6 Month Old....Hates to Eat....Help!

Updated on October 14, 2008
A.H. asks from McKinney, TX
29 answers

Hi Mamas

I've just spent the weekend visiting with my s/i/l and 6-1/2 month old nephew. I'm looking for advice to give regarding feeding him baby food and why he doesn't like to eat. He has been an exclusively breast-fed baby and she has only been feeding him baby food...ie. rice cereal, applesauce, carrots, etc... for about 5 weeks now.
I fed him both days this weekend and he hated having the food put into his mouth. He would not swallow it unless he put his thumb in to suck it down. oh...and he's also a thumb sucker :-) This also happened about 3 weeks ago when they visited and I got to feed him. At that time I just thought that it was so new that he hadn't figured out how it was supposed to work...but now I'm not sure.

Has anyone experienced this or have any suggestions??
***
Also...he is on the small side (not failure to thrive) but he could be. He also won't take a bottle...hates formula and juice.

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E.B.

answers from Boise on

Although babies *can* start eating solid foods at 6 months, many are not really ready to eat solids until 9 or 12 months. As long as he is still breastfeeding, he is getting everything he needs and doesn't really have to eat solids just yet. She may do better waiting until he can feed himself finger foods. Lots of moms practice baby-led feeding - just waiting until he shows an interest in food - and it works fine for them. When he's ready, he'll eat.

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J.B.

answers from Dallas on

My three children were all exclusively breastfed. My first child wasn't interested in food until she was 9 months old and then she wanted what we were eating. My two boys were interested in food earlier a little earlier, but we just started giving them a mashed version of what we were having.

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M.O.

answers from Dallas on

He may just not be ready for solids. My son didn't take any interest in food until he was 9 months old. He was EBP before that. So he just wanted his num nums for a while longer. ;)

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R.H.

answers from Dallas on

"I'm 6 months old -- what gives?!"...perhaps that's what he's thinking?! Most likely, the poor lil guy just isn't ready for solids...

My baby girl is tiny, and that's just the way she is - overall healthy, perfectly normal growth *pattern*, and great developmental marks -- those are the indicators that matter most anyway, really.

Breastfed babies often seem "smaller" than the formula-fed babies when using the most popular growth charts. Check out kellymom.com for breastfed baby growth charts, info, advice, and more...

http://www.kellymom.com/babyconcerns/growth/chart2.html

HTH!

1 mom found this helpful

M.D.

answers from Dallas on

A.,
My two year old was a little like that. He has always been a "healthy" boy. I went back to work when he was 2 months old, but I'm still breastfeeding him. My husband stayed home with him and feed him breast milk from a bottle. He didn't like it at first, my husband found out that he had to warm it up, not hot, but very warm. I didn't feed him anything until he was 6 months old. He didn't care for baby food at first. He gagged no matter what I fed him, I just kept trying, he finally started to eat the fruits and sweet potatoes. One thing he did like was chicken bones, my husband is great on the grill, and he wanted to eat like we were, and my husband would smoke the chicken. We watched him, but a lot of mothers told me how good the chicken bones are for teething. He liked it. He also was late getting teeth. So we couldn't give him some foods because he couldn't chew it. Just slowly, he started to eat. I would give him mash potatoes and mix just a little gravy in. Just keep giving him the baby food, he'll eat it. My son never liked the cereal so I just wouldn't give it to him. He liked to drink at 6 months old like we were, so a lot of times, my husband would let him drink out of his cup.
Good luck,

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M.B.

answers from Dallas on

This is not unusual for a breastfed baby. He likely won't take a bottle because he has dairy allergies. It's really important to keep in mind that for the first year breastmilk is the main source of nutrients and that feeding solids is JUST to get them used to that as a form of food.

The thumb sucking is not necessarily related at all - he's just found a way to self comfort - it's not a bad thing at all.

I would be most concerned that he has allergies and has likely been reacting to something his mother has been eating - in particular dairy and wheat. My youngest son was a failure to thrive baby and was considered petite when he was two. Unfortunately we didn't learn this until later. Also, he was reacting to the dairy and wheat because I also had those reactions, thus I had a leaky gut and higher than normal levels of these proteins were in my breastmilk. My "petite" son gained 20 lbs per year and grew 4" per year the first 4 years after being on a GF/CF diet - he's now 6'4" at age 15.

