Is there any reason I can't give my DD 7.5mths old some ham with our lunch?

[LondonAtoZ]

Am keen she eats what we eat, and generally she does except when we have salad and for some reason I have a mental block about it unless it's veg, and a meat or a fish... I want to give her some cucumber, some ham... is it ok to give her ham? Silly question I am sure. She eats other meats and fish fine but it's always been cooked by me! Thanks!

i give me baby ham and did ever since he could feed himself - He love it

I'd give ham, but a good one - not something squished together.

I used to peel the skin of DS1s sausages (and they have to have a high meat content - nothing less than 95%). That was my mental block.

It's good ham and I guess it would have salt in it, but if we just give her a little it should be ok then I think. She eats v good diet normally. Although I would say that as I bloody cook it all !!

Here is a guide on salt intake, just make sure you don't add salt to her diet for the rest of the day.

ham curing often involves sodium nitrite, which can turn to nitrosamines in the stomach, which are known to be carcinogenic. here for sciencey bit However, not everyone who eats ham gets stomach or bowel cancer so the risk is pretty low. The sodium content might be more of an issue at this age - make sure she has lots of fruit at the same time to balance the sodium with potassium, and lots of fluid too and it's very unlikely to cause her a problem but possible don't give it to her too much or too often at this age.