My 7 month old son has been eating solids (rice & oatmeal cereal, pureed fruits & veggies) for about a month now and seems to love everything I give him, except pears. He is normally an enthusiastic eater and happily opens his mouth to eat and says mmm and smiles a lot while I feed him. He is independent and likes to do things himself so he always holds the spoon while I feed it to him. He usually eats about 2-3 tablespoons at a time. For the past week, he suddenly has decided that he doesn't want to eat solids anymore. I offer him the spoon and he clamps him mouth shut and grabs the spoon and pushes it away. I try again later in the day and the same thing happens. I tried different foods and it did not seem to matter. I can usually get him to try one or two bites but then he would get upset and close his mouth, so I give up. I tried letting him hold the bowl but then he would just start mushing handfulls of food in his fingers and painting on the high chair tray. He seems more interested in playing with the food now. Today I gave him a teething cracker (one of the kinds that basically dissolves in his mouth) in the high chair and he held it and ate that just fine. Afterward I tried giving him some sweet potatoes (which he has loved in the past) and he refused them, as well as bananas (another favorite). I'm worried that maybe since I gave him his vitamins in the high chair a few times (he hates them) that maybe he is associating feeding with those bad-tasting vitamins and now doesn't want anything that I feed him. He also refused to eat for my husband and my mother-in-law so I know it's not just me.
He has also been irritable and more hungry during the day,so I know he needs to be eating more. He still breastfeeds normally, but seems to get hungry so quickly- he wants to breastfeed every two hours just like when he was a newborn. At night he has been waking up between 10:30 and 12, which he has not done in months. He has two bottom teeth and he was fussy at night like this on the nights before those teeth came in, but it never lasted several days like this. I look in his mouth every morning trying to see if there is a new tooth. I can tell that his two top teeth will be coming soon, but there is no sign of them yet. And when he was getting first two teeth, he never refused to eat solids like this. What could the reason for this be? What else can I do to get him to start eating them again?
Thanks for all the advice! I figured out that it must be his top teeth hurting him. Yesterday afternoon I tried again and he opened his mouth to let me feed him a few bites but I noticed that he was sticking his tongue out so I could place the food on his tongue instead of putting it in his mouth. He doesn't want the spoon to touch his top gums where the teeth are coming in. I'm going to try giving him more finger foods too to see if he is ready for them. He wants to eat chunks of banana but it's too slippery to coordinate into his mouth. I will keep working on finding things that he can eat on his own. The most important thing is to make sure he is getting a positive view of eating. He also slept really well last night and didn't wake up at an odd hour. I'm guessing that he just wasn't feeling well for a few nights. But today he seems much happier.
He is teething. Always a challenging time. Explore new foods. Perhaps eat in a different place. It will pass
My twins were this way. My youngest was very independewntand would reach for food off my plate at that age. Minestrone soup was a favorite all those different shapes and colors.
Dear E.,
I know my kids went through this phase when they were teething. Some children do not want the spoon near their mouth when it is hurting. One trick I did was give them a spoon or a fork to hold on their own and then while they are trying to feed themselves you may be able to get some spoonfuls in. I find that sometimes they want to eat independently and are still too young. Have you tried fingerfoods yet? Cheerios or puffs. I started introducting them at that age it is great for developing their coordination. Also while they are busy you may be able to get some food in them. Children go through so many eating phases, one rule of thumb is that when they are hungry enough they will eat. However if you are nursing him every two hours he surely will not be that hungry and will continue to be fussy. Try having him hold his own utensil and let him feed himself it is a great distraction while you try to feed him. Good luck!!
Hi E., Isn't it great when you finally have something good going and the kids change it on us? Like something snaps in their brains that says "OK, I don't want mommy to get too comfortable now - so I'm going to change things up a bit!" LOL...
Anyway, I agree with Diane S. I think he might be at the transitional stage of moving towards table foods....give it a try. Van's makes these great waffles (we use wheat free) that are nice and soft, baked sweet potato french fries, soups with soft, poached chicken and veggies, cut-up soft avocado.....
