9 month old STILL not interested in any food. Help!

[fairydustallover]

My daughter will be 9 months old next week. I started trying to wean her just after 6 months old. She has never been at all interested in ANY food. I have tried making purees, baby jars, powdered baby food, finger food eg. Cooked carrot sticks, banana, bread etc. She is a complete spoon avoider, clamps her mouth shut, turns her head away or puts her thumb in her mouth. Any food that goes in she kind of holds on her tongue with her mouth open and gags.

She enjoys picking food up and playing with it and will put to her mouth herself but not eat any.

She will be starting at nursery in 6 weeks when I go back to work and I'm worried how she will cope and what nursery will think.

I keep thinking that one day she will just start eating when she is ready.

I have a 4 year old and she was a breeze- ate everything and anything from 6 months old.

Any advice???

[JiltedJohnsJulie]

When you say she holds the food on her tongue and gags, are you saying that she hasn't eaten anything in 3 months?

[Iggly]

If she gags then maybe she's not ready. Just give her finger foods and let her get on at her own pace. She might have a sensitive gag reflex, she might have reflux (was she a windy/unsettled baby?). Talk to your nursery - they might have experience about this?

[TerrariaMum]

One thing that reassured me when I was at that stage was the saying 'under one food is just for fun'. As Iggly says, let her get on her own pace. DD is 2 now and will eat almost anything so it does pass.

[fairydustallover]

She has a tiny bit of soft food off a spoon that's all. She just wants milk. She was a very unsettled baby for the first few weeks- screaming all night- but has never been sick/ brought milk back up,etc. We used to give her infacol.

[nickelbabylyinginamanger]

just give her bits of stuff on a plateand let her help herself.

with dd, she would nibble at fruit and homepage muffins.
she only git the hang of it at just after 10 months.
as long as she's naturally putting stuff ib her mouth she'll work it out.

in her mind, only milk has the effect of filling her up. dd is now one year old and she will still ask for milk if she gets hungry.

[nickelbabylyinginamanger]

are you sure she's not taking the finger food in? are her poos still liquid?

[fairydustallover]

Not liquid but not solid. Soft. She definitely doesn't eat much if any finger food- just likes to lick it and mush it up in her hands.

[nickelbabylyinginamanger]

licking is fine.
does it look a bit lumpy too?
if it were totally liquid she in't getting any in but if it's more squidgy then she is.
just keep offering her finger food. :)

we never sit dd in a highchair because she scratches herself (itchy eczema).
when it's time to eat we put her on a towel in the floor and put a couple of bits on a plate.
at 9 months it would literally be 1 stalk of broccoli 1 stick of carrot 1 other thing.
and if she ate that or threw it around she'd get another thing
no pressure and no fuss. not even discussion. just let her do it.
she'd get bored and come to me for milk, but now she'll eat anything.
constantly!

[nickelbabylyinginamanger]

yes sarge is right - dd is more likely to eat off my plate. so sit with your plate and just put one or two of your items on her plate.
one thing that took me a while to work out- I'm only hungryevery 4 hours, but dd is every hour or so. and every 2 hours will be milk. so offer solids every other 2 hours .
and offer water in a beaker too- sometimes it's just a drink she wants.

[fairydustallover]

Phew... I feel better. I will be patient and go at her pace. Thank you

[Iggly]

She might have silent reflux so no chucking up. Or intolerances. Or even tongue tie. Anyone of these means sensitive to food so that's why she won't eat yet.

[goodtoesnaughtytoes]

Well finally at 9.5 months, dd2 has decided to accept food from a spoon hurrah!

[Poppins27]

My Dd is now just 10 months old and I have struggled with weaning from the start. Firstly she wasn't keen on my puréed veg etc so we tried jars which she started taking then stopped altogether, so we introduced the blw approach some more which again started well but fizzled out eventually. My dd has also had 2 stomach upsets which really stopped eating in its tracks. She would also get so upset and rigid in her highchair it was ridiculous!

But...and the reason for posting is...in the last 2 weeks, out of nowhere her appetite is great. We are again trying mushed up and spoon fed food, but the same as what we are eating, along with finger food and snacks and she is loving every meal. She has NEVER eaten as much.

I have spent the last 4 months dreading mealtimes...but now am revelling in her enjoyment.

I have absolutely no idea how or why she has changed so much but it has happened now that she is crawling and is a lot more active so maybe there's the link?!

I just wanted to give you a little bit of reassurance really that it seems when ready, babies will eat, it just obviously takes some longer than others good luck!

[monkeybaby2]

Poppins, your message has given me hope! We are a big foodie family and I was so excited to start weaning with Dd. It has been a bit of a nightmare - she'll 'taste' pretty much anything but after a couple of mouthfuls would be done. We are on the BLW track too (I'd rather have spoonfed but she was having none of it) and its so depressing watching her reject so much, sometimes immediately, sometimes after a few bites. I live in hope that it will sort itself out soon as I also dread mealtimes and have been reduced to tears (away from Dd!) loads of times.

Dd is also a massive milk monster and although she is now down to 3x7oz a day would rather have a bottle than a snack anytime.

She's a big baby so I find it extra hard watching other babies scarf down loads of food when she's just not that into it.

[Poppins27]

I know exactly what you mean, putting all of the untouched food in the bin used to make me feel like such a useless mum!! My best friends little boy is younger than my dd and would come round and devour everything and still want more!! I just wondered what I was doing wrong!!

My dd is different in the sense though that she has never been a massive milk fan either...but again has recently starting finishing all of her bottles and is having 4 x 7oz now. I have always offered 4 as she was only maybe having 3oz/4oz at a time?! That's the next thing I need to tackle.

I did go to the clinic yesterday to get her weighed feeling smug as dd is slightly on the dinky side thinking she would have put on a couple of lb since we last went in Nov only to be told she weighed exactly the same!! That has slightly burst my bubble...grrr!!

[tazmo]

Hi

I've just started weaning DD3 at 6 months (both my kids have been rubbish eaters, so really want to get this one right) and I suspect she is going to be more of an issue than the other 2 who I started at 18 weeks or thereabouts. She enjoyed her first few meals of baby rice which were really runny - but now I'm trying to introduce other stuff, she sticks her tongue out and doesn't open her mouth for anything (I've only been trying her for a week so I know I have to keep at it!) - but I'm not sure if starting at 6 months is that great. DD3 is starting to teeth and naturally I can understand she might not feel like anything to eat (she has 2 massive red cheeks). DD3 is also a lot 'floppier' than the other 2 at that age. They were well sitting up in the high chair by 6 months. DD3 is slumping over. Its my fault as I've just let her lie on her baby gym while having to deal with other 2 children (2 and 4 years old).

I've always done a mix of usual weaning v baby led weaning. Its not fun when they grab the spoon off you and it goes everywhere - but DD3 is not strong enough yet to sit up to eat finger food. I hope its just that shes baby no 3 and is slightly lazy!

Think I need to look at that DVD the health visitor gave me LOL.

T

[Tori93k]

Hi, I know this was a long time ago
I'm having the exact same issue, exact behaviout eith the thumb sucking. Just wondering what happened!? Really struggling and worried!