Best Yogurt for Babies 6-Months Old During Baby-Led Weaning
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Now that you've started your baby on solid foods, you may be wondering what's the best yogurt for 6-month-old babies to try.
If you're doing baby-led weaning, you may be used to giving your baby foods they can easily pick up and eat on their own. But starting at about 6 months, many babies do well self-feeding yogurt from a preloaded spoon.
There are many benefits of yogurt for babies. This nutrient-rich food contains gut-healthy probiotics and has a soft puree consistency that's easy for babies to swallow.
Can babies have cow’s milk yogurt?
According to the CDC, babies shouldn’t be given whole milk as a beverage until they’re 12 months old, but you can offer cheese and yogurt to babies from about 6 months of age.
Unfortunately, many brands of yogurts marketed for babies and toddlers are loaded with sugar or artificial sweeteners – organic yogurts included.
In this article, I'll give my top picks for the best yogurts for 6-month-old babies during baby-led feeding and spoon-feeding.
What are the Benefits of Yogurt for Babies?
Yogurt is a great early food for babies. It's packed with nutrients like calcium, vitamin D, and protein.
When choosing a yogurt for your baby, look for one with live and active cultures, the good bacteria that are beneficial for gut health. Babies are born with millions of bacteria in their gut microbiome. Most of the bacteria found in the gut are good bacteria. And what our babies eat plays a role in maintaining that balance. Probiotics from fermented foods like yogurt and prebiotic fiber found in many fruits help keep the gut healthy.
A healthy gut helps build a strong immune system and supports digestive health. Many parents used to avoid dairy when their kids had tummy troubles. We now know that probiotics in yogurt may help with diarrhea. And, if your baby is constipated, yogurt is a good snack to get things moving again.
Is cow’s milk yogurt or plant-based yogurt better for babies?
There are many varieties of yogurts to choose from.
The USDA’s MyPlate recommends 1 ⅔ cups of dairy for 1 to 2-year-olds and 2 to 2 ½ cups of dairy for toddlers 2 to 3 years old daily. And cow’s milk yogurt would help meet baby’s dairy requirements. Babies and toddlers can eat yogurt every day and you can offer yogurt to babies as early as 6 months old.
Plant-based yogurts don’t contain the same nutrients as cow’s milk yogurts. But there are many nutritious alternatives to cow’s milk yogurt if your little one can’t have dairy products and/or has a cow's milk allergy.
There are a few things to consider before you choose a yogurt for babies under one year old. First, be aware that non-dairy yogurts made from foods like soy and cashew are among the nine most common food allergens. Offering top allergenic foods early and often during infancy can help reduce the development of food allergies, but it’s wise to introduce these foods with care.
If you need guidance on how to introduce yogurt and other top allergenic foods, I have a 12 Week Baby-Led Feeding Meal Plan for the first three months of your baby’s solid food feeding journey that will walk you through it, step by step.
Also, keep in mind that most non-dairy yogurts are lower in fat, protein, vitamin D, and other nutrients compared to plain whole milk yogurt, so it can be helpful to compare labels and look for fortified plant-based options.
Most plant-based yogurts contain live active cultures too (but look for the live active cultures seal!) so your baby will get the same gut health benefits of probiotics from non-dairy alternatives.
In any case, know that when it comes to nutrients, babies will get most of what they need throughout the first year of life from breast milk and/or formula.
Video of an 8-month old precious girl enjoying yogurt! Thank you to her parents for sharing.
What is the Best Baby Yogurt?
My top choices for babies 6 months old are full-fat plain yogurt and plain full-fat Greek yogurt made from cow’s milk.
Yes, full-fat yogurt for babies is recommended! Here's why.
A baby’s brain grows exponentially in the first year. Fat is a brain-building nutrient that supports cognitive and brain development during this critical time. It also helps the body absorb vitamin D, a fat-soluble vitamin that helps the body absorb calcium and other fat-soluble vitamins.
Isn't saturated fat bad for you?
It's true that too much saturated fat can raise cholesterol levels and increase the risk of heart disease. However, recent studies found that full-fat dairy may not negatively affect the health of school age children.
This is good news!
Other studies show that low-fat milk doesn’t reduce children's risk of weight gain. And there are some potential health benefits for kids drinking whole milk. Full-fat dairy plays a role in a healthy gut microbiome which helps support a developing immune system.
Greek yogurt contains more protein than regular yogurt. But both types of yogurt provide calcium, magnesium, potassium, and vitamin D.
Speaking of calcium, young kids ages 1 to 3 need about 700 to 1,000 mg of calcium daily to support their growing bones. One cup of whole milk yogurt contains 296 mg of calcium.
As far as the taste goes, the best Greek yogurts are much richer and have a thicker consistency. Regular and Greek are both excellent options, so it's a matter of preference and what works best for you and your baby.
Here’s what to look for when choosing yogurt for your baby
Look for yogurts that are higher in protein and lower in added sugar. Then, check the label to see if the yogurt contains live active cultures (the probiotics). If the brand is fortified with vitamin D and vitamin A – that's an added bonus.
Whether you go with cow's or plant-based (or both) for your little one, start with plain, unsweetened yogurt and skip the flavored yogurts, which tend to have too much added sugar. (According to the 2020-2025 Dietary Guidelines for Americans, added sugars aren't recommended for kids younger than 2 years).
You can choose what to mix with yogurt for your baby once they're ready. Some of my favorite yogurt toppings are berries, bananas and chia seeds.
