When your baby won’t eat solids, it can be stressful. Learn why your baby is refusing food and how to get them to eat solid foods with 7 simple steps!
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The spoon hits the floor.
Your baby makes a nasty face.
They might even shudder or gag.
All from a bite, or an attempt to feed your baby solid foods. It’s totally unexpected when babies respond with such disdain for baby food or table food. As parents, we’re often excited about this new milestone and it’s shocking when your baby won’t eat solids.
In real life though, it’s quite common for babies to gag on solids, seem uninterested, and outright refuse food.
While knowing it’s “normal” for babies to not seem interested in solid foods, even though everyone else’s baby seems to be gulping it down by the jar full, it still leaves the question, “How do you get a baby to eat solids?”
Well, I happen to know a thing or two about that. First, because I’ve personally helped a lot of families get their babies eating solids as a pediatric occupational therapist with over a decade of experience, but also because I’ve been there with my own son…
Going through it as a mom was a whole different ball game.
Of course, I knew that it was normal for babies to refuse baby food when it was first introduced, and I also knew that some babies didn’t much prefer baby food, but my Momma heart was worried. The worrying got worse when I watched my son act like he could’ve cared less about the delicious homemade sweet potatoes that I whipped up, as he turned his face away and threw the spoon across the room.
Meal after meal.
Day after day.
And, week after week.
With each passing day that he refused to eat solids, I got more worried, and more frustrated as I’d watch the food I’d prepared literally go down the drain. There came a point when I knew I needed to do more, to put some of my OT skills to use in my home, and that’s what I’m going to share with you here, because I know how stressful it is when your sweet adorable little baby won’t eat solids.
By the end of this guide, you’ll know :
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- Why your baby is refusing solids
- Why they used to eat solids, but don’t anymore
- How to get them to eat solids and table foods
- Ways to get them more help (if you need it)
We have specific guides as well for toddlers that refuse to eat and preschoolers and school aged kids that refuse to eat.
Why Your Baby Won’t Eat Solids
There are a lot of factors that can actually play a role in any baby’s refusal to eat solid food. We’re going to walk through each of them below, but know that the reason your baby isn’t eating solids could be any one or combination of them. With a little detective work, you’ll figure it out!
Also, age has a little do with it, and will help you hone in on what’s going on.
6 or 7 Month Olds That Refuse Solids:
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- Baby isn’t ready yet – 6 months of age is the perfect time to introduce baby to solid foods, but sometimes the baby isn’t ready. Actually, this is really common when the baby is closer to 4 and 5 months old if you’re starting a little earlier, but is still totally normal at 6 months of age.
Babies are still learning how to move their tongue and bring toys to their mouth, which helps them get used to having foreign objects in there. Each baby is unique and yours may just need some practice if they are in this age range.
They also may still be developing good trunk and head control, without it, eating is difficult!
Check out the American Academy of Pediatrics recommendations for introducing food and make sure your baby is ready for solids. You can also find my guide to Introducing Solids with more details on milestones to look for when 6 months old.
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- A strong tongue thrust reflex – Most babies usually lose this reflex that helps them not choke if something accidentally gets into their mouth around 4-6 months, but it may linger for some.
If you notice that your baby still thrusts their tongue out every time you touch the spoon to their lips, they may need a little more time. It’s really hard for them to eat when they keep shoving their tongue out of their mouth!
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- Doesn’t like the way food feels – Solid food is something so new and unfamiliar to babies, it can take a while for them to get used to the new texture in their mouth. Many babies do in fact get used to the feeling of solids, but some don’t.
Read more about that below under sensory.
8, 9, or 10 Month Olds That Refuse Solids:
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- Sensory – By 8 months of age, most babies are ready from a developmental standpoint, and at this age, it’s definitely time to get the ball rolling, but some babies (like my son) still refuse. One of the most common reasons why older babies still won’t eat solids is because they don’t like the texture.
This boils down to the way their brains are thinking about (or processing) the sensory input they feel (aka the food in their mouth).
