13 Month Old Doesn't Eat Solids Well

How is her overall attitude? Have you seen a behavior change in her? My concern is that she isn't eating because she is nauseous because of an intestinal blockage. This happened to my son. His bowel movements were really regular but then just really slowed down. By then, he already had a blockage. He wasn't his normal self, but he wasn't just sitting around crying either, but he wouldn't eat.

We gave him pear juice (it has a ton of fiber and tastes really good...I get the canned ones from the juice aisle at Walmart and not the filtered baby ones). I also got pediatric glycerine suppositories and gave him a couple to get the movements started again. You may want to get her to a doc to rule out the blockage. Good luck!

I didn't start my son on solids much before the age of your daughter right now. And this time (he's the fifth!), I decided NOT to give cow's milk at all b/c of ALL the problems. I agree w/pp do not give cow's milk. However, I don't think soy milk is the best option. Idon't use it either. You can also try almond milk or coconut milk. Coconut milk is REALLY yummy and naturally sweet.

My son is 19 mos old now and has NEVER had cows milk from the store! He is EXTREMELY healthy! If you really want cow's milk I would find a farmer that you trust and know and try raw cow milk. You can go to their dairy and see for yourself how they prevent infections. It is MUCH easier to digest. Depending on where you live, I can reccomend one to you. (I have to find the address!) Goat milk is the easiest to digest tho(20 mins), right after breast milk. You could also go to a goat dairy.

At her age, it just isn't natural to starve herself. She'll eat if she's hungry. Also, mashed up banana might be a good transition food or try freezing it. She might enjoy mashing it on her swollen gums. I also gave my kids frozen vegetables. My 19 mos old LOVES them still. They are soothing to their teething gums too!

Lastly, just be patient. Each child is different. It just takes time to make the transition. That's normal. Try not to worry! Sometimes I wish for the days when my kids weren't eating me out of the house! My 3 yr old will NOT stop eating. That's a job in itself!

Blessings,
M.
Mom to 5 Wonderful Kids
www.4MyChildrenSake.com
Moms helping Moms work from home
Attitudes are contagious; is yours worth catching?

Hi! My daughter (18 months old now) was the same way - it took her forever to get to the place that she would eat solid food - she is still a picky eater but getting better. I just want to encourage you that this can be normal behavior. I worried, but my daughter meets all her developmental milestones and is perfectly healthy otherwise. A few suggestions: try going back to toddler (next step) formula, then slowly transitioning back to milk - we tried to switch all at once and my daughter got very constipated. The formula will give extra nutrients, also, until she is eating a variety of foods. I tried to give my daughter the most caloric foods, such as avocado, because she was not gaining weight. If you find something she likes, try spreading avocado on it. Have you tried the gerber puffs? They dissolve faster than cheerios, so she might like them. Keep trying but don't get discouraged, she will get it eventually!

Hello,

Everyone of my children reacted to whole milk. It constipated them horribly. They'd go 2 weeks w/o a bm, and i'd have to go to the doc to get them medicine. You can cut out cow's milk completely. Switch to soy (they make an excellent soy milk for kids, it's by SILK, and is in a purple carton, and has all the added calcium, and goodies in it). You can try goats milk, rice milk, they even make a potato milk! Rice milk probably tastes the best out of all of these, but offers the least nutritionally. The potato milk is the highest in fat and calories. And the Soy for kids seems to be the most nutritionally complete. Soy is linked (though NOT proven) to cause hormonal porblems due to their phytoestrogens. But if it makes you feel any better i am chosing the kids soy for my own daughter. As far as her not eating much, try keeping her milk (whichever kind you offer, and it will take a little time for her to get used to a different kind of milk) limited to only 1-2 cups per day for a month, and see if her appitite picks up. Kids aren't going to starve themselves, but they can be extremely stubborn. You're the mom, and you can win the battle. Sit with her and watch her eat every bite (i know you have better things to do, lol, but you need to be sure of what she IS swallowing). You can also get her checked out by the doc about the tongue reflex, that should be long gone, and she may have an aversion to food in her mouth. Not sure what the treatment is for that, but i'd assume that you'd just offer her what she will eat and keep eating a happy experience and hopefully she'll grow out of it. As for the milk though, it's as simple a fix as switching the type you offer. WIC won't cover anything but cows milk, so say goodbye to that, but it's worth it to your little one to make the switch... hope this helps...

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Sit down and eat with her. She may do better if you show her that you are eating the same food as she is. you may also try the Little gratuates food for toddlers. I always had children that wanted to eat off of my plate so that maybe another way of trying it, by making a plate for you and seeing if she wants some of it. you could also try getting really excited about her eating a bite of food then start making it a game-everytime she puts something in the mouth that is food smile and laugh being happy nad every time she spits it out do a sad face. She will get a kick out of this laughing and giggling but eating some.

