Yogurt

Yogurt can start when your baby is ready for solids, at about 6 months. If you have heard that babies cannot have dairy, know that dairy as a solid food, such as yogurt, can be introduced before 12 months. Only cow's milk as a drink has to wait until nearer 12 months.

Yogurt starts as milk, from cows, sheep, goats, buffalo, yaks, camels and more, which bacterial cultures thicken until it almost sets. The word yogurt comes from Turkish. Today it is widely made in Europe, North Africa and Asia.

Yogurt provides protein, fat and carbohydrate. It contains potassium, calcium, zinc, choline, omega-3 fats, and vitamins A, B6, B12, and D, and these benefit bones, eyes, skin, and the immune system. Its probiotics support the gut microbiome.

Which yogurt

The best choice for babies is plain, pasteurized, full-fat yogurt. Strained (Greek-style) yogurt clings to spoons and hands, which helps especially in the early weeks. Goat, strained and sheep's milk yogurts usually have more protein than cow's milk yogurt. Raw milk yogurt is not safe. Babies have immature immune systems, and raw milk can carry harmful bacteria. In yogurt making, the milk is pasteurized before the cultures go in, so the probiotic benefit stays.

Serve it by hand or on a preloaded spoon, and hold the spoon in the air for easy grabbing. Once nut or seed butters are part of your child's diet, you can stir one in for extra nutrition and a thicker texture.

Plant-based yogurts

For regular plant-based yogurt, look for little or no added sugar and added calcium and vitamin D. Soy versions tend to have the most protein and are often fortified. Some plant yogurts fall short on protein, fat, calcium and B12 compared with dairy. If your child has food allergies, you can pick bases such as soy, oat, pea, coconut, cashew, almond, macadamia, fava, cassava or plantain.

Yogurt is low risk when served to suit your child's age. Every food carries a small chance, so stay close during meals.

Yes, yogurt contains allergens. It is usually made from cow's milk, which causes roughly one in five childhood food allergies. Sheep, goat and buffalo dairy can provoke similar reactions.

The good news is that milk allergy often fades. Most children with cow's milk allergy outgrow it by age 6. A milder milk protein allergy, which can appear as painless blood in the stool, often passes, and many such babies can return to cow's milk near their first birthday if a pediatric professional guides the process.

Lactose intolerance is actually uncommon in infants. In older children, yogurt may be easier to tolerate than milk, since it has less lactose and its probiotics help break lactose down.