carrots before 7 mo ok?

[tstasko]

my dd has been on solids for several weeks....has tried and loved rice cereal, oatmeal, avocado, pears, squash, sweet potatoes, and prunes.  the rice constipated her a bit and we've cut that out - but other than that everything is great.  we are waiting 4 days in between each new food and i want to get a couple more veggies in there.  tomorrow is a new food day (yay!) and i want to give her carrots.  the only book i've had time to read is Super Baby Food, and it's great, however they recommend waiting until 7 mo to try the carrots.  is there a reason for this (higher allergy risk?)  did any of you give carrots before then?  i think it will be ok, but wanted to hear from other momma's and if their los had any negative reactions.
thanks!!
tari

[*Natasha*]

Sounds like your DD is doing great on solids at the moment which is great 
We gave carrot before 7 months in fact it was one of the first things i tried with my DD. I did Apple,Pear,pumpkin,potato,sweet potato,carrot in this order. So my opinion is give it a go.

[tstasko]

great - thank you natasha!  i'm going to go ahead and start it tomorrow - really want to get more veggies in there (although the mango is calling!!)  i really wanted to give her pumpkin next(i had read where you gave your lo that and thought that was a great idea) but can't find any fresh and want to wait until then..

thanks for the quick reply

[tylersmommy]

Here's the deal with carrots. They contain something called nitrates, which comes from the soil they're grown in. It can't be removed. Baby food companies can screen the levels of nitrates and ensure the levels are low, those who makes their own food obviously can't. Either way, carrots and some other veggies contain some amount of nitrates. Why is this bad? Young babies' digestive systems aren't developed enough to properly absorb and excrete the nitrate, and the result can be nitrate poisoning, which deprives the body's cells of oxygen and will send a baby to the ER. Nitrate poisoning is rare these days but still possible. There's also been some discussion on whether or not nitrates are an issue outside the US, and I still haven't found a definite answer on that.

Here's a link with more thorough info on nitrates and baby food...there's also some explanation in the Super Baby Food book on pages 38-39 under "Pesticides."
http://www.wholesomebabyfood.com/nitratearticle.htm

[tstasko]

thank you melissa,  especially for the page numbers in SBF.  we did make our own, but will not be giving DD it - we will give her store made first - even though it's rare, scary stuff!  so...mango ended up winning out today..
many thanks,
tari

[tstasko]

ok, good to know about the organic veggies - thanks - right now that is all we are buying for lo (cashiers at whole foods know her by name ), and i certainley won't switch for the "high risk" nitrate veggies.  that kind of freaks me out!  good to be kept on my toes... thanks all for the info!
tari

[Brandonsmom]

When my brother was a baby my mom gave him carrots a lot because it was one of the few veggies he would eat really well. He ended up turning orange!  It's funny now but the doctor recommended she back off the carrots a bit and try something green. To this day I still tease my brother about it and my mom reminds me to not give Brandon too many "orange" foods. He's been on solids for about a month now and doing great with it. I don't give him a lot but we have tried carrots. He's 5 months and it didn't seem to bother him. However, reading this post makes me a bit wary of it so I think I will be careful with carrots.

[tylersmommy]

True...the highest concentration of nitrates occurs in root veggies like carrots and leafies like spinach, but they are present in all veggies to some extent.

[linfran]

Was told by hv that most fruit and veg are ok, carrot was one of the first foods my lo tried and he's mad for them!

[Mum of girl, boy, boy]

We did carrot with my DD and she loved it. I remember a lot of her photos showing her with a tinge of orange! 

[Shdef]

Carrots is the traditional weaning food in Germany recommended by docs... That was the first stuff he tried... Loved it.

But they are constipating him so he doesn't get them anymore

[lisi's mum]

Here in Italy we're told to give carrots as the first food. I used organic ones and peeled them to try and reduce nitrates as much as possible. We're also told to add a drop of oil to them (sunflower or olive) helps vitamin A absorption and eases any risk of constipation.

Infact in true Italian style my solid food introduction sheet recommends adding olive oil and a little Parmesan cheese - impossible that a vegetable could taste good in its natural state! Got to say I haven't done that - keeping dairy free for the first year.

[tstasko]

[quote author=lisi's mum link=topic=61722.msg457523#msg457523 date=1148907324

Infact in true Italian style my solid food introduction sheet recommends adding olive oil and a little Parmesan cheese - impossible that a vegetable could taste good in its natural state! Got to say I haven't done that - keeping dairy free for the first year.

LOL!  I'm Italian-American and my parents put olive oil on EVERYTHING!!