I hope this help but just remember that little onds dont need to eat as much as we eat and also remember that with all the milk she is drinking she may also still be feeling full.

It's possible that she feels things in her mouth differently than others, i.e. she may not be processing touch correctly. What you feel as OK or pleasant may feel "yukky" to her. I would call the Infant Parent program in your school district (Special Education Dept.) and tell them you feel your child needs to be evaluated by an occupational therapist and a speech pathologist, both of whom work with feeding issues--them seeing your child together is even better. If she doesn't qualify for school-related therapy services, then get your child's doctor to write an order to get a feeding evaluation from a private OT & Speech Pathologist, and check around for one who specializes in infants/toddlers with feeding problems. All of these therapists will work with you and give you ideas of what to do at home. Good luck! jenifer

if she's still thrusting her tongue (and the food) out, she simply may not be ready yet. Her body will mature at a slightly different rate than other babies. An acquaintance of mine has a child who refused anything but the breast until 18mos of age. Not everyone would agree with that, but it worked for their family - and nature matures the milk and changes it for the needs of the baby...
At any rate, maybe try different foods than what you've been doing. Pears, bananas, sweet potatoes, avocado, etc
Dairy can constipate pretty quickly - and many young children have a sensitivity to cow dairy, though most grow out of it soon enough.
All that to say, it's not that this baby is a picky eater - her intestines may just be maturing slower than her big sister's did.
Just a thought

HTH
K., mama to
Catherine, 4y
Samuel, 15m

A.,
It has been my experience that when I gave my son whole milk bottles and formula bottles (not together just during the same day) he had horrible diarrhea. He also quit gaining weight but the doctor assured me that after age 1 their growing/weight gain slows down. He wasn't really interested in food either but he liked yogurt. I started with only healthy foods, tried some of our foods during meals, tried finger foods he could feed himself and finally I have settled on anything he will eat. Some days he'll eat a granola bar and some days he'll eat Cheerios. Some days he'll eat a tortilla and some days he'll eat jello. There is no pattern and I worry constantly that he's not getting enough calories or nutrition. I give him whole milk and gummy vitamins. I can completely agree with you about not knowing what to do. Perhaps there will be other mothers with more wisdom...

My daughter is about 14 months. She never did like baby foods. She still has her formula. She will eat most anything I give her to a degree. I have found that she will experiment more after a bottle. Maybe its just my kid. Who knows? I try not to think about it too much. It will make you crazy. Weirdly enough, she loves anything that has some spice to it. She will eat my spicy spaghetti sauce til the cow comes home but, doesnt care for anything that is bland. My point being is, that you just dont know. as long as your child is thriving, everything will fall into place.
Good luck to you and yours!!!
Margaret

Dear A.
At this age, your baby should be eating pretty much what you eat - but mashed with a fork.
Have you tried giving her a whole peeled pear to hold in her hands and eat? If she gags and chokes, have you tried the food net?
Try giving her a spoon to "feed" herself at the same time as you spoon her food in. Make sure her meals are well balanced - and tasty - taste them yourself first and if you wouldn't eat them, chances are she won't like them much either! At this age, she will enjoy having pieces of food she can pick up with her tiny fingers to pop into her mouth as well. Try decorating them with sprinkles - yes, even if they are savoury ~ children don't seem to mind!
I agree with you about enhancing her food with formula ~ there is a special one for older babies who are fussy eaters ~ full of vitamins, etc. Also ensure that she has vitamin drops every day.
All the best
Jewel

My kids were both like that and as long as you have a routine and consstently offer her these foods, she will eventually come around. A child will not starve herself and will see that everyone else is eating it too. It may take some time but it will work. Don't stop offering the food to her because she will begin to see it as a pattern. Everytime I express that I don't want something, mom stops giving it to me. My girls were very picky eaters and they woouldn't and didn't eat meat at all until they were 18 mo. old. I understand your frustration and just have some patience. Even now that my girls are 6 and 2 they will go for a week withought eating anything olid and then they'll start eating a lot again. We all go through periods of time where we don't want to eat too much and times when we want to eat everything. I'd say since she isn't losing weight and seems healthy then don't push it but always offer it. It can take a couple of weeks for a child to get used to a certain food. the more they try it, the more it becomes part of their routine and the more they will learn to like it. I hope this helps a little. You can also google "picky eaters ages 1-3 and it will pull up fun food ideas.
-A.

