Does anyone else feed their toddler spices?

Question

My son loves garlic, onion, chili peppers, curry, etc. I started giving him ginger and he got a rash, so I called his allergist and told the nurse and she was upset with me that I give a toddler spices like that. I didn't think there was anything wrong with it, especially since these spices are healthy for him. Does anyone else give their toddlers spices?

He does have an allergist. He's allergic to many different foods, mostly grains and proteins.
We do carefully go one food at a time. Ginger was the new one this week.
I would hate to limit the spices, especially since there's so much already that he can't have.
But I didn't think it would be bad to try ginger, the allergist never mentioned not trying spices.

Mystic - That's funny that you mentioned that he gets everything I eat through breast milk, because the whole time I was pregnant and even through most of breastfeeding, I couldn't stand even the smell of ginger.

Thanks everyone for all the great responses and links. I can't chose one, so I'll put it to a vote.

Answer 1

My daughter absolutely LOVES any kind of ethnic foods..........same stuff as you mentioned. In fact, my problem is that she wont eat normal foods like mashed potatoes, green beans, etc.!

Answer 2

My son loves garlic and chili. He has probably had ginger too. I do baby-led introduction to solids which in a nutshell means he eats what I eat and has since he started foods at 6.5 months, however this method is probably not appropriate to your situation but here is the link anyway:
http://www.borstvoeding.com/voedselintroductie/vast_voedsel/rapley_guidelines.html

However if you breastfed your toddler has already been exposed to garlic, and onion, and chilli and currey if you eat these things. It has been shown that if the mom eats garlic not only does her milk taste slightly garlicky most babies drink more (so nursing moms can definitely eat garlic).

I would suggest that this allergist and you do not seem to be a very good fit and perhaps a second opinion would be a good plan.

Answer 3

No problems with spicy foods here, except that about half of my kiddos like it, and half don't. We usually start solids sometime between 6-12 months (when the child shows *physical* signs of readiness like loss of the tongue-thrust reflex, and decrease in the gag reflex), starting out on some plainer, bland foods to rule out allergies, and progressing shortly to eating 100% table foods, spices included.

"Dune" picked up on something important, though-- if your child already has allergies, you will definitely want to be careful about watching for reactions when giving new foods, and possibly avoiding common allergens altogether (nuts, shellfish, chocolate, eggs, wheat, dairy, and many others...). But I would not personally give the ginger again as another suggested, if you are reasonably certain that the ginger is what caused the reaction. Maybe avoid it for a few months, and then try out a very small amount to see if there's another reaction.

As for the nurse, I'm not sure why s/he thought it such a horrible thing to have the child eating foods with spices and such. ??? As you mentioned and know well, they are extremely healthy and if the child likes them there's no reason not to give them.

HTH!

Answer 4

I can tell you that I ate spices and spiced foods as a toddler (except I didn't like actual chilis until I was much older---but I ate "chili" that had spices in it). As I grew up, I was never one of those children who insists on buttered noodles or some nonesense like that. I think that sort of behavior is due in large part to parents sheltering their children's tastebuds. Now as an adult, I have a very accepting palate, and love all kinds of food. Actually, that's been all through my life, and I credit the fact that my parents treated me like a normal person and gave me real and tatsy food from the time I could chew it!

There are certain things that children might have a hard time digesting properly when they're very young. My doctor specifically requested that my mother limit my intake of salami and pepperoni when I was under age 4. But that's limiting, not banning. And infants aren't supposed to have certain things like honey. I also recently read something about how more and more children have peanut sensitivites, and they were somehow relating that to feeding them peanut butter. I'm not sure about that, but I didn't eat a boatload of peanut butter as I child, because I only liked it in small amounts, paired with jelly. :) I don't see how ginger is a danger spice. It's used in so many sweet and baked goods, I'm sure lots of toddler-age children eat it.

