Babies can eat cheese from 6 months, when they start solids. Cheese is a choking risk until age 4 (firm in chunks), so serve it in the shape for your baby's age below. At 6 months: a long, thin, flat slice about 2 fingers wide, soft cheese spread thin on toast, or grated and sprinkled lightly into warm food. Why so big: babies this age grab with the whole hand, so a finger-sized piece with a bit sticking out of the fist is easiest to hold and gnaw, and gnawing helps them learn to chew. Feeding themselves carries no more risk of choking than being fed with a spoon; always stay with your baby while they eat.
- Other names and forms
- hard cheese, grated cheese and mild cheese
- Start
- 6 months, when solids begin
- Choking risk
- Until age 4 (firm in chunks)
- Common allergen
- Yes: milk
- Textures
- Mashed and finger food
How to cut and serve cheese by age
6 to 8 months
A long, thin, flat slice about 2 fingers wide, soft cheese spread thin on toast, or grated and sprinkled lightly into warm food. Why so big: babies this age grab with the whole hand, so a finger-sized piece with a bit sticking out of the fist is easiest to hold and gnaw, and gnawing helps them learn to chew. Feeding themselves carries no more risk of choking than being fed with a spoon; always stay with your baby while they eat.
9 to 11 months
Grated, or flat pieces about 1 cm, the size of a chickpea, cut from a thin slice; soft cheese spread thin on toast. No cubes. Why smaller now: between about 9 and 12 months babies learn to pick food up between thumb and finger, and small soft pieces let them practice. Babies who don't move on to lumpy food by about 9 to 10 months are more likely to have feeding difficulties later.
12 months until age 4
Thin slices, shreds, flat pieces about 1 cm, or melted in a thin layer over toast with no globs. No cubes or chunks until age 4.
Age 4 and up
Once your child chews well, pasteurized cheese in cubes, sticks or slices, eaten sitting down; if not yet, no cubes. Brie, camembert, blue only cooked until steaming hot.
Sito shows this card at your baby's exact age, for 583 foods.
Choking: why the shape matters
Why cheese is a choking risk: firm in chunks. Until age 4, serve it only in the shapes above. The AAP names chunks of cheese or string cheese among the foods to keep from children under 4.
The AAP also advises supervising mealtimes, having children sit down when they eat, and taking a CPR and first aid course.
Cheese and food allergy
Milk is one of the nine major food allergens. ASCIA, the Australasian allergy society, advises introducing common allergy foods in the first year, by 12 months, one new one at a meal, and once a food is tolerated, keeping it in the diet at least once a week.
If your baby has severe eczema or a known food allergy, talk to your doctor before offering common allergy foods.
Signs of a reaction soon after a food include swelling of the lips, face or eyes, hives or welts, vomiting, and a sudden change in behavior. Difficult or noisy breathing, a swollen tongue, or a baby who turns pale and floppy is an emergency: call 911 or your local emergency number.
Nutrients
USDA figures per 100 g (Cheese, cheddar): iron 0.16 mg, zinc 3.7 mg, calcium 707 mg and vitamin A 316 mcg. Household measures from USDA: 1 slice is about 17 g and 1 cup is about 105 g.
Starting Solids in the Sito app
Sito is our app. From 4 months, the home screen is Starting Solids: the signs of readiness, how to serve each of 583 foods at your baby's age, and a quick log for every taste. Spears to grip or mashed on a spoon, each food's card shows the shapes that fit your baby's age, and swipes ahead to how it changes as they grow.
The Allergen Ladder takes 9 common allergens, one at a time, with a check-in after each. At 12 months the full app opens on its own: meals from a photo, 18 nutrients, and how to cut every food until age 4.
Every first food, served right
Add your baby and Starting Solids opens at 4 months.
FAQ
When can babies eat cheese?
From 6 months, when your baby starts solids. Cheese is a choking risk until age 4, so follow the shape for each age.
How do you cut cheese for a 6-month-old?
A long, thin, flat slice about 2 fingers wide, soft cheese spread thin on toast, or grated and sprinkled lightly into warm food. Why so big: babies this age grab with the whole hand, so a finger-sized piece with a bit sticking out of the fist is easiest to hold and gnaw, and gnawing helps them learn to chew. Feeding themselves carries no more risk of choking than being fed with a spoon; always stay with your baby while they eat.
How do you cut cheese for a 9-month-old?
Grated, or flat pieces about 1 cm, the size of a chickpea, cut from a thin slice; soft cheese spread thin on toast. No cubes. Why smaller now: between about 9 and 12 months babies learn to pick food up between thumb and finger, and small soft pieces let them practice. Babies who don't move on to lumpy food by about 9 to 10 months are more likely to have feeding difficulties later.
How do you cut cheese for a 12-month-old?
Thin slices, shreds, flat pieces about 1 cm, or melted in a thin layer over toast with no globs. No cubes or chunks until age 4.
Is cheese a common allergen?
Yes. Milk is one of the nine major food allergens. ASCIA advises offering common allergy foods by 12 months, one new one at a meal, and once one is tolerated, at least once a week after that.
Sources
- AAP HealthyChildren: Choking Prevention for Babies & Children
- CDC: When, What, and How to Introduce Solid Foods
- CDC: Foods and Drinks to Avoid or Limit
- NHS: Your baby's first solid foods
- NHS: Foods to avoid giving babies and young children
- ASCIA: How to introduce solid foods to babies for allergy prevention
- USDA FoodData Central: Cheese, cheddar
- AAP HealthyChildren: Movement Milestones: Babies 4 to 7 Months
- CDC: Important Milestones: Your Baby By One Year
- ESPGHAN: Complementary Feeding: A Position Paper by the ESPGHAN Committee on Nutrition (2017)