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Is Frozen Baby Food Healthy?

Deb M.
Deb M.

Frozen baby food can be a safe and time-saving healthy alternative to fresh baby food. Food can be purchased already prepared and frozen from a grocery store or prepared at home and frozen. In either case, if special care and attention is paid to ingredients, frozen baby food can be a healthy alternative to jarred or prepared food.

Many manufacturers of frozen baby food focus on providing shoppers with food that's organic and well balanced. Often there's even consideration made for allergies that a baby might have. Savvy shoppers can look for the highest quality food they can afford. Organic baby food, though perhaps more expensive, usually has more natural or all-natural ingredients. For the healthiest pre-packaged frozen baby food, it is important to read the package carefully to ensure there are no added ingredients, no preservatives, and nothing included in the food that will be unhealthy for a baby.

Whenever possible, the fruits and vegetables in frozen baby food should be organically grown.
Whenever possible, the fruits and vegetables in frozen baby food should be organically grown.

Parents also can make and freeze baby food at home. It is important to take a few things into consideration to ensure the food is healthy for a baby. First, it's usually a good idea to avoid seasoning the food with oils or butter. Most baby foods are free of these kinds of additions, allowing babies to appreciate the taste of the simple food itself while also ensuring they are not exposed to ingredients they should not have at an early age.

The fruits commonly found in traditional baby food may be genetically modified.
The fruits commonly found in traditional baby food may be genetically modified.

Unless allergies are a concern for the baby, there are some acceptable ingredient additions that can make frozen baby food more tasty while still keeping it healthy. These include ingredients such as cinnamon, which can be an excellent addition to applesauce, fruit juices and vegetable puree, which can help flavor many frozen meals, such as meat dishes or grain dishes.

High-quality frozen foods are safe and healthy.
High-quality frozen foods are safe and healthy.

There are some recommended freezing tips that parents can follow to help ensure the success of freezing baby food. For example, it is not recommended to keep baby food in the freezer longer than three months. After three months, the nutritional content might be compromised, and the taste of the food could be compromised as well. Also, when freezing baby food, an ideal container choice is an ice cube tray, which allows only specific portions of food to be thawed as needed, rather than larger portions that might go to waste. In addition, each section of an ice cube tray is one ounce, allowing an accurate measurement of how much food to serve.

Discussion Comments

anon957629

I am a mother of twins and I could not live without the Wean Meister freezer pods. I loved their modern design, but they were super functional! The whole tray is silicone, including the lid, so no freezer burn. They have 9 pods, so for nine meals, each is 2.5oz. These trays are BPA free and use a grade of silicone that is actually higher than the FDA grade, making them safer for babies. The food pops out very very easily, which was a huge problem with some other brands.

ysmina

Something I read in my baby food recipes book is that we should thaw frozen baby food only under running cold water or by keeping it in the refrigerator.

If we try to thaw it by just keeping it out from the morning, a lot of bacteria might grow in the food. But the fridge or cold running water still maintains some coolness while thawing out the baby food, so there won't be multiplying bacteria.

I think this is a real important point to keep in mind.

discographer

Frozen baby food is definitely healthy. At least you know what goes into it and your baby knows it was made with love!

The only thing is that it needs care and effort to freeze baby food properly so that it is safe for the baby.

bear78

I love using an ice tray or a cookie sheet for freezing baby food. Just make sure that you cover the ice tray with aluminum foil before you put it in the freezer.

Using a cookie sheet is the same idea as the ice tray. I put two spoonfuls of food separately on the cookie sheet and put wax paper on it.

After the food freezes, I take them out and put them in ziploc bags. The point is to not have to thaw a bunch of baby food when you only need a little bit. It works great!

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    • Whenever possible, the fruits and vegetables in frozen baby food should be organically grown.
      By: mitev
      Whenever possible, the fruits and vegetables in frozen baby food should be organically grown.
    • The fruits commonly found in traditional baby food may be genetically modified.
      By: Dzianis Rakhuba
      The fruits commonly found in traditional baby food may be genetically modified.
    • High-quality frozen foods are safe and healthy.
      By: Mara Zemgaliete
      High-quality frozen foods are safe and healthy.
    • Applesauce is a common baby food that can be stored frozen.
      By: mitrs3
      Applesauce is a common baby food that can be stored frozen.