Feeding Issues with 11 Month Old

I am a pediatric occupational therapist and would highly recommend at least getting this evaluated, especially if her doctor is suggesting it. I just don't understand the wait and see attitude. While others may be dealing with the same issues, your doctor wants her to get checked out and the services are available for free, so why not ask a professional who sees these issues in many different children. Pocketing food is not good, whether someone has a friend whose child does it or not. It may be nothing, or it may be indicative of a problem. I am not saying to be alarmed, but why not check things out and see if someone can help with these issues (if therapy is deemed necessary) before this becomes a larger issue? Please feel free to contact me personally if you have any questions.

D.

2 moms found this helpful

Dear R.,

I'm in grad school for Speech-Language Pathology and one of the interview question we ask parents is does the child pocket food. This is usually an indication of some sort of oral-motor function. I do strongly recommend that you do see an occupational therapist (OT) as soon as possible as the early she is seen the faster she will get back on track. An OT can give you a great skillset that you can use with her to work on eating better.

Have you tried those pacifiers with the little baggie that you can put a bite sized amount of food in? Like a strawberry or other fruit. It may wet her chewing senses.

Good luck, and do keep vigilance about her development. You are doing a great job!!

L.

1 mom found this helpful

I'm curious about the OT --- has she fallen in percentiles every visit? I'd go just incase.

About the food though - my son does the same thing with the cheek full of food. I came to the conclusion that he only does this when it is too much to swallow. I only give him one or two bites at a time on his tray. (This also cuts down on any desire to throw excess food overboard.) Babies need time to mash and swallow. Are you supplementing with baby food still? (Pureed at home/gerber/earth's best) My son is 16 months old now and I still supplement with a thing of green beans if I feel like he hasn't had enough veggies and we're on the go.

Best of luck to you! God Bless

why would he say that? is your lil girl not walking or something like that? my neice barely got teeth by 11months and some babies dont get teeth until after a year. i wouldnt think that your lil girl pedi expects her to be using a fork (my daughter is 16 months and just mastared a fork but i introduced it at like 10-11 months). i also have a friend who has a daughter that stores food in her cheeks too and it has never concerned her dr. i wouldnt worry to much on this. she will grow she just may not be hitting a grow spurt when they expect it. my neice that barely got teeth at 11mo. is only 18lbs at 13 months old and they try to make it out like shes not fed right and thats not the case shes just tiny. good luck and stay strong ok!

do not give her to many peices to eat on the high chair, maybe one or two small bites, before she gets more check to make sure she has eaten it, this could be very dangerous, she could choke on the food. I would not trust her and watch her close when she eats, making sure each time she has swallowed the bite. Put her in a high chair.

I don't know about the physiological aspects of this and whether this is or isn't indicative of any problems. I will only speak to the nutritional aspect as it pertains to your baby's weight.

There is a huge difference in calories between breast milk and baby's first foods, so it is natural for a baby to lose weight. Breastmilk is loaded with fat and protein and calories. A typical jar of baby food only contains about 40 calories!
Also, most foods that are initially fed to babies are low in fat and calories as well.
What I did was to make my own baby food. I used a book called Super Baby Foods which had a lot of great information on nutritional content of various ingredients. It was a great guide for selecting grains that contained more protein, for example.
Also, to add beneficial fat I added Flax seed oil to foods that I fed my son. It was tasteless to him. I even gave him whole grain waffles and added flax seed oil on top. We called it Waffle Juice.
Also, I did not rush to feed him solids. Breast milk really is the best food there is, so I just kept nursing. Plus, holding off on foods can also be helpful in preventing problem with food allergies.
Okay, that's my two cents worth. I hope there's some value for you.
All the best,
M.

Hi R.,

Here's one other thing to keep in mind and keep track of. My son was a very later teether and was also very late in losing his teeth (he had only lost 2 or 3 by 5th grade). While he definitely ate and did not pocket food, he also grew very slowly and then all but stopped growing around age 8 or 9.

It turned out that he was growth hormone deficient and required replacement therapy for several years. Slow teething and tooth loss can be signs of a growth disorder, as is being below the 3rd percentile in height or being 3SD below the normal growth rate. Many children who are GHD begin showing signs much earlier. The daughter of a friend of mine was diagnosed at 18mos. She also didn't eat. Because her body wasn't growing, it didn't need the calories demanded by normal children, so she just wasn't that interested in food. My husband's sister, who is also GHD, also behaved this way as a toddler and child.

