Ini 6 Penyebab Bayi Susah Makan MPASI dan Solusinya
The age of 6 months and above is the time when your little one starts to be introduced to complementary foods (MPASI). However, what happens if your baby has difficulty eating complementary foods? In the early stages of introducing complementary foods, it is normal for a child to refuse to eat because they are still in the process of adaptation. However, this should not be ignored for too long because breast milk alone will not be enough to meet the nutritional and energy needs of babies aged 6 months and above. So what should you do to overcome this challenge? Check out the various easy tips and tricks in the following article!
Reasons Why Babies Have Difficulty Eating Complementary Foods
There are many factors that trigger a baby's difficulty in eating complementary foods. What could be the reasons? Even though you might feel annoyed, try to understand your little one's condition first; perhaps some of the things below are the causes.
1. Not Ready for Complementary Foods
The most common reason why babies have trouble eating complementary foods is that your little one is not yet ready to transition from milk to foods with more texture. For some children, this transition period may take longer than it should.
However, you don't need to be sad or discouraged and should keep trying to introduce complementary foods slowly.
2. Still in the Learning Stage
Providing complementary food is not just about introducing new types of food or textures to your little one. At this stage, the child also begins to learn to chew and swallow food with a different texture than breast milk. Initially, the child may refuse or chew the food for a long time.
Therefore, you should be patient because getting a child to eat complementary foods is also a process that is not instant.
3. Food Texture Not Suitable for Age Stage
The provision of complementary food must be adjusted to the age stage. At first, you can provide a smooth complementary food texture and slowly increase the texture according to your little one's age.
This is important because providing complementary food with an age-appropriate texture will encourage the development of the oral cavity, tongue, and jaw functions for chewing, swallowing, and speaking.
Do not rush to increase the texture of your child's complementary food because it risks making the baby choke or experience digestive disorders since the baby is not yet able to swallow and digest food that is more solid or hard. The following are the stages of complementary food texture recommended by the IDAI.
- 6-9 months, complementary foods with a smooth texture such as puree or mashed food.
- 9-12 months, complementary food in the form of finely and coarsely chopped food, as well as finger food.
- 12-24 months, family meals mashed/chopped as needed according to the baby's ability to chew.
4. Baby is Stressed
There are many factors that trigger stress in babies, such as being uncomfortable in a new environment, being too hot, feeling disturbed by loud noises, feeling lonely, being afraid to interact with new people, or being bored.
These conditions can cause the baby to lose their appetite, thus refusing to eat complementary foods.
5. Has a History of Allergies That You Don't Know Yet
When a baby refuses complementary food accompanied by the appearance of certain symptoms, it could be that the child has a history of allergies to the food you provided. Generally, food allergies can cause symptoms such as rashes, nausea, vomiting, diarrhea, or even stomach aches.
Some types of food that have the potential to cause allergies are milk, nuts, eggs, soy, wheat, and shellfish. If you suspect this, you should immediately visit a doctor for further examination.
6. Child is Often Forced to Eat
You do have to keep introducing complementary foods to your little one even though they often refuse. However, do this slowly and avoid forcing the child to eat.
When you force your little one to eat while getting angry, the child will feel traumatized and think of mealtime as something scary. This condition will further make it difficult for the child to eat.
How to Overcome a Baby's Difficulty Eating Complementary Foods
The condition of a baby having trouble eating complementary foods often makes mothers frustrated and not knowing what to do. No need to be confused, you can try practicing some of the tips below to overcome it.
1. Create a Feeding Schedule for Your Little One
Babies who have trouble eating complementary foods are basically not used to the new food texture. To overcome this, you can create a regular feeding schedule for your little one. The goal is for the baby to understand hunger and fullness throughout the day.
Applying this does require perseverance from the mother. Therefore, you must be committed to providing complementary food, snacks, and breast milk on a schedule.
2. Invite Your Child to Eat with the Family
Creating a comfortable environment is a great way to get your little one to want to eat. Well, you can try this by inviting the child to eat with other family members at the dining table. The atmosphere of eating with the family will help your little one understand the eating process, thus being inspired to try the food on the table.
3. Offer Various Types of New Food
You can offer various types of new food to be given to your child. Your little one might need time to accept new types of food. Usually, new food needs to be offered 10-15 times until it is finally accepted and eaten well by the child. Therefore, you must be patient and always be enthusiastic!
4. Provide Food Containing Zinc and Iron
Zinc and iron deficiency can cause decreased appetite. Therefore, you can add sources of food rich in zinc and iron to your little one's complementary food menu. Various natural food sources that you can provide include potatoes, chicken, eggs, and red meat.
In addition to figuring out how to overcome a baby who has trouble eating, you are also required to provide high-quality complementary food containers. In this case, Hegen offers breast milk storage products that can also function as storage for complementary foods.
Fruit puree or mashed food can be prepared in stages and frozen first, thus saving time and energy. In this case, HEGEN PCTO™ 60ML/2OZ BREAST MILK STORAGE PPSU (6-PACK) is very suitable for storing the complementary food dishes you have prepared for your little one.
The quality of breast milk storage from Hegen is undoubted because it uses amber-yellow PPSU material that is free of artificial pigments, so breast milk and complementary food will not be contaminated with harmful substances.
In addition, this material is also often used as a base material for medical equipment, so it is guaranteed to be superior, durable, and has high-temperature resistance ranging from -20°C to 180°C. Thus, you can freeze or warm up complementary food directly from the breast milk storage.
What are you waiting for, always give the best to your little one by trusting breast milk storage containers and other mother and baby needs only from Hegen by clicking here.
Reference:
- IDAI. Difficulty Eating in Babies and Children. https://www.idai.or.id/artikel/klinik/pengasuhan-anak/sulit-makan-pada-bayi-dan-anak
- Halodoc. 10 Ways You Can Do When Your Baby Has Trouble Eating Complementary Foods. https://www.halodoc.com/artikel/10-cara-yang-bisa-dilakukan-saat-bayi-susah-makan-mpasi
