Is This Harmful?

Many babies love to rip paper and will sometimes eat it. My daughter has ingested some with no ill effects. You might want to try telling your daughter "no mouth" while touching her lips and taking the paper away as soon as she tries to consume it. My daughter still loves to rip paper but does not eat any at this point. You may also find that as she eats more finger foods, the appeal of nonfood items will diminish. The ripping of the paper is a great motor activity so we let her indulge in it. I prefer not to give her newspaper as it is very messy. An old yellow page phone book can be a great deal of fun though! Good luck!

NO, in small amounts not at all. Paper is made of cellulose which is a fiber- it is in some otc preparations for constipation.

Hi S., I don't think eating paper is harmful. I remember eating a lollypop and some of the stick too very often. I would say that news print and magazine ink etc. are not good. Not something that would require surgery. Try saying No to paper and offering somthing good to eat. good wishes, Grandma Mary

my daughter, 16 months, would eat an entire New York Magazine given the opportunity. she LOVES to rip all kinds of paper and eat it. she also eats dirt at the playground and sand at the beach. i do assertively try to stop her but she always gets some into her. it is also very hilarious so i am often laughing when i try to stop her from this. anyway she has NEVER had a problem of any kind. i have never noticed the paper in her poop but i think it just probably gets soaked up w all the other waste that comes out. gross, but not a problem.

J.

Please don't let her do this. It is dangerous b/c the paper gets wadded up in their mouth and forms a little pellet that is perfect for swallowing and then lodging in her throat and choking. And it would be very hard to get out.