I would start with the occupational therapist, although I assume your daughter is not having difficulties swallowing breast milk, so she must have reasonable functionality (I'm not an expert in this field, though -- I would trust the person persuing the graduate degree in speech pathology). As others suggested, see how she handles semisolid, easy-to-swallow foods, like rice cereal or mashed fruits. This could also give you clues as to her ability to use her tongue and throat together appropriately. If the therapist can't find a motor difficiency, or if your daughter begins to eat more effectively but still continues to slide on the growth charts, you might want to investigate other growth-related disorders. I highly recommend the Magic Foundation to you, if this turns out to be the case: www.magicfoundation.org.

Good Luck!

LOTS of babies/kids store food in their mouth like a squirrel. It's common, even in older kids.

Second, teeth come in at different times, each child is different. Sometimes it is also genetic..if parent(s) had teeth come in later or earlier.

Third... WHY is your Pediatrician concerned about her growth? Yes, if growth/weight drops and it is not congruent with your child's pattern... then that can be a concern. HOW is her "overall" development? Is she developing normally? Hitting her milestones on time? Is she able to "chew" or gum her food? Is she crawling/sitting up/standing/pulling up/walking? Does she babble, or communicate in any way?

Perhaps your Pediatrician is suggesting an Occupational Therapist because your daughter, at her age, does not seem able to eat her food, as most children this age...in conjunction with her drop in weight. You say she can pincer grab and get food in her mouth...but what about actually "eating" it and swallowing? Is she doing this? Or just storing the food in her mouth? THIS can be the difference between age appropriate ability or not, in terms of development. You said you "have been working with solid foods for the past 5-6 months..." so does that mean she "cannot" yet eat...??? Does she make "chewing" motions with her mouth...or just keeps the food in her mouth? (even with no teeth, a baby can "eat" baby food and make motions with their mouth and swallow). Maybe this is also a factor in her weight loss. Since she has no teeth...I assume you are giving her pureed baby foods?

If a baby/child does not get in enough intake and/or calories...they can drop in weight. Is she still nursing/taking formula???? For the 1st year of life, breastmilk/formula is the PRIMARY source of nutrition for a baby, not solids.

Well just some ideas. Perhaps your Doctor is concerned about other things, besides her weight drop... perhaps ask the Doctor to explain the "whole" picture...and why he/she is suggesting therapy for this.

Take care,
Susan

R.,

I think having her evaluated is a good idea- if nothing else for your peace of mind. Should you "wait and see" and an issue comes up later, you'll feel badly knowing you could have caught it earlier. I think your insurance will probably cover it and if not there's a good possibility of it being offered at no cost. (Your Dr. can probably refer you.)

My baby started eating ceral at 4 months and then progressed to veggies/fruits at 6 months. By 7 months, I was adding tiny bits of meat (finely minced). She was doing fine then she suddenly began refusing any solid including cereal in favor of breastmilk. I still continue to insist she eat solids and can usually succeed in getting her to take a few bites I would even give her tiny pieces of meat which she was able to eat even though she didn't have any teeth. She likes to eat cheerios so that's her snack throughout the day.I feed her on demand as I'm home with her and she has continued to gain weight. She eats every 1.5 to 4 hours, however, she also has a habit of "helping herself". If I'm holding her, she'll start trying to expose my breast. Once she does that she'll latch on and often only feed for a minute or two. (Her pedi is only concerned because she says that since my milk is so sweet, she will not want to eat veggies or other bitter foods later.)

She has consistently been in the 25th percentile in height, weight, and length, which her pedi says is fine as long as she continues to grow in a curve, but I'm sure many children will vary.

I don't know how much milk your little one is getting, but if you're worried about lack of weight gain, you might want to try offering her your breast more often as your milk will have more calories than solids she'll eat. Also you should continue to offer her solids even if she's not eating a lot. You could do purees but she should be able to handle bite size (size of a cheerio or smaller) bits of cooked veggies such as carrots and even meats. If she's ever bitten you with her gums, you know they're pretty strong and she can chew even without teeth.

