Giving Biscuits to Babies – Is It Safe?

Biscuits are a popular snack and we love to eat them with a cup of chai almost daily. Biscuits, especially the chocolate ones taste delicious and make for quick and easy treats for children. If you have a baby who has just started on solids (or is already nine months or above), you might be tempted to give biscuits to him. Biscuits might seem like a good snack for him as they are soft and easily dissolve in milk. But are they really good for your tiny munchkin? Think again before you give store-bought biscuits to your baby. Read this article to understand why biscuits are not a nutritious option for your little darling!

Video: Is It Safe to Give Biscuits to Babies?

Can You Give Biscuits to Your Baby?

Biscuits taste yummy, of course, and nowadays, you will find biscuits of different flavours, colours and textures. They make for an excellent snack for teatime or simply when you’re feeling a bit hungry. However, this only applies to adults. Biscuits are certainly not a healthy replacement for actual, healthy food when it comes to feeding your baby. Biscuits are not really good for babies. In fact, they are not good for toddlers and young kids too.

When to Give Biscuits to a Baby?

You can introduce your child to biscuits between the age of eight to twelve months. But remember that biscuits are not good for babies and even toddlers, so avoid giving biscuits to babies.

Reasons Why You Should Avoid Giving Store-Bought Biscuits to Babies

Although biscuits are tasty, they offer no nutrition to babies and children. From a nutrition standpoint, they have zero value. The ingredients used in making biscuits are not healthy at all. Hence, you should avoid giving biscuits to your little one. We have listed down the ingredients of biscuits that are unhealthy and the reasons for the same. We have also mentioned the possible problems that may arise if your baby eats store-bought biscuits.

1. They Contain Refined Wheat Flour

The main component of all biscuits is refined wheat flour or maida.  Refined wheat flour offers no nutrition and in fact, it takes a long time to get digested, overworking the digestive system even in adults. Babies do not have a developed digestive system and intestines and thus their intestines and digestive system may take a lot more time to digest maida. So, you must avoid giving biscuits that are made of refined flour to your baby.

2. They Contain Trans Fats

Trans fats are a certain kind of fat that is used in processed food to maintain their shape, flavour, and consistency. However, not only do they completely lack in nutrients, but can also cause serious health issues. They can cause an imbalance in the good and bad cholesterol levels in the body. Trans fats are known to cause vision problems, nervous disorders, allergic conditions, diabetes, and obesity. Many brands of biscuits mention that there is no trans fat in their product, but this is often misleading as there is almost always a small amount. Even this can be problematic for your baby.

3. They Offer Zero Nutrition

As mentioned above, store-bought biscuits offer zero nutrition to the baby. They basically contain refined wheat flour, unhealthy fats, sodium, potassium, and a host of harmful synthetic substances. Biscuits may satiate your child’s hunger but they will offer zero nutrition to your baby. This also applies to other foods like sweets, chocolates, cakes, soft drinks, and so on. These items are known as empty calorie foods, as they provide energy for basic body functioning but nothing else. So make sure you don’t give such foods to your baby.

4. They Have Additives in Them

Processed food items have additives in them which can be very harmful to babies. As biscuits contain substances that can spoil, they require preservatives such as BHA and BHT. These chemicals have been linked to an increased risk of cancer. Biscuits also require leavening agents during the baking process such as baking soda, which can cause stomach problems like acid reflux in babies and toddlers. Emulsifying agents like glycerol monostearate are used to keep the fatty substances and water together in the food item. However, they have been shown to influence intestinal bacteria, which can cause problems with the digestive system. Biscuits also have flavouring agents in them are almost always used in biscuits as natural flavours are not possible. So it’s best that you don’t give store-bought biscuits to your baby.

5. They Can Lead to Constipation

Biscuits have almost no dietary fibre or roughage in them. This could cause severe constipation in your baby and lead to serious complications such as anal fissures, vomiting, faecal blood, and so on.

6. They Have Too Much Sugar in Them

Processed foods like biscuits and soda have exorbitant amounts of refined sugar in them. Giving foods rich in sugar can lead to mild addiction such as sugar rush, making your baby crave for biscuits even at the expense of a healthy meal. Further, the sugar often used is known as inverted sugar, as it is considerably sweeter than glucose. It is used due to the small size of its crystals, allowing for a more uniform composition. Inverted sugar is hygroscopic, which means that it can hold moisture quite well, preventing the biscuits from drying on coming in contact with air, thus improving the shelf life of the product.

7. They Can Trigger Allergic Reactions

Biscuits contain allergenic substances like gluten and soy lecithin in them. These can cause an allergic reaction in your baby. The reactions might be simple such as skin rashes or dangerous such as difficulty breathing due to lung inflammation.

8. They Contain Salt

Salt is best avoided for babies as it is high in sodium content and is not required by the babies as they get enough of it from breast milk. Also, the consumption of high amounts of sodium can damage your little one’s kidneys.

9. They Have Milk Solids

Formula milk or breast milk are the only options for babies until six months of age. Some biscuits contain cow’s milk that has a high amount of proteins which can lead to lactose intolerance or digestion issues or damage the baby’s kidneys.

Which Biscuits Are Good for Babies?

You should avoid giving store-bought biscuits to your baby for all the reasons mentioned above. If you want to give biscuits to your baby, you can replace them with healthier snacks like fruits, nuts, and so on. Although biscuits are a complete no for babies, if you want to give one to your baby, we suggest you consider healthier alternatives. Here are options for the best biscuits for babies.

