so so confused..less milk? same milk? baby wont eat much

[hoobledoopwoop]

my dd is 8months next week and started having solids at around 6 months.i try to give her some cereal in the morning,some fruit late morning and some veg-or veg with meat lunchtime.i was told at the docs to give her a fair few hrs between solid food and proper bedtime to avoid tummy upsets etc.so i have to keep her last meal to about lunctime as she goes to bed about 5/6!

my prob is she really doesnt eat alot at all.prob a few spoonfulls and often she pulls funny faces and makes funny noises and wont let me give any at all! this is with purees.i have tried giving the odd finger foods like toast, banana for example and she will have a little munch but i dont think she act eats any.the only thing ive given her which she really likes is strawberries but i then read that strawberries arent a good idea???

i have been told that milk intake should be the same until approx 1? but ive just read this on babyworld "If your baby is still very keen on bottle feeds, you may have to take the initiative in dropping some of his formula intake - it?s easy for older bottle fed babies to fill up on milk, which may not leave much room for other foods. Decrease the amount of milk in each bottle so his intake over the day is less, and offer a cup instead of a bottle at some feeds."

now im even more confused.am i supposed to be making up smaller feeds of milk? or missing a feed and try giving her solids in the hope that shes starving because she hasnt had her milk? i dont like the sound of that at all tbh! she is formula fed by the way and still wakes in the night to be fed.

any advice anyone? im so confused!thanks for reading

[hoobledoopwoop]

oh and the snippet from babyworld was actually in the 7 to 9 months solid food section so its not like their talking about dropping milk if their still keen when their alot older iyswim

[chilledmama]

hooble- not my area of expertise but you could try cutting back the milk intake for a few days which should do no harm as long as DD is a healthy weight. You might think about running the situation by your HV

[Fleecy]

Does she have her solids before her milk or afterwards at breakfast and lunch?

[plibble]

Don't worry too much. At this age it is all about trying to encourage them to enjoy eating - even if they don't eat much try to make a game of it, make sure mealtimes are sociable and don't act upset if she doesn't eat.

I would give her whatever she seems to like to increase her appetite, including strawberries. Some children are allergic, but if you daughter has had them and is fine there is no reason to stop IMO.

I would also try to give her another small meal at around 3:30 or 4pm - some fruit, cheese or toast or something, again to build up her appetite. I tend to give mushed food at lunch and finger food in the afternoon which works ok.

I don't think I would cut her milk down yet - she is only little and if she still wants it what is the harm in giving it?

[MissGolightly]

I am not a medical professional so cannot comment on your docs advice about leaving a few hours before bedtime except to say that I feed my DS his supper at 5, he usually finishes his meal about 5.30/5.45 and goes to bed at 7. His digestion is fine and he never poos in the night or anything like that. The only thing I had heard was that you should avoid giving new foods right before bedtime in case they cause mild irritation or allergies - but foods they are used to should be fine.

As for the rest, my DS didn't really get into his food until about 9 or 10 months, before that he played with finger foods and had a bit of puree - absolute max was one of those 4 month jars! He's now getting much more interested in his meals and cutting down his milk voluntarily. I didn't try to cut down his milk because he was breast-fed and so I wasn't really sure how much he was having, but basically I wouldn't stress about it unless you feel your DD is not getting the nourishment she needs.

[MissGolightly]

Oh and my DS adores strawberries - I think they are a common allergen which is why they sound a note of caution, but my DS clearly isn't allergic to them so I don't worry.

[Lovage]

My ds sounds just like yours except he is now 9 months and has just started eating significant amounts of solids in the last fortnight. Until then he just ate tiny bits whatever I tried. My HV did tell me to drop feeds and 'cold turkey' him into eating solids but I ignored her cos that just didn't feel right. I think he just wasn't ready for solids until now - it was as if he suddenly got it and now he's pretty keen. I'd say just relax and leave her to it. I bet she won't still be on just milk by the time she goes to school!

[lulumama]

milk is still the best thing to give an 8 month old, if she is not keen on eating a lot of solids, then less milk will not necessarily make her eat more food....

if she is waking inthe night for a feed, she is still needing milk

some babies love solids, get stuck in right away and lose some interest in milk, others don;t

my DD barely ate solids until quite recently, and milk was definitely the main source of her nourishment for the first year (formula)

we did BLW and let her lead the way, and she started dropping milk feeds when she was ready, she is 21 months and still has a good amount of milk per day, aswell as her meals...

i would not cut back on milk too much just yet