This isn’t a bad thing and doesn’t necessarily mean they have any kind of diagnosis, but it does mean we need to take some extra steps to help them tolerate the texture of food better. You can head to sensory issues with food to learn more.
Babies that are sensitive to different textures usually gag immediately at the sight, touch, or taste of food.
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- Coordination – Eating actually requires a lot of muscle coordination from opening the mouth, pulling food off of a spoon, closing the mouth, and effectively swallowing.
We take this for granted and don’t even think about it, but for some babies, it just isn’t coming natural.
Babies that are having difficulty with coordination, or oral motor skills (find exercises with that link,) usually gag when trying to swallow or after getting the food into their mouth.
Or, the food may fall out frequently, and babies won’t eat solids because they just don’t know how. When they don’t know how to eat, it isn’t that fun, and there isn’t a lot of interest.
If gagging is something you’re concerned about or is happening often, read more in guide on baby gagging.
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- Food allergies – Believe it or not, sometimes babies will avoid certain types of foods because they’ve associated an upset tummy with the yogurt or cheese for example. It doesn’t happen all the time, but it’s something to consider, especially when it’s very specific allergenic food.
The most common types of food allergens are dairy, egg, soy, wheat, tree nut, peanut, fish, and shellfish. Severe eczema is another indicator that food allergies might be present.
Sometimes, signs become more obvious when cow’s milk is introduced.
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- Not into baby food – While this is probably the least likely reason your baby is refusing solids, it is possible.
If you’ve consistently offered baby food or infant cereal with no interest from your baby and you don’t see any of the sensory or coordination signs we talked about above, then you might just might want to move on to table and finger foods.
One way to do that is using a Baby Led Weaning approach, before you do that though read my BLW pros and cons.
Why Baby Won’t Eat Solids Anymore (They Used to?)
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- Some teething babies won’t eat – While it’s not as common, some babies start off eating baby food and then suddenly stop. A frequent cause of this is teething, and some babies teethe for a very. long. time. If your baby’s teeth are swollen, red, and seem to hurt, then this is likely the cause.
Try putting some teething gel on their gums 15-20 minutes before a meal. If you see an improvement, this is likely the culprit. Here’s a natural teething gel I like, but check with your doctor first.
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- Going through a phase – Babies may get a little bug or slight cold that we aren’t even aware of or have some negative experience with food that seemed too minor to us as the parent, but makes them leery of eating.
If it’s the latter, some sensory sensitivities can develop if a baby goes for a while without eating any food. If this is the case for your baby, you’ll want to follow the steps below and focus on not pressuring your baby to eat. It’s really important that mealtimes are a positive experience.
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- They’ve outgrown baby food – If your baby is later in their 7th month or older, they may just be sick of solid baby food and ready for the real deal table and finger foods. That may mean it’s time to change up baby’s diet!
I know that seems scary and makes some parents nervous. Don’t worry though, if you think this is why your baby suddenly won’t eat solids anymore, then head to how to transition to table foods.
How to Get Your Baby to Eat Solids
1. The absolute first thing I do with a baby not eating solids is to put a scoop of baby food or some other pureed food like yogurt onto the tray of their high chair.
I know, the mess. It’s soooo important for babies to get messy though! If you’re skeptical, you’ve got to read: Why Babies Should Get Messy Eating. It will totally change your perspective and give you the inspiration to embrace the mess.
2. Encourage your baby to touch the food, but don’t force. Be silly and keep it light. Demonstrate.
If they refuse, try and try again. In fact, at every single meal, put a dollop of that food on their tray or even in a bowl that they can play with and touch. If they won’t touch after a few attempts, offer a spoon for them to stick into the food too.
This is one of my favorite beginner spoons that makes it really easy for baby to get some food onto it.
3. Once your child touches the solid food, you’re on your way! Allow them to touch, spread, and put it all over the tray and themselves. This is wonderful for their sensory processing and will make a huge difference in helping them get used to the texture of solids.
