Is Resistance to Solids Affecting Your Baby's Weaning?

Here's what to do if your little one is refusing solid foods.

Earlier this year, as I cleared away yet another bowl of baby food—virtually untouched after a lunch that once again had ended in defeat—I did a double take as I realized our baby boy was nearly nine months old. It had been nearly three months of failed attempts to elicit even a slight interest in solids. His initial acceptance of purees had quickly devolved into tearful wails, his little mouth clamped shut any time a spoon came anywhere near him. Later, we tried to incorporate baby-led weaning strategies, but to no avail. A few weeks later, he was still refusing any and all solid foods offered to him, and as we neared the nine-month mark, I wondered more and more: why wouldn’t our baby eat?

With our first child, this was never a question we would have asked ourselves—when we introduced solids at six months she took to them immediately and was a voracious, adventurous eater right from the start. Mealtimes found her with her chubby little feet propped up on her highchair tray, happily lounging as she explored and enjoyed dozens of different purees, cereals, fruits, and vegetables.

So when our youngest wholly rejected each and every food we offered him, we were surprised, but filed the experience under “all kids are different!” and didn't bat an eye. We knew the literature overwhelmingly encourages "following the child's lead" when it comes to solids and reminds us that "every baby develops at their own pace" so we continued to unsuccessfully offer and try new foods. A few weeks later, we realized we were out of our depth as the initial resistance to solids at mealtimes had become an all-out battle.

After months of pediatrician and specialist appointments, a hospital stay, and countless hours spent consulting with our feeding team and other members of the medical community, we've come to discover our baby’s behavior, though not typical, isn’t unusual either.

When do doctors recommend introducing solid foods?

The American Academy of Pediatrics has long recommended that solid foods be introduced around six months of age, and in some countries around the world, solids are sometimes even introduced as early as four months.

As a family, we tried to adhere to the 6-month guideline with both of our children and so it was a relief when the head of our son’s feeding team reassured us that the guideline is just that: a guideline.

When it comes to troubleshooting solids for babies who are having difficulty with the transition,  Victoria M. Powell, CRNP has years of experience to draw on. As the senior associate director of the Feeding and Swallowing Center at UPMC Children’s Hospital in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, she notes that one of the most important things to do is to look at your child for signs that they’re ready—rather than what a general timeline would indicate.

“There is no ‘magic’ window,” she says, regarding the timeline concerns parents have about starting solids “too late,” or after the six-month mark.

“It really varies from child to child. Some children are ready at 5-6 months old, and others are 10-12 months of age. There is a huge range of when children will really take to solids [and] foods in general.”

Powell notes that if a child is developmentally ready for solids, offering food tends to produce better results.

“Typically, prior to starting to offer solids we are looking for signs of readiness from the child, [for example] sitting well unsupported, showing interest in foods when their family is eating, maybe even reaching for foods or utensils themselves,” she says.

If your baby shows signs they’re not enjoying the experience—like closing their mouth, crying at the sight of food, or are just irritable in general during feeding times, Powell says this can indicate they might need more time before engaging with solid foods.

“If this happens, I would stop, wait a few weeks and try again,” she says, noting that offering solids should be done with no pressure or forcing—and be an enjoyable experience for everyone.

When it comes to how to approach meal times as a family, Jenny Best, founder and CEO of Solid Starts, a baby-led weaning and feeding resource for families of young children, wholeheartedly agrees with Powell’s emphasis on positive experiences throughout the feeding process.

Best and her team of experts at Solid Starts have helped countless families to navigate difficult feeding situations, and she’s full of tips for introducing new foods to babies and developing the skills that make feeding experiences not only possible but joyful too. She reminds parents concerned with timelines that it’s never too late to build a skill.

“Like most skills our babies will learn over the years, learning to eat takes time and practice,” she shares. “And while there are certain windows of time in child development that make it easier to pick up a new skill, it's never too late.”

Expert Tips for Feeding Littles

Parents can feel incredibly discouraged if mealtimes don’t go exactly to plan–especially if it seems more food ends up on the floor than in your baby’s mouth. But there are plenty of things families can do to create a positive environment that will encourage good eating habits––even if there’s a little spilled milk along the way.

Come to the Table Hungry

Best emphasizes that if parents want to encourage a positive relationship with food for their baby, gauging hunger cues can be the key to success.

“Bring baby to the table hungry, but not overly hungry,” she says, explaining that overly hungry babies have a harder time learning new skills.

As you follow your baby’s hunger cues and time meals appropriately for your little one, feel free to hand over control and let your little one take over. “Let baby explore the food on their own terms,” Best suggests, noting that this sense of agency will help to create a positive relationship with foods. “Let baby have control over what goes into their mouth and how.”

