My 9 month old won't eat! Help Me!!!?

[Boobjuicer]

My daughter started eating at 5 months because she wanted to. She loved it! By 7 months she ate 2 meals a day, and was happily taking things from our plates and so forth.

She then got a terrible virus. She stopped eating AND drinking. She was very ill and dehydrated. But after a couple of weeks she started to drink her milk again, and then finally started eating again. So, there were about 5 days of total joy as she ate her food again. But then, perhaps as her immunity was low, she got another cold, which she is still suffering from. She is also teething. She won't eat hardly anything.

After much persuasion and antics she will put some potato or broccoli in her mouth. The spoon gets flung from my hand to the other side of the kitchen if it gets put anywhere near her. Her favourite uncle can get somewhere with it, but it usually ends with her feeding us rather than her eating anything.

I have taken a step back and am letting her dictate whether she wants to eat or not as I don't want her developing a food aversion. It was also leaving me totally stressed and getting depressed. So - I am sitting her down each meal time with us, putting some bits on her table, offering her my plate and offering her the spoon every so often, but really not pushing her at all (which is of course leaving me racked with guilt). She is having the odd bit here and there, but nothing that could be called a meal.

She is having breast milk every 3 hours and her last weigh in had her still in the 50th centile but I am concerned, and not sure how long the breast milk will sustain her. She is happy, alert, active, chatty and so on. However, she does get stinky farts (sometimes breath too) and does not poo for days at a time. She also still has a snotty nose from her most recent cold and her emerging teeth (the bottom front two) are sharp and clearly bothering her.

I'm trying desperately to play it cool as it was becoming clear she was getting p*ssed off from the pushing - but she is coming up to 9 months now and I feel as though she was doing better when she was 6 months! I ordered some vitamin supplements (more to make me feel better I guess as I am a firm believer in nature knows best and that breast milk is an amazing substance) but she won't even open her mouth so I've given up on those too.  I really wonder whether there is anything else I can do without forcing the issue and creating a more long term problem of food aversion.

First time mum = advice most welcomed!

[Youngfrankenstein]

If she is happy, gaining weight, and hitting milestones, I'd let her dictate what she wants to eat.  My last dd "stopped eating" at about 14 months.  She'd been eating solids since about 7 months or so and would barely touch anything.  I would even try to get her to eat doughnuts just to eat something.  It lasted until she was 19 months or so.

Just keep offering.  Put stuff on her tray.  See how it goes.

[OTMomma]

Keep nursing, it will give her what she needs nutritionally.  When the teeth are through, her mouth will no longer hurt, the cold will pass and her appetite will return.  Babies don't actually have to have food other than breastmilk until they are 2 years old. She will be fine.

[OSUvet]

My son is 11 months and eats very little other than nursing. He is in the 2nd percentile for height and weight and has been since a couple months after birth. BUT he is happy, healthy, nearly walking and talking, etc. He will usually eat a couple bites of ground lamb or yogurt and pretty everything else gets rejected. I would like him to eat more, but I have to accept that he will when he is ready. I take comfort that he is still nursing, so I know he is getting balanced nutrition. I'm sure your little one will eat more when she is ready, and feeling better.

[Fluga]

She'll probably be fine on breastmilk alone until she's ready to resume solids again. My daughter went on a food strike from 15 to 18 months.  She'd have few spoonfuls here and there throughout the day.  She continued growing and thriving. In her case it was teething and once the molars were out she started eating right away again. I suggest you offer your daughter foods once or twice a day but try to make it stress free.  Does she self feed? Maybe just putting her in the high chair with couple of things in front of her.

[gypsy86]

teething children are not hungry. nurse, if she's happy, alert, growing and progressing, wait until she's ready again. she'll be fine. a mom at our LLL had a little girl who had no interest in food at all until she was well over a year old. breastmilk really is best!

[carmalita]

Thankyou for your post because I was about to approach my mother-in-law about my 9 month old son. I work fulltime, part-time student with 4 kids. I try my best to be a great mother so when my son stopped eating I thought it had to be her. My son looks like a 4 month old I am very emotional about how small he has gotten. The doctor told me he was fine, so if it weren't for this post I've wouldve made a really bad move

[QueenOfTheMeadow]

Originally Posted by carmalita 

Thankyou for your post because I was about to approach my mother-in-law about my 9 month old son. I work fulltime, part-time student with 4 kids. I try my best to be a great mother so when my son stopped eating I thought it had to be her. My son looks like a 4 month old I am very emotional about how small he has gotten. The doctor told me he was fine, so if it weren't for this post I've wouldve made a really bad move

It sounds as if your ds has lost enough weight to go from the size of a normal 9 month old to a 4 month old.  Am I interpreting this correctlly?

[darwinNJ]

No worries! if the Dr. isn't concerned about weight loss, stop stressing (IMO). In "baby led weaning" the motto is "food before 1 is just for fun" and BM or formula is their primary source of nutrition. Worry at 12/13 mos!

[Youngfrankenstein]

Originally Posted by QueenOfTheMeadow 

It sounds as if your ds has lost enough weight to go from the size of a normal 9 month old to a 4 month old.  Am I interpreting this correctlly?