If they get upset once they’ve touched the food, or that they are now all messy, be very calm and reassuring.
Have a wet washcloth ready and quickly wipe them down. And, if this is how they respond, it’s a sign that you need to practice playing with these foods a lot! The more they touch and interact with the food, the closer they’ll be to eating it.
4. When baby has the food on their hand and they’re at least tolerating it, show them how to take their hand to their mouth, so they can taste it. You may need to demonstrate if baby won’t let you guide their hand.
Repeat this several times. After they eat from their hands several times, offer them some solid foods from a spoon.
5. You can also give them a large whole raw carrot or celery stalk at meals. I mean the whole darn thing. The point isn’t for them eat it (and if they can get pieces of it off, take it away), but for them to put it into their mouth.
When they do this, it helps desensitize their gag reflex and they get to practice biting, chewing, and moving their tongue around. It’s amazingly powerful and can make a big impact in a baby accepting solid foods. Make sure you demonstrate and keep offering at every meal.
6. Be consistent and patient. I can’t stress this enough, even though it’s often easier said than done! Have regular meals and follow the above steps 1-3 times a day for every meal. You can find sample schedules for babies ages 6 – 7 months, 8 – 10 months, and 11 -14 months if you’d like a guideline to follow.
7. Focus on meals being positive experiences for the baby, even if they aren’t eating anything. As parents, we can bring a lot of stress with us to meals, which can be hard to hide. But, this is definitely a “fake it til you make it” kind of situation.
Take a deep breath, put on a happy face, and work on the above steps. Going into the meal with no expectations of them eating anything will also help keep your frustration level down.
I highly recommend grabbing a seat in my free online workshop to help learn more…
In it, you’ll learn 5 Easy changes parents can make to help babies and toddlers eat table food well! It’s an eye opener and will help you take steps to give them the best start with eating table foods well (even if it already isn’t going well):
Strategies to Use Outside of Meals for Baby’s Refusing Solids
There are a few really powerful strategies you can use away from the highchair that will directly impact your baby eating solids during meals. Might seem strange, but if you suspect your baby is refusing because of sensory or coordination difficulties, doing these activities can be total game changers:
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- Brush their teeth – If you haven’t started yet, brush their teeth, and when you do, make sure you’re getting all over their gums and the sides, as well as the top of their tongue.
It only takes a few seconds, but it helps to both desensitize their mouth and improve coordination because the tongue gets practice moving in different directions. If your baby doesn’t like it, take it slow, and try often.
The more often you brush, the bigger the effect. Try for one to three times a day, and consider a vibrating toothbrush (yes, even for babies) for more powerful input in their mouth.
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- Play in sensory bins – That may be a new term to you or you might be wondering what the heck that has to do with eating, but playing in different textures is super powerful and helps the sensory system understand different textures better.
This correlates directly to eating. I can’t tell you how many times I’ve seen a kiddo that plays in sensory bins frequently, suddenly start eating more foods (my son included). Head to Sensory Bin Ideas to learn how to set one up.
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- Chew on toys – So many babies that won’t eat solids never put toys or teethers in their mouth, which is really easy to overlook. If this is your baby, pull out a bunch of different teethers and have them around the house.
Demonstrate. Dip them in food or juice. Play with them in the bath. The more often they get teethers and toys into their mouths, the more it will help improve the coordination their mouth muscles need to eat and desensitize their gag reflex and sensory system.
I really love this teether because it gets in the back of the mouth and this one vibrates (all my friends get it from me at their baby shower).
Help for the Baby Not Eating Food
I’m not just talking about solid baby food or purees. You may have a baby that won’t eat any type of food, like puffs, cut up fruit, or toast. They’re getting older and older. You’re getting worried.
Following the above steps will be incredibly important for your babies too, especially the strategies for outside of a meal. But, you’ll also want to use the steps I outline in getting your baby to eat table foods.
