# 8 month old refusing all solids



## Julz (Sep 20, 2005)

Hi Jeanette,

I'm having a nightmare with one of my twins.  Up until a week or so ago he was a fantastic eater and ate everything I offered him.  Now he won't eat anything....savoury or sweet, warm or cold.  He might have 1 or 2 spoons then refuse point blank to eat turning his head away and tightly closing his lips.  He even starts crying when I put him in his highchair.  Short of trying to force him to eat I've not idea what to do to get food into him.  He's not even at a stage where he could feed himself.  As for milk well he's never liked it and I struggle to get 2 bottles into him a day.

What can I do?

Julie


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## jeanette (May 3, 2003)

Hi Julie

It can be common for babies at this age to start fuzzing with foods, sometimes because they have a sore tooth or gums, or they are too busy to eat. Its worth taking him to see his GP to make sure that there isn’t anything causing this to happen such as mouth ulcers or a sore throat.

I'm going to give you a few suggestions as to what you can try. There is no straight forward answer. See what’s best for you and your baby. Whatever you decide to try, try for about a week. If you can, try and get him weighed monthly just until his appetite is back. You may also want to start him on multi-vitamins.


-its important to have regular meal times with healthy snacks in between. Make sure that he doesn’t fill himself up on these snacks or his juice. Offer much smaller meals to begin with, giving praise and ‘’surprise’’ with each spoonful he has. You can always offer more if you feel he will take it. 

-try and eat at the same time. Try sitting him on your lap and as he begins to eat over a few days move him closer to his high chair.

-Making mealtimes interesting and fun can help. Try serving his food on colourful plates. I used to use a character from TV that molly liked and ‘hide’ them with food. Try singing or reading.

-Try giving foods that are different shapes and colours eg pasta

-Turn of the TV and make sure that there is nothing around to distract him.

-Try not to rush the mealtimes and limit it to 15-30 minutes maximum, dependent on what you feel he will tolerate.

-Try not to show that him that are worried. If he flatly refuses try once to encourage him to have more. If unsuccessful, remove his plate calmly, don’t say anything and smile. 

-It is best not to offer new foods at the moment. You can try when he is being less fussy. 

-Allow him to play with the food. Give him lots of praise when he touches it.

Let me know how you get on. You may also want to start a thread in the baby dust feeding section so that other mums can tell you what they did 

Jxxx


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## Julz (Sep 20, 2005)

Jeanette,

Apologies for not getting back to you sooner, DH has been away and it's mad in my house.

Finlay is feeding fine again with the spoon.  I decided to try them with some Fish Tagliatelle on the very day you responded to my e-mail and Finlay loved it.....and hasn't stopped eating since.  I think he was just getting bored with purees and I was reluctant to try lumpy foods as he kept gagging and puking.  He's gagging far less now and rarely pukes at mealtimes.  He has however taken a dislike to lumps of fruit in yoghurt, or any fruit and spits them out in disgust - but I suppose he's eating which is the main thing.

Thanks for all your tips.
Julie


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## jeanette (May 3, 2003)

Hi Julie

Molly still spits out the lumps in her yoghurt!!!

Mind you saying that I do as well at times!!!   

Glad all is well  

Jxxx


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