Start Small

Don’t try to feed your baby a three-course meal right off the bat—in the initial stages of starting solids, Powell says that small exposures are often better than prolonged exposures.

“Keeping a calm, positive environment with no pressure is the best thing we can do,” Powell shares. “Don't get frustrated if they reject a food one day, then the next take to it. Consistent exposures and small tastes really eventually lead to a diverse diet later in life.”

Above all, Powell encourages parents to remember that for babies, engaging with solid foods is more about practice than anything else, and it’s not until the 12-15 month mark that solid foods become a significant source of nutrition for them.

Try a Combination of Approaches

If you find yourself parenting a child who hates being spoon fed, know you’re not alone––and there are many approaches you can try while leaving silverware behind.

“There are a shocking number of babies who just do not want to be spoon fed but thrive when they have the opportunity to feed themselves finger food,” Best shares. “And it makes sense: Imagine someone coming toward your face with a spoon. Being fed can feel like an invasive experience to many babies and lead to the child forming a negative association with eating altogether.”

And while some parents may prefer to start with spoon feeding and other parents may lean more towards baby led weaning, Powell suggests that a combination of the two can actually work well together, as long as it remains a pressure free experience.

“There is a lot of conflicting information regarding purees versus solids,” Powell shares. “I personally love a blended approach of both[...]. The child will learn valuable skills like eating off a spoon, and get exposure to solids from an early age. It really doesn't have to be one way or the other.”

Focus on the Experience

Above all, Powell emphasizes that one of the biggest stumbling blocks to solids can be stress.

“If parents are stressed with feeding, the child will feel that stress and will likely eat less due to this as well,” she notes. “There is so much value for children to sit at the table with family, even if they are not eating, and just watch and be part of the social events that occur with feeding. I would highly encourage family's doing this - even if the child is not interested in solids.”

Different Children Will Have Different Abilities

As you navigate solids with your child, don’t forget their individual needs and abilities. “If children are having developmental delays, especially with gross motor skills, you will often see struggling with solids,” Powell notes. “In feeding clinic, we often say ‘first comes the hips (meaning sitting), then comes the lips.’ If children are struggling with gross motor skills, I would recommend intervention with either a PT or OT. Often as the gross motor skills improve the oral motor skills improve [too].”

Breastfeeding or Chestfeeding Can Still Play a Role

For children and parents who wish to continue to incorporate breastfeeding as part of a feeding plan, there are myriad benefits to continuing to nurse––and it’s certainly possible to combine breastfeeding and solids.

“There is nothing magical at 12 months that you have to change children to whole milk and off formula or breast milk,” Powell notes. “It is ok to continue supplementing until the child has made progress with their diet [...]”

And for those who are unable to or choose not to breastfeed at this time, there are countless ways to help keep your baby hydrated and nourished with cow's milk, dairy-free alternative milks, and water too.

Keep an Eye Out for These Red Flags

While resistance to solids is often a kiddo marching to the beat of their own drum and working through their own timeline, it’s important for parents to understand some of the more serious red flags when it comes to babies and their eating habits.

Working in the Pediatric Gastroenterology department at UPMC Children’s Hospital, Powell has firsthand experience helping parents navigate some of the more complicated reasons that children are delayed with solids.

Powell says if parents note allergy symptoms, eczema, or wheezing during or after meals, their child could have an underlying condition affecting their ability to navigate eating solids. In particular, if they see their child has severe or violent feeding difficulties (i.e. they can eat a smooth puree but gag or vomit if a puree has texture), she recommends a pediatric gastroenterologist evaluate the child for possible medical explanations driving solids rejection (for example, eosinophilic esophagitis).

“Other red flags would include poor growth, weight loss, frequent vomiting, choking or intense gagging with eating,” Powell shares. “If your local children's hospital has access to an interdisciplinary feeding team, this often will be very useful to look at the child's full picture.”

The Goal is Raising Joyful Eaters

We celebrated our son’s first birthday, with him happily covered in birthday cake, gleefully licking gobs of icing off his hands, and I had never in my life been so happy at the sight of a baby eating his birthday cake.

More than a month later, the mood is considerably calmer at mealtimes (or as calm as it can be with two rambunctious toddlers). We continue to offer new and interesting foods for everyone to try, and above all, focus on enjoying the experience of being together as a family.

Best notes that in general, as parents set feeding goals for their babies, a good approach is to focus on quality over quantity, noting, “generally we encourage families to not focus on how much food is being consumed but on the long game: raising a child who looks forward to meal time, who listens to their body and eats when they are hungry and stops when they are full, and who finds joy in eating and sharing food.”

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