Confused by his responses to food

[Shandelion]

My ebf six month old son has met all the requirements for introducing solids. I started giving him a taste or two per week starting around 4.5 months (literally just a taste). He is very interested in what I am eating. I've let him taste all manners of baby food, plus suck on bananas and melons as I held them. I use spoons, or let him grab a bowl and suck on it with food on the rim. But no matter what, he thinks anything with a flavor is awful. Toys, paper and fingers are perfectly edible, but he is absolutely revolted by anything with a flavor.

I'm confused. Is he not ready? Is this the absolute norm for introducing solids? Is he a supertaster? Am I doing something wrong? Don't get me wrong, I'm fine with continuing to be ebf, but I'm trying to do something new and it's failing and I'd like to know why.

 

[Popples1]

What reaction is it that makes you think he doesn't like the taste? I went to a weaning talk and they said a baby needs to taste sonething around 15 times before they recognise the flavour and any 'I don't like this' faces probably just mean 'whoa, this is new!'.

 

[Shandelion]

He screws up his face in distaste, like he was sucking on a lemon or something foul. He pulls back, screws up his face, purses his lips, looks at me with betrayal lol, refuses any more. The only exceptions have been cantaloupe and Ritz crackers. I only tried Ritz to see if it elicited the same respond, to get a feel for what he responds to.

 

[Popples1]

Sounds like a good photo opportunity

I'd keep trying the same foods and not worry if everything gets spat out again. My 7mo has only just started to chew/swallow foods (we're doing BLW) today. Most of the time he puts it in his mouth then just let's it drop out. I figured he's just not ready to 'eat' yet but is enjoying the exploration in the meantime. I guess you could also just wait a while as your LO is still pretty young, he may just not be prepared for any flavour other than milk just yet! I think I started too early with my LO because he was showing an interest in food at 5 months but with hindsight, he didn't have all the signs that he was actually ready.

 

[M2B83]

you could try and mix some of your milk with some food? just express a little to mix with some baby rice perhaps? x

 

[MindUtopia]

Is he refusing to eat what you're offering him (if you're spoonfeeding) or showing no interest in trying finger foods? If so, I'd say, yes, possibly he's not ready. If he's eating it, but just not seeming to eat it because he likes it, I'd say that's normal. Most babies don't really eat for the sake of eating because it tastes good or they realise it satisfies hunger, or much more than just play until 9-10 months. If he's eating, but just not with much gusto or sense of enjoyment, just keep doing what you're doing. He'll enjoy it more in time. If he's spitting everything out, refusing it, seems genuinely unhappy, then you might just wait a bit and try again. Also, babies don't put toys and things in their mouth or show interest in food because they're hungry. It's just part of development - more to do with hand-eye coordination and interest in what you're doing now that they can see you better around 4 months. And isn't a sign of being ready for weaning.