Cheerios

Dry Os are small and crisp. They soften when wet, but they aren't made to melt like baby puffs, and the CDC advises avoiding small, hard foods that are difficult to chew and swallow. Soak them soft for young babies, offer dry Os only once your baby has a pincer grip and the wet-fingertip check (our suggestion) passes, and put a few on the tray at a time. Have your child sit up to eat, and stay with your child during meals.

Plain O-shaped oat cereal is made mostly from whole grain oats, which are not one of the top allergens. In the UK, cereal sold under this name is multigrain and contains wheat and barley (see the US and UK note). Oats don't contain wheat, but they can pick up traces of it during manufacturing: if your child has a wheat allergy, the ACAAI advises avoiding products with warnings such as "made on shared equipment with wheat", and these warnings are voluntary. Some O-shaped cereals are multigrain and contain wheat or barley, and flavored ones can contain milk, peanut or tree nuts, so read the label and introduce each allergen on its own first. Oats are a common trigger of FPIES, a delayed reaction: see when to call the doctor.

The plain US label for this brand (in FoodData Central) lists 12.6 mg of iron per 39 g serving, about 32 mg per 100 g, because the iron is added, so 5 g of dry cereal, soaked for a young baby, gives about 1.6 mg, a good share of the 11 mg a day babies aged 7 to 12 months need. A few dry Os on the tray give much less. The same label lists 2 g of total sugars, including 1 g of added sugar, per 39 g serving, close to the NHS 'low' line of 5 g per 100 g. It lists 190 mg of sodium per serving, about 1.2 g of salt per 100 g: under the NHS high line of 1.5 g per 100 g, but not low. A 5 g portion has about 25 mg of sodium. Recipes change, so check the label.

Yes, plain ones, prepared for their stage. Soak them in breast milk, formula or water and mash them for young babies. Once your baby has a pincer grip (most often at 9 to 10 months, says the AAP), a few dry Os make good finger food. The AAP lists dry cereals, naming this one, among favorite finger foods.

They soften with saliva or milk, but they aren't made to melt like baby puffs. Do the wet-fingertip check (our suggestion): an O pressed against a wet fingertip should soften and crush easily. If it stays hard, soak the cereal before serving.

No. The NHS says not to give honey until after 1 year, so skip cereal made or coated with honey before then. US and UK advice is also to avoid added sugar, including honey, until after age 4. Plain Os are the version for babies and toddlers.

In the US, plain O-shaped oat cereal is made mostly from oats, which don't contain wheat, but oats can pick up traces of wheat during manufacturing (ACAAI). In the UK, cereal sold as Cheerios is multigrain and contains wheat and barley, so it contains gluten. Read the label, and if your child has a wheat allergy or celiac disease, ask your allergist or dietitian which brands are safe.