That’s a whole different animal all within itself, and there are some targeting tips that can make all the difference in your baby eating food.
You’ll want to focus on small pieces, and by 9 months of life be attempting table or finger foods.
While I don’t want you to worry, I know it’s tempting to keep waiting it out, and unfortunately, some doctors advise this quite often. This often does not help your baby to learn to eat wide variety of foods.
Babies instinctively learn to chew between roughly 8 and 11 months of age, when they move past that, it can be much harder for them to accept foods. It’s not impossible, and the same steps apply for older children, but it’s much better to be proactive then taking a “wait and see” approach.
Puffs, lil cheese curls, and baby mum mum’s are all great for baby’s first foods.
When to Get More Help for a Baby Not Eating Solids
If your baby doesn’t like solid baby food and won’t accept any table foods of finger foods by 9 months old, it’s a good idea to get an evaluation either from the free early intervention program in your state or from a feeding therapist.
You can also read more about typical feeding milestones for babies just to have a reference point. As I said earlier, all babies develop at a different pace and needing a little more help is very common.
Get My Free Printable: Learn to Eat Table Foods Cheat Sheet
There seem to be more questions than answers when you’re under the daily stress of your baby or toddler not eating table foods. Not to mention all of the well-intentioned bad advice that’s often given. Let’s clear that up.
I’ve created a free 4 page guide that clearly lists the steps to teach your baby or toddler to eat table or finger foods, plus a FAQ guide for parents to ease their worries when their babies won’t eat!
More on My Baby Won’t Eat Solids
How to Teach Your Baby to Self-Feed
How to Teach Your Baby to Drink from a Straw
The Best Mealtime Utensils and Tools for Babies
Click here to Pin This! (You’ll have as a quick reference)
Alisha Grogan is a licensed occupational therapist and founder of Your Kid’s Table. She has over 19 years experience with expertise in sensory processing and feeding development in babies, toddlers, and children. Alisha also has 3 boys of her own at home. Learn more about her here.
Hey I was wondering what you would suggest to do with my now 9 month old boy.
We offer a variety of food at each meal time, basically what ever we have (as we are doing baby lead weaning) so fruit, veg, pasta, yogurt anything.
He is happy to pick up foods bite them but then spits them straight out.
I think the only thing that he has actually eaten is a maize puff that almost melted in his mouth before he had the chance to spit it out.
This is my fourth baby and we have done sensory play with him as was worried that it was a sensory issues he had but this has made no difference.
The health visitor has told us to double spoon feed him, but all this does is upset him if we are lucky enough to get a bit in his mouth via distraction!
As his very good at keeping his mouth shut if anyone other than himself tries to put anything in his mouth!
His weight gain has been slow but steady since birth, but we have fallen two centiles down the chart over the 9 months.
Any help gratefully received x
Hi Hayley,
We totally understand where you are coming from. This can be such a frustrating time for families, but we are here for you and know that you are doing great by trying all these foods for your child. I’d recommend starting with our free workshop for transiting to table foods. It seems he may need a little more help with how to manage food in his mouth. Keep trying with the puffs to see if he will start to move these around. These are really good for kids learning to eat foods. Save your seat HERE for the workshop!
Best,
Desiree
My baby girl is 8.5 months old. we started out with home made rice cereal at 5 months, I used to give her tiny bit like one baby spoon diluted to get her used to the idea. Then at 6mons, I gave her some new foods like mashed banana, mashed avocado mixed with breastmilk etc and she didnt like them. I tried few more varieties and went back to rice cereal. Since then I cannot feed her anything with a spoon, she will chew n play with spoon. If I hold her and feed her with my hands she will take few tiny bites, total less than or equal to one oz.
Past month she likes soft wheat pancake, she shows interest in coming forward and taking bites. The first few bites of what ever I give her she shows interest but then she doesnt know to swallow them or chew on them (I think), because after few bites she gags as many pieces are left in her mouth. These days she eats all varieties like egg, pancakes, puffs, teeething crackers but only tiny amounts like half ounce. After that she isn’t interested. Even pureed food max she eats is 1oz total for the day.
