9 month old averse to solids

[yentroc]

It shouldn't be a surprise, since dd was not into solids until about 10 months or so...

BUT, ds (9.5 months old) is *averse* to any solids that aren't "dry" like puffed rice. The texture of all other foods simply disgust him. He will occasionally take a bite of a banana that I'm holding, but refuses to hold it.

I usually offer whatever we're eating, either on his highchair tray, or if he won't touch it, I'll feed it to him. He's usually good for a bite and then shudders and shakes and gags and acts like I've poisoned him.

I'm not really worried about his nutrition at the moment (he's fine on weight and breastfeeds a lot), but am more concerned about his future with food. His older sister is beyond picky (now 5.5 yrs old) and I really don't want two like her...

Any suggestions?

[CorasMama]

a few points I've gleaned in my reading (my dd2 has an actual oral aversion) that might be useful to you:

If he likes puffed rice, how about small pieces of rice cake? Can he pick up and dip something? (I honestly don't remember if that's something 9-mo-olds do, it's been 12 years since I had one, dd2 is only 3 mos) Young toddlers looooove to dip.

How about letting him play with his food? Like, finger painting with food on his highchair tray?

Flavored healthy drinks in small amounts? (though, I'd be hesitant with this one due to his age) Or smoothies?

When trying to get him to eat, end each session on a positive note. If he's fussing about the food you're trying to give him, end with a success, like him eating a bite of a preferred food. And make the sessions short. And try to be really relaxed, because if he senses lots of tension from you, he may start to have negative food-emotion associations.

All that said, however, really don't worry about it. You aren't even close to a concerning point unless he's not taking enough orally to sustain and grow.

[yentroc]

Thanks SO much for the suggestions!!!

[EmilyVorpe]

Thought Id throw this one out there.

My son is dairy/soy allergic with EXTREME reflux. This causes a texture issue with him. He wouldnt try baby food until he was 10 months old. He was drinking massive amounts of formula (I had to give up breastfeeding due to health reasons) and the doctor was worried about water intoxication. She had us not give him any formula until after the baby food attempts. She said under no circumstances could we give him more than 45 ounces a day and by not giving him so much hed start eating. It took us a week and he finally started testing things.
Hes now 11 months and 2 weeks and eats 1-2 jars of babyfood a day...
So maybe you can try offering the food first, not letting him fill up on liquids.
And not all babies that are picky end up as picky 5 year olds.
Good luck mama

[Tattooed Hand]

Could you try mixing it with BM? Someone suggested it to me and I'm going to try it...once I get around to working up the nerve to expose DD's super sensitive system to solids again.

Also, I went to a wholistic allergist yesterday who told me that R's super lack of interest in food probably means that her digestive track is immature and that it takes up to a year for some babies to be ready.

[yentroc]

Originally Posted by Tattooed Hand

Could you try mixing it with BM? Someone suggested it to me and I'm going to try it...once I get around to working up the nerve to expose DD's super sensitive system to solids again.

Also, I went to a wholistic allergist yesterday who told me that R's super lack of interest in food probably means that her digestive track is immature and that it takes up to a year for some babies to be ready.

That's interesting, I really don't think dd's digestive tract was at all ready until she was 12 months but I felt like she *should* eat and pushed it probably more than I needed to.