From the YummyYucky team, founded by Nancy Nash

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Can Babies Have Eggnog? Not Before 12 Months

Traditional eggnog stacks three problems at once: raw or barely cooked egg, cow's milk as a drink, and the liquor somebody adds to the bowl. Skip it before 12 months. After that, a small taste of pasteurized, alcohol free eggnog is not dangerous, just very sweet. The warm spiced cup your baby is actually reaching for takes two minutes to make.

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When to introduce: Skip traditional eggnog before 12 months, and treat even the alcohol free kind as an occasional sweet drink after that.
Common allergen?: Contains egg and milk, two of the most common food allergens. Read the carton too, because some are built on an almond or oat base and some list soy lecithin.
Texture: A thin drink, so the things to manage here are raw egg, alcohol and sugar rather than texture.
Key nutrients: Protein, calcium, vitamin B12 and fat from the milk and egg, carried in a lot of added sugar.

Here is the honest answer: skip traditional eggnog until your baby is at least 12 months, and even then treat it as a sweet drink rather than a food. This is not about one sip ruining anything. It is that the classic recipe lines up three separate problems at the same time. Eggnog is built on raw or barely cooked egg, it is a cup of cow's milk to drink, and the bowl at a party often has bourbon, brandy or rum stirred into it. The FDA puts eggnog that has not been thoroughly cooked on its list of foods to avoid for people who are most vulnerable to foodborne illness.¹ The good part is that the thing your baby actually wants, the warm spiced cup everyone else is holding, is easy to give them.

Prep School: how to prepare eggnog for baby-led weaning (BLW) and purées

Under 12 monthsSkip the eggnog. Pour 2 to 3 ounces of their usual breast milk or formula into an open cup, warm it gently, and stir in a pinch of cinnamon and a pinch of nutmeg so it smells like everyone else's. Cow's milk is not a drink before 12 months, and traditional eggnog also brings raw egg and often alcohol.

12 to 24 monthsIf you want them to try the real thing, use a carton that says pasteurized, read the label for rum or brandy flavoring, and offer a tablespoon or two in an open cup rather than a bottle or a pouch. The better everyday version: blend 4 ounces of whole milk with half a ripe banana, a pinch of cinnamon and a pinch of nutmeg, then warm it. It tastes like eggnog and has no added sugar.

If you are making it from scratchCook the base. Heat the milk and egg mixture slowly, stirring, until a food thermometer reads 160F, the temperature the FDA gives for dishes containing eggs.[2] Chill it fast, then ladle the children's share into a separate labeled jug before any liquor goes near the bowl.

Is eggnog safe? Choking & prep

Three things to hold in your head, and none of them are about choking. First, raw egg. Traditional eggnog is thickened with egg that never gets properly cooked, and the FDA puts eggnog that has not been thoroughly cooked on its list of foods to avoid for people most vulnerable to foodborne illness, because of salmonella.¹ If you are making it, take the base to 160F with a thermometer, the temperature the FDA gives for dishes containing eggs, or build it on pasteurized shell eggs or pasteurized egg product.² Second, alcohol. There is no safe amount for a baby, and the WHO puts it plainly that the risk starts from the first drop.³ Liquor stirred cold into eggnog does not cook off at all, and heat does far less than people assume: the USDA retention table puts alcohol at about 85 percent still present when it is stirred into a hot liquid, and about 75 percent in a flamed dish.⁴ A baby is a fraction of your size, so an amount that would do nothing to you is not nothing to them. If your baby has swallowed alcoholic eggnog, call your pediatrician or the Poison Help line at 1-800-222-1222, free and answered 24/7 in the US, rather than waiting to see what happens. Third, the ordinary stuff. Cow's milk is not a drink before 12 months, and eggnog carries a lot of added sugar, which the CDC says infants and young children should not have.⁵ Some homemade recipes sweeten with honey, and honey is never safe before 12 months because of infant botulism.⁶ Read the carton as well: some eggnogs are built on an almond or oat base, and some list soy lecithin, which matters if your family is avoiding either. One last practical note for a party: cooked eggs and egg dishes should not sit out of the fridge for more than two hours, or one hour if the room is above 90F, and a punch bowl on a warm table counts.²

