Why does my baby like wires, and what can I give her instead?
My 7 month old daughter seems to be drawn to wires. What can she eat instead that won't electrocute her?
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Spaghetti, linguine, fruit peelers, string cheese, chives, and noodles all seem like reasonable substitutes for wires.
My son went through a "must have electrical cords" phase that coincided with his longer "everything must go in my mouth" phase. So, I've had this issue.
This is how we dealt with it:
Hide the cords (often behind furniture, under rugs, etc).
Be mindful of the child in areas with cords that aren't hidden, to quickly remove them.
Unplug things that don't need to be plugged in when you're not using them.
Don't give them a substitute.
Giving your child something "instead" of the cords can teach her that playing with the cords gets her something. In the case of food items, as others have suggested, she may learn that pulling on cords earns her a "treat". Although, for a 7 month old, I wouldn't recommend most of the solid foods mentioned.
This behavior required vigilance on our part. We lost one or two cheap micro-USB chargers that weren't plugged in, but it was a small price to pay.
If your daughter really just wants something to chew on (and isn't specifically interested in the cords), then I suggest preventative substitution. Make sure she has a chewing toy that she likes within her reach, so that she reaches for that instead. This can be difficult. For my son, we had to try half a dozen or more different styles of teething toys to find one he liked. As he grew his preference of shape/size changed as well, and it didn't coincide with the labels they put on the teething toys.
I let my 15 month old play with an unplugged cell phone cord with full undivided attention. Perhaps 15-20 minutes a day just so that he can play with it and to fulfill his curiousity of cords in general. I'm near him while he plays and my hope is that he will grow tired of strings and cords. When my baby is curious I try to encourage him. I feel like he needs to learn and enjoy learning. Besides, babies tend to grow tired of things and venture to new activities. Try to be patient and help them learn and grow as much as possible.
At 7 months, she may enjoy the challenge of the dexterity required to pick them up successfully, as her motor skills are becoming finer somewhere around now. Why does she try to eat them? Because, first, that's one way 7 month old babies experience the world they live in (after all, putting food in her mouth is pretty rewarding; she wants to see what else is!) and second, it might be soothing to her gums if she's teething.
Clearly this chewing on cords can't continue; childproofing is important. If she's teething, since she seems to like rubber anyway, a rubber teething ring might be welcome. Some people also give teething crackers. You can read a bit about it here.
also: teething timeline; childproofing
May be your baby is gonna grow up into an electrician ( as she loves wires).. Lol joking :)
Give her food items like noodles which thin and cylinderical like wires. Dont worry about the thickness or consistency. Hopefully your baby wont notice it.
Also an advice, dont keep your baby anywhere near wires. If the child doesnt see it, then the temptation to chew or eat it will be less.
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