I've started Alexis on baby food. She's up to a little over 9 ounces per feeding every couple of hours, sometimes only 1 hour between. She refuses cereal if it's made with something other than fruit juice (pear is her favorite). Is there a difference as far as being good for a baby between fruits and veggies? The only vegetable that she'll really eat is sweet potatos and if she's feeling froggy, she'll give sweet peas a go. It's so bad that she GAGS at the food. Not just the first bite or two, but the whole thing. I was feeding her green beans the other day, and the whole jar she gagged and spit....I gave in and got her some sweet potatos. But, MOST fruits she eats, she absolutely LOVES. I know babies prefer sweet things, but will this hurt her? Will she always be so picky or when she gets older, will she be more likely to try vegetables? She eats pears, mangos, bananas and peaches without fail. She winces at mangos the first bite, but she eats the rest of the jar just fine.
Is she a bit young to be on solids anyhow? How old is she? I would say that it sounds like she's not quite ready for the foods you're offering. Her palate will change as she gets older too and she will want different things. I wouldn't worry much right now.
Leane did the same thing...remember, this is the first time that she's tasting any of this stuff and isn't sure what to make of it. Don't force anything on her that she doesn't want. Just keep introducing it at different intrevals. One day she might hate something, and then love it the next. Leane is a piggy now! lol for example, she used to HATE peas, and now they're her favourite veggie! She'll take peas over almost anything sweet. Food to her right now is mainly just for experimenting and tasting new things.
Fruits are high in sugar which isn't very great for a baby. also Cereal isn't the best thing either. avacados, sweet potatos, etc.. are much better. the reason she might be gagging is because she is not ready for solids yet. and yes sugary foods like fruit will make a pickyer child later in life. have you checked out http://www.mothering.com/discussions mothers on that message board are very informed on subjects like this.
She'll be 5 months old in 13 days. She's able to eat solids. Kirstyn, did Leane gag and whatnot with peas? Alexis does. I HATE peas. Also, I use the organic baby food, or I make it sometimes....it just depends on my mood. Gerber has an organic line, and they don't put sugar in the baby food.
5 months is way too young for solids. Even the AAP recommends waiting until 6 months. Can she sit unassisted? Can she self-feed? Those are signs of being ready for solids.
Yes, and yes. And, I've always been told 4 months....even some mamas here have said 4 months. And, my question wasn't whether or not she's ready for them, I was asking which is more nutritious.
The only reason I mentioned that your daughter is too young, is because she shouldn't have fruits OR veggies. Her body is not ready to digest any foods yet, only breastmilk. (Or formula because I think you have already weaned her, correct?) Here is a link that explains WHY you shouldn't give her solids. http://www.kellymom.com/nutrition/solids/solids-when.html
moon~yeah, she gagged on the peas! did she ever! I found that she alos liked regualr peas when I cooked them up a lot better. She really wasnt' a fan of mashed foods. Still isn't. My best advice is to just give her some time and try different things.
That's what I've been doing. I bought some guava. I have no clue what it is, but it's the first time I saw it. It's Gerber Organic. I'm going to give her a bit on the next feeding. Thanks, Kirstyn.
Moire gags on anything mushy, except for foods that are intentionally mushy like soups and hummus. She's only just now started eating solids, and only if they are finger foods. She just will not stomach anything mushy.
Moon, I don't quite understand the need to feed such a young baby solid food. Her formula or your milk is all she needs until at least 6 months. The American Academy of Pediatricians says NO solids until 6 months or later (and doctors who say otherwise are going against the organization they belong to, and obviously haven't read a medical article in 25 years) and it doesn't BENEFIT the baby. She is too young for the solids to give her any benefit MORE than her milk, so why bother? Babies who are given solids too young are more likely to be "baby food dependent" (meaning they refuse REAL food, prefering baby food sometimes until toddlerhood. My mother started me on solids at TWO WEEKS and she said I was still eating baby food, I would walk into the pantry and READ the labels and tell her what I wanted. I see a lot of babies who can't transition to solid food, and often too early starting of solids, in a mushy state is the culprit.) Also, some solids are related to chronic diseases, dairy foods, for instance, has a close relation to the development of diabetes. Giving a baby any milk product before a year is strongly related, and even later than that has a strong connection. Like I have said before, Amylase is an enzyme that digests starch. A baby CANNOT get any nutrition from a starchy food without this enzyme in their gut. Breast fed babies (exclusively breastfed) usually start manufacturing Amylase betweeen 6 and 9 months, babies who have been formula fed or "mixed fed" will usually not be able to make amylase in their gut until around a year or older. If it dosen't BENEFIT her, I don't see the reason to give it to her. If she is weaned from the breast, then her formula is fine until at least 6 months.
Freek, two of my babies refused baby food. They went right to finger food, at about 7 to 9 months. I think my dd Moon was nearly 9 months before she would accept any solids at all, and then ONLY if I would cube apple, sweet potato, pear, carrot ect, cook it, and let her feed herself. In fact, the ability to totally self feed is an indicator of solid readiness, as is the ability to sit alone. The development of the Complete Pincher Grasp (not picking things up with the entire hand, but the thumb and forefinger) the eruption of teeth (actually AFTER the eruption of the first few teeth) and the ability to get a piece of self fed, semi solid food into the mouth, to the back of the mouth, and swallow it with NO assistance. If the baby needs "face scraping" or needs to suck on something to swallow (I see SO many babies sucking on their hands after a spoon full of cereal at the mall, it makes me sad. I often even see moms putting the paci in the babies mouth so "they can swallow" OBVIOUSLY this baby, who needs to still suck to swallow is way too young for food.) they are just not mature enough to have solids. I don't see the reason to rush. They will be eating solid food for the rest of their lives. Moira is exibiting a normal pattern. MANY babies whose mamas wait until they are ready never have to eat baby food. IMO, spoon feeding an infant gets tedious pretty quickly. Better to wait until they can do it themselves.
Jimmy was a VERY late eater. He only started eating at about 15 months. Before then he just picked at food or played with it. Then he got really sick and didn't eat for nearly a whole month, just breast milk. After he got better is when he really started eating. I also would note that he started eating right around the time his molars started peeking through! Before that he just had four teeth, 2 up top and 2 on bottom. He wants to feed himself too, he never really dug baby food although he will sometimes take it (the bigger baby stuff with pasta bites in it or the fruit with whole grain chunks) if we are on the run. I got a lot of pressure for not forcing him to eat but the way I look at it is, he obviously wasn't ready and I didn't want him to come to hate eating solids. And if I hadn't been breastfeeding so heavily when he became so ill, or if I had already weaned him, what would I have done? He would have been in big trouble because he couldn't stomach anything but breastmilk.
You and Jimmy would have had some long, sick months ahead of you. You did GOOD, MAMA! He probably would have ended up in the hospital, and had months or years of problems assimilating food. A serious intestinal virus can set a small child back a lot. You did him a huge service by continuing to nurse him. I know you had some hard times, in the beginning, but your persevered, and you have the right to be proud.
