Baby needs to gain weight but won't eat

[katrina2017]

@jahncrish I have no recipe - I just gave my kids Jiff, lol, but I'm sure the internet has plenty.

And my sister's pediatrician just had her mix peanut butter with breast milk to make a cereal consistency mush, and that was the recommended first foods.

 

[ilovegodandjesus]

@jahncrish Peanut butter and banana go together really well so you could add it to his mashed banana in the morning. It was always my baby's favourite snack at that age and the runny banana gets rid of any stickiness. You can find nut butters in the shop that don't have sugar or any additives.

 

[miriam56]

@jahncrish Banana pulp or refried beans

 

[arengs]

@jahncrish Food is just for fun until they are 2. Bub should be getting a lot more milk. Milk should be the main food source. The other foods should just be for fun to get used to foods. It's obvious something is wrong as you said bub is underweight.

 

[jahncrish]

@arengs Yeah, the ped didn't even want to tell us how underweight he was, she just said "he needs to gain more weight" and then practically kicked us out of the room. My brother will only drink 5 ounces of milk at a time max, we've tried giving him 6 or even 7 (because that's what he really needs) but he just doesn't seem to budge, do you know how we could incentivate him to drink more? He actually enjoys the taste of this brand, so I don't know why he refuses to drink even if he doesn't eat much food.

 

[arengs]

@jahncrish What about a bottle when he's a little sleepy or a dreamfeed?
As others said, offer formula first every time. I would stop the porridge/soup altogether as it could be filling him with too much liquid he doesn't need yet. At this stage it should only be little portions of food and mainly formula
Also get him used to having plain water as a source of hydration, avoid juices no matter how healthy.

 

[jahncrish]

@arengs Actually, we've been doing that without even knowing it had a name lmao. The problem is that lately he's been completely reluctant to eating a single bite or drinking his formula, giving him his proper nutrition is like fighting with a bear everyday. I wish it didn't have to be like this

 

[myjehovahrapha]

@jahncrish He needs more formula. Babies should be drinking 24-32 oz a day until 1 year. Offer a bottle when he wakes up, 30 minutes before each meal and one before bed. Let him have some through the night if he wakes up

 

[jahncrish]

@myjehovahrapha That's exactly how we feed him his formula, the problem is that he only drinks about 5 oz max in each bottle. So in a day he drinks 22 oz, which is not enough, any tips for making him eager to drink at least 6-7 oz per bottle?

 

[myjehovahrapha]

@jahncrish It's OK if he only wants 5oz at a time. I would just try to add in one more bottle somewhere.

If he's getting to drink formula on demand and he always drinks until he's full, then his weight is probably fine. Different babies have different babies have different body types. He may just be a smaller baby.

 

[jahncrish]

@myjehovahrapha I wish that was the case, but he's underweight according to the ped. Honestly he doesn't look bony or anything concerning but I would call him on the thinner side for a baby.

 

[myjehovahrapha]

@jahncrish He may not actually be underweight. Sometimes peds don't always know everything. Has he been following his growth curve?

Also if he is crawling, they burn more calories, so that causes slower weight gain, which is normal

Eta, is he hitting all his milestones?

 

[jahncrish]

@myjehovahrapha Yes he is! I'm very happy about it haha. Just a few months ago he couldn't even open his hands properly, but with some weeks of physical therapy he has managed to accomplish all of his milestones. He's just turned 8 months old this December, and he's already crawling at fast speed + he talks like a parrot. I'm proud of him, sorry if i ramble lmao. About the growth curve, in his last appointment he was missing 1 cm to be considered in the normal range, but since he was a high risk baby the doc said it was alright.

 

[myjehovahrapha]

@jahncrish Of course since I don't really know the baby I can't say for sure, but to me it sounds like he's doing OK. I would keep offering bottles of formula as much as possible, but don't force anything, and offer him 3 meals a day. Let him pick and choose what he wants to eat and keep the whole thing as positive as possible, so he forms positive food associations.

If he's gaining weight (even slowly) and is meeting his milestones, that's generally a sign that he's doing good.

 

[christianseamstress]

@jahncrish I see a lot of people on here saying formula before solids, and this is absolutely true and necessary. For children under 1 year old, solids are complementary, meaning the main purpose of them is to just introduce the baby to the idea of food, flavours and textures.

My baby will be 8 months old in a week, so this is his feeding schedule if you'd like to provide your mother with an outline. Keep in mind all babies babies eat different amounts suited to what they need.

8am - 6oz formula

9:30 - solids (usually baby cereal, 3oz)

12pm - 6oz formula

1:30 - solids (3oz)

3pm - 6oz formula

5pm - big solid dinner, usually 4-5 ounces

6pm - 4oz formula

8:30pm - I give him 6oz, he drinks what he wants, which can be anywhere between 3 ounces and the whole bottle. This is a top-up before bed to make sure he is full and has gotten all the calories he needs today.

In total, babies this age (and up to one year old) should have a minimum of 24oz of formula, up to 32oz in a 24 hour period (in Canada; the maximum varies based on where you live, up to 38oz I think).

 

[jahncrish]

@christianseamstress Thank you for this! I'll see if we can copy a bit of your schedule haha. Sadly he has been drinking 22 oz per day, so maybe if we give him like 24 or even 32 he might gain the missing weight.

 

[christianseamstress]

@jahncrish You're welcome!

My suggestion for right now is to stop giving him solids for a couple of days and only give him formula. This will help his appetite increase so he takes in the amount he needs. It will sort of reset his eating habits. He may drink small amounts more often for a day or two, then you can start giving him bigger bottles. Then you can reintroduce solids in small amounts per meal when you're satisfied with how much milk he is drinking.

After that, If you notice he is drinking less milk, drop a solid meal. I sometimes skip lunch and substitute an extra bottle for my son if he isn't drinking enough.

 

[texas_flood]

@jahncrish Cut out the fruit juice, it’ll fill his tummy and not provide the nutritional value he needs.

Others have said about the soup and I agree - also keep trying foods and increase the variety of what he eats.

 

[cowboyjunkies]

@jahncrish Those little pots of yoghurt are great, the baby ones. We feed them to our baby after his dinner and he can gobble up two at a time, plus it's milk and thickening so will keep them full for a bit.

 

[katrina2017]

@jahncrish I leaned hard on formula for both my sons. Early eating should be more of a sensory experience for him and he’s not likely to eat a lot of solids. When you do offer solids, Then offer him a variety of foods. My first would only eat finger foods as early as 8 months I fed him avacado, black beans or peas (slightly squished), bits of banana or even small bits of chicken. My second didn’t go for this, I make him a batch of sweet potato chicken chilli or poor man’s stew in the slow cooker and freez portions for him to be spoon fed, both recipies are a bit chunky so he is still getting texture to explore. It’s recomended children under 2yrs don’t watch TV, again you want him to learn that food is a fun experience so distracting him will only prolong the situation. You can pretend to eat his food, play chop chop or aing an eating song to make the process more enjoyable.