Anyway sorry for rambling hope this helps you. Best wishes for you and your baby.

-I.

Although it is unusual for an 11 month old not to have any teath, she should still be able to chew soft foods without teeth. But if she isnt chewing, what if you give her strained baby foods? Does she not swallow still? You should be able to get enough calories into her with breast milk and rice cereal along with strained fruits and veggies. offer her as much food as she will eat to help her get caught up with her weight.
And make that OT appointment. The sooner the better.

My 2 oldest daughters (I have 5) didin't get any teeth until they were about a year. That was 30 years ago. Doctor told me back then, they would have stronger teeth and less cavities. He was right, still have no cavities. Times change, of course. And so does what your doctor tells you. My girls were all breastfed for 2 years, had a little trouble with what I could feed them, as they had no teeth. Today they are happy healthy professional women with great teeth and children of their own. Don't worry. Don't let your doctor frighten you either. Just feed her really mushy food till those teeth come in. Best of luck

Hi R.
I would certainly seek out a Pediatric Speech Therapist or a Pediatric O.T that specializes in oral-motor function. This can become an upward battle, so the sooner the the intervention the better. Best wishes!

I know several babies that didn't get teeth until late. Yes, you can see an occupational therapist, but I wouldn't give up on food just yet. Small pieces? Cheese? Purees? Popsicles? -www.weelicious.com

First of all let me respond to the teeth issue. An 11 month old does not always have teeth. All 3 of my children were a year old before they cut their first tooth. A doctor and dentist will tell you that the longer it takes to cut teeth the better it is as the teeth will be stronger. The food situation, I am suprised that she is taking solds foods that young. Strained baby food is one thing but regular foods. You might want to try the stained foods for a bit and see if she takes that easyer. That will slide down the throught. Give it a try and see what happens. Good luck.

it maybe because of her teeth...

or maybe just a phase she's going thru...

or maybe she has some sensory issues. GO SEE THE OT(occupational therapist)!!! i can not express enough the "early intervention".

My youngest son likes to store food in his cheeks. I don't remember if he started so young (he just turned 2), but we sit with him and watch him, and if he starts to store his food, we try to hold him off from taking any more in and tell him to "chew, chew, chew" while demonstrating what that is by making the chewing motion ourselves (and we try to make it sound like it is fun by our tone of voice). This has worked pretty well with him, except when he really wants to put more food in his mouth - he'll get upset and it worries me because of the possibility of choking, but we can usually avoid it escalating if we stay on top of it and remind him to chew before he reaches for the next piece. He knows what we mean now by "chew, chew, chew" and he thinks it is funny, like a game. I don't think it is a problem if she doesn't have teeth, as long as any 'hard' food can be softened by her saliva and chewed with her gums (my boys only had a few front teeth by this age so they were chewing with their gums, I'm sure).

If she doesn't catch on with the "chewing game" (11 months old is prety young for following directions and mimicking your actions, but don't under-estimate her, my babies have always surprised me, so give it a try several times), but if she isn't catching on, I would hold off on hard foods and stick to softer, spoon-fed foods that will not store easily in her cheeks. She has time to maintain her grasping skills while she is playing, and there will be plenty of time for her to feed herself. And you can try again in a month or so.

My little "squirrel" fell behind on the charts, too, toward the end of his first year, (he started out above the top at first and stayed up there for several months, then slowly fell back to below 50% and stayed there, and my doctors did not express any concern). I would ask your doctor specifically "why" she is concerned. And if your insurance covers the therapy, I suppose there is no harm in it and could only benefit your daughter (although this is a little outside my realm of knowledge). I have just seen friends worried by their doctors about their babies' growth for no good reason. So don't worry unnecessarily and ask specific questions because I don't think it is a problem just to fall behind in the charts, as long as she is still growing at a relatively steady pace.

Good luck and don't worry! She sounds absolutely adorable!:)

Hi R.-

If you do decide to have an evaluation for your daughter, I would like to recommend Therapy West as a wonderful center that works with private clients. They have all types of children's therapists, including OT, PT, and speech, plus an excellent early-intervention preschool for kids as young as 15 months. It's a comfortable place and the therapists are warm and wonderful with kids. http://www.therapywest.org/ or ###-###-####

L.