Can babies eat tomatoes?

Babies are very young and often feed mainly on breast milk. However, as the baby grows older, he or she can gradually add some complementary foods. Of course, for babies over six months old, you can gradually add a variety of complementary foods from a single one. Tomatoes are a very nutritious food and should be added to babies' diet when they reach a certain age. But depending on the specific situation, can babies eat tomatoes?

Can babies eat tomatoes?

Babies can eat tomatoes, which are rich in vitamins and minerals. They taste sweet and sour and can help babies stimulate their appetite and supplement nutrition. According to statistics, eating tomatoes can improve the baby's immunity and reduce the baby's mortality rate caused by severe diarrhea.

Studies have found that after consuming low-carotenoid foods for two consecutive weeks, the human immune function is significantly reduced; while after consuming tomato juice for two consecutive weeks, the lycopene in the body will increase significantly, and the immune function of T lymphocytes will be enhanced. Babies who are positive for human immunodeficiency virus have significantly lower levels of lycopene in their blood than healthy babies.

In addition, the study also found that babies who often eat tomatoes in their food will have a 45% lower mortality rate caused by diarrhea, and their mortality rate caused by fever will also be greatly reduced. It can also effectively reduce the occurrence of diseases such as cough, respiratory tract infection, and measles. Analysis shows that tomatoes contain carotenoids that can produce vitamin A, mainly α-carotene and β-carotene. Previous studies have confirmed that vitamin A supplementation can effectively reduce the incidence and mortality of diarrhea and shorten the diarrhea period of measles patients.

Therefore, eating tomatoes can supplement the nutrients needed by the baby's body and effectively prevent diseases. However, it should be noted that if the baby has symptoms such as diarrhea and cold stomach, it is not suitable for him to eat raw tomatoes, and it is best to eat less cooked tomatoes to avoid aggravating the baby's condition.