My eight month old son... almost nine months... hasn't been eating as much as normal lately. I am currently trying to get him in to get a reflux test, since he had it since he was 3 weeks old, to make sure that his meds are working. I have been noticing, however, that he only seems interested in foods that he can feed to himself. He only has two bottom teeth, so I am very hesitant on giving him certain foods that don't dissolve quickly in his mouth with the mashing of his gums.
Does anyone have any healthy ideas on what to feed him that will be safe for him to feed himself? I thought about peas, carrots, cubed potatoes, and little cubes of chicken... but that's about it. Oh, and I have given him cubed tomoatoes too... just to give him some variety.
thanks bunches!!
CHEERIOS are the best, and so portable. I baby frozen peas with my son, they also helped with the teething, soothing his gums. Ramen noodles, cut fine. As for the carrots, I suggest canned ones at first. Or the baby variety, they have less sodium.
My daughter started refusing spoon feeding at 10 months. It was a "I'll do it myself!" kind of thing. I was also nervous about her being able to chew up things (and she had 8 teeth!). Anything that is soft they are able to mush up with their gums. Try a sweet potato that is cooked until soft and then diced into small pieces. Pasta cooked well is another good one (I used whole wheat since it is healthier), you can give the small shells or macaroni, or cut up larger pasta shapes. Beans is another option, just cut them in half so they are smaller, or mash them. Banana slices cut into quarters. Those fruit cups with diced fruit are also really soft and easily mashed with gums. Just watch him when introducing new stuff to make sure he can handle it.
Hi S.,
I think it's pretty normal for babies this age to want foods that they can feed themselves because of their growing independence. They want to show-off the new skills! :o) My daughter did the same thing. I tried steam veggies and soft fruits(bananas)always cut into REALLY small pieces. Also I loves the gerber "fruit puffs" and "veggie puffs" they are the perfect size and they dissolve very fast. Plus, it's a quick snack to take along to your excursions without having to cook, cut and pack! Good luck!
here are some links to child-led solids :D
hope they help! (breastfeeding or not shouldn't matter-skim through to what makes sense...)
http://www.borstvoeding.com/voedselintroductie/vast_voeds...
http://www.babyledweaning.com/
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/B-LW/
S. let me first say thank you to you and your husband for without the bravory of the men and women that fight for this country were would we be. I also want to comend you on sticking by him threw all of this. They all deserve good men and women at home giving them support so good for you.
• Experiment with different ways of presenting food. Your baby may not like bananas by themselves, but he may love them mixed with his favorite oatmeal cereal. (Just be sure not to introduce more than one new food at a time, so you can see if he's allergic.) Likewise, your older baby may prefer shredded steamed carrots to sliced.
• Try new food when you and your baby are at your best — when you're both well rested, in good spirits, and healthy.
• Your baby will be more open to a new food if he's hungry (but not overly hungry), so give him his new food first.
• Don't stop feeding your baby if he makes a funny face — it doesn't necessarily mean that he doesn't like what he's tasting. He may just be reacting to the distinctly different taste.
• Babies are easily distracted, so keep TV, music, and toys to a minimum during mealtime.
• If your baby seems interested in holding the spoon, give him his own. That way he can feel more like an active participant without slowing down the feeding.
• Give your baby your undivided attention during feedings, whether you're holding him on your lap or facing him in his highchair. Try to keep your facial expressions positive, even if you're serving a food you detest.
• Let your baby see you eating the same food he's eating. He loves imitating you.
• Your baby may like a new food but still only eat a few teaspoons of it. That's perfectly normal.
• If your baby gives you the thumbs-down on a particular food (closing his mouth, turning his head, throwing the spoon), don't force it. Try again in a few days and he may surprise you by gobbling it up. Forcing food or showing your frustration may turn mealtime into a negative experience full of power struggles.
• Switch things up. Your baby may tire of eating bananas at every meal and give up on them entirely. Plus, a varied diet is more nutritious for your growing baby.
Note: Wait until your baby is a year old to give him certain foods such as honey, peanut butter, cow's milk, shellfish, citrus, and egg whites. For more details, see our article, Foods That Can Be Unsafe for Your Baby.
I hope this might help a little try bananas, cooked cubed squash, you can also buy at Publix toddler foods such as corn and peices of chicken or meat and these have been cook tell they are very soft so they are perfect for baby to feed themselves.
good luck!! try the website www.babycenter for suggestions its a great site you can search just about anything.
My son stopped eating baby food at 9 months and wouldn't look back. Even with few teeth, you would be surprised at how they eat. Mine loves gerber peaches and pears (diced ones), baked potatoes, avacado's, LOVES noodles, I usually give him the elbows, macaroni and cheese, bananas, grapes (cut in quarters) blueberries and strawberries cut up in little pieces. Hope that helps, it gets hard to do a variety. Oh yeah also scrambled eggs.
