9 Mos. and Refuses Any Vegetables, Help.

Hi P.,
Do they have V8 Splash there? It's a V8 drink that I have to give to my son because he refuses veggies too (& most fruits). I just mix it with water & he loves the Strawberry Banana flavor. It doesn't have artificial sugar, so I'm very happy with it. If they don't have that over there, then maybe you could try cooking the veggies in low sodium chicken broth? And when my son 1st started refusing his veggies we tried adding butter (which his pedi said was fine). We just use a little real butter & that helped some. Also, we would mix some veggies in his cereal... that was a big hit! :) I wouldn't put sugar or sugar products in her veggies, because too much sugar is not good either. Good luck!
Sincerely,
A.

My 9 month old daughter has never liked it when I try to make my own veggie baby food. She does however seem okay with the veggies (carrots, potatoes, broccoli, peas, green beans, peas & sweet potatoes) if I cook them extra so they are softer than what I would eat and cut them up into pea size pieces (I squish the peas enough to break the skin).
I think the fact that she is able to feed herself makes it more fun and she seems to eat quite a bit of veggies that way.

Good Luck!

Gosh, difficult questions. As for cinnamon, I would take it easy on that, it can cause some stomach upset so go easy on it. Maybe try some "alspice" instead. Also, try boiling your carrots in pineapple or apple juice then mashing, they get a bit of sweetness without adding the sugar! Also, spices are okay. If you check the Gerber labels like spinach, it is also prepared with powdered onion and such for flavor. Also, try mixing the fruits and veggies, no one ever said they had to be seperate.
At 9 months, my son was ready to try table foods and also ended up preffering them to baby food. He loved tamales (even the spicy ones!!). My daughter was content to eat baby food until she was about 15 months and I finally said no more!! (of course she was BF much longer too).
If you blenderize the baby veggies, try mixing them up with some table foods too. Blenderize some green beens, or spinach with some tomato sauce and pour over cut up spaghetti.
Apples can mix with just about anything, carrots, sweet potatoes, green beens. Cheese and broccoli, cucumbers and pears. Mix, mix, mix!

Yep, my 15 month old went through the SAME thing at that age and he's just now coming out of it. Sometimes he would eat a veggie for one meal and I would think WHALA he's eating veggies again and then he'd be back to his old games. You may just have to try new stuff each time though. My pediatrician says it is just a texture thing. My son liked the sweet potato fries (in the freezer section and you bake them), green beans (because they were a project), and edamame. That's all he does now. I did buy the sneaky chef cookbook, and he would eat those things--basically just mix pureed spinach and such into meatloaf, pancakes, etc. It was crazy what I could hide!

www.wholesomebabyfood.com has some great recipes that use spices. It's a wonderful free reference.

Just bear in mind that for the first year, babies get the majority of their nutrition from breastmilk/formula - both of which are formulated to provide all the vitamins she needs. Food is still something to experiment with and explore, so if she refuses vegetables or any other food, don't stress over it. Offer it to her again at other times, and she'll take it when she's interested.

hi there. i, too, make baby food at home. my little one sometimes "gags" too. i found that the food was too thick. didnt look that way to me but when i watered it down (to almost a soupy consistency) Will ate it all. you may try that. also, cooking with a little no salt butter, fresh herbs, etc is fine according to the baby cookbook i go by - "Top 100 Baby Purees" by Annabel Karmel. you might be able to order it online. it is terrific and helps when i run out of recepies. good luck.

Hi,,,
well as we all know many people are vegatarians and yougert is great for the body at 9 mths have you tryed giving her a green to just pick up and eat she has teeth ,or carrtscooked,,,mash potatoes off your plate ,,give her a good multi vitiam everyday i bet she'll be great
good luck L.

I had this same trouble when I first started feeding my DD home made veggies and such. The main problem that I found was the texture, not the taste. The Gerber jars have such smoothly pureed foods that there almost isn't a texture, and it's hard to get that same silky smoothness from home. We just persisted, and with time DD learned to enjoy the textures of new foods. GL!

