Life Style Help and Advice from CherryKay

This article is part of a series that will help you cope with acid reflux.

Acid Reflux In Infants

Acid Reflux in infants is a condition where the food and the acid in the stomach flow back into the oesophagus, the tube that links the throat with the stomach. There are circular muscles at the end of the esophagus which open and close to let the food travel from the throat to the stomach. This set of circular muscles also opens to release the gas generated by the digestion processes in the stomach after meals. When they open they also allow some content from the stomach to travel up the oesophagus and into the throat and mouth. Infants are often seen "spitting up" after their meals. Vomiting can also be noticed in some cases. Acid Reflux can also occur when the babies cough or sneeze.

When do they suffer? Not all infants suffer from this problem for a long time. It is mostly seen in the infants in the first three months of their life. Many infants don't require treatment for this and it gradually disappears by the age of 12 months to 18 months.

The following are some of the symptoms which can be noticed due to acid reflux in infants: -

  • Hiccups and frequent coughing after feeding,
  • burps along with spitting,
  • only eating in small quantities or not eating at all,
  • restless crying,
  • lack of continuous sleep,
  • waking up at irregular intervals,
  • bad breath,
  • throat problems,
  • swallowing problems,
  • failure to gain weight loss of weight or general poor health.

It is always important to consult a doctor if any of the symptoms are seen in your infant.

Depending on the severity of the problem, your doctor can recommend suitable treatment. If the problem is not severe, your doctor may decide no treatment is needed as it will disappear as the infant grows up.

Preventive Steps to Avoid Acid Reflux in Infants: "Spitting up" after feeds is a normal symptom seen in most the infants. This is not serious and disappears as the infant grows up beyond the age of 6 to 8 months. But if it does not disappear at this age then a doctor or your infant's pediatrician has to be consulted. The infant's doctor might make few changes in the eating habits and give you some useful tips which reduce the infants reflux.

Some useful tips for reducing the Reflux:

  • Holding the baby in the right position: If the position in which you hold the infant while feeding is right it will reduce the chances of the food coming back into the throat. During and after feeds, hold the baby upright, for example leaning on your shoulder, while you gently rub baby's back for up to 30 minutes after feeding.
  • Prone position (Laying the baby on stomach): If the baby is awake after feeding, lay him on its stomach with a cushion supporting his upper body to keep his head abocve his stomach during the digestion period.
  • Feed your baby with regular small meals: Feeding too much at a time may not be healthy for your baby and overload the digestion processes in your baby's stomach. Instead try feeding him with small meals with 2 to 3 hours gap between each meal.
  • Making the infant pass the gas after its meal (Making the baby burp): Make the baby burp at regular intervals while feeding. This will reduce the pressure on the infant's digestive system and help in digesting the food better.

Above are some of the symptoms and some common and simple tips by which you can prevent Acid Influx in Infants.

I hope this article provided you with the information and understanding you were looking for.

Brian Waybridge, the author of this article, suffered for many years with the pain of acid reflux before he found welcome relief.