9 1/2 Month Old Not That Interested in Eating

My son stopped showing interest in food at the same age because he actually had a severe build up of fluid in his ears. He showed no classic symptoms of ear infection he just wouldn't eat or drink well. There might be another issue going on especially if you've already noticed it when he's teething. I wish I could get my guy to eat too. He's 3 and I still have a hard time. His brothers would eat ANYTHING.....as my son says....It's just not fair Mommy!!

HI M.,

Please get the book "Child of Mine" by Ellyn Satter. It might be at your library, and I know Amazon carries it. It is the most wonderful reference I've seen on feeding kids up through kindergarten and beyond. You'll feel much less stressed and more confident after you read this, believe me! Kids your son's age are starting to really get engaged in the world around them, and so get distracted by all the lovely new things they are noticing.

One thing that really struck me in your post is how much effort you are putting into getting food into your son. Please turn off the TV and have mealtimes be a calm, social event. If you're "sneaking" food into him while he's entranced by the TV, he'll have a hard time down the road learning to regulate his food intake himself, because right now, he's not eating according to his own hunger. He might not eat a whole lot for the first couple of meals (or days!) on your new routine, but believe me, he'll eat enough for his body after a day or two!

I worried about my son not eating enough at this age too, especially since he's always been super slender (90th % for height, 50% for weight), and I felt much better after reading this book. My kid is now 4, eats great, and is still very slender. It's just his body type.

Best of luck to you!
C.

Have you started feeding him finger foods yet? Little pea size bits of anything - fruit, veggies, meats, cheerios...anything you want as long as it's the size of a pea. Babies R Us, Target, Walmart and your local market all will have puff type baby cereal that dissolves easily...they can gum it until it dissolves and then swallow the food. Gerber makes sweet potato and fruit choices which my son really enjoyed. It sounds like he's gotten bored with the baby food and yogurt which is absolutely normal as this age. They really like to start practicing their fine motor skills and pincer grasp with food...it's loads of fun for them and makes for great pictures for mom and dad! As far as scheduling your outings around his eating schedule...this happend with my son who is now 3 years old. I was so worried he would starve himself! My pediatrician told me to start taking food with us and whatever he ate he ate. The first couple of weeks I felt like he barely ate anything! I slowly realized that the transition periods with anything takes a little getting used to...for him and for me. I would always offer him food if it was mealtime and we were out somewhere. If he didn't eat a ton he seemed to eventually make it up at a later meal or snack...but it took a little time. I promise you they will not go hungry. Your son will tell you when he wants more...is done...or is ready to eat. Always offer him 3 meals a day (with water in a sippy cup) and snacks in between. I remember until he turned two I always had baggies of snacks in my purse. He'll settle into a routine which will make you feel so much better. It just takes some time to get there. In the meantime...he'll continue to grow and be a constant source of giggles and belly laughs for you and your husband! Enjoy every minute! Have fun!!

I just went through something similar with our 12 month old. She never really liked baby food that much and we always had to have her with something to fidgit with in her hands while we fed her. If she was not distracted, she wouldn't eat. Then she got sick (really bad cold) 3 weeks ago and went on a full on eating strike. Pretty much lived off the bottle.
But we also realized she was getting really interested in table foods and wanted to eat like her big brothers and mom and dad. So we just kind of threw in the towel on the baby food, and started giving her little bits of whatever we were eating. I kind of had to just let the allergy worries off to the side, because otherwise this kid was not going to eat. Of course I'm not giving her nuts or stuff like that.
She is also really into feeding herself with utensils. I just kind of guide her hand a bit if she needs help. She's really headstrong this one. As others suggested, you might try little finger foods, they seem to like that. They are starting to really want to do things for themselves at this age.
My other two kids would eat everything and anything, and I never had this issue, so it was quite a shock to have one that wouldn't eat anything for a few weeks. We just kept putting table food in front of her when we ate, and eventually she started eating again. She doesn't eat great, but enough. And she gets the rest from formula. In your case, yogurt isn't so bad either :) Good luck.

Well, it's not exactly the same over here, but my boy (almost 9 months) doesn't have a real interest in his bottle any more either. Ever since I introduced solids his formula intake has gone WAY down. I know a little bit is normal, but he would rather have spoon fed food all the time. He isn't even really interested in finger foods except puffs and it drives me crazy! I'm not really sure what to do about it either. It sounds like my son does drink more formula and I think that's the key. Sometimes I forgo the solid food just to get him to drink his bottle. I also sometimes go back and forth every bite between solids and formula. I don't have any real advice, I'm afraid as I'm at a loss at times too! He sounds like he's healthy so in the end, it's probably fine, just be ready to adjust to a new schedule once he decides he wants one! ;)

Hi, I agree with lots of the advice below, But there is one thing I can suggest. I used to work at The Blind Children's learning Center, it's an early childhood center for children who are blind and have other special needs. One thing we used to do for kids who lacked appetite was to put a little bit of vanilla on toys, blankets, or even bibs. The reason is because vanilla stimulates the appetite some toys already come scented. It worked for the kids at BCLC and my own son who went through kemo treatments at 2months. I hope this could be of help to you.
Btw, we used regular vanilla extract on the edges of a blanky or bib, and dabbed a little on blush toys, dipped the binky in it just the tip, and you can also try it on teethers. Don't forget to look for vanilla flavored or scented toys in stores.
Best of luck to you and your baby.
A. P

My daughter began not being interested in food about that same time. She is now 11 months old and eats around the clock now. I think it's because they are becoming so much more aware of their surroundings. Don't force feed him. He will let you know when he's hungry! Just make sure you're feeding him nutritious food when he will eat. Cutting down on Formula/breast milk is also normal (from what I've experienced) at this age. My daughter dropped from 5 feedings to 3 within about a month (right around this age). Try incorporating avocados in his meals (high in good fat). We like to mix bananas and avocados. She could eat that all day long!

I agree about the finger foods. Sometimes babies want to do it themselves. I would try to turn off the tv and engage with him a bit. Eat the foods together so he can see you enjoying them too. Also, teething can play a huge roll in not wanting to eat. Some babies gums hurt so bad that they just don't want food and then a week later, they'll eat like crazy. Whole wheat bagels make great teethers too. -www.weelicious.com