Q. My five-month-old’s eating habits keep changing. She used to love her bottle, but since the addition of solid food she seems to drink much less and be more fussy. Is this to be expected?

A. Newborns and young infants can obtain their total nutrition from nursing the breast or taking formula. Certainly, they neither need nor should be fed solids before three months of age. As they approach six months of age, their interests may expand to solid foods. You may note first that they have discovered their hand and how nicely it fits into their mouth. Then, cereal may be well accepted and soon they can hold solid foods such as teething biscuits. At this stage their total satisfaction with sucking may be replaced with an interest in solids. Be quite liberal and offer your child a variety of feedings, whether bottle or cup or solids. She will choose her favorites. Don’t be concerned if this interest changes from day to day—just enjoy feeding her as much as she enjoys eating.

Q. What are the symptoms of meningitis and should I be concerned for my son?

A. Meningitis refers to an infection of the brain and spinal cord, particularly in the lining (Meninges) of the nervous system. It is a serious infection and early recognition is imperative for treatment to be successful. When symptoms are obvious, children complain of headache, stiffness of the neck that limits their ability to bend their head, fever and vomiting. Weakness and difficulty walking are also possible. Mental status is affected causing lack of responsiveness drowsiness and confusion. Hopefully it will be diagnosed at an early stage and aggressive antibiotic therapy will be helpful. Meningitis is not common and the recent HIB vaccine has decreased its incidence from Hemophilus.

Q. My daughter was in the 95 percentile for height at six months. Does this mean she will continue to be tall?

A. Pediatricians place a great deal of importance on your child’s growth and development and use percentiles to monitor progress over time. The best predictor of ultimate height is heredity and the parents’ height is most important. We use weight and height percentiles (comparative standings as measured in every 100 children) to gauge whether height and weight are proportional; and whether they continue to follow the same growth curve. It is really more important that your child stay on her growth curve than what the actual percentile ranks. Also, the percentile is more predictive of adult height in an older child.

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