8 Month Old Refusing Formula

Big variety of food (I got a little mini-blender, probably at babies R Us, so I could blend big-people foods that seemed appropriate) ... you'll have to keep close track of what you're feeding her (recommend: diary) so if she starts barfing you can pin it down right away (eg, cashews, mangoes, when my kids were babies; as toddlers and still sometimes as young schoolkids, peanuts) ... Dunno from your post if she has ben eating for a while or not. I was pretty successful starting them on orange/yellow foods, then moving to green, then adding meat, then adding the esoteric stuff (although obviously the high-allergen stuff didn't always work out!).

Maybe find a family naturopath or a pediatric naturopath, who might be able to give you solid nutrition info for your daughter, sans any medication-instinct ...

Since a lot of people don't make it to 6 mos with the breastfeeding, you know it can be done :). I'm sorry you had to wean instead of getting to choose ...

Let's see, the other thing is that DHA/omega-3 stuff, for healthy neuron development, which is in flax oil and cod liver oil. Some kids like those straight (I had one who ate flax oil capsules like candy, which just about made _me_ barf ;) ); there is also some cod liver oil with all the 'fish' taste taken out but that fancy omega-3 still intact (so say the ads).

Good luck :)!

You didn't mention if you can still pump and bottle feed. I'm guessing not, but if you can, I would try that.

Next, have you tried different formulas? They really can vary quite a bit. We had to supplement with formula and our little girl hated Similac and Costco's Kirkland brand (which looked the same) however, she had no issues with Enfamil. In fact, I know a couple other kids that were the same way. So it might be worth a try.

I agree with another mom on limiting other liquids. Only offer formula/breast milk during the day and see if that helps.

Lastly, maybe she doesn't want nipples any longer (especially if she's teething and her mouth is really sore). Try introducing a sippy cup or a regular cup. It might seem like she's too young for a regular cup (that you hold, of course) but even preemies that can't suck can drink from a regular cup. It's a natural instinct.

I hope some of this helps and you can get her back up to the amount of milk she needs in a day. :-)

I recently weaned my 8 mo old and he did not want to drink formula. I mixed it with vanilla flavored rice milk to give it the sweetness of breast milk. The first day I replaced half of the water with the rice milk, the next day 1 oz less rice milk, and so on. Took 5 days and he hasn't refused a bottle since. Good luck.

I think the best thing would be get find someone that can give you donor breast milk for the next two to four months. Some people might have a lot frozen that they won't use. Maybe you can mix formula, but she may not want it because it doesn't agree with her.

Does she drink a lot of other beverages throughout the day? Thirst is a very powerful force. maybe if you limit her other drinking, she might drink more formula