Infant cereal
A simple iron-fortified first food. Mix it thin, then thicker as your baby learns.
Checked against official guidance on October 18, 2026 · How we review
Quick answer
Babies can eat infant cereal from around 6 months, once they show signs of being ready for solids. Prepare it as shown below.
How to serve infant cereal by age
6 months+
Smooth cereal on a pre-loaded spoon
Mix dry infant cereal with breast milk, formula or water until smooth. Start runny, then make it thicker over the first weeks as your baby learns to swallow. Offer it from a spoon. Don't put cereal in a bottle unless your doctor recommends it for reflux.
- Size
- A pre-loaded spoon of smooth cereal, mixed thin at first, then thicker.
- Check before serving
- Stir out any dry lumps. For the first tastes, it should slide slowly off a tipped spoon.
US and UK advice differ here. The AAP suggests mashed food or soft pieces no larger than ½ inch; the NHS suggests soft finger-sized pieces your baby can hold in their fist. Both agree the food must squash easily.
9 months+
Thicker cereal mixed with other foods
Mix it thicker and stir in mashed fruit or vegetables your baby already eats. Let your baby hold the spoon and practice.
- Size
- Thick, spoonable cereal, with any soft fruit stirred in as pieces no bigger than about 1 cm (just under ½ inch).
- Check before serving
- Any fruit pieces should squash easily between your thumb and finger.
12 months+
Cereal or baked into soft foods
Keep offering it at breakfast, or stir it into oatmeal, yogurt or pancake batter. Cook pancakes all the way through.
- Size
- Thick cereal, or soft pancakes cut into pieces about 1 cm (just under ½ inch).
- Check before serving
- Pancakes should be soft and cooked through, with no wet batter in the middle.
18 months+
Part of a varied breakfast
Infant cereal can stay part of breakfast as long as you like. Rotate grains (oat, barley, wheat, multigrain) rather than using only rice cereal, and keep other iron-rich foods in the mix, such as meat, beans and lentils.
- Size
- Bite-sized pieces about 1 cm (just under ½ inch) when baked into foods.
Always have your child sit upright in a high chair or at the table, and stay with them the whole time they eat. Keep to the size and texture for their stage. Every baby develops on their own timeline.
How to prepare infant cereal
- 1
Choose a cereal made for babies and fortified with iron. Rotate grains: oat, barley, wheat and multigrain, not only rice.
- 2
Spoon a little dry cereal into a bowl and stir in breast milk, formula or water, a little at a time, until smooth.
- 3
Mix it thin for the first tastes, then thicker as your baby gets used to it.
- 4
Serve from a spoon. Don't put cereal in a bottle unless your doctor recommends it for reflux.
- 5
First time with a new grain? Offer it earlier in the day, so you can watch your baby for a few hours afterward. Rice, oats and barley can cause a delayed reaction: see when to call the doctor.
How much to offer
Start with a teaspoon or two of mixed cereal, and increase gradually. Your baby decides how much to eat: stop when they turn away or close their mouth.
Common mistakes
Putting cereal in a bottle
The AAP warns that cereal in a bottle can cause choking and can lead to your baby eating more than they need. If your baby has reflux, ask your pediatrician before thickening feeds.
Only ever using rice cereal
Rice takes up more arsenic than other grains. Rotate in oat, barley, wheat or multigrain cereal.
Choosing a cereal that isn't made for babies
Check the label says it's made for babies and fortified with iron.
Mixing it too thick at first
Babies new to spoon foods often push thick cereal back out. Start thin and thicken it gradually.
Where US and UK guidance differ on infant cereal
United States(AAP and CDC)Your setting
The AAP lists iron-fortified infant cereal among good early foods, alongside meat, and advises rotating oat, barley and multigrain cereals rather than only rice. The FDA's action level for inorganic arsenic in infant rice cereal is 100 parts per billion.
United Kingdom(NHS)Your setting
The NHS says babies don't need baby rice to start solids, and suggests iron from meat, fish, fortified breakfast cereals, dark green vegetables, beans and lentils. The UK sets maximum levels of inorganic arsenic in rice products, with stricter limits for foods for young children.
We cover US and UK guidance in detail. Elsewhere, check your national health service's advice too.
Questions parents ask
Can infant cereal be a choking hazard for babies?
Infant cereal mixed smooth is a low choking risk. Don't put it in a bottle unless your doctor recommends it for reflux: the AAP warns that cereal in a bottle can cause choking. Stay with your baby during meals.
