12 Month Old Only Likes Crunchy Food

Hi, my 10 year old is the picky KING!! and alway has been. He also doesnt like i.e. oatmeal and will throw up if he eats potato salad. for years I was a short order cook. We started making new things and just said this is dinner. He still crips but is eating better, the problem was that for years I made him what he wanted and didnt make him try new foods. Now I tell him to at least try it and if you really gave it a shot and still dont like it then I will respect that, and it is working. I know you caint do that yet with a little one but my sugestion is to always give him what you are cooking (he will eat and he wont starve) and reward him with a favorite desert even if he just ate a little it is more than likley a texture thins and he will grow out of it but if you cater to his wants you will become a short order cook like I was for years. also when he gets older alow him to make sugestions for dinner even if its chicken nuggets french fries make it for the whole family. Good luck

what if you added a mashed up avocado to his toast? It doesn't really sound like a problem if he has a preference for crunchy things. I think a lot of kids have texture likes and dislikes. And I've found too that kids go through phases. For instance my daughter used to LOVE mac and cheese. Then one day she wouldn't take it...I tried to give it to her again about six months later and she took it again. Now she just gets that on rare occasions...but what I'm getting at is, just try the smoother foods again later in a few months. He is not going to be malnutritioned or starve.
You said he ate his bananas and everything else after it was mashed up some...he's eating and you should be happy. The eating of other textures will come later...he is only 12 months. It gets easier!

You are the Mom and your instincts will guide you...oh, and so will your child! He will be the boss for a long time...all you can do is supervise! Seriously, don't worry about giving him more solid foods. As long as he is getting a balance of foods, there really isn't any reason he needs baby foods at a year. Try to move to Gerber pickups or make the equivalent at hom. As long as he is chewing his food and not gagging or choking, he should be able to eat just about anything. The only real choking hazzards that pediatricians caution about are hotdogs, popcorn and grapes. Make sure the hot dogs are cut into thin circles and cut again into half moon shapes...same with grapes...just quarter them. Whatever you feed him, just make sure you are nearby. If he does start choking, give him a minute to try to clear the food himself and then grab him out of the chair, turn him upside down face down and whack him on his back. My son started choking on a teddy graham once because he had it in his mouth, was climbing on a child's picnic table and fell, then sucked in the piece of graham. Just thought you should know what to do in case! Sorry if this scares you, don't let it, just watch him well and feed him whatever he will eat...just wait, time will come when he won't eat anything!

yes, your son may be ready for real food. ALSO, when they are teething they sometimes like the crunchy foods as it feels good on their gums. as long as its healthy food give him whatever he'll eat! :)

Hi S.! First, my guess is you are going to feel overwhelmed by the answers you read in this post. I have to admit reading them made me stop for a second, and I don't normally post - but also thought I may be the perfect person to do so with the things brought up. I have a son with autism, he also has a sensory processing disorder (which coincidentally, we all have sensory triggers. i don't like sand for instance, but i can still function whereas some of my sons sensory issues can stop him in his tracks), and he also has an auditory processing disorder. But amazingly with that load, he is high functioning. I also have a 5 yo son who is typically developing, and a 1 yo who so far is typically developing as well. While some of the statements about these being sometimes symptoms of autism or sensory issues are true, they are also symptoms of kids in general. Each child is different and unique, this of course doesn't mean you ignore these things. I think many kids are just picky, and if you are just introducing things chunkier, know that it will take time to adjust to. My baby wanted big girl food sooner, she was reaching for everything we had. So, I let her have big chunks of bananas, crackers, big pieces of fruit or veggies, etc. And she loves it. She doesn't want smaller pieces of slimey stuff I've learned. I think she has more control with a whole slice of peach for instance. And eating something like that took some time for her mouth to adjust to, after gnawing of zweibeck(sp?) toast for so long. But my oldest son would have been perfectly content to eat baby food and nurse for as long as I would have let him. It was just his preference. My son with autism wanted big boy food as well (but very particular things), he hated baby food. You just never know. It's a change from their norm, and it will take some time to adjust. I think it would be unfair to automatically assume that because you have a baby who may just need to adjust to something new, that he may have autism or a sensory disorder. Of course, unfortunately these days, as I know all too well, it's possible. In fact, extremely possible when the numbers are 1 in every 150 children. That's just plain scary. Autism looks so different for each child, so remember that. Don't ever ignore any warning signs, but this would have to be one small part of the bigger picture. I hate to contradict what was said, but I also want to point out that I nursed all of my children - none of them ever had one bit of formula. So, no matter how much breast milk I gave him, here we are battling for our son. There are so many variables, and as a proud mommy to 3 beautiful children - one with autism - I know that each child is just different from the next. I'd be happy to talk to you if you have any questions or concerns, I know a lot from my experience and loads of research. In the meantime, keep putting it in front of him. Try different things. It may just take some time. And if you are still concerned, talk to your dr. ;o) Best of luck!

B.
www.bellaamadis.com

S., that is perfectly normal.. In fact the 8 mo girl that I babysit, I give her grilled cheese, string cheese (small peices), toast, gerber granola bars, diced carrots, green beans. Pretty much anything that is soft enough for them to chew is ok to give. I know that it's hard to fathom what to give and the Dr's really don't tell you what to give. I was the same way with my daughter, but now that I know I feel more confident about what to give. You could even give him the gerber meat sticks, graduate foods, little meals anything like that. I hope that this helps and if you have any questions feel free to ask.