This may sound far out, but this has been confirmed by a top GI pediatrician that treats many kids (and their parents) using a GF/CF diet with tons of success. He has confirmed that the proteins are found in breastmilk and actually in meats where the animal has been grainfed.

Your SIL and nephew can get themselves tested via enterolab: www.enterolab.com The complete test includes gluten and dairy reactions, as well as a gene test. This may sound like it's only a remote probability however, the pediatric GI doctor that I know says that 50% of his patients are positive. And, this is the most underdiagnosed health issue in this country - 2+ million people are undiagnosed. The mother can be asymptomatic and still have this problem - in particular if the baby had a low birth weight. And, the biggest red flag will appear when he's about 3 and if he has either anemia or lots of dental issues. In addition, vaccinations are often not well tolerated by these kids.

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K.R.

answers from Dallas on

He probably just hasn't outgrown his tongue thrust reflex. That's very normal and may take another few weeks or so, but if that's it, then one day it will just click and he won't be able to get enough!

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M.P.

answers from Dallas on

He's still pretty young... it all sounds normal to me. My oldest two never had a problem but my 7 month old is just NOW (like this week!) getting the hang of baby food. She hated it at first. She also doesn't like juice at all. The juice thing I figured out, it was temperature. She didn't like it cold or even cool, I have to add hot water to dilute it and make it room temp so she'll even try it!

Remember, as long as he's getting the breast milk, he has all the nutrients he needs. He might skip the baby food step and go right onto table food when he's older ...and thats ok.

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R.W.

answers from Dallas on

Normal, normal, normal. If you SIL wants to push the solid foods now (though her baby may not be ready), have her mix some breast milk with his food. It makes for a smooth segue to solids.

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C.P.

answers from Dallas on

He's probably just getting used to it. My daughter was exclusively breast-fed and it took her a while to get into solids too, but oh boy, she surely got into it after a while! Just takes a little time. And he may not be hungry enough at meals. Might try feeding him before any milk or changing what you are feeding him.

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J.D.

answers from Dallas on

It doesn't sound like an emergency issue, but this child could have the sensory desensitization disorder where textures are a problem especially with eating. Clothing, shoes, tags on clothing...these all come in to play if this is the issue. Has mom taken the baby in to the pedi for suggestions? It could just be that baby is hyper-sensitive and wants mom for eating...period. That will eventually change if that's the problem. Babies get busy and finally decide time is more important than breastfeeding. My children both weened themselves before a year old.

My first one couldn't suck at all when he was born. We had to teach him the first couple of weeks of his life with the help of a lactation consultant.

He is now 10, and healthy and a great eater!

Hope this helps!

PS-I like Carrie H.'s response about learning to eat....my first born also used the thumb to learn to swallow food. I can't remember how long he did it, but it's not an abnormal behavior for little ones learning to eat!

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A.M.

answers from Dallas on

I would suggest having him go back to breastmilk only. He sounds like he's just not that ready for solids. He is still a bit on the young side for solids anyway. There is no point in turning eating into a power struggle. If he is on the "small side" replacing the breastmilk with solids, just decreases the amount of nutrition he is recieving. She can gradually try him on solids again now and then to see if he is ready. My dd almost completly skipped pureed baby food and ate mostly mashed up or tiny diced table foods. She was about 90% breastfed until about 12 months when it gradually changed to 50/50 by 14 months or so. She is now 90-95% solids and the rest breastmilk at 19 months. Here is an awesome website to find lots of info. on breastfeeding and solid feeding,nutrition, etc. www.kellymom.com Good luck to your sister in law!

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C.B.

answers from Wichita Falls on

Hello, just thought that I would pass on this info. I have 4 children ages 19, 15,7,6 the 2 oldest ones were bf but only for a short time and ate baby food s seems to be the norm. My 2 youngest were both bf for a year my 7yr old was a big boy and didn't like babyfood at all. Kind of the same way you describe your nephew. My pedi said that they don't have to eat baby food and completely threw me for a loop. My 6 yr old was and still is on the scrawny side and never had baby food either. Starting from about 6 or 7 mnths I would smash up big people food and give it to them. until then they were only bf and they are doing fine.

