Can I get some tips for dealing with infant reflux?

Question

I have a 6 week old who has reflux- I worry that he is not getting enough food. I am currently using anti-reflux formula but it becomes lumpy and cannot get through his newborn teats. I attempt to keep him upright after a feed. Can you give me any more tips?

Answer 1

prevacid was a godsend for us and our little girl. her reflux started up around 6 weeks old and she was first put on zantac. that did not work at all!! she spent all day crying and passed out exhausted at night. it broke my heart to see her hurting like that. she hiccuped excessively and i could smell the acid when she burped on her breath. i even sat sleeping up with her on my chest for 2 weeks so she could get some continuous sleep! when we started the prevacid it took about a week to kick in and we saw drastic results! she was a happy baby again! we propped the end on the crib mattress up so he could sleep elevated. our pediatrician suggested her sleeping in her car seat b ut she wasn't up for that! good luck and consult with your dr. with any questions.

Answer 2

make sure he burps after he eats

also when he sleeps try adding one more pillow under his head (it does help)

if your still worried ask your doc

Answer 3

put him on ranitidine, the dr. will prescribe it. also, she may send you to a physical therapist to fit him for a wedge to sleep on it at night. you'll have an awesome happy new new baby boy!!

Answer 4

Keeping him upright after a feeding is good. Also you should burp him more often during a feed. Your dr could prescribe some medications that could possibly help. Most of the meds given for reflux doesn't really stop the spitting up, it just neutralizes the stomach acid so when he does spit up it won't bother him. Check with your dr and make sure he is gaining the way he should be. As long as he continues to gain weight it's okay. Reflux is common in babies. Their digestive systems are still immature.  

Answer 5

make sure ke burps a lot!! also the dr should give you meds for acid reflux...

Answer 6

My little girl had it horribly and the Dr. put us on Zantac syrup which doesn't make the spit ups stop but decreases the acid in the stomach so it does not cause them pain. The only thing I found that worked for me was Dr. Brown's bottles with Enfamil Gentlease Formula. I also had to add rice cereal to all her bottles so it would thicken it up and help it stay down. That also meant I had to buy the 'Y' cut nipples (they sell them with all the other Dr. Brown's nipples) so it could go through the nipple opening and sometimes I would add a little caro syrup to the bottles to help her p**p since she was getting a lot more iron from the cereal. I tried EVERYTHING possible and this is what worked for me. My daughters subsided at about 7 months so by that time we had the routine down well, haha. I hope that helps you and good luck, I know how horrible and frustrating it can be!  

Answer 7

Hi, I have a 5 1/2 mths baby and he had infant reflux (and was a cat napper) as well. If you had a natural birth, then go and see a chiropracter as the neck/spine might be out of alignment. Our son had three treatments and it worked miracle. The chiropracter said that all babies should be checked out as birth is a stressful thing with neck/spine. We had tried Losec and that worked but the chiro is better.

With the Anti-reflux formula being lumpy, wait for the hot water to cool down, then put the formula in and stir it clockwise (or anti) so the formula doesnt clog up the teat hole. A teat with a bigger hole (eg. 4mths +) is better as the formula is thicker than the ordinary formula and it is easier for your baby to suck the thicker formula.

Raise the cot up by put in a couple of wood under the the front legs will help the baby to sleep (especially when he/she got a blocked nose from a bad cold) and a jumper underneath the mattress in the pram.

Good luck and it is all worth it in the end :-)

Answer 8

you can also raise the head of the crib.  we actually put pillow underneath the baby's mattress to raise it up.  use a rolled up towel under the sheet to make sort of a "speed bump" thing so baby doesn't slid all the way down.  Feeding smaller more frequent meals may help as well.  

good luck and congrats on your new addition:)

Answer 9

Burp more often when feeding.

Feed him less formula more frequently.

Use a hypo-allergenic formula, such as Similac Alimentum.

If you are using a thickened formula you will need a bigger nipple size.

Try giving him a pacifier. Sucking a pacifier produces saliva which then helps reduce the amount of acid.

Talk to your Dr about medications to help. My daughter was on Zantac and that helped a lot. I also used Mylanta and that helped.

Also, one last thing. Even though you are taking all these tips to help your son you need to remember that what ever you do will not help him 100%. He will still have spitting up and still be in some discomfort, but you are just helping it, not eliminating it.