My 6Month Old Won't Eat Veggies!!

Starting on veggies right off the bat (especially the green ones) after being on stuff as bland as rice cereal and formula is a big change. And have you ever tasted the mashed peas and green beans in those little jars? They really are gross!

Please don't start stressing out about this now and think he's never going to like veggies. I started with the sweet potatoes and carrots for my daughter and she did fine. She liked the squash too, as well as all the fruits. Now she is 4 years old and one of the healthier eaters out there. Still loves fruit, sweet potato, and carrots. Not too crazy about peas and green beans yet but will eat broccoli and salad. He might get more interested in peas and green beans when they are the actual veggies that he can pick up and chew in his mouth.

It is so early to say he "won't" eat them! :) You just tried them! Keep offering them, or try something else...it's okay to start with something a little sweeter. I started both of my children with squash and sweet potato, moved to carrot, and THEN to peas and green beans, and they are wonderful veggie eaters. I also think it's okay to introduce fruits...just don't start with something like applesauce. Start with a more delicate flavor, like pear or banana.

The big "fault" you have to watch out for is when you start finger foods. Don't start giving him Gerber rice puffs, fruit loops, cheerios, etc...try offering small soft cooked bits of fruits and veggies, eggs and cheese when allowed (and when they can be handled) bits of tuna, etc. My youngest never really had any of those "grainy snacks" because of her Celiac disease, and she is an AWESOME eater, and doesn't like to snack. She just eats well at meals!

Honestly, don't stress over it. At six months, if he doesn't want to eat something, then don't give it to him. Try again a different time. I don't even feed my kids solids until they are older - closer to 8 months with my current baby. With my other three, they were closer to 10-11 months. And, my first two were still mainly breastfed until 14 months because they had very little interest in food. They are all well sized (not overweight), healthy little people. And, it's been surprisingly common that some kids aren't very interested in food until around that age.

I only share all that detail to reassure you that making sure your baby eats veggies at six months is going to have very little to do with his health later on. You want him to enjoy eating veggies, and if it turns into any sort of power struggle, he's going to hate veggies more.

Right now, just let him lead with what he likes and doesn't like, and don't worry if he won't eat certain food groups. It really, really is okay. He'll develop those tastes later on. My kids love fruits and veggies. LOVE THEM. It probably helps that I don't give them any snacks other than fruits or veggies so they aren't used to sugary foods:-)

Anyway, really, really, really don't worry about it - it doesn't need to be a big deal at all. Six months old they don't even need to be eating solids. They CAN eat solids, but it's not necessary for their nutrition. Make healthy eating fun and not forced.

The biggest thing is if you are healthy, your son will learn that from you. It won't matter if you have obesity elsewhere because you are the one feeding him and teaching him what is good to eat or not. I have obesity in my family as well. Some of my sisters are overweight, and i'm seeing that their children, as they get into their later teens, are gaining weight too. I don't see that happening with mine (or yours) because we do things so much different at our house!

Ok i'm really not trying to be rude here but, HAHAHAHAHAAA! Phew! Now that, that's over let my try to help you.
So your son has been used to some pretty awfuly bland foods. Bland formula, bland rice. So all of a sudden you stick this weird texture, weird smelling, weird tasting food into his mouth. Of course he is going to spit it out! What you can do is mix half rice half peas (which I don't blame him for spitting out. NASTY!) so that he can start getting used to different tastes, SLOWLY.
Also, some kids WILL NOT eat solid foods till they are older. My son at first ate rice cereal, but once we started with other foods he stopped completely till he was one. DON'T push eating. If you are worried about obesity, then food CAN NOT be a stressing point. Healthy, yes. But being forced to eat a food that you don't like, or you might have a really active gag reflux will only push your child towards sweets and overeating the food he loves.

I realize you aren't wanting to get him hooked on sweet foods right off the bat, but usually it goes better if you do start with something that has more flavor. I think we usually started the kids off with applesauce or bananas.... mixing them in with rice cereal, since they were usually familiar with that.

Also, I would "hide" a bite of the veggies in the middle of the rice cereal... it wasn't as strong of a flavor, and got them used to the new flavor that way.

What about starting with carrots, or squash? They have a naturally sweet flavor, but are still veggies.

Your pediatrician probably a very good doc but I don't think a 6 month old should be doing more than rice cereal and some juice other than formula. Formula is their whole nutrition. The act of eating baby food is just a learning tool, learning to chew and swallow something thicker than formula in a bottle.

They need to always take formula first then be offered the baby food next. They usually only eat a tsp. at first if anything at all. If you must give him baby foods then by all means start him on fruits first.

But, formula is their primary source of nutrition for the first year.

Don't stress mama. It can take a little one (up through toddlerhood and beyond) up to 8-a dozen times trying something before they develop an affinity for it. Let these first real foods just be an exploration in flavor for him and an experiement on your part to determine what works for his body. Creamier veggies like avocado or sweet potato might be well received. Also, sometimes the pureed store bought baby food doesn't taste as pleasant as something prepared fresh. Good luck :)

Your doing great...keep mixing the veggies in the rice. Pretty soon his pallet will be used to the taste and he will eat them. Try the squash & sweet potatoes too.

