Hi Robynne, I know I have probably reached my limit on free advice, :oops: and this is not specifically an ‘OT thing’, but I know you have had a lot of experience with kids with eating issues, so I hope you may have some tips for me.

Sebastian has had a really had time tolerating solids. We introduced them at four months and he did great. I was able to introduce 5 foods (bananas, pears, carrots, squash and oatmeal) with out any problems. Then at about five months he started reacting to every new food I tried. His symptoms include: vomiting and or spitting up frequently on the fist day of a new food (after only two or three bites), gassiness and fussiness, and by the third day mucus in his stools. I always stop the trial when I see mucus (as instructed by my ped and GI).

The problem I am having now is that Sebastian is refusing to try new foods at all. He will take one bite and make a terrible face and try to spit it out. He then starts gagging himself and trying to throw up. If I introduce the food at the end of the meal, he is usually successful and throws up everything he ate. If I do it at the beginning of the meal he will refuse to eat anything I put in front of him. He will clamp his mouth shut and shake his head and squirm all around, so either way the meal is ruined by introducing the new food.

My ped wants to do testing if he is still having problems with foods at his one year check-up. I really need to get some new foods into him so I can know if he is still having intolerance issues. Do you have any ideas for getting him to eat new foods without making him hate meal time. He is already not overly thrilled with eating solids and gets most of his nutrition from bottles. Any help would be greatly appreciated. Thanks a lot!