Starting solids: DS hasn't got a clue about spoons, swallowing, anything!

[Tamz77]

I'm probably being a bit paranoid here, as DS (5 1/2 months) has only been trying solids for a week. But he hasn't seem to have registered at all that what I'm offering (baby rice and purees) is food. Is this normal? How long does it last? He doesn't open his mouth for the spoon at all (or my finger - tried that), I have to wait until he smiles and slip it in cunningly. Once the food's in there, he doesn't actively swallow it, it may kind of accidentally move to the back of his mouth and down his throat, but most of it just gets spat out. He starts blowing raspberries usually, other than that he just pulls very weird faces.

I waited to start solids until this point because he is not a very hungry baby at all, sometimes going 6 hrs or more without wanting a feed during the day (he is breastfed). Nor did he show any interest in my food, hasn't 'grabbed my spoon out of my hand' or anything, like the books say they're supposed to when they're ready for weaning. I only started solids really to make sure he was getting some extra nutrients by the time he was 6 months. But at this rate he's not going to be ingesting enough to get any value! I'm lucky if he swallows one baby teaspoon of food.

Any ideas? Or reassurance? Do they just 'click' eventually re. how to use a spoon or am I doing something wrong?

Thanks!

[Oakmaiden]

Maybe he is not ready yet?

[twiglett]

message withdrawn

[mrcheese]

I had this wiht ds1 altho a olittle earlier - yes leave it for a couple of weeks - can he hold a cracker yet?

[Tamz77]

I know I know, it seems he's just not interested yet, I thought this would happen and mentioned it to my HV a few weeks ago, she said not to leave it any later than this because once they get past 6 months breast milk is no longer sufficient. So do I persist with the solids now that I've started, or give up for a while and risk him not getting all the nutrients he needs? He's 25 wks old tomorrow!

[tiktok]

Oh no....not health visitors again. Like breastmilk suddenly stops supplying enough nutrients the moment you turn the calendar over on the baby's half-year birthday.

Babies start needing a little extra iron at sometime about six months. Other nutrients are perfectly adequately supplied by breastmilk for some time, and in any case, most babies gradually increase their intake of different tastes and textures as they increase their intake of other nutrients, so you don't really need to think about it all....it just happens. Iron is in lots of foods, and in any case, the baby only starts to need a little bit more....sorry to repeat, the second time it was for your health visitor

You will do your baby no harm at all if you stop the attempts at solids. He clearly isn't ready for them, but may be in a few weeks time.