8 Weird Things Babies Do While Eating That Are Totally Normal

As I’ve been watching my new toddler eat, I’ve been reminded that they’re a funny bunch. Older babies and younger toddlers are still learning a lot about their world and that includes meal times and food intake. From experience, I know that some of these things can be maddening. It’s frustrating when your child does some of these things. So, I decided to round up of a series of weird but perfectly normal things that babies and young toddlers do while eating. Let me know which of these you’ve experienced recently!

If your baby is a brand-new eater of 4-6 months of age, this article might better fit what you’re experiencing.

Throw food off tray

Babies and young toddlers love to throw. And that includes their food. If your child does this, please know that you are NOT alone. In fact, throwing food is associated with many developmental milestones. Children do this to explore concepts such as gravity, parental reactions, and properties of food. They throw food when they are bored or when they want to signal they’re done eating.

However, just because throwing food to the ground is a developmentally appropriate behavior doesn’t mean that you need to just grin and bear it. Here are some things to try:

• Gently put your hand over their hand when they start to throw. Mildly say something like “no thank you” or simply shake your head “no”. Guide their hand back down to their tray. When their food is again resting on their tray, clap and make a big deal out of it.
• Resist the urge to use a big reaction when they do throw their food. Keep your expressions and wording neutral. If you give them a strong reaction, even if its negative, they’ll start to think its a game. Babies and toddlers love attention, even if the attention is a reprimand.
• Check to see if they’re bored of the food they have. Switch up textures, colors, and flavors. Sometimes kids want a little something different and then will return to their original food. And sometimes they just want something different. Just like adults.
• Teach your child the “all done” sign. When they start throwing food (and you know it’s because they aren’t hungry anymore), help them make this sign. This gives them a way to communicate to you without the throwing.

Pull food out of their mouth, look at it, put it back in and continue eating

This heading says it all. Sometimes babies and toddlers just do weird things. In this case, when your child pulls food out of their mouth only to put it back in, they are most likely exploring it. They want to know what it looks like and feels like, in addition to what it tastes like. Just watch them do this, shrug, and move on. 😉

Refuse food, look like they’re done, then want more

My goodness. Can we say mind-changers much? That’s what it can feel like trying to feed a baby or young toddler. They’re acting like they’re done eating. They’re turning their face away and/or not opening their mouth when you bring food to their face. You start to clean them up. Then they’re screeching like a banshee because they wanted more.

Here are some things to consider:

• Do they have food in their mouth still and they’re not ready for the next bite yet?
• Are they thirsty?
• Are they bored of their food but still hungry? Do they just need a change in flavor or texture?

Want what’s on your plate not theirs, even if identical

Can you picture this scenario: your child will reach for the food on your plate while refusing to eat their own food…even when it’s exactly the same food? You can? Me too. And so can millions of other parents across the world.

While this can be annoying, it is actually the same protective instinct seen in many animals in infancy. How does a baby deer know which plant is good to eat and which is poison? By eating exactly what mama deer is eating. How does a bear cub know that’s its ok to eat something? By waiting for mama bear to give them a piece of what she’s eating.

If you’re ok with it, let your child eat off of your plate while explaining and showing the same foods on their plate. Or, instead of dishing their food from the serving platter, dish it from your plate so that they can see it’s just the same.

Scream for your food then refuse it when offered then repeat 

Every once and a while, your child might reach for your food but refuse it when offered a small bite. But then scream for your food again when you pull it away. This behavior can be the most confusing of the lot.

When this happens, look at what kind of food you’re eating. Is it handheld? Is it something like a sandwich, a taquito, or a hotdog? Many times babies, and especially young toddlers, don’t just want a bite of this kind of food. They want the whole thing. They want their own handheld yummy-ness, not just pieces.

In these situations, I try to give them a variation of the food that is baby/toddler safe but looks as much like the original as possible. For example, I don’t just hand them an entire quesadilla. I give them a long strip. Same thing with a hotdog. They get a long strip with a bit of bun wrapped around it. Taco? They get a bit of shell with a tiny helping of meat and cheese. And so on.

Generally, this does the trick. I hand this modified, baby-safe offering to them and they look at it in delight. They’re beyond happy to have a [fill in the blank] just like mommy and daddy–all to themselves! Give this a whirl the next time you’re experiencing this particular weird thing that babies do while eating!

Refuse a food then happily eat it off the ground later

Sometimes our children are irrational. Ok. Ok. You’re right. They often are. I think that’s part of the definition of toddlerhood. This is one of those irrational moments that will come into the lives of almost every parent. Just know that you are not alone in shaking your head wonderingly at your toddler. *shrug*

Be happy with what they’re eating but spit it out if a new food is introduced

Picture this, your child is happily eating potato wedges when you place some banana on their tray. They decide to spit out all the potato in their mouth to make room for the banana instead. Even though they were very happy with it! Weird baby thing, huh? Even weirder, they’re eating potato wedges and you put more potato wedges on their tray…and they do the same thing!!

Here’s the thing: babies and toddlers are just so excited by their world! There are so many new and exciting things they get to do and experience each day. They want to do it all and they want to do it all now. They can’t be having the food in their mouth stand in the way of other food making it to their taste buds. So, out it goes.

If this behavior drives you crazy, simply wait until their mouth is empty before introducing new food. Or, place everything on their tray at once. If your child is combo-ing this behavior with throwing food, then the first strategy is your best bet.

Stuff their mouth

Almost the opposite of spitting food out is the stuffing of mouths. But it stems from a similar desire. Babies and toddlers will sometimes stuff their mouths because they are soooo excited about their world and all the new things they get to explore. Other times, they’ll stuff their mouth because they are still learning about their mouth’s capacity and what they can safely consume in one go. But again, it’s exploring and learning about their world.

When this happens, try

• putting just a few pieces at a time on your child’s tray;
• showing them how to bite and pull smaller pieces off of a larger piece (which they would normally try to stuff whole into their mouth);
• modeling exaggerated and slow chewing (literally chew with your mouth open so they can see what’s going on behind those closed lips).

(Rarely, a child will stuff their mouth due to a lack of oral awareness or stimulation. This is generally only a concern for children beyond the age of two. If your older-than-two child is still stuffing their mouths and is choking or gagging, consult a feeding therapist).

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So, which of these so very weird things that babies and toddlers do while eating have you experienced? Through my work as a Speech-Language Pathologist and Feeding Therapist as well as a mother of two, I’ve seen these over and over again. If you’re experiencing one or more of these with your baby or toddler, know that these behaviors are completely normal and, for most of them, there are ways to help your child move beyond it.

What other weird baby meal time and eating behaviors have I forgotten? Let me know below!

Hello! I’m Briana!