7 Month Old Feeding Issues

My daughter did the same thing. They all go through ups and downs with eating, but it totally sounds like he's getting enough. He very well be teething.

I have to agree with the other poster. He is doing just fine. He weighs as much as my 17 mos old. As long as he's gaining weight and getting bigger there really isn't to much to worry about. Don't take away the solids. As they eat more they drink less. Totally normal.

NORMAl!! Mine did the samething, it is a stage they out grow it at some point. You can't make them eat or sleep if you try, I am sure we all have. lol... It is a pain, b/c you think they are hungry and should eat, but don't. Mine is 15 months now and sometimes does the samething from time to time. I just wait an offer her a bottle/cup later on and she usually drinks it.

Hi J.,
He sounds like he's doing great! Babies are wonderful at regulating their intake. There are so many exciting things for him to look at, but he'll eat/drink what he needs.
My pediatrician recommended NOT focusing on quantity of fluids as long as my baby is hydrated (wet diapers, etc.). You should also ignore comments about your baby being "heavy". Only your pediatrician can speak to whether or not his weight is inappropriate for his length and he sounds like he's doing beautifully to me.

At this age our pediatrician said that the requirement is 14 to 21 oz. of breast milk or formula per day (plus 3 solid meals), so you are more than covering it.

She also said to start focusing more on solids and less on liquid meals.

Sounds to me like he's doing great!

My baby is 7 months old, too. She drinks about 35 oz of milk, but only gets one or two solid meals per day.

The doctors always told me that "on demand" is best - They will let us know when and how much they need to eat and that those amounts will fluctuate depending on growth spurts, teething pains, etc.

I think as long as your little guy keeps growing instead of shrinking you are in the clear :)

Happy New Year!

Hi J.,
I am also a first time mom who stays at home to a sweet boy. Mine is 8 1/2 months. He was and still is a little going through the same thing. I'm starting to figure out how to read him better. For the solids I just determined that slow and steady wins the race. He doesn't like to rush. I've started keeping magazines at the table and I read to him or just to myself if he's content. I tried to feed him and if he pushes it away or turns his head I wait. Giving him some finger foods has helped a ton. I fit spoonfuls in between. I've also found that he is picking more foods he likes and doesn't like. Everything I've read says don't push it. The babies will eat when they want. Sometimes my son skips meals. My doctor keeps saying it's fine and he'll make up for it. My doctor suggested with the bottle that my son was naturally weening himself off. Early but that seemed to be the case. He suggested to try using a sippy cup. It all seemed to be he was needing more independence. I breastfeed and the sippy cup didn't work for me. He still also doesn't want the bottle. He didn't want to feed because my period returned and the hormones changed the taste of the milk. I've gotten him used to it and is feeding that way ok. He is a champ with water in the sippy cup. I don't know if this is helpful. I've just learned your baby actually does tell you what he wants if you can read the clues. It's taken me a month or so. He started at about 7months also. Good Luck!
A.

Hi J.,

Yes so normal! I'm a first time mom of an almost 9 month old son and we too discoverd that feeding gets increasingly more difficult for mommy and more boring for baby. I've found several things that help us stay on track while trying to finish a meal, I think number one is giving him something to play with while in the highchair, I'm not talking any ol toy, I like to stick with a spoon of his own or a teething toy. I actually use this tactic to sneak in bites while hes got his mouth open to put what ever else in in. I don't know if your on any finger foods but we found these things called Mum Mums ( in our organic food sec.) They are surf board shaped rice cakes and we started Griffin (my baby) on them when he was about five months, they disolve easier than anything else I've found. That too gets attention on eating and I always think of it as a bonus that I'm getting in the rice cake too. And more recently we've gone to Gerber Puffs and finger foods and it is going great. As for bottle feeding I've found that a slower nipple may help us, a shirt with buttons or say a hoodie with strings, they love to play with these things. And sometimes if its feasable try to get us/or whoever is giving the bottle, alone so at least griff isn't trying to get anyone elses attention. I hope you don't mind me going on and on, I just really know how you feel. Up until six months old griff was pretty big and a wonderful eater, than at the switch he to solids more often he stopped gaining weight and the doctor had me all in a tither. I'm happy to say that two months later he pretty much eats three meals a day, a snack of somesort and either nurses or has a bottle five times a day. I hope some of this will be helpful, keep your chin up, babies wont really starve themselves they just don't hardly eat more than they have too if its up to them.

