Most new mothers become worried when their baby spits up. What to do in such a situation, because some say that regurgitation is quite normal, while others recommend contacting a pediatrician. In this article we will help you deal with this issue, because if you understand the reasons for what is happening, then you will react to the regurgitation itself more calmly.
Regurgitation and the baby's digestive system
It is very important that the mother can distinguish regurgitation from vomiting. The most important sign is that when vomiting, the child tenses his abdominal muscles and makes some effort, and regurgitation occurs completely automatically without any strain.In order to better understand why a child spits up, you need to understand how his digestive system works. If we talk about newborn babies, then their digestive system is not yet fully developed, and especially the sphincter, which is responsible for preventing food from returning back from the stomach. Already in older children and adults, the sphincter fully performs its function. Therefore, there is no need to panic, because regurgitation is a completely normal process for a newborn baby. It is also worth noting that the intensity of regurgitation may vary and can be influenced in some way. This will also help reduce the number of regurgitations to a minimum.
Causes of regurgitation
There are several reasons that can cause regurgitation in a newborn baby. Quite normal ones include:- Overfeeding. The child burps 5-10 ml of milk and it flows out unchanged or curdled. If overfeeding causes regurgitation, it will occur immediately after feeding or after 5-10 minutes. Some children may overeat and then spit up due to a strong appetite, and some due to the fact that the amount of formula was incorrectly calculated.
- Aerophagia. This complex term refers to the most common swallowing of air while feeding a baby. This situation can occur if the nipple does not fit very tightly during feeding or if you are feeding from a bottle, then the hole in it is too large.
- Intestinal colic and constipation. These disturbances in the digestion of food are caused by too much squeezing, which consequently forces the food to move backwards.
Doctors say that you should not worry if a child spits up only up to four months and the amount of milk does not exceed two teaspoons. If you cannot tell by eye, then conduct an experiment and pour two teaspoons of water onto the diaper to see what approximate stain there should be from regurgitation.
What to do to make your baby spit up less
If the baby's burping has pathological causes, then you should talk about solving the problem exclusively with a doctor and only after a thorough examination of the baby. If you want to reduce the number of regurgitations to a minimum and they are not caused by diseases, then you can do the following techniques.- Immediately after feeding, hold your baby upright for 15 minutes. During this time, the air that came with the food must escape.
- Adjust the child’s diet and the amount of food he eats. Perhaps it needs to be increased or decreased. At breastfeeding watch the position of the breast and nipple.
Video about burping newborn babies
Any nursing woman has encountered such a problem when a newborn baby, for one reason or another, begins to regurgitate milk after breastfeeding, and in the case when the child is on artificial nutrition, then after using the mixture. Most often, this is a normal and natural phenomenon during the baby’s growth, which does not bother much and with which baby coming soon, developing physiologically, will cope on its own.
IN special cases , regurgitation acts as a factor in the disease that develops in the baby’s body. In this case, only a pediatrician can diagnose the disease. Of course, every parent worries about the reasons why a newborn starts regurgitating food. In order to understand the reasons for this process, you should carefully review the information about this phenomenon.
Regurgitation is the process of releasing milk from the stomach through the mouth. Is it normal when a baby starts spitting up the milk he receives? In fact, this is not always correct.
Why does a newborn spit up after feeding?
Why does fountain regurgitation occur?
This type of regurgitation can significantly alarm a young mother. Factors for such regurgitation may include:
How to determine the cause of regurgitation?
At the time when the child begins to regurgitate what he receives mother's milk, you need to carefully examine the stain. If the baby spits up milk curdled in nature or the mass is more like cottage cheese, then you don’t have to worry anymore. It's not vomiting at all. Pour a teaspoon of water around the stain and if the stains match in size, then everything is fine with the baby. You need to show special concern and go to a specialist only when the baby spits up quite profusely.
Why does a baby spit up after formula feeding?
If the baby begins to spit up after formula, then the factors may be the same as in children fed with breast milk.
Providing first aid to infants and prevention
If the regurgitation process begins at that moment, when a child lies on his back, there is a high probability of blockage of the baby’s airways and the subsequent occurrence of pneumonia. In order to prevent the child from getting sick, you should immediately turn the baby onto his stomach or take him in your arms. This way the baby will be able to completely get rid of leftover food.
In order for the child’s intestinal function to stabilize, he should be given Motilium, and for spasms - Riabal. But these medications It should be used only after consulting with a general practitioner, because you cannot know 100% what is the reason for regurgitation of food.
