First foods database
🥣 Oats for babies: when and how to serve it
Can babies eat oats? Yes, from about 6 months. Oats are a filling, nourishing first food with fibre, iron and zinc, and they turn into porridge, pancakes and soft baked fingers. Oats are often handled alongside wheat, so treat them as a gluten-containing food.
Good source of: Iron, Fibre, Zinc, Magnesium
How to serve oats by age
6 to 9 months
Cook porridge oats with breast milk, formula or whole cow's milk until thick and smooth, then cool. Load a spoon and let baby grab it. For a finger food, bake oats mashed with ripe banana into soft fingers.
9 to 12 months
Thicker porridge with mashed fruit, oat pancakes, and soft oat and apple bars cut into fingers.
12 months and up
Porridge, overnight oats, oat bakes and homemade flapjacks with no added sugar for the whole family.
Choking safety
Cooked oats are soft and low risk. Dry raw oats in a mouthful can be sticky and claggy, so mix into wet foods.
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
- Oats may contain gluten through contamination: choose certified gluten-free oats if advised.
- Choose plain oats, not sweetened instant pots.
Introducing it as an allergen
It contains gluten, one of the 14 major allergens. How to introduce gluten
Easy ideas
- Banana porridge with smooth peanut butter
- Oat and apple fingers
- Oat pancakes with squashed blueberries
Goes well with
Recipes with oats
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Questions parents ask
Can babies eat oats?
Can babies eat oats? Yes, from about 6 months. Oats are a filling, nourishing first food with fibre, iron and zinc, and they turn into porridge, pancakes and soft baked fingers. Oats are often handled alongside wheat, so treat them as a gluten-containing food.
Can babies have porridge?
Yes. Plain porridge oats cooked with milk are a great first food from about 6 months.
Are oats gluten free?
Oats are often contaminated with wheat during growing and milling. Certified gluten-free oats are available if your baby needs them.
Sources
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).