I do let her play with her food, I am gonna try your other tips too.
But do you think she is having any sensory issues, do I need to take her to specialist?
Thanks for reaching out! Sounds like you are doing a great job with giving her opportunities to play with the spoon and trying a variety of foods!! You can always reach out to see a feeding specialist at any time even if they just complete the evaluation, they can provide you with suggestions individualized for your child!! As far as sensory, I think you may find this post helpful with tips and tricks!
https://yourkidstable.com/sensory-processing-and-picky-eating/
My 7 month old baby (born at 34 weeks) started solids at 5 months as he was refusing milk because of reflux. He has ongoing reflux medication. We dreamfeed him all day and night as it is impossible to feed him when he is awake. He started off well. Fruit and veg purees. He was not gaining weight so doctors suggested increasing EBM calories by adding a scoop of formula. He now from the past couple of weeks is completely refusing solids. We put a bib on him he starts crying. We were hoping if he starts solids he may gain weight and reduce dependence on dream feeding. Seems like nothing is working. I feel helpless
Hi Tim, I know it’s incredibly stressful, are you being followed by a pediatric GI? I’d strongly recommend that, it sounds like his medication isn’t sorted out.
Hello.. How did you resolve this issue. Any tips I’m in same situation.
Hi there, my 10 month old loves anything puréed. She will also eat puffs, Cheerios, and even a peanut butter sandwich no problem. She used to eat eggs but is now refusing that. Any other solids I put in front of her she doesn’t want. She throws a fit. Sometimes she’ll gag just looking st it. She’ll play with it in her hands and then drop it. Or she will put it in her mouth and then pull it back out after chomping on it for a little bit. Sometimes when she puts it in her mouth she immediately pulls it out or spits it out like it disgusts her. Or she just turns her head immediately. If I give her purée or breast milk or formula she’ll take any of that no problem. Thick yogurt or oatmeal she’ll eat no problem too. I decided this week I’m cutting out all “liquid” type foods and only doing solids. I’m feeling frustrated. Any suggestions? Thank you!
Hi.. my daughter is doing the same she is 22 months old .. she used to eat all types of solid food .. and baby food .. or even purees .. now all of a sudden . She hates her favourite foods as well.. she takes it out of her mouth .. switched her to pureed food again … i evdn let her starve for 2 days .. but didnot help… its so depressing .. cause she ends up being cranky all day …
Wow, those are some great eating skills at her age, so her refusal sounds like it’s related to sensory, sensitivity to textures. I’d actually not eliminate her other foods, but work more on the underlying sensory issues, check out this post for some specific strategies.
My baby is 11 month, she is weigh 5.1 I have done everything I too her to hospital almost everyday they said nothing, I mean nothing is wrong with her, she don’t eat it forse her to eat pls help she looks very small more than her age please I need help please
Hi Joy, it sounds like she’s having a hard time transitioning to solids, I’d check out how to transition to table foods and grab that free printable, there are step by step suggestions in there:)
Hi my lo had an. Allergic reaction to egg and is refusing all food now. She’s is 9 mo old any suggestions
Hi Racquel, This can definitely be a tricky situation, but glad you are reaching out and figuring out her feeding journey. I’d recommend making sure to reach out to your doctor to discuss allergic reaction and what foods to be looking out for, if you haven’t already. Also, you may need to re-establish all foods that she was eating prior with getting her used to playing with them so that she can feel “safe” with these foods, before she will eat them again. It may take some back and forth but taking the play approach can be great!! In case you haven’t seen this article it is a great resource on what foods to try first 🙂 Transitioning to Table Foods
Best!
Desiree
Your Kids Table Team Member
Did you find any solutions to help? My son is also doing this.
Hi, my baby is 9 months and eats only 3-5 spoons of solid food, but does not finish the entire food.