• Homemade Biscuits – You can make biscuits at home using healthy ingredients. You can use healthy ingredients like oats, ragi, millet, almonds, raisins, etc. Look for the recipes of some homemade biscuits on the internet and make them at home. Use healthy ingredients and bake healthy!
• Whole Wheat Biscuits – Whole wheat biscuits don’t have any refined wheat flour in them. You can buy them from any grocery store or make them at home.
• Oat Biscuits – Biscuits made using oats and brown sugar rather than white flour are suitable for babies.
• Millet Biscuits – You can give your little one a biscuit made using millet cookies, as they are one of the best digestive biscuits that are rich in contain dietary fibre.
• Ragi Biscuits – Ragi biscuits are healthy and nutritious biscuits which you can give to your kids, babies and toddlers.

Easy Homemade Recipes of Biscuits for Baby

Here are some very easy homemade biscuit recipes using the ingredients of the digestive and organic biscuit for babies that you can try:

1. Ragi Biscuits

What You Will Need

• 4 cups ragi flour
• 2 cups ghee
• 1½ cup jaggery powder
• 2tsp baking soda
• 2tbsp cardamom powder
• 2tbsp dry fruit powder
• 2tbsp sesame seeds (roasted)

How to Make

1. Preheat the oven to 320°F and grease the baking tray.
2. Take a pan and put it on low flame, and dry roast ragi flour until you get the aroma of the flour.
3. Add ghee, dry fruit powder, sesame seeds, cardamom powder, jaggery, and baking soda into the pan and turn off the flame and mix well.
4. Using the dough, make small balls and place them on the baking tray.
5. Flatten them by pressing them with the back of a spoon.
6. Place the baking tray into the oven and let it bake for about 20 minutes.
7. Transfer the ragi biscuits into an airtight container and store them in the refrigerator for up to a week.

2. Whole-Wheat Biscuits

What You Will Need

• 1 cup whole-wheat flour
• 1tsp baking powder
• ½ cup ghee (melted)
• ½ cup jaggery powder
• ¼ tsp cardamom powder
• 2tbsp milk
• 1tbsp dry fruit powder
• 1tsp cumin seeds

How to Make

1. Preheat the oven to 338°F and grease the baking tray.
2. Sieve wheat flour and baking powder and add ghee, cumin seeds, and dry fruit powder to it.
3. Mix well until the mixture turns into a crumble.
4. Add jaggery powder and cardamom powder and mix well again.
5. Add milk to it while rolling the wheat flour, mix with your fingers, and make a dough. Refrigerate it for 20 minutes.
6. Divide the dough into small-small balls and flatten each to form a biscuit.
7. Place all the biscuits into the baking tray and bake for 20 minutes.
8. Let the biscuit come to room temperature, and then store them in an airtight container.

3. Oats Biscuit

What You Will Need

• 75g whole-wheat flour
• 75g rolled oats
• 75g ghee
• 50g jaggery powder
• 2tbsp milk
• 2tbsp almonds, cashew, and walnuts (finely chopped)
• 1tsp baking powder

How to Make

1. Preheat the oven to 356° and line a baking tray with parchment paper, and set it aside.
2. Sift the whole-wheat flour into a big bowl and add baking powder, oats, and jaggery to it.
3. Heat milk and ghee over low heat for five minutes and add it to the dry ingredients above, and mix.
4. Line the mixture onto the baking tray using a spoon and shape them using the spoon’s back.
5. Put the tray into the oven and bake the biscuits for 15 minutes.
6. After 15 minutes, leave the tray aside for the biscuits to cool down and then store them in a container that is airtight in the refrigerator.

FAQs

1. Can I Give Buttermilk Rusk Biscuits to My Baby?

You should avoid giving your child buttermilk rusk if they are under six months of age.

2. How Frequently Can My Baby Eat Biscuits?

Biscuits for infants are not good, and therefore, you should give them in moderation to your child.

3. Are There Any Choking Hazards While Giving Biscuits to Babies?

You should always test the biscuits as a choking hazard before giving them to your baby. Take a small bite from the biscuit and see if it crumbles or dissolves. If the biscuit breaks easily, it can be a choking hazard. But if the biscuit dissolves, it is safe to be consumed by your child.

If your baby has started eating solid foods, there are a lot of tasty food items that you can give him. If it gets difficult to decide, you can always choose fresh organic food items like fresh fruits and vegetables. You can prepare a variety of dishes with these ingredients such as salads, smoothies, and veggies. You can also give him dal, rice, chapati, etc. If your child gets bored with these, you can replace them with healthy homemade biscuits as the occasional snack, while strictly avoiding commercial or processed foods.

References/Resources:

1. Added sugar in kids’ diets: How much is too much?; publications.aap.org; https://publications.aap.org/aapnews/news/7331?autologincheck=redirected

2. Trans Fats; heart.org; https://www.heart.org/en/healthy-living/healthy-eating/eat-smart/fats/trans-fat

3. Feeding patterns and diet – children 6 months to 2 years; medlineplus.gov/; https://medlineplus.gov/ency/patientinstructions/000713.htm

4. Teeth development in children; betterhealth.vic.gov.au; https://www.betterhealth.vic.gov.au/health/conditionsandtreatments/teeth-development-in-children

5. Can My Baby Eat Biscuits? What to Know; sleepbaby.org; https://sleepbaby.org/giving-baby-biscuits/

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