Good luck!
J.
My son pretty much refused solids until he was 12months. Sometimes he would fool me and eat an entire jar of something then never touch it again. He especially did not like the texture of cereal. Never consistently ate any baby food at all really. I used to just mush what was on my plate for him and then he was happy enough. He was a light eater (still is at 10) nursed until he was 2-1/2 and was always was in the 75-80 % for his weight.
I would just continue to offer and not give reaction to his refusal. he may enjoy the reaction you give and then he is training you:)!
Same thing happened with my son not long ago. I then realized he was cutting his first tooth.
This could be the reason your little one isn't very interested in eating too. If it continues I would take him to your ped. but my guess is that he just doesn't feel right, and he will be getting some teeth not too long from now
I'm with the table foods! My dgtr has always been a bit independent and I quickly learned that I needed to stay out of the way when I could (keep in mind that she is now 26 mos old and STILL let's the babysitter feed her every mouthful of a meal if she so wishes - but not me!! LOL). Give him nice soft and small pieces of table food (go with as natural/organic as you can in my opinion) - the cheerios (yes, I buy organic!! :-), puffy rice (I bought puffed Kamut - it's healthier), even the puffed fruit (Gerber sells organic ones) were all a help.
The other thing that worked wonders was one of the teething mesh feeders - you fill the mesh part with chewables and close it up - he can hold it and chew away with less risk of choking.
He's exploring and this is all part of it. One thing I've learned (which I don't always practice!!) is the less you get upset or push something, the more likely they will do what you hope they will do at some point (I've put it to practice on my husband too - it works everywhere! LOL) As for the vitamins - why does he get them? I just don't remember my dgtr having them until she was 1yr - but I could be wrong. But - mix them with food (yogurt worked the best here - she always refused all other food if I put them in it!!) or a bottle - they really are awful by themselves!!
Hi E.! My son did this at 8.5 months. He has never let me feed him baby food since. I took it as a sign of readiness for self-feeding normal table food. I started with cheese, teething crackers, pasta, bread (sunflower seed butter), stuff like that. My daughter loves veggie booty (in the organic chips aisle? puffy popcorn like stuff? melts in the mouth) - it's big enough to be a good practice food for her to learn to pick up stuff with her little hands. I would definitely start to expand your offerings to be more finger food friendly and see if that helps. Maybe you'll be able to sneak in a bite or two of babyfood. At this age, most of their nutrients come from breastmilk (or formula) anyway.
hi might be teething. my first got her bottoms and i didnt even realize it till after they were up, but the tops bothered her. i wouldnt think its the vitamins(although if eating healthy and breastfeeding, he really doesnt need them) but you may want to change the time just in case.
but also have you considered "baby led weaning". you can google it. the idea is babies will not swallow food on their own until they are ready due to a reflex. when the reflex is gone, and the baby has the pincer grasp, there is no reason he cant eat nutritious fresh foods. it sound like he wants to do it himself. try cutting a banana in pieces, not little bitty pieces, but more like where he can hold it and chew on it. he should be able to gum it just fine(i know several people whose babies didnt have teeth at one but of course they fed them real food). well cooked broccoli stalks so he can hold the stem part and carrot sticks. avocado and sweet potatoe are very good for you, the baby will mush it but then eat off his hands. it is messy, but then your baby can do it himself, and will be eating fresher foods. my daughter is EBF and has just started solids eating avocado, bananas, and apple. didnt seem to live peach.
its just something to think about. there is a lot of info on mothering.com and la leches website in the forum "starting solids". good luck
he is still pretty young to be eating solids. Just give him what he likes, and after a few weeks of it if he likes carrots and pears, mix a spoon of peas in with the carrots. The next day 2 spoons of peas in the carrots... you get the drift. It will happen, and soon you won't be able to keep him full!