I see you added details. This complicates things a bit. I've had not-so-positive experiences with allergists (they told me I was allergic to a LOT of things), so I don't know how to use that information. But it sounds to me like you're doing the right thing in slowly introducing new food items. And don't worry about the nurse. Maybe the doctor won't even agree with her! But the next time you see him, explain your goal: that you want your child to be able to eat lots of foods, and since he already has limitations, that means trying new things.

Answer 5

That surprises me that the nurse got upset. I have a home daycare business where I care for mostly toddlers and am required to follow a strict menu planning guide provided by the USDA. They always encourage the use of spices as it broadens the menu. My daycare kids love garlic, onions, etc.
The best thing to do is just keep a very close eye on your toddler when giving him anything new to watch for a reaction.

Remember though that children should not have honey! It can contain a form of Botulism that there young immune systems cannot handle.

Also, peanuts and shell fish are a very common allergy to have so be careful when feeding your child these items.

Answer 6

Well, she's not a toddler yet, but I give my eight month old "regular" food, including spices.

Spices are permitted, as long as you watch for allergic reactions. I give my baby food from my plate, and she does fine. She actually likes chili, chipotle, ginger, etc. Babies from certain cultures are fed spices pretty much from the time they start eating solid foods. It will get your baby accustomed to the flavors served in your home, as well. My hope in doing this is to NOT have a child who eats ONLY mashed potatoes and mac and cheese.

I found out through this that she has a mild reaction to cinnamon. IN food it never seemed to bother her, but if she plays with it and smears it on herself, she gets a rash, so, I don't give her any for now, just to be safe.

Answer 7

My baby is half hispanic and he gets whatever he wants even if it is spices. His dad says that he had it when he was younger and it helps because he can eat habineiro peppers and isnt picky. I am extremely picky but dont want my son to be so whatever he wants he gets that is the only way he can learn to like or dislike a food no matter what it is my son eats the chile on chips at every mexican restaurant we go to so dont worry he is fine let him eat whatever he wants especially if it is good for him. Just remembeer he is your child and you know what is best. The rash is common it is only from the spice it will come and go when he eats it.

Answer 8

I've always fed my children the same food I eat - once they had enough teeth to eat, that is. However - you should introduce new foods slowly and one at a time. This is important so if he does have an allergic reaction it will be easier to isolate the cause. Also, not everyone can tolerate spicy foods, watch for any signs discomfort. Otherwise - go for it! By introducing a larger food variety now you can maybe limit the pickiness most children exhibit later.

Answer 9

I do! I generally prefer mildly spiced foods, but my husband loves foods to be HOT. Since I'm cooking for a 20 month old and a soon-to-be-three year old (tomorrow--I can't believe it!) I try to make foods as mild as possible. My 3 year old got ahold of some of my husband's Flamin' Hot Cheetos a few months ago and went berzerk over them. He LOVED them and asked for more. I could see sweat beads on his nose, and he was asking for milk, but then he wanted more Cheetos. :) He also loves spicy Mexican food (taquitos, especially). He's not nuts on curry powder, but I think that's just because of the actual flavor--not the heat.

I also cook with a lot of onion and garlic. Not so much that it's overpowering, but I just love the flavor of them. :)

Answer 10

We feed our 16 mo. old the same stuff we eat. If it burns our tongue, then I don't give it because I am afraid she'll get a tummy ache. I have never heard of anyone holding back spices. One thing about what you said is that he HAS an allergist. If baby has allergy problems (especially to foods) I would go cautiously forward with what exotic things I introduced into his diet.

Answer 11

We always spice up our food & since my Grandson is starting to eat real food he gets what we eat,with gusto!!! When my daughter was as young as 2 yrs. old we lived on a farm and grew our own vegetables ,she would march down to the garden and sit down among the pepper plants & eat red hot cherry peppers & not break a sweat. She is now 24 yrs old & healthy as a horse, so I guess it won't hurt, but again all kids are different so if they spit it out or cry ,then you will know they don't like it.
Ed.S..