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M.L.

answers from Dallas on

A. -
Just so you know, this isn't abnormal. There are some pediatric experts who don't recommend introducing solids until around 10 months of age, because 6 months is just too early for a lot of babies. It sounds as if your nephew has an overactive gag reflex. He will outgrow it in time, but food should not be forced upon him. Your sister should probably continue offering solids, but patience is the key in this situation. Breastmilk is best anyway, and despite what the average pedi will tell you, babies really should be exclusively breastfed for closer to a year, not six months.

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J.H.

answers from Dallas on

I haven't read all of the responses, but in glancing through a few I've already seen suggestions from posters that your son could have a medical problem, like a sensory disorder, etc. I would not give those reasons a second thought at this time.
He's 6 months old, and has only had breastmilk until this point. That's what he's comfortable with. It is perfectly normal for babies to gag and not swallow, and just not want anything to do with food right now. Babies do not NEED food at 6 months, anyway, so it's not a big deal. I would put it off for a while longer, since he doesn't seem interested in it. Breastmilk is giving him all of the nutrients and calories that he needs. Food is just for the experience and to get used to textures and tastes. 6 months is the time that you can begin introducing it, but it doesn't have to be done then at all. My daughter didn't really start being interested in food or wanting it in her mouth until she was 7 1/2 months.
I think it is especially important, since he's on the small side (my daughter was/is, too) to continue breastmilk before foods...I still offer nursing before giving table foods (she's 11 months now) - it's really all they need through 1 year.

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M.B.

answers from Dallas on

My BF daughter did the same thing at six months when we started baby food. She's a thumb sucker, it was her way to swallow for a while. It took her a good month to get used to solid foods and almost two months to really think they were yummy. The day we started turkey was the day she really got interested in eating. She chews/gums everything now at 8 months and loves feeding herself soft finger foods. Just give it time.

My little girl is also on the small side. She's just 15.5 pounds a few days ago. She is very active, almost walking. She's also starting to talk. So I'm not too worried about malnutrition.

She hates the bottle but will take water in cups of all kinds. I figure if she loves water, why push juice. This will be better for her in the long run as I am a juice addict. I also plan to nurse her until she self-weans.

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A.H.

answers from Dallas on

Sounds like he may be have texture sensitivities and a strong need to suck. A speech therapist or occupational therapist can help. If the baby is on the low end of the growth scale get the doctor to refer for occupational or speeech therapy. Look for someone with sensory integration and oral motor sensitivity experience. There can be more than just being picky and it is better to work on it now before it can take over the family meals.

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K.E.

answers from Dallas on

My son never would eat baby food, and he was borderline failure to thrive (stopped gaining at 6 months and fell off the chart). The doctor had me put him on table foods (cut in very small pieces) at 7 months since then he has been eating and gaining like a champ. She might talk to her pediatrician about table foods. Some babies just don't like the texture of baby food.

He alwo wouldn't take a bottle which is fairly commen for breast fed babies. We just gave him a cup with water every night with his meal starting at around 6 months, and he eventuallly got the hang of it (a few months later) so we skipped the bottle and just waited until he was almost 12 months and weaned him straight to a sippy cup.

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C.H.

answers from Dallas on

I didn't read all the responses, so I don't know if someone already offered this one, but using the thumb to help "swallow" the food just means that he hasn't figured out how to use his tongue to move food from the front of his mouth to the back. By inserting the thumb into his mouth, he's simulating a nipple which he does know how to use to get food. Watering down the baby food may help; it'll slide down his throat a little easier. It takes time for them to learn how to use their tongue and lips to eat; my baby (also a thumb-sucker) used her thumb during meals for about two months. If he hates eating though, I'd say he's probably not ready, so wait a week or two and try again. Good luck.

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S.R.