Preventive actions
If a child regurgitates food too often, then you should remember a few actions that have been tested by other parents and that can help relieve the baby from the possibility of regurgitation.
When should you go to the doctor?
Spitting up is an action that any caring parent can prevent. But sometimes help from a doctor is still necessary.
When your baby keeps spitting up or the mass, which can be noticed after the regurgitation process, has changed its volume, color and smell, then you should seek help from professionals. You should visit your pediatrician from the very beginning. After a thorough examination, he may redirect you to a surgeon, neurologist or gastroenterologist.
Also, you should not wait too long to visit a specialist when the baby spits up too much and then starts screaming or bending over. This behavior may mean that the baby’s walls in the esophagus were inflamed.
A special inspection needs to be carried out if regurgitation occurs in the form of a fountain; you need to check the temperature after regurgitation or inspect the spot. It would be best to show the baby to a doctor and not take risks just like that.
Regurgitation after baby turns one year old should also be taken into account by parents as something abnormal. By this age, this process should go away automatically. Otherwise, this may mean that pathological processes are operating inside the baby’s body, the nature and occurrence of which only specialists can understand.
What does normal regurgitation look like?
Why does my baby start spitting up after every meal?
Birth of a baby- This happy event for every family and parents. Moments of euphoria and happiness quickly give way to anxiety for small child: how to properly care for him, how to protect him from various diseases, what to do for treatment?
Many people know that the time from birth to one year of the baby is considered the most difficult. During this period of time, the baby’s body actively grows and adapts to new conditions, the process of functioning of all organs and systems in the baby’s body is improved. The most problems and difficulties can occur with the gastrointestinal tract. According to confirmed information, 70% of children under the age of one year face difficulties in the functioning of the intestines.
Most often, parents are faced with such a problem when the child begins to actively burp after each feeding.
The cause of regurgitation can be either physiological, and biological factors. If physiological factors are considered quite harmless, then with biological factors everything is not so simple. The fact is that babies under one year of age have a completely different structure of the digestive tract. In newborns, the esophagus is noticeably short and not closed to its maximum. In addition, they have a small spindle-shaped stomach and an insufficiently developed fermentation mechanism, which means that the baby is able to burp after any feeding.
It is worth paying attention to some signs of regurgitation:
Young mothers tend to exaggerate problems with their newborns. To understand why a baby often burps, you need to define what often means. Is this harmful for the baby, and then throw a lot of effort into eliminating the supposed frequent regurgitation.
What is regurgitation
Unlike most other organs and systems, the newborn's digestive system is not mature. Therefore, most often the problems of a young mother are related specifically to the baby’s digestion (gas, colic).
Regurgitation, scientific name of which gastroesophageal reflux is not a disease. This normal phenomenon, the cause of which experts call swallowing air during sucking in combination with the immaturity of the lower alimentary sphincter. 70% of babies aged 1 to 4 months regurgitate food at least once every 24 hours.
Moms are worried about how old this continues unpleasant phenomenon. Usually everything goes away by six months, less often - by the child’s first anniversary.
How to tell if your baby is spitting up a lot
There are no standards for the number of regurgitations and the volume of food coming out: everything is individual for each child. There are newborns who spit up after every feeding. Others - less often.
Approximate standards: on average, a child burps 5 times a day, the volume of discharge is no more than 2-3 tablespoons at a time. How do you know how many tablespoons of liquid your baby has burped? After pouring a tablespoon of water onto a towel, compare the size of the stain.
There are several points to pay attention to:
- Is there any weight loss?
- Have symptoms of dehydration appeared (sunken fontanelle, dry skin and tongue, decreased number of urinations - obvious signs)
- Is the child sleeping more than usual or, conversely, is he overexcited?
- Does the baby scream during feeding?
- What type of waste material is there?
How dangerous is regurgitation?
Eat important rule regarding regurgitation: you should not put the baby on his back after eating. Why? If he burps, he may choke if milk gets into his windpipe. What to do if the baby has eaten and fallen asleep? Shouldn't you let him sleep? If it is not possible to carry your child upright, place him on his side and prop him up with pillows. You can buy a special U-shaped pillow, or use ordinary ones that are not too soft pillows, folded blanket.
How to reduce the volume and frequency of spitting up
- Place your baby on his tummy before feeding
- Don't put it on your stomach after it
- Keep after column feeding
- Don’t wait for your baby to get very hungry - he will eat greedily, which is why he will swallow air
- After feeding, do not play or touch the baby
- Attach your baby to the breast correctly
- When feeding through a horn, check whether the opening is too large. Use special bottles with an anti-colic system - they will help reduce regurgitation, among other things.