My daughter did the same thing. She breast fed for about 6 months and then went to formula. She wouldn't eat cereal or baby food. She also teethed very late. When she turned one, she only had a couple of teeth and still would drink nothing but milk. She was going through about a gallon a day. Her doctor said we should give her pediasure to supplement her diet. When she was 16-months-old I went back to work full time and she started attending day care. All of the sudden she started eating. I don't know if it was because she saw the other kids eating.

Hi A. -

I have a 23 month old and he still is eating baby food off and on - he had some issues gag reflux and just took him awhile to learn to chew, swallow, etc... some babies just aren't ready for solids - give her time and she will be fine. She will do better when 18 months. Also babies weight gain slows down after 1st year - they go through spurts on this so don't worry.

Re milk - try soy milk - our son loves the vanilla soy milk and has not had issues with his bm's at all. Reg milk (cows) can really mess some kids digestion up - sounds like that is your problem. And keep her on the formula as needed - try a little of everything for awhile and she'll get it worked out.

Also a good helper would be foods that dissolve - there are organic crackers at Randalls that are good, and then the Gerber graduates puffs - they dissolve and easy for little ones to eat - also the dehydrated fruits are good too for this, made by both gerber and the organic "O" brand at Randalls. These are healthy snacks and good eating/swallowing helpers.

Alli

Don't worry. Just two months ago I was in the same spot as you are now. My son is now 15 months old and is finally eating more food than formula. Feed her the things that you know she will eat while offering her other things. Don't try more than one new item at any meal. My son loved graham cracker sticks and peanut butter crackers as a snack. I would just hand them to him to walk around with and he would naw on them. It allowed him to try different textures on his own terms as he is very independent. I give him toddler formula in his cup which has more nutrients than whole milk. He has a cup of whole milk daily to ensure he's used to it as I'm now about to quit the toddler formula entirely. He is my third child and the only one to NEVER eat baby food. I was worried too even with my pediatrician's reassurances. She was right thought. They all start eating eventually. Give it some time and she'll eat. Remember, at her age she won't be growing anywhere near the rate she did in the first year. Good luck and keep meal time low key.

My mini is picky. She is 17 month and has gotten tons better BUT at 13 months she was still VERY picky. All her buddies ate like champs and she just wasn't that into it.

Her diet was all things whiteish- Cheerios, tortias (Sp?), yogurt, tofu, rice and rice cereal etc...

She is still picky but the Dr. says she is healthy so...

I say try the rice ceral. She likes the Earths best multigrain and oatmeal. I would add yogurt to that and call it a day. She also liked prunes. Another thing I noticed is that if I left her with the bowl and let her get really messy, ie: feed herself, she ate more. When all else fails and I feel like she isn't getting enough this works. Even now. Also if you like to go out and eat sushi take her along and get her some miso soup with extra tofu and a bowl of rice. These are my daughters favorite items. She can eat her weight in tofu from miso soup.

GOOD luck,

have you tried to grind up some of the same foods that you eat and let she see you eat some also?

Wow, sounds like a night and day difference. My two kids did that too!!
My son was eating tamales at 6 months and pasta plates at 12 months. He is a true lover of foods. He weaned himself off the bottle at 11 months!
My daughter wouldn't even eat baby cereal until 10 months and was on a bottle and baby cereal plus Geber #2 until 15 months and didn't start eating solid foods until 20 months and would never eat Gerber #3. She was VERY turned off by new textures in foods.
I don't consider my DD a picky eater. She eats everything now, but it just took her a lot longer to eat.

With my son, I was only able to BF him for 3 months (if that). He was starving and the doctor told me to start him on baby cereal and formula, so I did. We progressed from there. As for my daughter, I was able to BF her until 6 months. At her 2 month check up I asked about baby cereal (same pediatrician) and he said as long as the BFing was going good, no need for cereal. Well, I don't know if she just got used to having a bottle and getting nutrition that way, but she just wasn't into solids.

My advice would be that if you have to do formula in a bottle to get something in her, go for it! You are the mom and even though you are a bit confused right now, YOU DO KNOW BEST.... ALWAYS. Just because this child is different than the last one, doesn't mean she has to follow the same guidelines or schedules. I would say to hold back on the whole milk also.
With both my kids, it took months for each of them to get used to milk. I started by mixing formula with Danimals yogurt and puting it in a sippy cup or bottle (50% each). I gradually switched out the formula for milk and then increased the milk and decreased the yogurt. I don't know of any child that could willfully go from breast milk or formula to milk "cold turkey". That would be about as insane as cutting caffiene cold turkey. I would just DIE!!!

Good luck