A Guide to Using Baby Food Feeders and the Best Picks

As babies make the thrilling transition from liquids to solid food, a whole world of possibility opens up that can be a delight to explore—both for the little ones and their parents. Dietitian Amy Shapiro, the founder and director of Real Nutrition, is a fan of baby food feeders for babies six months and older because they allow parents to introduce different flavors and food types that may not be appropriate for the baby to consume safely in whole pieces.

"Parents can also use it for teething and for busying a fussy baby," she says. "Put solid or frozen food in the feeder and let the child feed it to themselves or give it to them."

While baby feeders are convenient—and can keep baby occupied for extended periods of time—Shapiro warns against overusing the feeder. "I do prefer limiting the frequency of these feeders to prevent dependency and so children can learn to eat food with a spoon to understand their 'full' feelings and to pace themselves," she says. "Chewing food and letting it move around the mouth is important as well, so when you don't need to rely on a feeder, I suggest parents use a spoon more frequently and when available."

Dietitian Jennifer House, of First Step Nutrition, has a few more tips for safely using baby food feeders:

• Don't save leftovers. "The food will contain bacteria from your baby's mouth, which will multiply and could cause foodborne illness," says House.
• Restrict the use of feeders for mealtime, rather than using to distract a baby when they are upset or to prevent boredom. "We're working on creating a healthy relationship with food from the start."
• Know when to retire baby food feeders. "I wouldn't recommend them past a year of age at all when a child should be eating mostly family foods."

With those tips in mind, here are five of our favorite baby food feeders that you can find on Amazon.

5 Best Baby Food Feeders