If your baby has coeliac disease, choose bread labelled gluten-free and avoid contact with crumbs from ordinary bread. If there’s no reason to follow a gluten-free diet, you don’t need to choose gluten-free bread specifically for baby-led weaning. Your baby’s eating skills also matter when introducing bread: the Netherlands Nutrition Centre recommends starting with bread without seeds after six months. For gluten-free options, also check the crust, ingredients and allergens.
If your baby has coeliac disease, choosing bread also means taking care to avoid crumbs and other contact with bread containing gluten. The Netherlands Nutrition Centre points out that even a small amount of gluten can cause symptoms. If your baby has a wheat allergy, you’ll also need to check for wheat as a separate ingredient: a ‘gluten-free’ label doesn’t automatically answer every question about allergens.
The question isn’t just which bread to buy, but whether your baby is already used to practising with solids and eating lumpier textures. The Netherlands Nutrition Centre recommends starting with bread without seeds after six months.
If you buy gluten-free bread regularly, you’ll want to find a pack that suits how you use it at home. Compare the current ingredients and nutritional information for the specific bread, and check what’s available at your local shop.
When choosing bread for baby-led weaning, a medically necessary gluten-free diet and your baby’s eating skills come before colour descriptions such as ‘brown’ or ‘dark’. Then compare the ingredients and pack sizes to find an option that suits how you’ll use it at home.
| What to consider | What to check when buying | Who it matters to |
|---|---|---|
| Avoiding gluten | Check the gluten-free label and the current allergen information. If your baby has coeliac disease, also watch out for bread crumbs on utensils and spreads. | When I prepare bread for a baby with coeliac disease, I also want to avoid contact with ordinary bread when spreading it. For around 36% of consumers, gluten-free safety comes first. |
| Texture when starting out | Consider whether your baby can manage lumpier foods yet, and whether you can serve the bread without the crust or any seeds. The Netherlands Nutrition Centre recommends starting with bread without seeds after six months. | When offering bread for the first time, I want to choose a texture my baby can manage. Eating skills are the main concern for around 29% of consumers. |
| Ingredients and nutritional value | Compare the ingredients list and, where provided, the fibre and salt per 100 g. Don’t assume that ‘brown’ or ‘multiseed’ means a bread is wholemeal. | Once bread is going well, I want to know what a different variety actually contains before choosing a lumpier texture. Around 21% of consumers give this consideration priority. |
| Use at home | Check the pack size, storage instructions and availability at your local shop or for delivery to your area. | If we don’t eat much bread at home, I want to be able to use a pack within the stated storage period. This is the main buying concern for around 14% of consumers. |
Spelt, wheat, rye and barley contain gluten. According to the Netherlands Nutrition Centre, even a small amount of gluten can cause symptoms for someone with coeliac disease, so ordinary wholemeal or spelt bread isn’t a gluten-free alternative.
If a gluten-free diet is necessary, choose bread based on its gluten-free label and ingredients, not its colour or the name of the grain.
A gluten-free label doesn’t tell you anything about the texture. PLUS lists sunflower seeds, linseed, poppy seeds and chia seeds among the ingredients in Schär Mehrkorn, while the Netherlands Nutrition Centre recommends starting with bread without seeds.
Check the ingredients and choose a soft option that can be served without the crust or any seeds for your baby’s first bread meals.
The name doesn’t tell you which other allergens are listed on a particular pack. Even if you’ve bought a bread before, it’s worth checking the current ingredients.
Read the pack again every time you buy it. If your baby takes the bread to nursery, ask about their allergy procedures too.
PLUS lists iodised salt in Schär Mehrkorn. That doesn’t tell you which type of salt is used in another bread.
Check the ingredients list for the bread you’re choosing.
These brands and shops offer a starting point for comparing different types of bread. Always assess the specific product by its gluten-free label, ingredients and suitability for your baby’s eating skills.
Albert Heijn’s own-label range includes a variety of gluten-free bakery products.
Schär makes several types of gluten-free bread, including varieties listed online by PLUS and Dirk.
Alongside other gluten-free bread products, PLUS also offers its own variety.
Jumbo’s online range includes a category with different types of gluten-free bread and rolls.
Dirk’s online range includes Schär Meisterbackers Classic, Vital and Mini Baguette.
No. Baby-led weaning in itself isn’t a reason to avoid gluten. A gluten-free diet is necessary if your baby has coeliac disease; if they have a wheat allergy, also check separately whether the product contains wheat.
Bread is suitable once your baby is used to practising with solids and can manage lumpier foods. The Netherlands Nutrition Centre recommends starting with brown or wheat bread without seeds after six months. If a gluten-free diet is necessary, the bread you choose must also be gluten-free.
Not necessarily: ‘gluten-free’ doesn’t tell you whether the bread contains seeds. PLUS lists several types of seeds in Schär Mehrkorn, while the Netherlands Nutrition Centre recommends starting with bread without seeds.
The word ‘brown’ doesn’t tell you that. PLUS describes PLUS Bruin glutenvrij as bread made with tapioca starch. Check the ingredients list and nutritional information if you want to compare the composition of different breads.
Don’t assume it does. PLUS lists iodised salt in Schär Mehrkorn, but you’ll need to check the ingredients on the pack of any other bread.
