I am chinese and I am married to a Pakistani guy. We have just started weaning baby (6 months) and started introducing the basics (bananas, rice cereal etc), but he wants me to start giving baby Dahl and curry and other spices so she grows up liking spicy food. He is especially adamant because I did not eat any spice when I was pregnant and or breastfeeding. I am rather opposed to it and I feel spices should not be introduced so early. How do I convince him otherwise? Or should I start introducing curry to baby? He feels like I am shielding our child from his culture by not introducing his food to her. This is ofcourse rubbish, but I do feel there is a right time and place for this and six months is just too young.

In many cultures, babies are not fed bland foods, rather, they introduced to spices from the start. In India, it is common to add a bit of curry spices to baby’s foods at a very early age. Thai families often incorporate coconut milk, lemongrass, tamarind and even chili when feeding their babies and in South America, babies are exposed to herbs and spices such as cumin, cilantro and even chili peppers. I grew up in a Malay household and while bland foods like porridge is common, it is always spiced. BUT you are right to want to wait. A majority of pediatricians will recommend waiting until an infant is 8 months or older to introduce spices and herbs. Tell your husband that at 6 months, baby's stomach can be sensitive and too much spices can cause upset tummies. Convince him to wait a few more months and after that gradually introduce spices to your baby's diet. Also just because baby doesn't eat spicy foods now, it doesn't mean that she will not appreciate it later. I've plenty of Caucasian friends who were never fed spices as kids and grew up absolutely loving them.