My 7 month old girl does not like to eat the cereal nor gerber. I'm not sure if it is the texture or what but my doctor says that she will eventually come around to liking it. She does like eating table food, though. She gums on bread, tortillas, crackers, mac & cheese, etc. I'm not sure that her system is capable of digesting table food, yet and it is of concern. Anyone experience their baby not liking babyfood? If so, any suggestions.
Brenda:
I had the same trouble with my little guy. I think anything that will last on a shelf as long as baby food is awful! Anything we made i just threw it in the blender and he ate it. Some good things for you to try are: mac and cheese, grilled cheese with ham, spaghetti, meatloaf, etc. Hope this helps!
S.
Jarred baby food tastes like goo! have you tried it? No wonder she doesn't like it! Go to the library and check out Dr. Sears family nutrition book and get Super Baby food book. I have made all of my daughter's food homemade, and she is the healthiest kid I know. She also is not picky because she knows what real food tastes like, she didn't get jarred slime. Just make sure she doesn't get too much salt--I make all my daughter's food without salt and added sugar. The Super Baby Food book is a little extreme--she's not a nutritionist, so check with your M.D. Avocado is a great first food and the millet porridge is a great alternative to instant rice cereal.
good luck! she sounds like a great kid.
my youngest son just turned one and he never ate baby food. never. He too would gum on mac and cheese or bread etc.. He is a little butter ball so I figured he was getting enough food. Most of that baby food is terrible so how could I blame him for not eating it. Try yogurt and see if she likes that.
As long as its soft and small enough that she won't choke I would go with the table foods. Its a whole lot cheaper and easier than the babyfood route. My 6 month old's Ped said we can start giving him any tablefood we want as long as there is no shellfish or penut products or a lot of eggs. He said we can even start him on small bits of meat so I'm sure your daughter is plenty able to digest the table food. My son loves most baby food so I can't help you there. Try the oatmeal and some fruits- she may like those.
My kids ate babyfood until they were 9 months, and then it was all table food after that. I think that she will be fine digesting it. Just try her a little at a time, and for 3 days before trying the next new thing.
Good luck!
My daughter did the same thing and so did my son when he was the same age. They both just all of a sudden would not eat baby food or let me feed them with a spoon. So I would just grind up what we were eating and just make sure they had their vegetables and fruit that they needed and they've both did really good and became early self feeders. They did like the gerber graduates that come in the baby food jars but are in chunks and easy for babies to eat and digest so you may want to try those as well.I found a food grinder at meijer thats really nice and its portable too and at a really good price! Good Luck, you're not alone.
My daughter didn't like the jarred food either. I had my own "grand delusions" of making my own baby food but I knew that would pan out. So I ended up doing some table foods and buying foods from GAGA Gourmet in Lombard. She loves all the food. It's more expensive than the store bought ones but each food tastes like the real thing. And since your baby likes table foods you could do a combo. I'm pretty sure GAGA Gourmet is listed in the mamasource directory.
M. P.
Mom of 2 (5 year old and 1 year old)
I think it's fine as long as they're still getting either formula or breastmilk - if/when you switch to whole milk you may want to look at her diet again to make sure she's getting enough iron and vitamins.
Also, you can try different grains (my kids liked the oatmeal baby cereal) and mix them with either jarred food or homemade baby food. I used a food mill (bought it brand new at goodwill for $1) to mash fruits and cooked veggies.
Brenda:
there is no research that I know of indicating that baby's should eat "baby food" She is old enough to eat whatever you are eating and seems to have indicated that that is her preference.
P., RLC, IBCLC
Pres. Lactation Support Group, Inc
www.lactationsupportgroup.com
Have you tried to mix some kind of fruit in with the cereal. My son wouldn't eat it plain, it had to have gerber bananas, applesause, or pears mixed it, oh and he would only eat the oatmeal, hated rice cereal. This worked for my son. Good Luck.
Don't force it on her. It doesn't taste good! My daughter was about 8 months old when she went to table food and never looked back. Yo Baby yogurt they love and it's organic. I make my daughter scrambled eggs every morning and put cheese in it and she loves it. You'd have to
look up about eggs though, I think that there is something they aren't supposed to have before a year old, the yolk or the white, I don't remember. Cutting up bananas in apple sauce is yummy for them. You can throw some fruit in the blender and puree it yourself, it's really easy. Mashed potatoes are great. Bagels are great for gumming. Pretty much anything soft and mushy at this point is fine. You'll be able to tell what she can handle and what she can't. WHen my daughter was 8 months she could eat meat but not all can do that that young. Let her experiment with different textures and tastes so she can have some fun with meal time. That's how they develop good eating habits later on. If you force it she'll hate eating.
It is really not necessary for them to have baby food. Esp at your daughters age, she may just want to go direct to table food. As long as you keep her table food nutritious a varied just like you would do with babyfood, there is no concern. You can always mash up soft fruits for her a little or cook/steam them in soft small chunks to make sure she is getting all the food groups. The only thing I would be concerned about is that they aren't really supposed to have wheat until they are older because of risk of allergies, but if she has already been eating them and not had a problem, then I wouldn't think she is allergic.
My oldest never ate baby food, he spit it threw it never lasted long in his mouth. The doctor said any food that we can mash or he could mash with his gums are ok to give him.
H.
I found that the difference between mixing the cereal with water vs. whole milk was huge in the taste department. Also, my son didn't seem to like the oatmeal one and loved the rice one, whereas my daughter will eat both but favors the oatmeal. Both seem/ed to like it better when I make it with whole milk over water. The cereals with the fruit seem to go over better too.
Another thing is texture. One other mom mentioned the cereals seeming like goo - made the way the box tells you to it sure does! I tend to like my own oatmeal thicker, so I tend to stir in more of the cereal until it gets to a consistancy I would be more comfortable with. Both my kids have seemed to like it thicker as well.
