6 Month Old Refusing to Eat

yes, teething coul.d make that happen and since she is so young I wouldn't worry until about month 9-10 anyway. If she is growing and healthly I wouldn't worry...kids are picky sometimes and they know what they want. Sometimes us adults try to make them have something they may or may not be ready for.

I know this might sound like a silly question, but if you know she doesn't need the solids right now for nutrition, why are you starting her on them? Her lifelong metabolism is being set right now, and the more you try to force additional, unnecessary "fillers" on her, the greater her tendency toward obesity and a pattern toward high intake and fat storage. The template will be much better served by breastmilk, alone, until the other foods are necessary.Also, her developing immune system is better served by waiting to start solids. Maybe her innate wisdom is just at work here, and you should trust it? After all, at six-months, you're all she really needs.

My son is 2 and he still doesn't eat when he's cutting teeth. He just cut his top back molars and it was awful! He would eat apples and maybe some cheese, but anything else was out of the question. We gave him plenty of milk and juice and things so he would have a little nutrition. After the teeth finally came in, he's was an eating machine...he ate everything he could! The only other time he stops eating is when he has an ear infection. He doesn't pull on his ears, he never lets us know he has any pain (has a high pain tolerance) so that is our only indication that there is a problem...needless to say, we used to see his doc a lot when he was younger...LOL.

Run your finger in your daughter's mouth to see if you can feel her gums being swollen. If not, there may be something else wrong. Never hurts to take your sweetheart and have her checked out. :)

I wouldn't worry about it. Just keep trying once or twice a day and soon enough she will turn around. You're right she doesn't really need the food right now. I have a nine month old and sometimes she still doesn't eat. You might have really good milk and she just isn't hungry. I'm glad she nurses so well! Enjoy every moment with her :)

She could be teething. Ours always goes through a period of eating fewer solids and drinking more bottles when she is teething.

Otherwise, perhaps she doesn't really like the food. We waited until 6 months to start our daughter on solids. That also meant that she was more capabable of handling a variety of food right from the beginning. If you are starting with the purees, try moving to the stage 2 or 3 foods instead. Also, try giving her things that she can feed herself. Avocado is a great started food. Noodles can be cooked until very soft, but still manageable for little fingers. Sweet potatoes and squash work well as early foods too.

Teething and growth spurts can cause babies and toddlers to not want to eat. What I used to do is give my baby a cool damp rag to chew on (or any soothing cooled teething toy) about half an hour before feeding time. By the time it's mealtime the gums were feeling ok and she was more likely to want to eat. Mind you, it didn't work all the time but a lot of times it did. It could also be the type of food given, if it's too chunky it may cause baby to gag. My daughter, even still at 15 months, will gag on mashed potatoes. She eats regular cooked cubed potatoes like a pro, but mashed she hates and gags on it. If you don't succeed with babyfood from a jar you can aways resort to cereal made a little watery (which is full of vitamins too) and see if she'll eat that.

I see that the poster below me suggested you not feed your baby solids. I'm sure she means well and has her reasons, but you need to do what you feel you should. Here's the other side to that debate about solids. Although it is true that babies don't necessarily need the nutrition, the most important part of eating at this point is learning all the small motor skills involved in doing it. At some point your baby will learn to grab her own food with her hands and put it to her mouth, she'll learn to chew bigger chunks of food and move them around her mouth with her tongue to prevent choking. She will learn to sort her food and even throw it. There are so many educational opportunities in just the simple act of feeding your baby that I personally feel it's very important early in life. Most doctors recommend starting solids between 4-6 months old or when your baby learns to hand feed herself at the latest. Some parents choose to wait till a year old and that's fine too.

We all read lots of things in books and hear lots of different things from our doctors, you kinda just have to go with what you feel is necessary and you shouldn't be made to feel badly about the choice you do make. What's better, to find out your kid is allergic to peas at 5 months or 1 year? Does it matter? As far as I know obesity is caused by overeating, not by how early you start solids, as long as you are feeding your child the correct serving sizes and not giving her junk she'll be great. I'm more likely to believe that obese babies come from moms who stuff their kids with cereal in their bottles to keep them quiet at night or help them sleep longer. Breastfed babies tend to be able to better tell when their tummies are full and stop eating and are way less likely to overeat than a bottle fed baby. This whole thing about immune system and all that...well, genetics and environment have a LOT to do with that, more than solid food. You're doing great for your babys body just by breastfeeding, so yay!

Don't worry about your girl, she won't starve. You mentioned nursing I think. My daughter, when she was teething really badly, would nurse all day long and want no food or anything, just nursing. If you put ice on your nipples and make them really cold right before latching your baby then it will soothe her gummies right up and she'll eat happily. She'll be fine, it's just a phase. If you get more concerned and she continues like this for more than two weeks and you begin to realize she's losing weight, then call your Pedi and talk with them. **hugs** Good luck!

If I remember correctly we started with cereral only for a month. Then went on to baby food jars. The cereral could be too thick. Try making it super runny like soup. They have to develop the texture first. As far as trying different foods I am not sure she is ready for apple sauce and others right now. Good luck hope it works for you.

Nursing always makes them feel comforted even if they are teething. That sounds like it could be part of the problem. The gagging could be partially caused by the excess saliva she is producing with the teeth. How are her bowel movements. If they are watery, could also be the teeth. That pain can also make them nauseous and not feel like eating. Keep trying to give her the food, but don't stress over it...also, she could be moving to more textured food. Try making cereal less watery and try baby food with texture...that made a huge difference to my girls when they were transitioning and would gag because of the slimy texture of the food. Good luck.

She doesn't need solids. It's just a training time. Keep offering, but don't push. It's not a need.

really she doesnt have to have solids right now if you are nursing she is getting what she needs from you try something different she might not like the texture of what you are offering her

If she does not have a fever do not worry. As Misty said, she may just not be in the mood for the solids. She will eat or feed when she is really hungry.

You could also be correct that she is beginning to teeth. I gave my daughter frozen mini bagels or frozen bananas to gum on.

Interesting fact. The order that her teeth come in, is the same order they will fall out!