S.

I know you've gotten lots of great feedback from other moms, just wanted to give you a little MORE positive feedback (us moms will take it at any time!). My son is 7 1/2 months and sounds like yours to a tee! WHenever i offere advice here, I always say...do whatever YOU feel is best for your baby! :-) That's our "motherly instinct" at work! Good luck!

Hi J.,

I have a 7.5 month old boy and you just described him to a T! He doesn't seem to take in that much milk (nursing is such an inexact thing), and the only way we can get him to focus on eating is to snap our fingers above his head before each bite (he forgets to try to grab the spoon that way). But he's happy, healthy, and growing... so we just roll with it. If you live near Madison, NJ, we could have a playdate and let the boys giggle at each other!

--Wendolyn

You should check out CityMommy in North New Jersey. Its specifically for your area and lots of moms on there will respond with very helpful advice! Its invitation only to join so use the registration code "njmommy" to join. Go to northjersey.citymommy.com

Take care and good luck!

Getting distracted is totally normal. I find it's best to make sure my son eats his meals only in the kitchen, with no distractions- no tv or music on in the background. With bottle feeding it can be in his bedroom or wherever, but also with no extra noise or distraction. And I would not worry at all that he is not getting enough- he is big and very tall! His height and weight sound balanced. My son is not even 20 lbs yet and he's 11 months old, but he is small for his age- only about 28 inches. I had my son on only 1 or 2 solid meals a day at 7 months- whatever he was interested in eating. I started slowly, but I was also breastfeeding and I think you can give more solids earlier if you are giving formula. For some guidance you can get the book Super Baby Food by Ruth Yaron. It has lots of good advice on making your own foods (much easier than you would think- steam veggies or cook whatever it is, puree and freeze in ice cube trays for easy pre-portioned meals). You can also look at the website www.kellymom.com and look in the starting solids section.

Dear J.,

This is perfectly normal behavior, he is becoming aware of his surroundings. When my daughter was little I used to practically stand on my head to get her to eat. I remember at that age I did start introducing small finger foods, like cheerios etc. When I tried to spoon feed her I used to have to sing to distract her. ABC's was her favorite song. I remember thinking when this kid goes to school every time she sings her ABC's she is going to get hungry!!! Your baby is gaining and growing just fine. Some babies once they begin solids loose interest in the bottle. I wouldn't cut back on his solids, just try to space out bottles and mealtimes so maybe he will be open to drinking more. What I did when my kids were little is when they first woke they got a full bottle, and then breakfast around 8 or 8:30 around 10 I would give another bottle and have lunch around 12 or 12:30 another bottle around 2:30 or so and then dinner at six. One more bottle before bed and that was it. Unless your son is still eating during the night. That really is only 4 8oz. bottles if they took all of it sometimes they didn't. Your baby is not off by that much. If you are worried then I would try to give him yogurt to help give him more dairy. It sounds like your doing a great job!! Happy New Year!!

Hello J.,

My little one is going through the same thing. She will be 7 month on Sunday and only eats about 20-22 oz in a 24 hour period with 3 meals (2 tbsp each) throughout the day. She has been eating like this for about a month now and she weights 20 lbs 14 oz. She has always eaten less then average and weighed more then average. Please don't worry.

Hi,
I think when people start giving their children solids, they don't realize that this will ultimately replace formula. If your baby is eatting 3 meals a day, and 3 -8oz bottles, basically that is 6 meals, it sounds like you are overfeeding him, he seems to be very big for a 7 month old. Usually a 12 month old will weigh 20 lbs. I was overweight as a child and I did not want my son to go through that , so I watched his weight, but my pediatrician always said, they will let you know when they are hungry and when they are not, so your baby may be saying he is full and does not want so much formula.Definitely do not cut back on solids, as after a year he will leave the formula, not the solids, now is when you have to introduce new foods to him. As for being distracted, he is just becoming very aware of his surroundings, that is very normal. Good luck with your bundle of joy!

