When can babies eat lychee?

From around 6 months, once your baby is ready for solids, served in a safe shape and texture for their age.

Lychee

Sweet and fragrant. Always peeled, stone out, and cut into quarters, top to bottom.

Checked against official guidance on October 18, 2026 · How we review

Quick answer

Babies can eat lychee from around 6 months, once they show signs of being ready for solids. Prepare it as shown below.

From 6 monthsHigh choking risk as servedNot a common allergen

How to serve lychee by age

6 months+

Peeled, stoned, quartered lengthwise and flattened, or finely chopped

Peel a ripe lychee, cut it in half from top to bottom and take out the stone and the thin brown skin around it. Cut each half lengthwise again to make quarters, then press each quarter flat with your finger. Or chop the flesh finely and stir it into a food your baby already eats, like oatmeal or plain full-fat yogurt (once dairy has been introduced on its own). Offer it as part of a meal.

Size: Each peeled, stoned lychee cut lengthwise (top to bottom) into quarters (4 small pieces), then pressed flat. Or chopped finely and stirred into a soft food.
Check before serving: Check the plate before serving: no shell, no stones, and no round or slippery whole pieces left. Each piece should flatten with gentle pressure.

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.

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 lychee

1
Choose ripe lychees with red or pinkish shells. Rinse them under running water, gently rubbing the shells, before peeling.
2
Peel off the shell with your fingers. Cut each lychee in half from top to bottom and take out the stone and the thin brown skin around it. Check every one.
3
Cut each half from top to bottom again, to make 4 long quarters.
4
For young babies, press each quarter flat or chop the flesh finely. Check the plate for any stones, shell or round pieces you missed.

How much to offer

Start with one or two lychees, peeled, stoned and quartered, as part of a meal. Your baby decides how much to eat: stop when they turn away or close their mouth. A few pieces alongside other foods is plenty: lychee is a side, not a meal.

Common mistakes

Serving lychees whole

A whole lychee is round, slippery and has a hard stone, the kind of food that can block a child's airway. Always peel it, take out the stone and cut it lengthwise into quarters.

Missing a stone

The stone is large and hard. Cut every lychee open, and never let a child suck or bite the flesh off the stone.

Letting a child fill up on lychees

Offer a few pieces with a meal, never in place of one. In a lychee-growing area of India, outbreaks of a serious illness with low blood sugar in children were linked to eating lychees, and the risk was higher in children who had missed their evening meal.

Using canned lychees in syrup

Syrup is added sugar, which babies don't need. If you use canned lychees, pick ones in juice or water, drain them, and quarter every piece.

Where US and UK guidance differ on lychee

United States(AAP and CDC)Your setting

The AAP advises cooking most fruit until soft before 12 months, except mashed banana, and lists fruit chunks among foods to avoid under 1. If you follow US advice, mash peeled, stoned lychee, or chop it finely and stir it into a soft food.

United Kingdom(NHS)Your setting

The NHS says to cut small round fruits into quarters and to always remove hard pips or stones. Peel, stone and quarter every lychee lengthwise, and press the quarters flat or chop them finely for young babies.

We cover US and UK guidance in detail. Elsewhere, check your national health service's advice too.

Questions parents ask

Can lychee be a choking hazard for babies?

Whole lychees are a choking hazard for young children. Like a grape, a peeled lychee is round, smooth and slippery, and the stone is large and hard. The AAP lists whole grapes among foods to avoid or modify for young children, the CDC lists whole pieces of canned fruit, and the NHS says to cut small round fruits into quarters and always remove stones. Always peel, take out the stone, cut lengthwise into quarters, make sure your child sits down to eat, and stay with them.

Can babies be allergic to lychee?

Lychee is not a common allergen.

Is lychee healthy for babies?

Lychee is rich in vitamin C: raw lychee has about 72 mg per 100 g. It also gives some potassium (about 171 mg per 100 g) and a little fiber. It is not a major source of iron.

How should I cut lychee for a baby?

Peel off the shell, cut the lychee in half from top to bottom, and take out the stone and the thin brown skin around it. Then cut each half from top to bottom again, to make 4 long quarters. For young babies, press the quarters flat or chop them finely.

Is it true lychee can lower blood sugar?

Lychee contains natural substances (hypoglycin A and MCPG) that can lower blood sugar. In a lychee-growing area of India, investigations by Indian and US CDC teams linked outbreaks of a serious illness with low blood sugar in young children to eating lychees, and the risk was higher in children who had missed their evening meal. The substances were found in the flesh of the fruit, the part people eat, and the youngest children who became ill were more likely to be undernourished. The investigators advised limiting how many lychees children eat and making sure they have had their evening meal. For your child: offer a few pieces as part of a meal, never on an empty stomach or in place of a meal. If a child has a seizure, is very sleepy or confused, or is hard to wake after eating lychees, call your emergency number.

Can babies eat canned lychees?

Yes, if they're in juice or water rather than syrup. Drain them and peel, stone and quarter every piece. Whole pieces of canned fruit are on the CDC's choking hazard list.

If your baby refuses lychee

Many babies need 10 or more tries before they accept a new food. Keep offering it alongside foods they already like.
If the slippery texture bothers your baby, chop the flesh finely and stir it into yogurt or oatmeal.
Eat some yourself at the same meal. Babies copy what they see.
Funny faces don't mean they dislike it. They're getting used to a new taste and texture.

Never force or pressure your baby to eat. Some days they'll eat more, some days less, and that's normal.

Buying and storing lychee

Keep fresh lychees in their shells in the fridge, at or below 40°F (4°C).
Peeled, stoned and cut lychee keeps for 3 to 4 days in a covered container in the fridge.
Don't give frozen lychees to babies or toddlers, even quartered: frozen pieces are hard.
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:

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 lychee?

Add it to your first 100 foods.

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