I'm w/Malia B. we did the fruits first b/c then that way we could hide all of the nasty stuff behind it! If u think he is making faces now, just wait until u try the meats!!!! Best of luck to u!

Hes 6 months - give the kid a break LOL. He is used to what he knows and thats rice cereal then you spoon a bunch of yuck into his mouth for the first time and his taste buds freak. Just be patient with it and do as your doing by mixing small amounts to his cereal and he will hopefully develop a taste for new things. My daughter made the 'best' faces when we started her on carrots and such and I swore she would be just like me as a kid and be the pickiest eater ever - ( I figured it was punishment) but she will eat just about everything now. She is 21 months and I swear that kid makes me so happy with her diet. The only things she doesnt eat is rice, potatoes and untoasted breads (obviously a texture thing) but otherwise if I placed it in front of her she would devour an entire garden of fruits and veggies
Good Luck , Im sure he will be eating new stuff in no time

Get a baby development book. If your baby does not have teeth he should not be eating PERIOD! He doesn't have the digestive enzymes for it.
When my first child had four teeth across the top she was 5 months old. She wanted meat. I did not eat it but her father did. We gave her bits of hamburger. My second child had no teeth until 8 months of age. Different children are different.
The best feeding for an infant is breast milk. Since your doctor advised you to skip that step he's accustomed to corn and other things a baby should not eat due to the obesity problem. It's our diet that makes us fat not that we eat. We eat too many starches and not enough fresh fruit and vegetables.
Cook the veggies yourself. Do not add salt or sugar so he'll develop the desire for food that keeps him healthy.
Get him into exercise programs once he's ready like baby swim to begin with and gymnastics around three years of age. A life long habit of exercise will help him to be of normal weight.

Are you feeding him baby food from those little jars? If so, it's no wonder he won't eat it. Have you tasted that stuff? It's nasty. Cook real vegetables the way you and your family eat them, mash them up and feed them to him.

He's only six months, you are fine. I didn't even start my son on any solids like rice until six months. The first time I gave him green beans his little face twisted in disugst!! I just tried something else. Maybe try carrots, they are sweeter so they may be a better first veggie. He doesn't really need it for his nutrition yet, so this is just a new introduction to taste really. Also mixing it with the rice is a great idea, get him used to new tastes gradually. My second son wasn't big on green beans for a while and now that he is 19 months he can't get enough of them. Don't worry, he is so young, it will be fine :D

Supposedly you should continue to offer a new food to a baby even if they act like they don't like it. I've heard it can take up to 10 exposures to a new food to develop a liking for it. This sounds about right because one day my 16 month old loves something and the next day hates it. Who knows whats going through their minds!

So keep offering it! And maybe try a different veggie that's a bit sweeter.....sweet potato or carrots? Also, my son hated commercial jarred baby food, but liked it so much better when I made it (have you tried baby food from a jar?! yuck) Just some food for thought, ha! Good luck

DOn't be in a rush to move to solids.... my daughter was almost 8 mos... and was very happy and healthy on BM. When we did start, we did cereal like you have, then moved to one veggie at a time. Sweet potatoaes and squash are more tasty... might try to start w/ orange. GOod luck

I reviewed some of your previous questions and can tell you that your pediatrician's guidance on feeding your son is not in line with a lot of the advice you will get on this site. It seems your pediatrician is pushing you in the direction of introducing solids earlier. It also seems you are putting a lot of pressure on your son and your self to develop healthy eating habits now to prevent obesity. Well, you did breast feed for a while. That is a good start. A major component in reducing his likelihood to become obese is to develop and practice a healthy attitude about food yourself. If you are too uptight about the issue, he will perceive it and it will become an issue later. Also, be aware that what foods babies eat (especially in the pureed baby food presentation) have nothing to do with the foods they accept and enjoy later in life. When they are older, have teeth and have words, you can work on exploring different flavors and textures in healthy foods. For now, breastmilk or formula should be the primary source of nutrition with spoon foods offered just a means of the baby learning the mechanics of ingesting food in a different form. Don't rush things and you'll both be fine.

Why not try some other veggies. Mashed avocado is great, mashed potato, pureed carrot, cauliflower etc. My now six year old hated veggies when he was a baby, and my now five year old loved them. The roles have now reversed and my five year old will not touch them (sigh). Not liking green beans now does not mean your son will be obese.

I wouldn't worry about it so much. Just keep offering it to him. His main source of nutrition util he turns 1 is formula (or breastmilk), so this is just to get him used to having a different texture and taste in his mouth. With my son we would just give him a spoonful or two until he was about 7 months. Then he started to act like he really wanted it. Just give it time and be patient.

veggies have a much stronger taste then cereal. something he is not use to. you are doing a great job by slowly getting him use to the taste by putting it in his cereal. try squash, it has a relativly mild taste. for now stay away from carrots and peas these have a much stronger taste. oh and just don't let anyone tell you that he is fine as long he eats fruit. people said this to me and still do, but fruit and veggies are on different sections of the food pyramid for a reason