M.

The best thing to do is to keep trying those foods with the baby food as well. try different types of foods such as cut up grapes semi cooked carrots etc. eventually you'll find that your baby will eat them. The worst thing is to give in or put spics on anything. Hope that helps.

Dear S.,

I am in a line of work where I see a lot of children and their parents. One mom explained her son's sensory processing disorder to me, and what you are describing sounds very similar. I am no expert on the subject and I may be way off, but maybe that is a lead you can follow. Good luck!

No. Baby food is fine. Many brands are nutritious and come in all sorts of varieties. He'll eventually come around. Don't force the issue. Just keep letting him try new stuff every now and then calmly. Believe me, he'll want to be eating big boy food before you know it...then you'll have a mess on your hand. Enjoy this time and just let him eat.

my daughter who is now 2 used to be like that - she only wanted crunchy foods. I found a line of dehydrated fruits & veggies at HEB (I'm sure they are sold elsewhere) called Just Tomatoes - they are pricey, but well worth it if you can't get the food in them any other way. Their website is http://www.justtomatoes.com/ and you can check to see where they are sold near you. This too, will end - it seemed as soon as my daughter turned 2, she decided to eat everything in sight - she now prefers fruits & veggies in their natural state over anything else we offer her! Good Luck and I hope this helped!

My daughter went thru a phase of only eating foods that were round. Made my grocery shopping a little more interesting, but the phase passed soon enough. Kids just figure out something they like and stick with it. I'm with the other moms, just keep trying different foods and eventually he'll come around. It definitely might be the teething and it feels good on his gums.

He may be ready for "table food", and thats ok at htis age. My 15 month old was exclusively breastfeed for 9 months, and then decided one day she wanted what I was eating so we started homemade purees. At about 12 months she started in on rice and breads. Now she eats just about anything. But, we always keep a few jars on hand because somedays she still wants the soft stuff. For the crunch thin it may be a phase the only thing my kiddo wanted to eat for about 4 weeks here has been hot dog slices and now she wont touch them. There is a book called Petit Apetit you might want to get it has some great recipes and ideas for this stage.
Good Luck,
N. S

Ya so you sound almost just like me!! My son is almost 13 months old and will only eat crunchy things like yours. He has never ate baby food. I even homeade it and everything. The only thing he eats for his meals to get full is BABY YOGURT!!! It's organic and they sell it at Walmart in a few different flavors. It has puree fruit and baby ceral in it. That is the only thing he will eat. I breast feed as well. He has never had formula and only a bottle a couple of times. He does not even like the whole sippy cup thing. Just sport top water bottles. He doesn't care for juice or milk just wants water and to nurse. The nursing has cut back to only 3x day or so. My Dr. says that it is ok he is just a picky eater and one day he will get hungry enough with his growing appiate and start to eat!! Good luck!! Let me know how it's going..... S.

My daughter gave up baby food at 9 months. She just refused to eat it one day. I would just keep trying different table foods with him and he will catch on to all different types of textures. For instance, give him one thing that you know he will eat (toast or something else crunchy) and a couple of other things that he hasn't shown an interest in yet, like banana or beans or something. You are going to have to let him keep trying in order for him to pick up on it. Table food is definitely fine at this age...just make sure the pieces are really small so he doesn't choke. I remember feeling like I was in a real bind when my 9 month old decided no more baby food, but we just kept trying different things and she eats just about anything now (she's 2).

Have fun with it! It's actually easier when they start eating normal food. :-)

Wow it sounds like we have the same baby. I wonder if this is common. My son also only wants crunchy food and will hardly try anything that deviates in texture. I was told to keep introducing new things and reintroduce old ones and eventually their pallet will change. Since then we have only graduated to fruit chuncks and mac and chz.
Good luck!

One thing I learned is that every doctor has a different point of view when it coes to food. My baby started table food at 9 months. My 9 month old nephew is just in his 2 month of baby food. Who knows? I was told to start table food when the baby shows interst. When we would eat we had baby sit with us. She would open her mouth when we did, she grabbed at our food, wanted to hold a fork or spoon, "chewed" her baby food, and such. So we started! Much of the foods we gave our baby at first is what you are feeding your baby now. Those are all good. Since he is new to "real" food it will take him a while to get his tastebuds used to different tastes and textures! Good luck!

My 21 month old (who is also still breastfed) still prefers finger food or crunchy foods. He will eat rice (loves it when it is cooked in chicken broth) and noodles tho. When he was about 10 months old he stopped letting me feed him anything on a spoon (which was challenging then because he only had 4 teeth) and that is still the case now. His body language tells me 'No spoon mommy, I want to do it myself!' So no applesauce, no yoghurt or anything like that. When I offer it, he usually just fingerpaints with it. Toddlers are often picky and it is not unusual. At least he is not picky about the color of the food (except maybe orange food) and I am still able to get him to eat rice and pasta (he loves rotini the best), cut up meats, fruits and some veggies. I just keep offering other foods for him to try and let him eat the healthy stuff that he likes.
Your baby still gets all the nutrition and nutrients he needs from your milk, so food is still something to play with. My son is a better eater now than he was at 12 months, but you do have to give them time to get used to the idea of food.