A packaging chemical that has been leaking into bottled baby foods has caused a food scare. Dr Margaret Lawson, a paediatric dietician at the Institute of Child Health, Great Ormond Street, gives her advice on feeding your baby.

Should parents be worried about this news?

The concern centres on bottled commercial baby foods. Research has shown that when the plastic lids are sealed on to the bottles, quantities of a chemical called semicarbazide could leak into the baby food itself.

The Food Standards Agency has said that there is "considerable uncertainty about the possible risks of semicarbazide" and has not advised parents to stop buying bottled baby foods.

The FSA says it "seems likely" that some semicarbazide might be migrating into the foods from the packaging, although the evidence on the precise amounts is sketchy.

However, my advice to parents on feeding their babies will not change in the light of these findings. It is fine to use commercial baby foods for some meals if it is inconvenient to make your own baby food, but you should not rely exclusively on commercially prepared baby foods.

Are commercial baby foods good for babies?

Baby foods on supermarket shelves are made to a very high standard, are nutritious and very safe. The study is the first indication that there might be a slight risk with packaging.

However, parents should always try to get their baby used to homemade foods, which are very different from commercial baby food in terms of taste and texture.

If parents feed their baby with a combination of homemade baby food and commercial food when they are too busy they can help reduce the very small risks associated with semicarbazide even further.

How would you recommend preparing baby food?

The recommendation is that parents should not give solids to their baby until they are six months old, but after that babies on the whole can eat most things that the rest of the family would eat.

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