SAFE FROM
6 months
Yes, from about 6 months, once your baby has started solids — served in the right form for their age.
CDCCDC
| Age | Can they have it? | How to serve it |
|---|---|---|
| 4 months | Wait | Not yet — see above. |
| 6 months | Yes | As fortified infant barley cereal, or cooked and finely ground or mashed — the CDC says to cook and finely grind or mash whole-grain kernels of wheat, barley, rice and other grains. |
| 9 months | Yes | As fortified infant barley cereal, or cooked and finely ground or mashed — the CDC says to cook and finely grind or mash whole-grain kernels of wheat, barley, rice and other grains. |
| 12 months | Yes | Cooked very soft and mashed. Whole cooked grain kernels are on the choking-hazard list. |
| 18 months | Yes | Cooked very soft and mashed. Whole cooked grain kernels are on the choking-hazard list. |
| 2 years | Yes | Cooked very soft and mashed. Whole cooked grain kernels are on the choking-hazard list. |
FROM 6 MONTHS
As fortified infant barley cereal, or cooked and finely ground or mashed — the CDC says to cook and finely grind or mash whole-grain kernels of wheat, barley, rice and other grains.
FROM 12 MONTHS
Cooked very soft and mashed. Whole cooked grain kernels are on the choking-hazard list.
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.
Yes — Barley and whole grains are one of the foods the AAP and CDC name on their choking-hazard lists. The danger is almost always the shape rather than the food itself, which is why the serving form above is the whole answer. Cut everything to no larger than half an inch, cut cylindrical foods into short thin strips rather than rounds, and quarter anything round.
Barley and whole grains are not one of the common allergens. Introduce it on its own anyway and wait 3 to 5 days before the next new food, so if your baby does react to something you know what it was.
Watch for diarrhea, rash, vomiting or hives after a new food. Call 911 for trouble breathing or swelling of the face, lips or tongue.
Barley cereal is one of the alternatives the CDC recommends rotating with rice cereal to limit arsenic exposure.
Getting your kitchen ready for solids? These are the feeding sets, first-foods spoons and storage containers parents actually reach for — general baby gear, not the food on this page, and nothing here changes the answer above.
Baby feeding & food-storage essentials on Amazon ↗
Ad · Affiliate link — we may earn a commission at no cost to you. It links to general baby-feeding gear, never the food on this page, and it never changes our answer.
If you are working through the Grains group, the same serving and allergen questions come up for oatmeal / oat cereal, pasta and chips and pretzels. Each one has its own introduction age and choking guidance — they are not interchangeable.
Yes, from about 6 months, once your baby has started solids — served in the right form for their age. Barley cereal is one of the alternatives the CDC recommends rotating with rice cereal to limit arsenic exposure.
From 6 months: As fortified infant barley cereal, or cooked and finely ground or mashed — the CDC says to cook and finely grind or mash whole-grain kernels of wheat, barley, rice and other grains. From 12 months: Cooked very soft and mashed. Whole cooked grain kernels are on the choking-hazard list.
Barley and whole grains are on the AAP and CDC choking-hazard lists. Cut food into pieces no larger than half an inch, cut cylindrical foods into short thin strips rather than rounds, and cut small round foods into small pieces. Keep the highest-risk foods away until at least 4 years, judged on your own child.
Watch for diarrhea, rash, vomiting or hives after a new food. 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. The emergency signs are at the top of this page.