can we give ice cream to children? From what age?… Advice from a dietician

From what age can we give ice cream to children?

There is no question of giving ice cream to a newborn baby, but you can give it to a baby from the start of food diversification, that is to say between 4 and 6 months. It is then a question of making him discover new tastes, new textures, not of making him eat a whole ice cream. You have to wait until he is at least one year old to offer him a ball of about 100 grams. Then, from 3 years old, the portion can be larger, while respecting the child’s wishes.

Ice cream or sorbet, is there a preferred type of ice cream?

None is better than the other. One contains cream, the other is sweeter. Above all, keep in mind that these are “pleasure” foods. They are not forbidden for a child who is well, you just have to give them occasionally and in limited quantities.

Beyond the fact that they are high in calories, the risks are mainly linked to food allergies: lactose and cow’s protein for ice cream, which may also contain egg yolk; exotic fruits – kiwi, mango, banana, pineapple – as well as red fruits and nuts, which are very allergenic, for sorbets.

But there are also positive sides: ice cream contains calcium, fruit sorbet. And then, the fact that it’s cold can, for example, help relieve a child who is teething.

Is there a time of day when it is best to eat it?

The important thing is not to give ice instead of something else. You can eat it at the end of a meal, or as a snack, but as it is a sweet product that creates an insulin discharge, you must always mix this dose of sugar with another food so that it is better assimilated. Thus, at 4 p.m., we will offer a fruit or a compote before an ice cream and a dairy product, a yogurt for example, before the sorbet. All accompanied by a piece of bread.

What should you pay attention to when buying ice cream or sorbets in the supermarket?

As with all foods, care must be taken with added substances. I therefore advise to take the ice cream that contains the fewest possible ingredients and with ingredients whose name is not unknown to us.