Trouble getting underweight 13 month old to be interested in solids

[Zenmama1]

Hi

I was just wondering if some moms out there could share their experiences with starting solids. My DD is 13 months old and has a severe dairy allergy. It took us awhile to figure out that it was dairy. And due to her reactions to something passing through my breast milk I delayed introducing solids until she was about 10 months old. And she has never really taken to them. She eats a few things, but more often than not refuses to even try things or eats very very little compared to other babies her age. I've tried avocados for the extra fat. but she isnt interested. Ive tried introducing other milks: hemp, almond, oat...but no luck. I can count on her to like: sweet potatoes, cauliflower, cheerie Os, rice & waffles with sun butter (only eats a tiny bit though).

Her ped is concerned that she hasn't grown much since the 12 month mark. And has told me to withhold nursing during the day, give her a prescription appetite stimulant, and hope that she will start eating more solids. That advice just doesn't sit right with me, so I havent done it yet. I nurse on demand which can be every 2-3 hours round the clock. he feels my BM isn't adequate nutrition after 12 months and says the proof is in the numbers.

Anyway, my heart says she is fine and she will eat when she wants to eat. Plus there could be other food allergies we ha vent uncovered yet. But the slow growth has me concerned. She is very petite compared to other babies her age. 15.75lbs & 29.5" But doesn't look malnourished. She has met all milestones and seems happy. But my confidence is shot thanks to the ped.

I am also concerned that I missed some kind of "window of opportunity" in regards to introducing solids. Did I delay too long? And my other question is should I spoon feeding or letting her self feed?

If any of you can relate, please share your story and advice with me.

TIA!

[fruitfulmomma]

No advice on getting her to eat more but the no more nursing is bunk... how is her getting less calories going to help her gain weight? I just weaned my 3 year old a couple of months ago and she isn't eating any more solids than she was before. The only thing she wants more of is water. She is a tiny little thing with multiple restrictions, but her doctor wasn't overly worried about her and knew we were still nursing. Only reason I quit was because I am pregnant and couldn't keep up with the required e.d. for her.

His advice is out of line with the WHO guidelines which say for at least two years. Also, the fat content of breastmilk goes *up* the older the child is. Take a look at this chart... http://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=329013140471328&set=pu.134844053221572&type=1&theater and the first comment under it has a link to the abstract.

Kelly Mom talks about "extended" breastfeeding on this page... http://www.kellymom.com/bf/bfextended/ebf-benefits.html and quotes the AAFP as saying "If the child is younger than two years of age, the child is at increased risk of illness if weaned."

[laohaire]

This is just my anecdote, nothing more. DD also was slow to take to solids. At 13 months she was basically licking strawberries. (OK, nibbling them, but you see what I mean - not really eating). She was also on the left end of the growth charts. I kept nursing her all she wanted. I do strongly believe that nursing is THE best nutrition you can give, so whatever I replaced it with would be far inferior.

DD is 6 now, and she's still on the small side but she eats and she's been growing the whole time. She's small but she's not like a stack of ribs or anything. She's fine. DH and I were the same as kids. I can't really tell you when she started eating - I guess it was slow, it wasn't like suddenly at 16 months she was eating three square meals a day, it just slowly increased over quite a bit of time.

Note: I'm not aware of any allergies she has. I'm just replying with my story of a kid not eating solids in the usual time frame.

[Partaria]

I also have nothing to offer but just my own anecdotal stuff. DS is 10 months and is suddenly losing weight for the first time in his life. Went from 90 percentile to like 70. I think because he is now very mobile.

Anyway, he pretty much only likes the solids you mentioned yours likes. The doctor is also a little concerned. I will say that for us, DS will try new things if they are spicy. Which shocked me, but it's been the case. I find that I can get him to give nearly anything a whirl if I put pesto or garlic on it. Then he's all about it. Maybe something to think about? 

Also, our doc recommended trying to get anything that's high fat into him that we can (and she actually said to nurse more if he'll take it, and for me to be sure my fat intake and protein intake is high so that my milk is super jam packed with goodness.) Maybe avocado? Just a thought. My guy will eat some of it, esp if I mix in a little bit of steamed garlic. 

Good luck!

[Zenmama1]

Thanks for the replies ladies. Sorry it has taken me so long to respond I've been trying to manage another food allergy reaction in my DD. But I really appreciate all your support. It has helped me get through this very difficult time!

Fruitfulmomma. Thanks for the links. I looked them up and it was exactly what I needed to hear. I just need to trust that my BM is perfect for her and not listen to the doc. Those facts definitely helped boost my confidence. I read somewhere that at 1 year breastmilk makes up 75% of their diet. That was reassuring. I also read that breastmilk has about 20 calories per ounce. and when i compared that to some of the fods I was feeding her it wasnt close.

Laohaire: Thanks for sharing your story. It helps to know that my DD isnt the only one out there that is slow to get used to solids. My acupucturist had a great idea. He said I should hold her close and love her a lot while feeding her because that is how she is used to eating. I never thought about that. So now I sometimes just put her on my lap and take my shirt off and feed her solids. It seems to be working. Sometimes she will nurse just a couple seconds and then eat and then nurse on and off like that. so maybe she just needs the snuggle time.

Pataria: Thanks for the idea of spices. I hadnt thought of that. But I made a big of chicken soup with lots of veggies and different herbs and she seems to really like it. So maybe the steamed veggies just weren't flavorful enough like you said. Thanks for the tip.