I really think it's fine to mix in some spices if you think that will help. At our 9 mth check up the doc said that our baby could have anything we were eating, just puree it up. Like the other mommas said, I'd be careful about too much salt, but I know good moms who mixed spices in with their babies' foods. Good luck to you!

Try different textures as well. I went through a making my own baby food kick a couple of weeks ago, and my 9 month old didn't like anything I made. But, he would eat the same flavors out of the jars. I realized it was a texture thing. If I puree the foods really thoroughly, he likes them more.

Keep on giving it to her. I know it's a lot of work but by freezing your homemade food in ice cube trays, it makes it a lot easier. Have you tried mixing the veggies with applesauce, yogurt, cereal or something she does like?

puray the veggies and use that to ake cookies... I have also used veggies in spagetti sause... you can add it to anything that way and they still get the nurishment fro the veggies.. have a blessed one

You didn't say which country you are in...so what you have available will vary. My daughter pretty much only breastfed until she was a year, so this might be better for when she gets just a bit older. Of course, mine also didn't have any teeth until she was a year. I've always made all of her food.

Avoid excess salty or sweet, but you can (and I believe you should) definitely start introducing other flavors. Just remember that your baby's palate is less developed and won't need so much to get the effect.

I have a good trick for frozen leaf spinach--grind it quickly(while frozen) in the food processor into a fine texture. If you do more than you need for a day, quickly put it back in the freezer so you can scoop/scrape out what you need without it forming a solid block. I mix this in scrambled eggs, homemade turkey macaroni and cheese, applesauce. I've also done this with raw carrot shreds and just cooked as needed for whatever they are being mixed with.

If you make pot roast, roast some extra vegetables and puree them with some whole milk or yogurt and some of the defatted juices. I made a sippy cup with extra large holes and let my daughter "drink" her vegetable soup.

Try mixing low-sodium vegetable juice with fruit juice.

Above all, keep offering a variety of foods raw and cooked. Make sure you are giving her a chance to feed herself. My daughter loved to feed herself steamed green peas for the longest time.

Do try changing the size/texture of foods...I have to cut grapes into pieces or she will just eat the guts and spit out the skin. I also did this with beans--red, lima, kidney--and it seemed to do the trick.

Ok...rambling a bit now...but don't stress day to day on what she is getting. Think about her diet over a span of a few days and incorporate all the elements of a healthy diet over time. Change things up a lot, our babies are paying attention even when we don't realize it. Example...if you always give her something sweet at the end of the meal she may come to expect that and be less willing to finish the main attraction.

I would suggest to mix in applesauce or some other fruit or fruit juice to help naturally sweeten the veggies. A little salt probably won't hurt but I wouldn't use any spices that could cause heartburn or excess acid (like cinnamon).

You could also mix the fruit and veggies in with the cereal. I am sure you will find some combination that will work! Good luck!

I always fed my kids the same vegies that we (the adults) were eating. I don't think adding a little seasoning will hurt her as long as it's done in moderation.
This could also be something that will pass on it's own. Good Luck!!

Hi P.-

I haven't had this problem myself, but as far as spices go I think it's fine as long as you avoid salt. My 10 month old eats all kinds of things so I'm sure he's had most every spice at some point in time.

My other suggestion would be to mix the vegetables that you have prepared in with some apple sauce or other pureed fruit to make it more to her liking.

Good Luck!
K.

Don't give up! My baby boy loved his veggies and one day he decided he didn't. He was teething. Once his teeth popped back through, he was back to eating more normally. I have noticed that many times, my son doesn't like a food because of the texture. Try using a ricer to get the food extra smooth. Also, I started giving him the food that he didn't like to feed to himself. He loved it! He really enjoys feeding himself. 9 months is not too young! Try mixing the foods that your baby doesn't like with those that he does.
Good luck!