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Nutrition

The milk and egg in eggnog are genuinely useful foods: protein, calcium, vitamin B12 and fat that toddlers burn straight through, plus choline from the yolk. The problem is the delivery. A cup of eggnog is mostly sugar and cream, and the CDC is clear that infants and young children should not have added sugars.⁵ A baby who fills up on a sweet drink has less room for what is on the plate, and holiday plates are where the good stuff is. If you want the nutrition without the sugar, a cup of plain whole milk and a scrambled egg does the same job and more.

Goes well with

Whole milk · Banana · Oatmeal · Applesauce · Hard-boiled egg

Storage & freezing

Homemade eggnog with a properly cooked base keeps in the fridge for about 3 to 4 days in a covered jug. Store bought cartons follow the date on the label and usually want using within a week of opening. Do not leave it sitting out at the party: cooked eggs and egg dishes should not be out of the fridge for more than two hours, so keep the jug on ice or refill the bowl from the fridge in small amounts.[2] Anything your baby has drunk from goes in the sink, not back in the jug.

More dairy foods to explore

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EmmentalFrom about 6 months

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FetaAround 6 months, small amounts

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FlanFrom about 12 months

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Fontina6 months+

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Fromage blancAround 6 months

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GheeAround 6 months, small amounts for cooking

Introducing this allergen

Common questions

Can my baby have eggnog at Christmas?

Not before 12 months. Traditional eggnog combines raw or barely cooked egg, cow's milk as a drink, and often alcohol, and any one of those on its own would be a reason to wait. After 12 months a tablespoon or two of pasteurized, alcohol free eggnog is not dangerous. It is just a very sweet drink.

What can I give my baby instead of eggnog?

Warm 4 ounces of whole milk, or their usual breast milk or formula if they are under 12 months, with a pinch of cinnamon and a pinch of nutmeg. Blending in half a ripe banana gives it the thick, custardy feel with no added sugar. Serve it in an open cup so they are holding what everyone else is holding.

My mother in law already gave my baby a sip of eggnog. What now?

If it came from a store bought alcohol free carton, you can let it go and carry on watching them as you normally would. If it had liquor in it, or was homemade with raw egg, call your pediatrician or the Poison Help line at 1-800-222-1222, free and answered 24/7 in the US, and tell them your baby's weight and roughly how much they had. Do not wait for symptoms. Then the sentence for next year, said lightly: please pour the baby's cup before the bottle comes out.

Does the alcohol cook out of eggnog?

No. In most eggnog the liquor is stirred in cold at the end, so all of it stays. Even heat does less than people think: the USDA retention table puts alcohol at roughly 85 percent still present when it is stirred into a hot liquid, and about 75 percent in a flamed dish.⁴ There is no safe amount for a baby.³

Is store bought eggnog safe for a 1 year old?

The food safety part mostly is, because cartons are pasteurized and the alcohol free ones contain no alcohol. Read the label anyway, since some cartons are sold with rum or brandy already in them, and some are made on an almond or oat base. What is left is sugar, and there is a lot of it, so a small taste in an open cup is the right serving.

Can babies have an eggnog latte from a coffee shop?

No. The eggnog is the smaller issue here: these drinks contain coffee, and the CDC says children younger than 2 should avoid caffeinated drinks.⁵ Ask for a small cup of plain steamed whole milk instead and add your own cinnamon at the table.

Sources

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Last updated September 2026. Next review December 2026. How we write these: built from current published guidance from the AAP, CDC, FDA/EPA, NIAID, WHO, and other pediatric and public-health authorities, with sources cited on the page. See our editorial and medical policy for how we research, source, and update these, and how we double-check the food advice.

This is general information, not medical advice, and is not individualized for your baby. Always talk to your pediatrician about your baby's diet, introducing allergens, and any reaction. In an emergency, contact emergency services.

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