Can I puree all our family meals for our eight-month-old baby?

By eight months, babies should be eating a varied diet that includes foods from all the main groups: protein (meat, fish, pulses etc), carbohydrates (potatoes, cereal, rice), fruit and vegetables, dairy and healthy fats (oily fish, seeds, olive oil etc). They should also have moved from runny pureed to lumpier mashed or blended food.

Regardless of your baby’s readiness, whether or not you can feed him the same family meals as you depends entirely on what you’re eating. Ready made meals and sauces are not suitable for young babies because of the high levels of salt they contain, which can harm developing kidneys. But freshly made, home cooked foods can be given to your baby, as long as you’re careful about your ingredients and preparation. Don’t add sugar, salt or salty ingredients like stock or gravy, and be careful to avoid foods that could be harmful at this young age, such as honey (linked with a rare form of food poisoning called botulism) or raw eggs.