Thank you
That may be okay, some babies will eat a small amount of purees, I’d look at this post on transitioning to table foods for some more tips!
My baby is 23 months old, he is not taking food with interest/properly from the beginning itself. In last few days, he is refusing to take any food and when food plate comes he starts crying. And when given forcibly, he vomits. Please guide.
Feeding issues can be very complex, it’s hard to say exactly what’s going on. I’d suggest talking to your doctor, he may have a virus, be teething, etc. I’d space apart his meals and make sure they don’t last too long and until you talk to your dr., keep trying.
My son is almost 8.5 months old and we’ve been dealing with eating struggles since we began to introduce solids at 6 months.
We started off with some purées and he seemed to like pear, banana, and squash. (Hated cereal) Every few days I could get him to eat. He’d take the spoon and slurp it up!
Now he’s totally uninterested when food is given to him.
I read your post and decided to give him food to play with and experience. I will offer different textures, sometimes more solids rather than purées. I’ll set it on his high chair and he plays with it. Mostly, he will pick it up and drop it and get messy.
After maybe 5 minutes he gets really fussy and insists on being taken out.
Every now and then I can offer him something and he’ll actually suck on it, but this seems like 1 time a week if I’m lucky.
This has been going on for the past 1.5 months.
I thought it was a good sign that he was playing with it but he rarely puts it in his mouth. He has been exclusively breastfed since birth. He’s very active and is thriving. I’m just confused frustrated and worried.
I think I read through your posts daily looking for ideas but it doesn’t seem like we’ve made any improvements. Any additional suggestions?
Thank you!
Hi Liz, you’re doing such a good job! Truly you are, I know it’s hard. I’d try and guide his messy hand to his mouth in a playful, fun way. This may take a lot of attempts. I’d also try using a toothbrush and getting all over his gums and tongue with a firm pressure. And, lastly, I’d seek out a feeding eval just to help you get over this hump. You’re being so proactive, which is awesome!
My baby 7 month now , before she eat solid really well but all the sudden refuse it. I feed her solid after a hour of her milk . She only open her mouth for the cheese puff but when it comes to solid food she close her mouth. I just don’t know what to do and it stressing me out
Hey Louise,
So sorry you are having trouble with your little one. I’d try to make sure that she has opportunity to touch and play with all the foods so that she can be comfortable with the foods provided. We do have a free workshop that is full of great information for transitioning to table foods as well that will be great for you! You can save your seat HERE
Best,
Desiree
Hii Liz.. My son is 11months old and I m facing the same problem even after trying the article’s steps.
Have you seen any interest for food in your son? If he has started taking solids please share your technique .
Thank you!
Hi Riddhi,
Is your son interested in playing and touching the foods? I know it can be very hard and overwhelming when your child seems to have no interest in foods! I’d always recommend starting with the playing and touching of foods, even if it is outside of mealtimes to get them interacting with foods. We do have a free workshop that can help provide with some suggestions as well you can Save Your Seat Here
Best,
Desiree
Hi, I tried downloading the free printable information form, but it didn’t work and I never received anything in my email either. My baby doesn’t want to eat solid foods and I desperately want to try this out. Please help!!! 🙂
Hey Carmen,
So sorry you are having trouble downloading the printable. You can email us as hello@yourkidstable.com and we can gladly send that to you! As for your baby, if you haven’t seen our free workshop it’s a great place to start as well! You will get tips on what foods to start with first, how to present them and addressing underlying causes. Save your seat HERE
Best,
Desiree
My now 20 month old refusing anything but milks 5months old he got sick with a fever lasting 8 days before this he was eating baby food just fine, I also have a hard time brushing isn’t teeth he gags and vomits, what can’t i do?
Edith, I’d look into early intervention for feeding therapy, and I also have a free picky eating workshop that I think will be helpful. I’d keep up with the tooth brushing using a firm pressure, try not to go to far back in his mouth initially, but slowly increase over time. The gag reflex can be desensitized!
