7.5 months old and no solids..

[pookiesossige]

Hey there Pinky :wave:
Ariene is between 7.5 and 8 months old and is breastfed (on demand). So far, everytime I have tried to give her solids she has done the following:
-Pushed it back out of her mouth with her tounge
-Buttoned that mouth shut
-Gagged on any that made it's way in
-Started dry reaching/begining to heave after having a gag.

So she's never had more then a teaspoon of food- if that. It's tiring! I have tried Farex, baby custard, baby carrots, sweet potato, pumpkin, sweetcorn, then an assortment of tinned pureed vegies and so on. I use EMB when mixing farex and have tried various thicknesses for all foods etc. The thing is, she shows the following signs of readiness for solids:

-Waking EVERY 1-2 HOURS ALL NIGHT for the past month (I need some serious :sleeping:... DH and I are not coping with this at all)
-Grasping at my food (and chewing on any paper that comes into close range :eek: )
-Uses pincer grip, sits unaided, etc. Has 4 teeth.

I'm wondering how I should approach this...
Is this actually a problem to begin with or is it ok? Will she ever be able to swallow down some food? Should I be trying more often, like, daily?
:detective:

Thanks so much Pinky!

Em

[Pinky McKay]

Hi Em,
what a minx!

This is reasonably common in healthy breastfed babies - some babies who take to solids later may have a tendency to allergies ( any family history?) or they may simply not be interested - you dont need to worry if your baby is healthy and active. The main reason for introducing solids is to maintain iron levels. If your baby was becoming deficient she would be lethargic and pale - you can always get her haemaglobin checked with a simple heel ***** if you need reassurance.

To encourage your baby to eat, perhaps you could share your own foods seeing she is reaching for them - she will soon be able to manage soft foods to chomp on herself - or pop a few soft pieces on a high chair tray.
Babies tend to like the tastes of foods they have been exposed to through their mums milk.
Some babies seem to prefer baby rice to farex so this may be worth a try - mix it with EBM. Ripe mashed banana or mango seem fairly popular to babies too.

One of my own children would happily taste a red block, a leaf or paper -ick! but no solids til 11 months. She was healthy and active and was never a fussy eater when she did start eating. Please be reassured that if you offer but dont force or become stressed, your baby will eat when she is ready.

Pinky