is this a stage?

Becca - posted on 06/12/2010

Kids go through food fads and refusals. It is normal but they will not voluntarily starve themselves. I would check to find out if she is losing weight and if so make sure that there is nothing physically wrong that is making her refuse to eat (teething, thrush, ear infection, etc). If nothing is wrong just keep offering her a selection of healthy foods and wait for the fad to pass.

One thing that is helpful to know is that a child who is offered only healthy foods that are free of added salt, sugar, flavors, colors or preservatives will not leave themselves nutrient deficient. And don't worry about extra bottles, it may be that with the weather getting nicer she is simply more thirsty and at this age she is supposed to be getting her primary nutrician from formula or breastmilk anyway.

I would also be careful of finger foods marketed for babies like Gerber puffs, they often have added salt or sugar and don't teach your child to chew because they disolve too easily.

Nikki - posted on 06/12/2010

i started giving my son table food at 9 months he refused anything puree and wanted to feed himself.... he didn't get teeth til 10.5 months , i just gave him small soft pieces, he is very adamant about feeding himself tho, if i try he clamps his mouth shut

Lyndsay - posted on 06/12/2010

Why don't you go from baby food to real food? You may have to mush it up extra good for her, but she is providing you with the perfect opportunity to make this transition.

Rachael - posted on 06/12/2010

ye my son is like that too. he is 9 1/2 months old now and he wouldn't eat anything for awhile. he still won't eat most baby food and also won't eat much table food, but he will eat yogurt, cheese strings, animal crackers, and fruit chunks. i just give him as much of that as he wants

Mamohau - posted on 06/12/2010

Cook da veggies and mash them n c if she eats them.Pour a little bit of brown sugar(juz sprinkle a bit). U can mix potatoes/green beans/carrot and butternut. Mash potatoes with a little gravy to taste if there is means mend it as well.

Leila - posted on 06/12/2010

My daughter was a great little eater and when she was small and when i fed her she would eat anything, then she started to feed herself and it all went wrong she got lazy and didnt want to eat after a few mouthfulls, i gave my daughter fingerfoods but it was all fruit and veg and basically started again from scratch, but i refused to give her any treats until she co-operated!!! Good luck girls are stubborn xx

Lisa - posted on 06/12/2010

Hi, had exactly the same problem with my second little boy. I went through a stage of feeding him up on rusks and milk as he just would not eat anything not even toast. I found that he liked porridge after weeks of having food refused. Yoghurt is good as it is a little sweet. With my little boy, it was his teeth, just hurt too much to chew. He is now 14 months and completely the opposite is true, I can't feed him enough!!! She will start eating when she is ready until then, just keep trying.

Lorrom - posted on 06/12/2010

Have you tried fruit or yogurt? or little Cherrios broke in quarters? My daughter loved all those when she started to eat solids, and she would ate them at any time. Not sure if it's a phase, since they have so many :) Have you asked your dr.?

Katherine - posted on 06/12/2010

Oh don't worry, they do that. Mine did it too.