The best nutritionist-approved baby cereals for starting solids

Gerber Cereal for Baby Grain & Grow Oatmeal contains whole-grain oats fortified with iron and 12 other nutrients like calcium, zinc, and vitamins C and E. Parents say it stirs easily into a smooth paste that babies tend to enjoy: "My daughter really liked it," says Leah Rocketto, Associate Commerce Director for BabyCenter, who appreciated that the plain oatmeal was a good medium for mix-ins like peanut butter and banana. "I found it very helpful to introduce her to other flavors." 

Leah also liked that Gerber was readily available. She could pick some up when shopping for groceries, or while on vacation. She also found that because it was such a universal brand, other caregivers weren't nervous about making it or feeding it to her daughter: "We sent it to daycare with no problem; my mother and mother-in-law could prep it without needing instructions." 

The product's packaging, which has a removable lid with a spout, is also convenient. You can twist off the lid to measure and portion with a measuring spoon, or open the spout and pour the oatmeal into a container. The lid prevents the oatmeal from going prematurely stale, too. 

Heads up

Gerber also sells an organic versionOpens a new window of this oatmeal, as well as one flavored with bananas and strawberries.Opens a new window

Parents say

"I use Gerber and baby likes it."

"Gerber organic! I don’t like how Earth’s Best is sold in a box that isn’t resealable. Gerber has a nice easy pour/close top."

"The advantage of the Gerber oatmeal is that it's fortified with extra iron, which babies this age really need."

"The cereal has a flip top spout, so it is easy to close and store."

Specs

• Size: 8 or 16 ounces

• Main ingredient: Oat flour

Earth's Best Organic Infant Oatmeal Cereal is made with USDA-certified organic oats and contains no GMO ingredients, making it a feel-good choice for parents. It's fortified with iron, calcium, potassium, and vitamin E, but the ingredient list is comfortingly short. 

Lisafé Carreon, Senior Product Manager at BabyCenter, says she sprinkled Earth's Best into her daughter's purees and mixed it with fruit specifically to give her baby iron. She also coated slippery foods like banana and avocado with Earth's Best oatmeal so her daughter could pick them up more easily. She says the Earth's Best is mild in flavor, very smooth when mixed with liquid, and that her daughter eats it with no issues. 

Heads up

Earth's Best also offers a multigrain cerealOpens a new window that's popular with BabyCenter parents. 

Parents say

"After some research about what was possibly in rice and oatmeal, I decided to go with Earths Best oatmeal. I may be overprotective but I figure oatmeal was recommended by my dr to be the base for all the new foods LO tries so we'll be eating a lot of it (relatively)."

"My lo loves his earths best oatmeal and i usually mix in some fruit but even plain with breastmilk its not bad tasting."

"We like Earth best oatmeal.  It was the only solid food my ds would eat for months. He's almost 3 now and still loves it."

Specs

• Size: 8 ounces

• Main ingredient: Oat flour

Earth's Best Organic Whole Grain Multi-Grain Cereal is a blend of oats, spelt, and barley grains that’s free from added sugar and salt. It’s also fortified with iron, vitamin E, potassium, and calcium for optimum nutrition. Parents who have already familiarized their babies with the three grains included in this mix like serving three whole grains with just one step, and appreciate Earth's Best's commitment to organic ingredients. This cereal is also more flavorful than single-grain cereals, with a nutty taste babies enjoy. 

Heads up

If your baby isn't ready for a multi-grain cereal, Earth's Best Organic Rice CerealOpens a new window is a single-ingredient cereal parents like. 

Parents say

"Earth's Best has a multigrain baby cereal that contains wheat and is sugar free."

"Earth's Best Multigrain is actually really good! I don't like the oatmeal versions, they're just too bland imo. Baby won't eat the oatmeal versions alone, ever, but will eat the multigrain plain."

"My baby loves earth's best multigrain cereal mixed with water or formula."

Specs

• Size: 8 ounces

• Main ingredients: Barley flour, oat flour, spelt flour

Rice is easy to digest, and has a subtle natural sweetness babies like, which is why rice cereal is a classic first baby food. Parents love that Gerber Cereal for Baby Rice stirs into a super-creamy puree that most babies accept happily, and that it's fortified with iron, zinc, calcium, and vitamins. The Gerber tub has a flip-up lid that makes it easy to pour the cereal out, and keeps anything from spilling if this cereal gets knocked over on the counter or in the pantry. 

Heads up

Some parents worry about the connection between rice cereal and arsenic; the AAP says rice cereal is a good source of nutrientsOpens a new window and is safe to serve as a first food, and as part of a varied diet.

Parents say

"Rice is easier to digest and it mixes up smoother IMO. I would start with rice."

"I use gender rice cereal. I tried the Gerber oatmeal cereal but she doesn't seem to care for it as much as the rice cereal."

Specs

• Size: 8 or 16 ounces

• Main ingredients: Rice flour

Yes, baby cereal is a good first-food option because it’s mild, easy to digest, and iron-fortified. 

Baby cereal is made with a variety of ingredients including rice, barley, oats, or other whole grains. Though rice cereal was traditionally the first solid babies fed to babies in America, it lost favor in recent years due to studies that found high levels of arsenic in rice-based baby cereal. (For what it’s worth, the AAP says rice cereal is safe to serveOpens a new window as a first food.) 

Daugherty suggests parents try different baby cereals to see what their baby likes best. “Some babies don’t like cereals and may prefer iron-rich pureed foods,” Daugherty says. “It is okay if your baby doesn’t continue after trying a baby cereal after a few times."

"Iron is an essential nutrient for growing babies, with most grain products designed for infants having added iron compared to the adult counterparts (think oatmeal)," says Mallory. "The iron content is important for brain development with most infant cereals containing 60 percent of the daily value of iron for this age group. With two servings per day of iron containing foods, the daily goal is met."

Mallory explains that the iron stores infants are born with are depleted by 4 to 6 months of age when they're starting solids, and thus they need to get iron from the foods they eat. Iron is such an essential nutrient that your baby will be screened for iron deficiency at their 12-month checkup.Opens a new window 

Feeding your baby iron-fortified foods may also have an unexpected effect on your baby's digestion. "You may notice some constipation with the introduction of cereals, as rice and iron can back things up,” Daugherty says. “You can switch to iron-fortified baby oatmeal or limit rice cereal intake to once a day and mix in some pureed prunes to provide additional fiber to get things moving again."

According to the AAP, rice cereal is safe to serve Opens a new windowbut shouldn't be part of every meal.This is because rice absorbs arsenic while it is produced, and excessive ingestion of arsenic can have an effect on a baby’s immune system. Mallory points out that servings of rice cereal are small, and taking some arsenic from the foods we eat is inevitable. "If parents have questions around this topic I highly recommend following up with their pediatrician and always use the CDC (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention) as a reference for reliable information."

Jenn Bonicelli and Meghan Hertzfeldt contributed to this story