Hi J.,

I didn't read the other mom answers. But I think this is a phase that will pass. Both my kids went through the same thing around 7 months old...the old 'can't eat, distracted!' deal...... it will pass. He's noticing this wonderful world of goodies all around him that he wants to touch, feel and learn about. It's natural.

Don't worry - He'll start eating again real soon - Promise!

As they eat more solids they take less formula. That is about what my daughter had when she ate solid foods. Also their is formula in the cereal. You might also want to get toys on his highchair table. They have toys that suction to it. He is at a curious age and that is why he is looking around. The toys will keep him occupied while your feeding him.

Hi J., Congratulations to you and your son. Yes, looking around is very normal. He is curious and that is how he will learn. Enjoy your good baby :-) Grandma Mary

i thibnk your baby has enough formula and food. he's getting older and busier, so not wanting to eat is normal. however, if you give him more to drink, then he will continue to not want to eat. he'll eat when he's hungry. that's the beautiful thing about kids...they usu. know when to stop.

hi there- when my baby (he's almost one) started really gettig into solids, he drank less formula. He might have been 8-9 months. I was feeding him meats at lunch (yuck!) and my dr said as long as he's getting his protein, it's ok. But check with your doctor. Also, I rearranged his feeding times a bit, but that was around 10 months- that increased his formula intake a bit but again he was older. And sometimes if he hadn't taken a lot, I'll try again around 45 minUtes later. And my mom said if he's hungry, you'll know it. As for the distractions, I tried to make everything funny when he was eating solids. It sounds funny but I was like a little circus trying to keep his focus. As he's gotten older, he still is easily distracted but I find if I wait the moment out, he'll be looking for the next bite. Good luck!

This is totally normal behavior (it's even worse when you're trying to nurse!), and that is a perfectly fine amount of formula!

Don't worry- you're doing great. And so is he! Don't take away his solids.

Hi, J.. Boy, am I glad to read all your responses! My almost 7 month old daughter does the same exact thing. She lunges for the spoon at first, as if she hasn't eaten in days and after 4 or 5 bites, seems disinterested. I make all the sounds; I have some toys that make noise so I can grab her attention. She's the same way with her bottle, too! So, from all the responses you've received and the question you asked, it sure sounds normal, thankfully!

WOman! All I can say is Thank GOD your baby eats so well that he is 20 pounds at 7 months old. My baby girl is more than twice his age (15 months old) and barely just reached 20 pounds! She is 20 pounds 7 ounces to be precise. UGGH! She never drank (and still doesnt) anywhere near as much as your baby. [She did have infant acid reflux]. My doc kept saying that it was SO much more important for me to respect her sense of how much she wanted to eat and when, otherwise would create adverse food dynamics between us. And I must say, as hard as that was for me (you kidding, I'm Latin!), I really did that. And it all changed once she turned a year old. She still isn't a big drinker, but she eats table food like she has no end to her tummy! She still has pecular things about her (she'll want all the chicken 1st, then rice or a mix of everything at once, grab it herself or open her mouth for you to give it to her), but whatever mood she's in and however much she wants to eat or not I still do my best to respect it. That's really my best advice to you. And if I was able to do it with such a petite little 25th percentile slip of a babe, trust me- you can manage your anxiety around it for your very healthy weight baby. Good luck, try to understand his developmental needs, and think long term. -N.

J.,
He is fine, he is a boy and boys are less focused then girls, plus he is at the age that he realizes he can get around and explore all those many new things. Also he will eat when he wants to, trust me boys have one heck of an appetite, I can give you my grocery bill if you want (just kidding). I have a girl and then 4 boys and the boys were much harder to feed at that age than my daughter who was so sweet and innocent.
Hugs,
T.