Get 7 Month Old to Eat Baby Food

My sweet baby girl is 6-months-old and is also breastfed. We've tried to feed her a few different "first foods" on several occassions, and we've had no luck getting her to eat them. A friend told us to try banana, too ... but she's had some constipation issues (just recently), and I've read that those can cause constipation so I'm a little worried to try them with her.

She gags and makes the worst faces when we try to feed her baby foods (cereals, fruits, etc.), but acts interested in our food, etc. when we're eating (which is supposed to be a sign they're ready to eat baby food). I didn't have this problem with my son either (he was formula fed by this age). So, I'm not sure if it's a breastfeeding thing or not ... let me know what others tell you! ;)

I did have a friend tell me the other day that her son didn't eat baby food at all until 8 months and then he went to table food at 9 months! I guess just all babies are different. Our son loved baby food and dug in immediately! ;)

My daughter is still getting up in the middle of the night to nurse. She'll go longer stretches sometimes, but still wants to nurse once in the middle of the night. My son was not doing that at her age, but I just assume it's because she's breastfed (and not eating baby food, etc.). I don't know if that's normal, but wanted to let you know that my little girl is doing similar things as yours! ;)

Best of luck and let me know what else you hear in terms of advice ... I'm interested to know, too!

IT is perfectly normal for your daughter to nurse every 2-3 hours at this age. IT is also normal for her to refuse babyfood at this age. At 7 months your breastmilk should still be her primary source of nutrition. It is also perfectly normal for her to wake up at night to nurse. Congrats on nursing, too! If you are having issues I do suggest finding your local La Leche League mettings- it is a wonderful resource for talking to other women who have been there and also women who are going through it now. Feel free to email me if you would like to talk more.

H.
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2-3 hour feedings at that age isn't unusual (at least to me) my son was the same way and he was even on formula.
I did have the same problem with getting him to eat baby food. I also gave up initially on cereal but eventually went back to it once he was eating baby food. With the baby food it was hit and miss for about a month or two. Sometimes he would be so hungry he wouldn't touch it or would only take a few bites and then want his formula. However after many attempts he finally got used to the baby food and we gradually went to three meals a day. My advice basically is don't get too discouraged. Sometimes it just takes them a while to adjust.

Everything sounds totally normal!! You're doing a great job!!
The American Academy of Pediatrics recommends that breastmilk continue to be a baby's primary source of nutrition through 12 months of age. Babies have little, if any real need for other foods until then. Solids before 1 year are just for fun and practice. If she's not having fun eating, then she may not be ready for other foods yet.
Six months of age is the absolute minimum age for offering any other foods, not a deadline for when you have to start them. Many children are simply not ready until, 8 mos, 9 mos, or even later. My own daughter was not interested in more than a bite here and there of solids (usually off my own plate) until she was over a year old. Our pediatrician checked her Iron levels at 1year and we started her on a few drops of an iron supplement, but otherwise he was totally comfortable breastmilk being her primary source of nutrition for quite some time.
If her feeding every 2-3 hours is overwhelming you at this point (I know it would be for me!), you may want to talk to a lactation consultant or La Leche League Leader about how to get her to eat more at one feeding. Breastmilk is so easily digested, and babies tummies are so small that frequent feeding is still very normal, but they may have some good suggestions on how space out the feedings a little. It may also just be a growth spurt coming and her feeding could slow down some soon.
Night feedings are also still totally normal at this point too. My daughter didn't give those up until she was two. (she had some weight gain issues though, otherwise we might have night-weaned her a little sooner). A LLL leader could give you some suggestions for helping her sleep longer between feedings, as well as making those feedings less disruptive for you.
Here's a great website for breastfeeding advice. It covers what's normal as well as a lot of common questions and problems.
http://www.kellymom.com/nutrition/solids/index.html
Hope some of this helps, and keep up the good work, mama!
H.

try introducing a little everyday, a couple of spoon fulls and build from there, try mixing the food with her milk in a bottle too

