hemp seeds
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When can babies eat hemp seed and hemp seed milk?
Hulled hemp seeds (also called hemp heart seeds) and hemp seed oil may be introduced as soon as your baby is ready to start solids, which is generally around 6 months of age. It is best to wait until after your baby’s first birthday, however, to offer hemp seed milk as a drink (cooking with it and adding it to purees is fine) as it is important that other milk alternatives do not displace breast milk or formula in the first year of life.
Are hemp seeds healthyfor babies?
Yes! Hemp seeds and hemp seed oil are terrific ingredients to add nutritional value to your baby’s diet and to help with that ever-present challenge: constipation.
Nutritionally, hemp seeds are a complete protein, which means that they have all the essential amino acids that your baby’s body needs to thrive. They are also a great source of critical essential nutrients: copper, fiber, selenium, vitamins A and B6, and zinc.
Hemp seeds are processed in different ways to make food products—hemp flour, hemp powder, hemp butter, hemp milk, hemp oil—and each one has unique health benefits:
How to prepare hemp seed for your baby!
Every baby develops on their own timeline. The preparation suggestions below are for informational purposes only and are not a substitute for professional, one-on-one advice from your pediatric medical or health professional, nutritionist or dietitian, or expert in pediatric feeding and eating. Never disregard professional medical advice or delay in seeking it because of something you have read or seen here.
6 to 12 months old: Sprinkle a pinch of hulled hemp seeds or Hemp seed powder on purees. You can roll slippery foods like avocado, mango, or pineapple in hulled hemp seeds, which will help with grip. Hemp seed oil can also be mixed into mashed potatoes , purees, and warm cereals and easily worked into pesto sauces.
12 to 18 months old: Use hulled hemp seed liberally in your cooking. Continue sprinkling hemp seed on fruits and soft vegetables and mixing hemp seed oil into warm cereals. Try using hulled hemp seeds in place of flaxseeds or chia seeds in recipes for breads, muffins, oatmeal, or overnight oats. Add them to soup as a garnish or mix into protein balls.
18 to 24 months old: Smoothie time! Mix hemp seeds and/or protein powder for added nutrition and continue to sprinkle hulled hemp seeds on other foods for an added nutritional boost.
It's a fact!
For thousands of years, humans have cultivated the hemp plant as not only a source of food, but as a fiber to make clothing, paper, and rope. The hull (the seed’s crunchy shell) is often removed before sale to reveal the soft white inner seed, or the hemp heart, from which the oil is extracted.
Hemp seeds and hemp seed oil are incredibly nutritious, but before we dive into the details, let’s clear up any confusion: hemp seeds and the oil that’s extracted from them won’t get you or your baby high. The hemp plant is part of the same family as marijuana, but it does not contain tetrahydrocannabinol or THC, the psychoactive compound in pot. In the United States, hemp seeds were only legalized in 2018 after almost 80 years of being grouped with marijuana, but rest assured: hemp seed, hemp seed oil, and hemp seed protein powder are now recognized as safe for human consumption by the federal government.