Same here. My baby is almost home 18 months and used to eat very well but after an ear infection and cough now he refuses to eat. He won’t even try it and he makes a face. He is still breastfed. He will eat yogurt,French for ríes and Cheerios. Sometimes fruit and that’s it! So frustrating!
Hi Alisha. Our daughter is 13 months old and has Laryngomalacia, (born with floppy larnx) she had a supaglottoplasty at two months due to failure to to thrive and also had a Nasal Gastric tube (NGT)from two months. She had a swallow study at two months with aspiration so breastfeeding had to stop and she was on thickened fluids by mouth. She can only drink a little by mouth approx 70ml and she us exhausted so the rest of her feed is done by NGT. She is feed five times a day of 230mls of S26 Formula and we are transitioning to Sustagen kids essential complete but she will not take any solids. She loves the garden and puts rocks I her mouth, cardboard, teethers, toys, blocks not not food. She will suck on a piece of cucumber then spit it out if any goes in her mouth. We see ENT team, Dietitian, Speech pathologist and sleep team to manage her condition but no one can have any luck to be successful with solids. Have you ever worked with babies with Laryngomalacia or have any advice at all that could help in anyway?
You guys have been through a lot already. I haven’t worked with a this specific condition. Is anyone using a Nuk brush with her or teethers to help her desensitize orally? If not, that would be something I’d ask about, it may take some time before she allows it in her mouth, but it’s a big step. I’d also try messy play in general, it’s common for tube fed babies to get very sensory sensitive and this can help improve her tactile processing which will impact her eating!
Thank you for taking the time to reply to us. We use a tooth brush which I also a teether at the other end and our LO plays with it I her mouth while we do the gravity fed tube feed. Messy play is tough as the tape the holds the tube in place gets wet and the the tube comes out which is a big problem because we have to go to hospital to get it inserted again which is a traumatic experience for her, missed feeds, delayed feeds and the affect on her behaviour can have her refused feeds too. Yes you would be correct we have been through alot. Because she I not able to speak it is hard to know if solids are creating her pain and speech pathologist has emphasized about avoiding a behaviour of food refusal and rejection. We have struggles to give her formula so solids are certainly not getting any intake anytime soon. It is certainly a journey from when she was diagnosed with server Laryngomalacia.
Thank you for your reply
We see speech pathologist next week.
My 9months baby refused to any kind of food, don’t know what to do 😭😭😭😭
That’s so hard, there’s a lot of specific tips to try in this post, I hope it helps.
My boy is 1year but still doesn’t take solid.He only takes breast milk.Even with the breast milk,he wants direct.he doesn’t want expressed breast milk and always spit any solid given to him
Hey!
Thanks for reaching out! I’d start with our free workshop! This will help you figure out ways to help him to progress towards eating of foods and which foods to start with. I’d make sure that you provide opportunities for him to play and touch different foods (even outside of mealtimes), to increase his comfort level. You can save your seat HERE
Best,
Desiree
Hi my now 19 Month old will not eat most sold foods only chips, puffs and crackers but will not eat anything thing else. We give her soup and she will eat that most of the time, but she only has 5 teeth. Is that why she won’t eat sold food ?
No, Check out this post on why baby’s don’t need teeth to eat.
If none of this advice is working, get your baby’s tongue checked. I tried everything and my 9-month-old was still refusing solids and gagging on contact. Turns out, he was severely tongue tied! He couldn’t eat. I over produced milk, so breastfeeding wasn’t a problem till around 6 months when my supply dropped, he dropped off his weight curve. My pediatrician didn’t even know what it was and offered no help. Lactation caught the issue. My son had a triple frenectomy (both top & bottom lip & tongue) by cool laser. He was eating apple sauce from a spoon the next morning!
This is our story, almost exactly. My son was gagging on foods at 8 months even though he’d been interested in eating at 4 months. I also had oversupply which hid the problem until he was 5 months. We had the tongue (and lip) tie fixed at 8 months. He was immediately nursing better and within two weeks he was eating solids completely age appropriately. You have to find a lactation consultant or pediatric dentist that is familiar with tongue ties. Many pediatricians have no idea how to look for the problem.