answers from Dallas on

I would be very careful on what you do or say about your SIL's baby. I know you mean well. A 6 month old that is exclusively breastfed is totally normal and very very healthy! It doesn't suprise me in the least that he is not ready for solid foods. Some babies are ready before others and some are not. All three of my children have been exclusively breastfed but all three have eaten solids at different times. My first did NOT like solids. I believe we *tried* to feed her some at around 5 months and she made horrible faces and just spit it all out. After that we would dabble here and there, but did not put forth a lot of effort to try to get her to eat. Breastmilk is nutritionally superior to any solids that they may be getting. I would say that it wasn't until around 9 months that she really started being interested in solids. My second child, however, was trying to grab food off our plates at 4 months. I kid you not. That girl was crazy! So I got one of those mesh food baggie things and put bananna, or apple in it and she could suck on it. I also got her stuff like teething biscuits because she also started growing her first tooth in at 4 months. So I let her snack on solids, but it was not her main source of food by any means. My third child seemed to be about right in the middle of my first and second. We never did baby food with him. I would just mash up whatever we were eating, or put in in the food grinder and let him have at it during dinner time. I think he was probably around 6 or 7 months.
Try not to worry about your sister's kid. The child will definitely start eating when he is ready.
Oh and about FTT, babies come in all sizes. I have a friend who had a really chubby (like 20 lbs at 4 months) baby with her first and a super skinny, very small, baby with her third. Both Boys. She nursed them both the same way for the same amount of time. Also, breastfed babies tend to be a little smaller than FF babies anyway. That's why breastfed babies are supposed to be measured on a different growth chart. Not that that ever actually happens. But breastfed babies *do* have a different growth chart out there.

Good luck!
S.

M.M.

answers from Dallas on

I have four kids and not one of them was eating food at that age. All of mine were exclusively breastfed and quite content to do only that until around 10 months old or so. It doesn't sound abnormal to me.

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K.B.

answers from Dallas on

My son was the same - hated being fed. He refused to have anything put into his mouth. I tried and tried...nothing worked. I eventually gave up and let him have his bottle (formula) until he was able to have table food and feed himself. Once he could do it himself, he was fine.

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A.D.

answers from Dallas on

I wouldn't worry too much. At 6 months he is just now ready for " solid" food anyway. My daughter would not eat baby food. I got a " strawberry strainer" it is a little mesh bag shaped like a pacifier that you can put adult food in and baby can gum and suck to their hearts content. My daughter loved it. ( especially steak when she got a little older. Some babies just don't like food until later when they are older. It won'thurt him to be breastfed a little longer until he is ready. Also, waiting ok solids reduces the likelihood of food sensitivity.
I wouldn't worry about size now either. As my ped told me, there have to be small kids, too. As long as they are healthy small is fine.

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L.R.

answers from Dallas on

Anything I've ever read says you may start feeding solids to babies at 4-6mo. That is the suggested earliest time to start, but it doesn't mean they have to start eating solids. Usually babies indicate when they're ready, by being curious and enjoying the texture/taste. I would suggest holding off on solids and maybe trying once a week or so until he's ready. Breast milk is sufficient for this age.

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D.S.

answers from Dallas on

That is really not that unusual for exclusively breastfed babies, breastmilk really should be his main source of nutrition for his first year of life anyway. I wouldn't worry about it. :-)

You can also look in to "child led weaning" as a method of introducing table foods to him.

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A.L.

answers from Dallas on

I absolutley agree with giving him the food you eat. I make my own baby food. My kids have never eaten the jar food. (Have you tasted it) You can give him anything that you eat. If have spaghetti he can to. All you need to do is put it in a food processor and add a little liquid until it gets to a good consitency. When you do meats puree it first with a little liquid. I usually add potatoes to the meat so it gives it a good texture. You can freeze it in ice cube trays or anything that works best for you. I hopethis helps.

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N.J.

answers from Abilene on

It sounds like to me that he's not ready for food. Like some of the other women have said. Baby's all start to eat at different time. Not because the mother wants them too. My son would've started eatting at 4 month if I let him. I waited till he was 6 months, and now a 8month. I feed him what we're having for dinner, and if he doesn't like it I give him baby food. He's also got 2 teeth and nows how to use them.

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C.H.

answers from Dallas on

He could easily have a very common gag-reflex disorder. Its very treatable and you should talk to your Dr about it.

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R.A.

answers from Dallas on

Sounds like he could have sensory dysfunction with oral sensitivites. Two of my sons have this, with son #2 having VERY strong oral sensitivites. He's 10 now and there are some things that if he tries to eat they are automatically vomited back up immediately. I first noticed it when he was switching from strained baby food (which he did eat fairly well) to Gerber Graduates. Every child is different though so don't let my experience limit your opinion. Check out this website http://www.sensory-processing-disorder.com/index.html and click on the Oral Sensitivites tab. If this sounds like it fits your nephew she will need to take him to a pediatric developmental pediatrician, not the regular pedi. Regular pediatricians tend to overlook this as an option.

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