6 month old not ready for solids yet?

TashnBabii · April 2014

My son just turned 6 months. His pediatrician said I can start him on solid foods if I'd like. I figured it was a good idea since he's always eyeing food on my plate and gets upset if my husband and I eat without him. So I gave him rice cereal mixed with BM. He drank it in a bottle. Next time, I attempted to give it to him by spoon- not as thin of a consistency, but still thin enough, it looked like formula. He would not take it. He kept spitting it out and cried the entire time. I tried the same thing with peas. He cried and would not open his mouth. Could it be that he's just not ready for solids yet at 6 months??

veetveet · April 2014

He isn't used to it. Keep trying!

laurafish · April 2014

I wouldn't push it. If he is crying then he doesn't want to. He doesn't HAVE to start solids at 6 months. Just take it slow. Take a break and try again in a week. At this age they change pretty quickly and he may just need time. Learning to eat solids should be about exploring and trying new things not forcing him to eat. He has plenty of time to figure it out so let him be the guide.

hmlynch84 · April 2014

Don't force him to eat. Buy one of those silicone or mesh feeders and put food in that (apple, banana, mango, we've even done a turkey meatball!) and let your LO explore, suck and chew at their own pace.

TashnBabii · April 2014

Okay. Thank you ladies. All good advice. I won't push him then. I was under the assumption that he needed solids because his nutritional requirements increase, such as needing more iron after 6 months of age.

olga1311 · April 2014

Also put some on your finger and let lo suck it off. Worked for us in getting her used to the taste

keyshahart · April 2014

My daughter did not like rice cereal but loved oatmeal.

RedDDD · April 2014

rice cereal taste gross...IMO...I skipped it with both kids...just went straight to something that tasted a little better like squash. you have to keep trying and try different foods to see what they like...I know DD loves squash so I give her some of that each day but then introduce one other veg or fruit as a test.

cyprissa · April 2014

Ditto previous suggestions...it can take time for them to be ready and rice cereal is not that tasty. Also, it is not recommended to put cereal in a bottle...it's a choking hazard and encourages them to overeat.

princesspreggo · April 2014

I started my daughter on oatmeal at about 6.5 months, she HATED it lol. After about 3 or 4 tries, we just skipped it. There is no need for oatmeal or rice cereal, baby will be perfectly fine without it. We started her on homemade baby puree around 7 months and she spoon feeds just fine!

Nikosmom · April 2014

DD will be 6 months Monday. We've been working on solids since she was about 4.5 months. Very slowly. She is not interested, thrusts her tongue out or doesn't open her mouth. I've tried every whih way and combo of things. My next step is fruit. She's just not ready- much diff from my son who was a beast lol

Sincera4 · April 2014

My DS is 9 months and now just getting used to solids. He just wanted to play with it but spit it right out. Lol.

PrimRoseMama · April 2014

We skipped cereal. See if he will take a veggie like sweet potato off your finger

singinchick13 · April 2014

The only extra nutrition they need at 6 months is iron, so any iron-fortified cereal or meat would satisfy this. If she won't take any purees or cereals, you could supplement with some iron-fortified formula if you are really worried about it.

Ditto PP's about the oatmeal, definitely more appetizing, and sweet potato seems to be a very popular puree for babies. The cereal shouldn't be a liquid, though, more of a thinner paste. Just keep offering the spoon and she will come around, especially if you eat at the same time.

Cupcakes339 · April 2014

I think may PP have provided many good examples so I dont have any suggestions. But I wanted to say that my LO is 6 mo in 3 days and we started rice cereal and some BLW this week and like your LO, she pushed out the cereal. I thought may be her tongue reflex is still there or something. She didnt cry because i only tried few spoonful each time and we moved onto broccoli which she LOVED. We tried mashed sweet potato with BM instead of rice cereals the next day but she pushed out most of it too. So far she's been better with BLW style where she holds the veggies. Good luck!

monikaasharma · April 2014

Gerber baby food made from fruits contains building block helps to defend baby's system.

Ealdwic · June 2014

I'd rather puree my own fruits and veggies. There's still a lot of preservatives and junk in store bought foods, even the better brands like Gerber, so pureeing is really satisfying and helps keep most of the nutrience present in raw and fresh foods. I just freeze what I don't serve safely and in my own little jars and voila - homemade baby food. I'm gonna puree fruits and mix it into our daughter's rice cereal once she gets used to it. So far, she eats it without complaint and really enjoys it, but yeah, it's not the yummiest. I sampled a little and it's kind of gross, but she seems to enjoy it.

Generally they only recommend cereals to start because it's the iron that they need the most come 6 months. For now, we just do the cereal 1-2 times per day to ease her into solids. I keep getting mixed feedback on sweet potato (that it's not the best to give to them early on) but a lot of people seem to be trying it with success. I think it'd be pretty tasty!

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