Can babies be allergic to infant cereal?
Rice and oat infant cereals don't contain a common allergen, but whole wheat and multigrain cereals can contain wheat. Read the label, and offer a wheat cereal on its own the first time. Rice, oats and barley are common triggers of FPIES, a delayed reaction: see when to call the doctor.
Is infant cereal healthy for babies?
Infant cereals are fortified with iron: FoodData Central lists about 53 mg of iron per 100 g of dry rice infant cereal and 64 mg per 100 g of dry oatmeal infant cereal, so 1 tablespoon of dry cereal (before mixing) gives about 1 to 2 mg, a real share of the 11 mg a day babies aged 7 to 12 months need. Amounts vary by brand, so check the label.
Does my baby need rice cereal as a first food?
No. Rice cereal doesn't need to be your baby's first or only cereal: oat, barley and multigrain cereals work just as well. In the UK, the NHS says babies don't need baby rice to start solids.
Is there arsenic in rice cereal?
Rice takes up more arsenic than other grains, so rice cereal can contain some. The FDA has set an action level of 100 parts per billion of inorganic arsenic for infant rice cereal, and the AAP advises rotating grains rather than serving only rice cereal.
Will cereal in a bottle help my baby sleep?
Don't put cereal in a bottle: the AAP says it can cause choking and overfeeding. The NHS also says babies don't need baby rice to sleep better. If your baby has reflux, talk to your pediatrician.
Which infant cereal is best?
Any cereal made for babies and fortified with iron. Rotating grains is a good idea, and the AAP notes multigrain infant cereals can be a good choice. Oat cereal also has more fiber than rice cereal.
If your baby refuses infant cereal
- Many babies need 10 or more tries before they accept a new food. Keep offering it alongside foods they already like.
- Try it thinner or thicker. Some babies prefer one or the other.
- Mix in a fruit or vegetable your baby already likes.
- Try a different grain, such as oat instead of rice.
Never force or pressure your baby to eat. Some days they'll eat more, some days less, and that's normal.
Buying and storing infant cereal
- Keep dry cereal sealed in a cool, dry place, and use it by the date on the pack.
- Mix only as much as your baby is likely to eat, just before serving, and throw away any mixed cereal left in the bowl after the meal.
- Throw away any food left out at room temperature for more than 2 hours (1 hour if it's hotter than 90°F / 32°C).
When to talk to your doctor
Contact your pediatrician, GP or health visitor if:
- Your baby vomits a few hours after eating rice, oat or barley cereal. This can be FPIES, a delayed type of food allergy that grains such as rice, oats and barley can trigger. If they vomited once or twice and seem alert and like themselves, call your pediatrician or GP. If they vomit again and again, or are pale, floppy, very sleepy or hard to wake, call your emergency number.
- Your baby has reflux and you're thinking of thickening feeds. Talk to your pediatrician first; don't add cereal to a bottle on your own.
- You notice mild signs of an allergic reaction after eating, such as a few hives or a little vomiting. See signs of a reaction.
- You're worried about how much your baby eats, their growth, or they refuse most solid food for weeks.
Call 911999your local emergency number (such as 112 in Europe or 000 in Australia) now if your baby has trouble breathing, wheezing, can't cough or cry, has lips, mouth, tongue or throat that suddenly swell, or becomes pale, bluish, floppy or unresponsive. Also call if hives come with repeated vomiting.
Offered infant cereal?
Add it to your first 100 foods.
Infant cereal is in your 100 foods
1 of 100 offered · See all
Add a note (likes, dislikes, any reaction)
Saved in this browser only. Think it was a reaction? See signs of an allergic reaction and when to get help.
Helpful guides
Sources
- AAP: When can babies start solid foods?
- AAP: Heavy metals in baby food
- FDA: Action level for inorganic arsenic in rice cereals for infants
- NHS: Your baby's first solid foods
- NHS: Foods to avoid giving babies and young children
- NHS Best Start in Life: Storing and reheating food
- ACAAI: Food protein-induced enterocolitis syndrome (FPIES)
- NIH Office of Dietary Supplements: Iron
- USDA FoodData Central: Babyfood, cereal, rice, dry fortified
- USDA FoodData Central: Babyfood, cereal, oatmeal, dry fortified
- USDA FSIS: Leftovers and food safety
More first foods
Free printable: The First 100 Foods checklist
Tick off foods as your baby tries them. Print it or save it as a PDF, no sign-up needed.