program for healthy starts.

Always aim for a wholesome variety, paying attention to serving iron-rich foods, too.

A few things to note when serving solids to your baby:

Studies have found that many young children are iron-deficient and without the necessary iron, long term effects, including developmental problems can occur. So be sure to serve iron-rich foods often.

Experts recommend regularly serving variety of foods from all food groups, early on, to help curb picky eating. The more children see, feel, taste and know about foods, the less likely they will fear them and be picky toward them. With baby led weaning, start off by introducing foods 1 at a time, then as you feel more confident in your baby’s eating abilities, pair 2-3 foods then branch out to a wider variety from there.

Check out my Low stress baby led weaning ebook – a simplified guide for first time moms

Complete with: first foods list, feeding example schedule, how to introduce allergens & more!

helpful tools for starting solids, more easily

If you aren’t yet prepared with the supplies, this comprehensive list goes over the easiest highchairs to clean, the best food-catching bibs, utensils infants can actually hold right and more! The Ultimate List! Top-Rated Baby Led Weaning Supplies Other Moms Swear By