First foods database
🍯 Date syrup for babies: when and how to serve it
Can babies have date syrup? It is best left until after 12 months. Although made from fruit, date syrup counts as a free sugar, like maple syrup or honey, and babies do not need added sugar. Mashed or blended fruit sweetens food just as well.
Good source of: Carbohydrate, Potassium
How to serve date syrup by age
6 to 9 months
Not yet. Sweeten porridge and baking with mashed ripe banana, grated apple or puréed soaked dates, which keep their fibre. This also helps babies enjoy less-sweet tastes.
9 to 12 months
Still not needed. Blend a few soaked, pitted dates with water into a paste for baking, or stir mashed fruit into yoghurt instead.
12 months and up
An occasional small drizzle, around half a teaspoon, on porridge or in baking is fine, ideally at mealtimes to protect teeth. Mashed fruit is still the everyday choice.
Choking safety
Date syrup is not a choking risk, but it is sticky and clings to teeth. Whole dates can be a choking risk, so pit, soak and chop or blend them.
Gagging is common and noisy while babies learn to eat. Choking is usually silent. Always stay with your baby while they eat, sitting upright. How to help a choking baby (NHS).
Good to know
- Counts as a free sugar.
- Sticky: offer with meals and brush teeth twice a day.
Goes well with
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Questions parents ask
Can babies eat date syrup?
Can babies have date syrup? It is best left until after 12 months. Although made from fruit, date syrup counts as a free sugar, like maple syrup or honey, and babies do not need added sugar. Mashed or blended fruit sweetens food just as well.
Is date syrup healthier than sugar for babies?
It has tiny amounts of minerals but is still a free sugar, best saved until after 12 months.
Can babies have dates?
Yes. Pitted, soaked and chopped or blended dates are fine from about 6 months.
Does date syrup cause tooth decay?
Like any sugar it can. Keep it to mealtimes, small amounts, and brush teeth twice a day.
Sources
- NHS Start for Life: Weaning
- NHS: Foods to avoid giving babies and young children
- NHS: What to feed young children
OBubba gives general information based on UK guidance. It is not medical advice and does not diagnose anything. Every baby is different. If your baby has a known allergy, severe eczema or a medical condition, speak to your doctor or health visitor before starting solids. Learn baby first aid, and in an emergency call your local emergency number (999 in the UK).