[mandolyn]

Hi!<br>
My 10.5 month old has been eating solids for 3 months now (ebf before that) and has 4 teeth (two top, two bottom). She does not eat a lot (some days she gets a few bites, some days she gets a full meal). I like to have her feed herself when possible. I've noticed though, when I give her a larger piece of fruit to gnaw on (today was cantaloupe and tomato), she does really well with it for a while, and then starts choking and throws up. I'm guessing a larger chunk triggers her gag reflex. So I'm wondering if she is not ready to feed herself this way, and I should continue to cut/mash her food? I'm worried something will block her airway and she won't be able to get it out. Anyone BTDT?<br><br>
Thanks!<br>
Mandy

 

[Pepperdove]

Sounds like she just needs it cut up smaller, or even mashed/pureed and give her a spoon to work at it with! Melon could easily make you gag, I imagine.<br><br>
DS picked up the spoon thing really fast and it helped a lot. Make sure you gove her a spoon to play with at each meal, and she should get the hang of it pretty good.

 

[Milkymommy]

Cantaloupe is really dense. My DD used to choke on it too. Harder, denser foods like melon and chicken, I used to cut really small.<br><br>
Try watermelon, it's juicier and crumblier. Maybe lightly toasted bread cut into strips? Have you tried cheerios or puffed millet?<br><br>
(I'm trying to help your post count <img alt="" class="inlineimg" src="http://www.mothering.com/discussions/images/smilies/lol.gif" style="border:0px solid;" title="lol"> )

 

[MissLotus]

She could definitely choke on a chunk of canteloupe! I mean, if she has no back teeth to chew it with...she has no way to break it down.<br><br>
Mushy things are what work at that stage...bananas, mashed things, things that crumble easily.

 

[VikingKvinna]

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<div>Originally Posted by <strong>mandolyn</strong> <a href="/community/forum/post/7942657"><img alt="View Post" class="inlineimg" src="/community/img/forum/go_quote.gif" style="border:0px solid;"></a></div>
<div style="font-style:italic;">she is not ready to feed herself this way</div>
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Yup. Dial it back a bit with the chunks. You can give some softer, more-easily-dissolvable (think Os), and/or mashed foods, or let her play with a puree on a spoon (you dunk the spoon in, then hand it over). Or just skip the foods altogether. Solids in the first year are just for play and experimentation, not for nutrition.<br><br>
HTH.

 

[gardenmommy]

My babies all liked soft foods at that stage. Ripe bananas cut into small pieces that sort of dissolve in the mouth, very ripe pears in small pieces, small bits of watermelon, bits of cooked sweet potato, that sort of thing. They also liked soft, well-cooked bits of meat (like beef from the crock-pot, roast chicken, etc.). Aim for foods that will go down well, even if not fully chewed.<br><br>
Also, I'd stay away from acid-type foods such as citrus and tomato, as those foods may be irritating to the stomach (and on the way out!).<br><br>
Things that we waited on: corn (in all forms), soy, grains of all sorts, dairy, strawberries, peanuts and peanut butter, tree nuts, eggs.<br><br>
FWIW, none of my babies have ever wanted anything to do with purees, either homemade or jarred, so we were sort of left to figuring out what would go down ok without being chewed thoroughly.