How can I get my 6 month old to eat?

Question

I've tried mashed potatoes (home made), pureed sweet corn, green beans and peas.Everything makes him gag.Any suggestions?

Answer 1

First of all, wait until he is ready for solids. That gagging is a message; if you don't understand it, that's not your son's fault!!

Signs of readiness for solids include:

1. Ability to sit unsupported.
2. Development of the "pincer grasp" (when a baby picks up small objects with the thumb and *one* finger).
3. Appearance of teeth.

If baby has 1 & 2 (and preferably all 3), then he *may* be ready for solids. If not, he just isn't. Wait a few weeks or months...most babies are ready for solids by their first birthday.

Second...stop mashing and pureeing. If he *is* ready for solids, you can give him a little bit of actual food, and he will eat it. Giving mush was introduced in the last few generations when babies were being force-fed before they were ready to digest it. At least when it came out the other end, mothers couldn't *tell* baby wasn't digesting it!!

Third...try starting with something sweet. Babies are used to sweet because human milk is sweet. If you want to offer vegetables, give him a piece of a baked sweet potato or a spoonful of grated carrot. Or you can give a chunk of banana or a little grated apple or pear. Let him pick it up and feed himself--don't spoon it in. Pretty soon, you'll see that he eats it just fine.

Answer 2

He may not be ready for solids yet. They're just for fun and practice at this age anyway, so it's not a big deal. Maybe wait a bit before you offer again.

GREAT first foods are bananas and avocados which are really easy to just mash up with your fork and maybe mix a little bit of breastmilk in to thin it out. (These are among the first foods that LLL recommends.)

Corn is not really recommended at this age....it's hard to digest and can be an allergen.

A lot of people do say to do veggies before fruits, but from personal experience I'd say it's an old wives tale. The baby I started out on veggies is my pickiest eater. The two who started with bananas and avocados eat a wide variety of foods now and also try new things frequently.

Answer 3

My daughter is 6 months old and is starting to LOVE food! I started her out with cereal in her bottle because she wouldn't eat it off a spoon. I started her with bananas, even though they say to start with veggies, I have not had a problem getting her to eat vegetables. I made it really thin and she started by slurping it off the spoon. If I stuck the spoon in her mouth, she would gag, but if I held it to her lips, she would suck the food off. She now will let me put the spoon in her mouth and eat. I find that if I don't thin the foods enough she will gag on it. She now loves almost everything, but still won't eat cereal from a spoon unless it is mixed with a fruit or veggie. It's entirely possible that he is just not ready to eat yet, if that is the case just keep trying every few days, and eventually he will surprise you! I buy the little jars of baby food at the store, and if my daughter likes it, then I make my own because it is so much cheaper! Try this website for ideas on making baby food, it is great!
http://www.wholesomebabyfood.com/

Answer 4

My son would not eat solid food till he was almost a year old. Every day I would give him a table spoon of baby cereal only to find him eating NONE. Then one day about a week before he turned one year he ate and didn't seem to want to stop. They eat when they are ready.


Hold off on the potatoes. They are very hard on the little digestive system. Things like squash, pumpkin sweet potatoes, and carrots are a little easier for them to digest plus they have a nice flavor

Answer 5

I just went through this very same thing with my 7 month old daughter. She would gag, cry, stamp her foot, arch, etc. any time we tried to get her to eat anything, even rice cereal. We made an appointment with a pediatric feeding center and were set to take her this month. All of a sudden last week, she just started eating. We tried all the suggestions that people gave us on this web site, and many were good suggestions, but nothing worked except time. You can make a very watery mix of cereal and try letting him kind of slurp it off the spoon, but he just might not be ready. Good luck!

Answer 6

leave it for a while, or make everything just a little thicker than milk. My daughter would only eat babyfood from jars, the kind that are suitible from 4mths, until she was about 10 months old, then she started pinching my food and eating it with no prompting from me.
Stick to purees for a little while longer, the day will come when he eats proper food, even though to you it may seem like it's never going to happen. It will. Be patient!
Good luck

Answer 7

I am a nutritionist
your baby may not be ready to start solids yet, the starting age is 6 months and some babys are not ready till closer to 9 (especially if they were born premature)

as long as you are giving him breast milk or (properly mixed) formula your baby will not over or under eat

there is no reason to rush

if anyone would like links that backup the above information I will provide them

Answer 8

Listen,,I have a 15 month old and when she was the same age she didn't wants to eat ether..just drink lot of milk .So i started to gave her table food or what you call home food..when i cooked rice with chicken i would serve her rice with the sauce of the chicken.ect...what ever you think she can chew and not choke on...

Answer 9

try the same thing a Small bit everyday at the same time try different temperatures (my son is very picky about this) and different spoon shapes but its up to the baby if they dint whant to then go back to it after a week they dont HAVE to eat food at a surtin age my friends daughter drank breast milk exclusivly till she was a year and shes fine

Answer 10

this may not be what the doctor ordered but my son loves it.

Cheetos the puffs, they are big and sturdy enough not to crush and they disinergrate in spit. also gram crackers are the same way.
Also, try the baby cereal with some baby applesause
remember it goes
cereal, veggies, friut, meats