8 1/2 month old gagging on chunkier/thicker foods

Barbie - posted on 05/23/2009

my lil boy is the same as well. I just keep trying and eventually he'll get the hang of it. He only has 2 lil teeth in his mouth so hopefully he'll start getting more teeth and will be able to chew on food. My lil girl on the other hand she had all her teeth by the time she was 1. We started her on table food at 6 months old and i never had a problem with her getting gagged or anything. I guess that just goes to show us that all babies are definetly different.

Windy - posted on 05/23/2009

My son is now successfully eating the gerber stage 3! The first time I tried gagging and then the second time - over a week later he was fine with it! Since it's 6 oz, I'm giving him half a jar at first along with a stage 2 fruit or baby yogurt!

Lindsay - posted on 05/21/2009

My 8 1/2 month old son is also doing this with the gerber graduate foods. I talked to my mom and she said to add a little rice cereal with the thicker stuff with formula or water however you make it and it makes it less thick and then gradually stop adding it. I tried it and my son liked it hope this helps

Julie - posted on 05/21/2009

Instead of using a mixed texture baby food (which can acutally be more difficult to tolerate), try steaming veggies that she has had (like squash, carrots, etc..)until they are very soft, (or using very soft/ripe fruits like banana, peeled blueberries, etc..) and mashing them a little prior to putting them in her mouth. When you put it in her mouth, put the veggi/fruit in the side by her cheek instead of on the front of her tongue, which will encourage more lateralization chewing movements. You could also try this with the Gerber puffs, even breaking them into smaller pieces that are easier to tolerate. I started both of my kids on these first by breaking the stars into 5 little pieces. Soft, small pieces of bread is also a good thing to start on. Also, some gagging and choking is normal anyways as they learn to eat this new type of food. It's a little freaky when they do it, but keep trying and within a few weeks you will be past this. Don't give up just yet!

Jessica - posted on 05/20/2009

My little one is the same also, and I am so glad she isn't the only one! I picked up some of the Gerber puff things that dissolve in your mouth. Emma likes to gum them and sometimes she gags a bit, but she's getting to understand she has to mush it around. She is getting 4 teeth at once right now too, so sometimes she gnaws on the puffs (it must make her teeth feel better). The sippy cup with water helps her too, washes away the paste that the puffs turn into when she isn't swallowing properly, I'm sure our babies will learn quickly to mush and/or chew their food! :)

Madeleine - posted on 05/20/2009

My son was doing this from time to time. I make all his baby food, though. When I tried to thicken up the mixture, he would gag. A sippy cup of water was added to our meals, then, and it worked to help him swallow. He was also trying to grab food off my plate, so I started giving him little pieces of very ripe peach that I'd slightly mashed with a fork and also small cubes of baked sweet potato he could mash easily with his gums (still no teeth.) He loves to gum salt free whole grain rice cakes and saltines, too. They both go really mushy very easily. At first I would soak them in a bit of baby fruit juice to soften them up, but now he can handle them plain. You can also pour a little juice on some cheerios or jumbo rice crispies and get the same effect. Hope some of these suggestions help.

Jamie - posted on 05/20/2009

I am happy you asked this question as my 8 month old is having the same problem.

She gags and throws up on bigger chunks of food as well. I guess we just have to perservere.

Windy - posted on 05/19/2009

My son when I first gave him cheerios and gerber puffs and bannana bits would gag and throw up - eventually he realized he needed to move it around on his tounge and he now gums it all and is fine wiht it.



So, I decided to try a stage 3 food - the pureed with chunks and he gagged and threw up. I talked to the people that care for him at his daycare and that is a common problem aparntly. It's almost like they get confused with the soft chunks in the puree and think it's just puree and can swallow. If it's really chunky they would know to chew - but now are confused. I will keep trying becasue he needs to learn to examine what's in his mouth before just swallowing I think.

Jodie - posted on 05/19/2009

my son hates the chunky food to but he has to try everything i eat he can chew on whatever i give him but he just spits out the chunky food must be cause its slimy and stuff i dunno i just keep giving him the food without the chunks some babys just dont like the 3rd stage foods i guess