Acid Reflux In Babies

Infant Acid Reflux or gastroesophageal reflux occurs when stomach contents move up into the esophagus during or following a meal. A ring of muscle at the lower end of the esophagus, the lower esophageal sphincter (LES), opens and closes to let food enter the stomach. The LES normally opens after meals, to release gas. Acid Reflux In Babies may follow this sequence of events: the LES opens, stomach contents move up into the esophagus and mouth, and this backflow makes the infant spit up or retch.

 

Acid reflux in babies is in reality not atypical with healthy infants. Over half of all of them undergo acid reflux within the first three months after birth, but most quit spitting up between twelve and twenty-four months.

 

Only a few infants have severe symptoms of acid reflux in babies, such as (1) extreme irritability or being in so much pain that they refuse to feed, (2) weight loss or meager weight gain caused by being unable to hold down enough food, (3) blood loss from acid burns along the esophagus, and (4) problems with breathing. These are symptoms that can be induced by disorders other than acid reflux, so your baby’s health care provider will determine whether acid reflux is in fact the culprit.

 

Other warning signs of acid reflux in babies include vomiting green or yellow fluid, vomiting in large quantities or persistent projectile vomiting (especially from infants less than two months old), and vomit resembling coffee grounds or blood. Tests may be ordered when establishing whether an infant’s symptoms are induced by acid reflux.

 

Treatment for acid reflux in babies will depend on a particular infant’s symptoms and age. Some babies might not need treatment because their acid reflux may resolve by itself. Healthy infants may just need to have their feedings thickened with cereal and to be kept upright for thirty minutes after they have been fed. Smaller quantities of food during more frequent feedings can cut the risk of regurgitation.

 

The National Digestive Diseases Information Clearinghouse gives a few specific instructions about acid reflux in babies. If you bottle-feed your baby, you can thicken two ounces of baby formula by adding up to a tablespoon of rice cereal. Those who breast-feed their child can add the rice cereal to expressed milk.

 

Burp an infant after he or she has finished one to two ounces of baby formula; burp breast-fed infants after a feeding on each side. Infants with acid reflux should usually sleep on their back, as this is usually best for them. In very infrequent cases, doctors may advise alternative sleeping positions for infants.