Benefits of onion
Onion has highly anti-inflammatory. This protects the immune system of your baby and you take a precaution against asthma. Researches show that onion helps guard against heart diseases. Besides this, onion play a major role in iron absorption.
Click here for ways to fight against iron deficiency.
Keep in mind
When you go to market, you will see onions in all shapes and colors. You may have difficulty in deciding which one to feed your baby. In fact shallots and onions with strong taste have the highest health benefits. However these may be too much for your little gourmets. So you'd better prefer the ones with mild taste and even the ones that are sweet like red onion and white onion.
Just keep the onions in a cool place. You can chop it and store it in the fridge inside freezer bag. This is a more practical method. Except scallion.
Tips
The hardest part is cutting it.... To prevent tears, keep it in the freezer half an hour before peeling it. And then cut it with a sharp knife. And cut the root of the onion. Cause it is the most tear inducing section.
Warning
Let's come to the most important question... When can I feed onion to my baby?
Onion is not the right food to give as the first solid food to your baby. But don't worry, your baby won't have to wait a lot to take advantage of nutritional benefits of the onion. If he does not have a digestion problem, you can introduce onion to your baby at month 7-8. However first you need to introduce other foods before onion.
The reason why you need to be so careful when feeding onion to your baby is not the risk of allergy. Allergy to onions is a very rare condition. Main problem with onion is the digestion problem. In some babies and even in some adults, onion may cause gas problem. However gas caused by onion varies from child to child. Gas problem may intimidate you but if you don't want to give up on onion, then don't give cooked onion to your babies. It is better not to give your baby raw onion before he turns one.
Don't give too much onion to your baby in the first try. Give him time to adopt. If you see that everything is going well, than you can increase the amount. However if your baby is not ready yet, you can wait a little more.
Sprouts are not good. Either eat it immediately or discard it. Cause it will lose its freshness.
Nutritional value per 160 gr. of chopped onion;
Protein 1.8 g
Vitamin A 3.2 IU
Vitamin C 11.8 mg
Calcium 36.8 mg
Iron 0.3 mg
Magnesium 16.0 mg
Phosphor 46.4 mg
Potassium 234 mg
Onion 8
What is onion: Onion is from the same family with leek and garlic and has anti-oxidant potential. It is rich in Vitamin C and increases iron absorption.