I am nursing only, I have tried for a couple months to try and give her baby cereal, fruits, veggies, she won't take anything! She actually gags and and makes faces like i am giving her the worse thing in the world. She will gag at everything, except breast milk, hum...
Please help!
A lot of babies gag when introduced to food. You can just keep offering it, I started my daughter out on applesauce and rice cereal. She did well and took to food right away, but some of my friends were not as lucky and their kids would gag and spit it out. It is just a process, she will be fine. Good luck!
Your baby needs to lose the gag reflex first. She's not ready for solids yet. Read this LLL fact sheet on "When should my baby start solids?" http://www.llli.org//FAQ/solids.html
I started my children on solids when they were 7 months old, because I read in Dr. Sears Baby book that the lining of the stomach closes then. Some babies who are prone to allergies may refuse solids up to age 1, perfectly fine. Right now your breastmilk is enough. Don't stress about it. Call up your local LLL leader. http://www.llli.org/resources/assistance.html?m=0,0
http://www.kellymom.com/ Kellymom has great info on infant nutrition.
Yeah, we didn't introduce cereal until 6 months, also. Your baby will be fine on mama's milk till a year. No need to rush. :-)
She may not be ready for food yet. It is perfectly fine to delay solids up past 1 year of age or until she shows more interest.
"Most babies will become developmentally and physiologically ready to eat solids by 6-9 months of age. For some babies, delaying solids longer than six months can be a good thing; for example, some doctors may recommend delaying solids for 12 months if there is a family history of allergies."
My first son was the same way. He wouldn't eat cereal or babyfood. I was so distraught over the whole situation and finally my husband put the whole thing into perspective for me, he will eat food if he is hungry. I kept breastfeeding, and fortunately I was able to supply enough milk for him till he was about 1 year old. By that time he did have some teeth and we started giving him real food (peas, squash, etc) and he loved that. I would try to slip the baby food in and he would have nothing to do with it. Couldn't understand it he would eat peas that I mash up, but not the peas from a jar of food??? Anyway, he did get a lot of teeth in very early and was able to basically skip the whole baby food thing, so don't worry! Just keep breast feeding and try the baby food (I am sure that you have tried mixing the cereals with breastmilk, but thought I would mention it just in case, mine still wouldn't have anything to do with it). Also keep an eye on her weight just to make sure that she is getting enough food. The funny thing is second son couldn't get enough baby food, he ate enough of it for both of them!!! Go figure . . .
I was told it's best to wait until 6 months to try baby food. So that's what I did and slowly my daughter got used to it. I was also told that if their tongue still forces food out it's too soon. She will take more food in naturally when she is ready. Maybe back off for a few weeks and try again.
Babies do not need anything but breast milk or formula until 6mo or over. First foods should be very runny, basically liquid on a spoon. The more you stress about it, the worse the experience will be for you and for your baby. She is establishing her healthy eating habits even at this young age. Force feeding her will only cause problems. Continue to offer her liquidy rice cereal mixed with pumped breast milk or formula every day or two. Eventually, she will eat it when she is ready. After a few days, make it thicker and continue the same until she can handle the consistency of pureed veggies and fruits and then give those. You can make your own if she does not like jarred foods. Check wholesomebabyfood.com or the cuisinart web site or Super Baby Food (a great book) for more information. You will look back on this time as no big deal in a few months. If all of this fails, please talk to your baby's doctor. Good luck!
I have my own daycare and my infant parents are saying their pediatricans suggest no food till 6 months due to allergies. What they are saying is at 6 months introduce infant cereal first. You may even want to mix it with your breastmilk if you are bottle feeding. As she gets use to the flavor you can make it thicker and feed by spoon. If that works then introduce the veggie baby food.
Good Luck