Wow, so much great information here! My almost 10 month old had been eating table food since around 8 months old. He had worked his way up to enjoying a pretty wide variety of flavors and textures. Then, about a week ago he just started chewing food and then spitting it out. It started with just new things I was trying to introduce, mostly bread-like things: muffins, baked oatmeal, pancakes, French toast. Now it’s everything. Tonight he just started signing “all done” as soon as he saw his dinner. He does have some teeth coming in. I’m just so confused by this. Do I just keep serving him a variety of food to spit out or throw on the floor? Do I back up to the puffs stage and start over? I have’t tried him on puffs in a while because he’s on the small side and I was trying to stick to higher calorie foods. Do sensory issues just pop up suddenly like this? He definitely puts everything in his mouth and tries to eat every crumb he finds on the floor, just not his meals lately.
Hi Stephanie,
I’d think about expanding onto other crunchy meltables like graham crackers and cheese curls too. It sounds like he needs some more practice with those! And, yes sensory problems can develop for sure. Tooth brushing is something else that helps a ton, several times a day, getting the tongue and gums too- as strange as it sounds!
Hi Alisha,
I just came across your blog and I’ve found some useful tips. My son is 21months old and would only eat Gerber 6months cereal from his bottle and drinks. It’s a struggle trying to get him to eat Solid. Even chocolates. A friend adviced I take him to see a therapist. What do you suggest?
Yes, I definitely would. Feeding therapy can be so valuable. I also have a free workshop coming this week that might be helpful for you. You can check that out here!
Hello Alisha! I’m so glad I found your blog! I’m the mom of an almost 7 mo girl, and I feel like you described our situation.
We started trying baby food a month ago, with no success so far!
She keeps clossing her mouth every time she see me taking the spoon, and if She laughs or open her mouth with a toy, I give her the food, that she ends up swallowing, but she would never open her mouth for me.
I’ve tried BLW as well, she just mash the bananas or the scrambled eggs and throw them to the floor, but she doesn’t even show interest in eating them. If I give her a stick of celery or raw carrot, she loved to take them to her mouth and play with them.
I’m very desperate, I keep mixing the baby food with her milk and she has accepted pretty much all flavors, but no success with solids. What should I do!!! 🙁
Hi Maria, well, you’ve got some time, fortunately. These are some red flags, but she could out grow them in the next 4-6 weeks. I’d encourage you to keep trying, let her get messy, encourage touching the foods and biting on teethers. Those will help get her ready for eating!
Hi Alisha,
I find this site so helpful thank you for all the information!! My son is 11 months old almost 12 months and we have been through the wringer!!!! Our latest issue is table foods. We started him on purees at 4 months due to reflux issues and then moved towards table foods at 6 months we had an issue in the beginning and saw a SLP and we ended up getting some advice on types of spoons to use ect. But now he’s not eating anything basically besides bread toast pankcakes quesadillas and grilled cheese. Iv tried fruits steamed vegetables. He doesn’t pick them up so I will put them in his mouth so he can try them and then he just gag s on everything! Even pasta chicken! It’s seems like anything he has to chew or that has a lumpy texture just makes him gag. I’m not sure if it’s a sensesory issue or oral motor!!! Although to me it seems to be more sensory!! Idk what to do to get him to eat. He will eat any of those foods in puree form so I’m assuming It’s texture. He will eat puffs cheerios mums so he will eat crunchy stuff without gagging but those dissolve.
I would definitely focus on crunchy foods, check out How to Transition your Baby to Table Foods, if you haven’t seen it yet. Think about other types of crunchy foods, even freeze dried fruits if he’s able to chew those. I’d also check back with a feeding therapist!
And, while I know it’s not a huge help right at the moment, I have a table food online class coming out by September with lots of detailed info.