There are some good non-dairy options if you prefer plant-based yogurt or you’re looking for a non-dairy substitute for babies with milk allergies.
Let's see how the best plant-based yogurts compare to cow’s milk on fat, protein, calcium and vitamin D. Non-dairy yogurts aren’t a natural source of vitamin D so the content will vary depending on the brand. Look for brands fortified with vitamin D.
Plain Coconut yogurt
Coconut yogurt has a creamy, rich flavor. Coconut is a tropical fruit (not actually a nut!) which is high in fat and contains protein, potassium, and calcium. Look for plain coconut yogurt with probiotics and no added sugars.
Coconut yogurt tops the list as an excellent non-dairy yogurt source of protein, fat and calcium.
One cup of coconut yogurt contains:
8 g protein
8 g fat
254 mg calcium
Plain Cashew yogurt
If your baby doesn't have a nut allergy, plain cashew yogurt is a great, creamy, non-dairy option. Cashew yogurt contains protein, potassium, and healthy, monounsaturated fats. However, cashew yogurt isn’t a good source of calcium. Look for brands fortified with vitamins A and D.
One cup of cashew yogurt contains:
5 g protein
7 g fat
18 mg calcium
Plain Soy yogurt
Soy is an excellent source of protein and calcium. It’s offers a complete protein, similar to the protein in cow’s milk. One cup of soy yogurt contains 6 g of protein and 300 mg of calcium and one popular brand contains even more vitamin D than cow's milk yogurt, cup for cup.
The protein in soy yogurt is a complete protein containing all nine essential amino acids, which can only be found in food. So soy tops the list as the best protein alternative to cow’s milk yogurt. Soy milk is also similar in nutrient composition to cow’s milk, so it’s usually the go-to alternative as well. However, soy products may not be a good option for all kids with an allergy to cow’s milk protein, because about 50% of kids allergic to milk protein may also react to soy protein.
One cup of soy yogurt contains:
6 g protein
4 g fat
301 mg calcium
Plain almond milk full-fat yogurt
Plain almond milk yogurt is made by adding live bacteria cultures to almond milk, which thickens the yogurt and gives it a creamy texture. And almond milk provides some calcium and monounsaturated fats, which have many health benefits (monounsaturated fats decrease inflammation in the body and may even help promote a healthy gut - and fat is a critical nutrient for brain development during infancy).
Some brands of almond milk are a little lower in protein than other plant-based yogurt options and not all are fortified with vitamin D, so be sure to check the label before you buy.
One cup of almond milk yogurt contains:
6 g protein
17 g fat
85 g calcium
Lactose-free yogurt
Some babies are intolerant to lactose, and foods made from milk can upset their tummies. A lactose-free yogurt is an excellent option if your baby is lactose intolerant but not allergic to cow's milk protein. The nutrient profile is the same as regular milk, so you don't have to worry about replacing milk's key nutrients.
Lactose, the natural sugar in milk, is broken down in lactose-free milk, so it's easier to digest. Since the lactose isn't removed, you'll notice that the sugar content is the same for regular and lactose-free yogurts.
That's okay.
Look for "added sugar" on the nutrition label and stick to brands with no added sugars.
One cup of lactose free yogurt contains:
9 g protein
8 g fat
390 mg calcium
How to Serve Yogurt During Baby-Led Weaning
The epic yogurt messes that can happen during baby-led weaning are adorable! Allowing babies to scoop and self-feed yogurt with their hands is fantastic for their development and relationship with food.
The mess can be tough to take - some parents wait to serve yogurt until the meal that happens right before bath time which helps!
12-month old baby boy using a ridged spoon to help grasp yogurt. Big thanks to his parents for allowing me to share!
Long-sleeved bibs* are also a life-saver, as are utensils!
When your baby can hold a spoon and move it to their mouth, they are ready to use utensils with some help.
During baby-led-weaning, you can preload the spoon with yogurt and allow your baby to self-feed. The thicker consistency of Greek yogurt stays on the spoon better and may be easier for your baby to self-feed. Look for spoons with ridges that “grab” the yogurt* so it stays put. Keep a couple of spoons handy during the meal so your baby will hand you back the one they are eating from and allow you to keep preloading.
If you’re also doing some spoon-feeding as well, feed responsively by watching for signs that your baby wants the next bite.
Babies learn by watching family members, eat so be sure to eat with your baby and role model eating with a spoon.
At first, your little one might be more interested in playing with the spoon. That’s fine. They may need a little more time before they can hold the spoon to their mouth.
Keep exposing your baby to utensils and offer a preloaded spoon every 1 to 2 weeks along with finger foods until they are ready to try self-feeding on their own.
What’s your baby’s favorite yogurt? Let me know in the comments below.
If you’re getting ready to start your baby on solids, download my FREE Baby-Led Feeding Essential Checklist to make sure you have everything you need to get started. You might also want to check out my new online course for parents, based on my best-selling book, which will walk you through the whole process of starting solids using a baby-led approach.
Alternatively, if your baby is almost ready to start solids and you’re looking for someone you trust to map out the entire first 12 weeks of your baby’s solid food-feeding journey, check out my new Safe & Simple 12-Week Meal Plan! Over 30 recipes, weekly shopping lists, tons of balanced baby meals, a complete plan for top allergen introduction, & lots of guidance (with photos) on how to safely serve each food.
And if you have specific questions about your child’s nutrition, book a 1:1 consult with me - I am currently accepting new clients in my virtual private practice and look forward to meeting you online…
