Feeding 7-9 Months FAQs

Archived Feeding 7-9 Months FAQ's

• My 8 1/2 month old for the past few weeks has not wanted to drink from the bottle, or a sippy cup. He only wants to eat off a spoon or drink out of an open top. Do you have any suggestions? NEW!
  
• Is it alright to be giving our 7? year old small bites of food from our plates when we eat as a family for dinner? NEW!
  
• My 7 month old is having a bit of trouble eating foods that require him to "chew". He eats stage 2 baby foods just fine. Is there anything wrong with waiting until he's a few months older to give him foods that are in pieces that he needs to chew? NEW!
  
• Where can I find information on raising a vegetarian baby? NEW!
  
• My daughter is 7 months old. She is eating baby food at lunch and dinner. I'm afraid my milk supply is running out because she isn't nursing from me as much. What can I do to increase my milk supply now or is it too late? NEW!
  

My 8 1/2 month old for the past few weeks has not wanted to drink from the bottle, or a sippy cup. He only wants to eat off a spoon or drink out of an open top. He is only taking about 18oz a day (with a lot of work) and I know he should be getting the 24oz daily. I was even spooning the formula in and having him drink out of a cup-which is just not practical b/c his attention span is too short. Do you have any suggestions?

There is no rule saying that a child such as yours needs 24 ounces of fluids a day. Eighteen ounces is fine for most children. Also remember that "solid" foods contain liquid content as well. I admire your efforts to spoon feed liquids or use an open cup. However, I recommend the opposite. Don't spend so much time getting your son to take liquids. Offer him a bottle or a sippy cup; if he doesn't take any, that's fine. Also offer foods that have liquid content (apple sauce, yogurt, cereal with formula, etc.). At some point soon, he will drink if he is thirsty enough.
 

Is it alright to be giving our 7? year old small bites of food from our plates when we eat as a family for dinner? For example: Peas, mashed potatoes, noodles (cut up), rolls? I heard by 1 years old they should be eating what we're eating just in a modified version (more cut up).

Small pieces of soft foods (finger foods) are o.k. at this age, but I would only give foods that he has had before as jarred or pureed food or else one new food at a time. Introducing many foods at once may make it difficult to detect which one an allergic reaction is from.
 

My 7 month old is having a bit of trouble eating foods that require him to
"chew". He eats stage 2 baby foods just fine. Is there anything wrong with waiting until he's a few months older to give him foods that are in pieces that he needs to chew?

There is no concern if you wait another month or two until you introduce ?finger foods". Probably one or both of the following issues are at work: 1. Some children just prefer softer, mushier foods at this stage. So your son may just not like the feel of the more solid foods. Eventually he will. 2. Some children, as part of learning to swallow small pieces of solids, induce a gag reflex in themselves (which is not choking but looks like that to us). This is a normal part of learning to eat solids. If this is happening when you feed your son, it does not mean he doesn't like or is unable to swallow the solids. With a little more practice, he will no longer gag when he swallows.

 

My husband and I are vegetarians. (We do eat dairy.) We want to raise our daughter vegetarian too. Where can I find information on raising a vegetarian baby? Where will a baby 6 months old - 1 year old get protein?

The American Academy of Pediatrics (www.aap.org ) can give all the help you need. Between 6 and 12 months of age, vegetarian diets pose no problem for infants. If you use cereal, fruits, vegetables, milk (breast milk or formula), cheese and yogurt, all nutritional needs are met (if most milk is breast milk, vitamins A, C, and D should be supplemented). The protein comes from the dairy products (breast milk and formulas are 20-30 % protein). The body can also make amino acids and protein from carbohydrates (milk, solid foods).
 

My daughter is 7 months old. She is eating baby food at lunch and dinner.
She drinks diluted juice from a sippy cup. I'm afraid my milk supply is running out because she isn't nursing from me as much. I try to pump but only get a couple of ounces now instead of 6-8. What can I do to increase my milk supply now or is it too late? She seems like she isn't getting enough from me anymore.

It is common for infants who start eating solid foods to decrease their intake of breast milk or formula. As more and more of their daily calories come from baby food, they need less calories from milk. Your daughter gets her fluids from breast milk, the juice and the water content of the solid foods. So the fact that she takes less milk may be normal.

If you would like to increase your milk supply, nurse or pump more often to stimulate milk production. Drink plenty of fluids and get plenty of rest (as much as possible).

 

Archived Feeding 7-9 Months FAQ's