| Age | Can they have it? | How to serve it |
|---|---|---|
| 4 months | Wait | Not yet — see above. |
| 6 months | Yes | Smooth hummus, thinned if it is thick, spread thinly on soft bread or mixed into another food — not a spoonful, because it contains tahini and thick nut and seed butters are a choking hazard. |
| 9 months | Yes | Smooth hummus, thinned if it is thick, spread thinly on soft bread or mixed into another food — not a spoonful, because it contains tahini and thick nut and seed butters are a choking hazard. |
| 12 months | Yes | Spread thinly. Choose a low-salt one or make it without salt. |
| 18 months | Yes | Spread thinly. Choose a low-salt one or make it without salt. |
| 2 years | Yes | Spread thinly. Choose a low-salt one or make it without salt. |
Cut food for infants and young children into pieces no larger than one-half inch. Cut cylindrical foods (hot dogs, sausage, string cheese) into short thin strips — round pieces can get stuck in the airway. Cut small spherical foods (grapes, cherries, berries, tomatoes) into small pieces. Cook hard vegetables and fruit until they mash easily. Remove seeds, hard pits, skin and bones.
Hummus is not on the AAP or CDC choking-hazard lists. That is not the same as no risk: any food can choke a baby if the piece is too big or the wrong shape. Cut it to no larger than half an inch, keep your baby sitting up in a high chair, keep mealtimes calm, and watch them the whole time they are eating.
Hummus is one of the common allergens (sesame). The current AAP guidance is to introduce it EARLY rather than delay it: newer research found no benefit to waiting, and for peanut, waiting can increase the chance of an allergy. Offer a small amount in an infant-safe form, watch for a reaction, and then keep it in the diet regularly. If your baby has severe or persistent eczema, or has already had an immediate allergic reaction to a food, especially egg, talk to your pediatrician first about how and when to introduce it.
Watch for diarrhea, rash, vomiting or hives after a new food. Call 911 for trouble breathing or swelling of the face, lips or tongue.
Hummus is two allergens' worth of good news at once: chickpeas (a bean the CDC names among vegetables to offer from ~6 months) and sesame tahini, which the AAP names as a suitable infant form of sesame. Watch the salt — shop-bought hummus can be high in sodium.
Yes, from about 6 months, once your baby has started solids — served in the right form for their age. Hummus is two allergens' worth of good news at once: chickpeas (a bean the CDC names among vegetables to offer from ~6 months) and sesame tahini, which the AAP names as a suitable infant form of sesame. Watch the salt — shop-bought hummus can be high in sodium.
From 6 months: Smooth hummus, thinned if it is thick, spread thinly on soft bread or mixed into another food — not a spoonful, because it contains tahini and thick nut and seed butters are a choking hazard. From 12 months: Spread thinly. Choose a low-salt one or make it without salt. Cut food for infants and young children into pieces no larger than one-half inch. Cut cylindrical foods (hot dogs, sausage, string cheese) into short thin strips — round pieces can get stuck in the airway. Cut small spherical foods (grapes, cherries, berries, tomatoes) into small pieces. Cook hard vegetables and fruit until they mash easily. Remove seeds, hard pits, skin and bones.
Hummus is not on the AAP or CDC choking-hazard lists, but any food can choke a baby if the piece is too big. Cut it to no larger than half an inch, keep your baby sitting up while they eat, and watch them the whole time.
Watch for diarrhea, rash, vomiting or hives after a new food. Call 911 for trouble breathing or swelling of the face, lips or tongue. Offer one single-ingredient new food at a time and wait 3 to 5 days before the next one, so a reaction is easy to trace. Call 911 for trouble breathing or swelling of the face, lips or tongue.