Eating Strike!!! Help Please

I have an 8 month old who did the same thing about a month ago, also due to his teeth. I found teething tablets work GREAT!!!......also, ibuprophen and tylenol. I also started giving him food st room temp.....straigh from the jar....it wasn't too hot or too cold. Offering smaller meals more frequently while he/she's teething. Also, the organic biter biscuts helped his teeth come through and offered a great snack, but the Gerber brand tend to break into choking sized chunks! Good luck!

Patience and a smile.... just keep offering and eventually she will try again. She should be getting her nutrition through the BM. At this age it more about learning how to eat rather than nutrition.

It could very well be caused by the teething - so when it stops she may start eating again. As far as the teething a little bit of infant ibuprofin (generic infmat motrin) or infant acetiminafin (generic infant tylenol) will help the teething.

Babies and toddlers typically go through many stages of liking/not liking various textures and flavors. It's all normal. Many babies at six months have still not been introduced to any solids at all. You have nothing to worry about if she's taking breast milk, which will give her all the nutrition she needs for many more months, if necessary.

Since she's teething, she may already have more sensation going on in her mouth than she's happy with. You won't hurt anything if you simply stop offering the solids for a week or longer. She'll probably be more interested next time you introduce them if you don't keep pushing them at her.

That's perfectly fine and normal.

For the 1st year of life, breastmilk or Formula is a baby's PRIMARY source of nutrition... NOT solids and NOT other liquids.

For the 1st year... "solids" is ONLY an 'introduction' to food. And not the main course nor the main focus.

Babies, can survive and be healthy, only on breastmilk, fed on-demand.... for the 1st year. Sometimes even longer.

For the 1st year anyway... a baby typically does not 'eat' 3 square meals a day anyway... like adults. It is not imperative they do.

All the best,
Susan

When a child is teething... their gums hurt. You may need to try to mix some cereal with your breastmilk. You may also need to invest in some baby Tylenol (or a generic like it) and some Orajel (or what your dr or dentist recomends) for the pain. Do you want to eat or chew when your mouth hurts? Don't worry... your child won't starve... they always eat when they are hungry.

My son did this. He even lost a little weight. Then 2 teeth popped out and he started eating again. Drove me frantic, but this eating strike turned out to be his pattern every time he was teething. Just keep trying to offer her food.

my son went through a time where he wouldnt eat anything with texture to it, I have twins so for me it was weird when my daughter had no problem with it. Our pediatrician and my friends with kids said not to worry some babies take longer to get used to textures and often times they find it difficult to eat, swallow or take in as easily as the mild...I wouldnt worry it will happen! My son now is almost 2 and he is just very particular! ;)

Give her more time.

My daughter refused solids until she was about 9 months old. She was getting all that she needed from breastmilk, so it makes sense that she didn't feel the need for any other food.

She'll start eating soon enough. Keep offering and be patient.

No biggies! Just continue giving her your milk and forget about the solid foods for now. Try again in a few weeks, don't worry, she'll pick it up again. I didn't start my daughter on solids until 7 months.
good luck!

My vote is to be patient. 4 months is early to be offering babies food since most of their nutrition should be coming from breast milk or formula. Babies are especially sensitive to food when they're teething and developing so I wouldn't worry at all. You can continue to offer foods and eventually I guarantee she will be excited about food again!-www.weelicious.com

My baby boy is *just* coming out of something very similar. I didn't start him on solids until 7 months, but at 10 months he had his first big fever and since then, he totally swore off all solids. He only wanted the boob, (or the bottle at daycare) which started to get a little stressful b/c I pump at work and being stressed made my milk production go down, which stressed me out even more! It's only been in the last two days that he's started eating some yogurt and "puffs" (I don't like all the processing that goes into cheerios, so I get puffed rice and kamut. He loves it!) One thing to keep in mind is that your baby will let you know if there is something really wrong. As long as she is drinking milk (which can technically carry her through her first entire year with no issues) and she isn't lethargic or suddenly constantly fussy, then trust that it is just a phase. Trust your baby, she'll let you know in her own way when you need to worry. But I KNOW, it's so hard not to worry!! Just like another smart momma said, patience and smile. And I would add 'breathe' to that, too. :)