Hi B.. I am a stay at home mom of three daughters, 7yrs.,4yrs,and 18mths. old. Mine seemed to prefer the oatmeal cereal versus the rice cereal. Also they preferred a particular brand over another. I believe Gerber. Alot of times it's just a matter of them getting used to the texture of the cereal. You could mix it thin and then gradually make it thicker. There were also some baby foods that my daughters would never eat-peas and spinach for example. As long as she is nursing she is getting what she needs. It will help you when she begins to eat food. My pediatrician always said nurse first and then offer the food so that way they aren't starving when you offer the food. Unless she continues to gag over a long period of time, I wouldn't worry. She will eventually get used to the texture. I also mixed some kind of fruit with the cereal. They usually didn't like it plain.

Good Luck with everything,
R. McKee

I think what you are experiencing is totally normal. I would keep trying different baby foods because eventually she will be interested in it, but I wouldn't force the baby food at anytime. My son turned 1 on June 5 and I breastfed him until about 1 week after his birthday. Up until that time, he still woke up during the night to nurse (I think more for comfort than nutrition). Once I weaned him, he stopped waking up so much at night. Does your daughter have any teeth? Once she gets enough teeth she can eat more solid food which she may find more enjoyable.

I also nurse my 7 1/2 months old daughter. We started her on cereal when she was almost 6 months. She is not very fond of the rice cereal, does better with the oatmeal/bananna's but prefers fruits. I have kinda forced her into eating ( I already have to pump for work) the cereal with formula but I know that she prefers it with breast milk. Try that if you havnt already. She usually eats on one side at a time also every 2-3 hours and I try to give her cereal or fruit half way in between feedings. She does not have a big enough appetite yet to eat both at the same setting. My sister assured me that when she starts crawling all over and becomes mobile that her appetite will skyrocket and nursing wont be enough and real food becomes much more appetizing. We have not got there yet but we are getting better. I have tried cereal/fruit in the morning, afternoon and evening and found that she eats the most in the evening. My point in all of this rambling is that yes, if she is only eating on one side at a time than it is normal that she is eating that often. She still needs like 24-36oz of milk/day. (That is only the estimate I read from books) I think she is eating that often because she is hungry. As far as that schedule being normal, it is normal for your baby and mine but other nursing babies I know eat on both sides every 4-5 hours. My daugher also wakes twice a night to eat still and I see no end to that. So like babies that sleep though the night I also envy the babies/moms that have no-nonsense eaters, not "snackers". I believe things will change.

I hope I helped a little.

My son was not ready for solid foods at six months. I tried to get him to eat them but feeding times were always so stressful and I did not want that. Instead I backed off solid foods and gave him formula. When I tried again at about 8 months he was ready and loved it. I also think the food gets better once they can start with the meat combos. My son never liked the green beans alone and gagged on them and would not open his mouth for another bite but he loves green beans with turkey. Have patience...you are doing a wonderful job.

What baby foods have you tried? We tried bananas first with my daughter at about 8 months and she loved it. Applesauce was a favorite too. And sweet potatoes! Have you tried several different flavors?

I didn't have trouble getting my daughter to eat... she still loves to eat anything and everything!

I had similar issues with my daughter. I still nurse her but she eats baby food 3x a day now. I would suggest making the rice very thin with breast milk. I found if it was too thick it would gag my baby. Also, starting with a yellow vegetable or fruit that is sweeter may help also. After a while when my baby started preferring baby food she no longer wanted the cereal so I mix that with her baby food so she still gets those vitamins and iron and will thin it with breast milk if it's too thick.

As far as waking during the night, I've used techniques from the book Sleeping Through the Night by Jodi Mendell. Although I don't agree with everything - I still nurse & rock my child every night - the techniques for getting baby to self soothe were very helpful and if you can do it it only takes about 3 nights for baby to learn and for you to get some much needed rest. My baby still wakes during the night, but not nearly as much unless she is sick or teething.