Help! I Have an 11 Month Old Carpet Eater!!!

My daughter used to pick the fuzz off of her blanket and eat it. It was soft and thick similar to carpet. If there are no harmful chemicals in the carpet then she is probably gonna be ok. My Dr. said she was in the oral fixation stage, we even found the fuzz in her diaper so apparently it is not digestable. She is 19 years old now and totally healthy. Oh and by the way she did outgrow it!
As for hiding foods, the food processor can disguise anything. Grind carrots, cauliflower, just about anything and put in sauce. This works great in spaghetti. Steam the veggies to be grinded first, you really can't taste them. Peas and bruusels don't work, but lots will! Contact me personally if you want more ideas!

Not sure about the carpet, but I get my son to eat veggies by putting them in a smoothie. I buy bags of frozen fruit and veggies at the store. I'll thaw out about 2 cups of fruit and veggies, put in a blender with vanilla yogurt and fruit juice. This will make about 2-3 smoothies. My son has one every day and actually likes them!

I'm not sure what to say about the carpet eating...BUT, I have found a solution to hiding the foods that she won't eat...

The best alternative that I have found recently was on Oprah (LOL!). Jerry Seinfeld's wife, Jessica, has written a cookbook called Deceptively Delicious. Basically- she teaches parents how to hide veggies (in the form of puree's) in foods that kids love! So if your daughter will only eat chicken nuggets, pizza, mac & cheese, etc- Jessica has very easy recipes that will show you how to hide cauliflower, broccoli, spinach and carrots in all of these things!

Check it out and let me know what you think...

http://www.deceptivelydelicious.com/site/

isn't that funny? my son was, and still is, orally fixated, or whatever. when he was an exploring crawler/walker/stumbler, i would pick up everything off the ground, and then he would do the carpet fuzz thing. i could not win! so, what to do? i said "no no no, let's get you something to eat", ya know, i don't even really remember. but he is ok now. just laugh, at least he does spit out the stuff. kind of gross, but just think, it is strengthening his immune system!

I don't know that I have a lot of advice, but I can definitely offer sympathy. Once my daughter turned 8 months (she is 8 years old now) and developed her pincer grasp, she started eating carpet fuzz. She eventually moved on to other fuzzes as well- I had to get rid of a lot of blankets and could rarely wear sweaters around her because she would literally give me a hug and sneak a snack! My mom used to swear that she was going to start pooping out cotton balls! Ha ha! I'm sorry to say this continued until she was 5, and one time I was cleaning her room and found a stash of fuzzies under her mattress! She was (and still is) a picky eater and her dr. suggested this might have been pica (a craving for non-food items because of a vitamin deficiency) so I kept her on a daily multivitamin and just kept pushing new foods. She definitely is much better about eating- I don't think she'll ever be a big eater but at least she is more willing to try things. Good luck!
A.

I read once, not sure where, that babies have more nerve endings in their mouth than on their fingers. They are feeling of things more than tasting them. The study said that you could blind fold them and they could tell if they had had an object before just by putting it in their mouth. If you watch babies, it makes sense. They put everything in their mouth. I think they are just learning more about the object and this phase will pass.

oh my goodness, my son is a little carpet, paper, grass, etc....eater too! I just have to keep an eye on him and have done my fair share of finger sweeps! I don't think it will hurt her if she does get a little carpet down, it will just make it's way out.... ;) As far as food, I think that as long as you can get some carb, protein, fruit/veggie, and dairy, the variety isn't too important. That is of course just my opinion, but I don't worry what my little man eats too much as long as I can get some of those food groups in daily. So I guess just find some food she likes and stick with that. Now if you just can't get her to eat any veggies for example, I think the veggie smoothie is a great idea! Have a great day :)

Hi M.
One of the moms already mention "Pica" facts. Below is a website on this. I am sure it is just a phase, but she does need to be monitored as far as what goes in her mouth. As we say in motherhood, "This too, shall pass!"
http://www.metrokc.gov/health/tsp/pica.htm#what

To stop the carpet eating you'll probably just have to watch her carefully. At that age they put EVERYTHING in their mouth anyway. And, a little (carpet) fiber won't hurt.

If it continues for months or spreads to other non-food items (like one mom who mentioned grass, rocks, shirts, etc.) please get her blood tested. Certain mineral deficiencies can cause "pica" (Pie-kah), which is the desire to eat/eating non-food items. If she is not eating a balanced diet this may be the case. Balanced = over a week or so she eats a decent variety of things. If you are still breastfeeding, pica shouldn't be a problem. Formula is also fortified to be balanced nutrition. Very rarely pica can also signal developmental problems (not to scare you, just inform) like Autism - my nephew with Aspergers chewed holes in all his shirts and ate any string he could get his hands on for nearly a year.

Just watch what she puts in her mouth over the next two weeks and if you're still concerned at that point discuss it with your pediatrician. Your girl is probably just being a normal, curious 11 month old!

Not sure about the carpet eating, but try the Sneaky Chef cookbook or Jessica Seinfeld's. It's amazing how easy it is to hide spinach! Also, my daughter will eat ANYTHING if she can dip it in something. Walden Farms makes a calorie free, fat free, sugar free ranch dressing that I give her. She eats all kinds of veggies because she can dip in it. I guess she thinks it's more fun that way :) I've also squirted lemon juice on the strangest things because she loves the sour taste. Good luck!

I have no advice, except maybe to chill out a bit, it's alright! At that age they put everything in their little mouths!! I really just wanted to share this with you: when I read this part:

I have not witnessed her in action, but I found a furball with saliva on the floor, and it did not come from me or my husband!

Seriously girl, I am not kidding, I about fell out of my chair laughing!!! That was hilarious to me, so thanks for making me smile today!! :)

Oh, and on the "sneaking food in" part, I do the other moms trick- make a smoothie. I tell ya, with some yogurt and juice mixed in too, you can sneak just about anything in a smoothie!!

I have a 30 yr old son who, as a toddler, used to keep pieces of my hair wrapped around his first two fingers as he sucked on them. It was odd and perplexing behavior to me. If I took it away he would wind up with more. I remember reading about a possible mineral deficiency but frankly can't remember if I did anything or if he just out grew the behavior. (You'll forget a lot too! :-) In any case, I just wanted to tell you that he's grown up to be a very intelligent and very emotionally healthy young man. I've been amazed as I've watched many babies pick at the only little lint pieces available on the carpet. Since carpet has chemicals I would do what I could to distract her and prevent her from ingesting!