Peanut butter for babies
How to serve it at 6, 9 and 12 months.
The AAP says to spread nut butters thinly, and the CDC's choking list names spoonfuls and chunks. Peanut is one of the nine major allergens, and the AAP and NIAID say early introduction can lower allergy risk. A choking hazard on both lists. A major allergen (peanut).
Checked October 29, 2026.
How to serve peanut butter at 6, 9 and 12 months
| Age | How to serve it |
|---|---|
| About 6 months | Thin a small amount into cereal, pureed fruit or yogurt, or stir it into milk, and feed by spoon; the allergens page has the AAP's amount and the NIAID groups. |
| About 9 months | Keep it in the diet regularly, thinned or spread very thinly; never in a spoonful or chunk. |
| About 12 months | A thin spread; never a thick glob, and never whole peanuts. |
Every baby is different. Start the same way for every food: your baby sits up, you are right there, and the pieces match what they can do.
Is peanut butter a choking hazard?
It is named on both the CDC's choking list and the AAP's choking page. The AAP says to cut food for infants and young children into pieces no larger than one-half inch, to have children sit while they eat, and to watch every meal.
Is peanut butter an allergen?
It contains peanut, one of the nine major food allergens the FDA names.
The AAP says there is no evidence that waiting beyond 4 to 6 months prevents food allergy, and that new foods go in one at a time. See introducing allergens for the AAP and NIAID guidance, and ask your pediatrician if your baby has severe eczema or an allergy.
Where this comes from
Named by: CDC: Choking Hazards; AAP: Choking Prevention. The serving steps follow the CDC's texture advice and the AAP's finger-food and choking pages.
Call your pediatrician if…
Your pediatrician knows your child. Call them if you have a worry about a food, a reaction or choking. The AAP and the CDC have more:
Peabody editors write these pages from the sources below. We are not doctors, and this is not medical advice for your child.
Sources
- CDC: Choking Hazards (checked October 29, 2026)
- AAP, HealthyChildren.org: Choking Prevention for Babies and Children (checked October 29, 2026)
- CDC: Tastes and Textures (checked October 29, 2026)
- CDC: When, What, and How to Introduce Solid Foods (checked October 29, 2026)
- FDA: The FASTER Act, Sesame Is the Ninth Major Food Allergen (checked October 29, 2026)
- AAP, HealthyChildren.org: When to Introduce Egg, Peanut Butter and Other Common Food Allergens to a Baby (checked October 29, 2026)