- Do not put clothing on your baby that puts pressure on the stomach. Do not use tight swaddling
- Don't overfeed your baby! A lot is not always good. Don't cover his mouth with your breast or bottle every time he screams.
- At artificial feeding: try replacing the mixture
- Massage your tummy regularly. It trains the abdominal muscles
How to carry a baby in a column
Still in the maternity hospital medical workers teach mothers to carry their babies in a column after feeding. At the same time, the procedure for such wearing is not taught directly.
- Before you pick up your baby, decide which shoulder you will carry him on and place him on it. soft towel– otherwise there is a chance of getting dirty
- Hold the baby close to you, supporting the head, back and bottom, without sitting the baby down
- The newborn's head should be on your shoulder or slightly lower, the body should be vertical to the floor
- Stroke the baby's back to facilitate the release of air. You can also pat him lightly on the back.
- You can walk around the room with him or sit in a comfortable chair - it doesn’t matter
- You need to hold it in a column until the air burps out. This may take from 2 to 25 minutes. It won’t take much time if you help your baby with a massage
Sometimes, in the first days of life, a newborn does not burp. This is most likely due to the fact that he still eats little. Several days of observations in this case are not an indicator. When the child begins to eat more, this procedure will be mandatory.
Around the second week after birth, the mother's milk becomes mature, and the volume and number of regurgitations increase. This phenomenon stops on average by six months, when the child spends more time in vertical position, and his gastrointestinal tract is maturing.
Regurgitation or vomiting?
Essentially, regurgitation is a type of vomiting. Why do we talk about these phenomena as two separate ones? The first is a normal physiological phenomenon, and the second is a sign of a serious illness ( elevated temperature, poisoning, infections, disruption of internal organs). Regurgitation does not lead to serious concern baby, why is not a reason to apply for medical care. A summary table will help you distinguish between these two phenomena:
Another important sign vomiting - the masses come out in a “fountain”, that is, under great pressure.
Burping up like a fountain
The flow of milk in a fountain frightens mothers, even if there are no other signs of vomiting. The reasons for infrequent cases of masses escaping as a fountain may be:
- Overeating – then the phenomenon occurs immediately after weaning from the breast or bottle
- Aerophagia, that is, swallowing air and associated belching
- Fatigue of the baby - after an unusually long stay of wakefulness or nervous tension (arrival of guests, going to the doctor). Occurs a few minutes after eating
If your child spits up frequently or always, seek help from your pediatrician to rule out the following options:
- Staphylococcus infection
- Serious digestive disorders
- Gastrointestinal malformations
- Neurological problem
Regurgitation of mucus
If regurgitation of mucus occurs in a newborn in the first days of life, it’s okay, these are remnants amniotic fluid, which little man swallowed several months of uterine life. But if the masses are separated by curds with mucus at an older age, you need to consult a pediatrician. Mucus is a possible sign of colds or intestinal diseases, as well as pathologies of the functioning of the gastrointestinal tract.
Vomiting water
Many mothers are interested in why their baby spits up water or something similar. This especially seems strange if the child’s mother does not drink water. Typically, regurgitation of water occurs through long time after feeding.
Please note that your baby may now have increased salivation(this is normal at some stages of development child's body). In this case, the water may be swallowed by drool.
The milk coagulates in the stomach, becoming curds and whey. The water you regurgitate may be whey. This is no more dangerous than regular regurgitation.
Artificial feeding
Why increased regurgitation may occur when bottle feeding:
- Due to incorrect feeding position. The position should imitate positions familiar to breastfeeding
- Unsuitable bottle - too large a hole in the nipple or poor design of the bottle causes increased air swallowing
- Because the formula is not suitable for your baby. Use a special anti-reflux mixture with a thickener (for example, rice powder). Use the mixture without palm oil in the composition and/or based on partially hydrolyzed milk protein. Such mixtures are a treatment and should be prescribed by a doctor.
- Due to the incorrect tilt of the bottle when giving it to the baby. Too much of an inclination leads to the baby choking while eating the formula; too little of an inclination leads to swallowing air. The bottle needs to be selected taking into account the age of your baby.
- Due to the small amount of mixture in the bottle. The formula should fill the bottle completely before feeding.
Conclusion
New moms worry about a lot of “whys,” and that’s normal. Regurgitation is an unpleasant phenomenon, but there is no need to worry about it. Just follow simple tips to reduce the frequency and volume of regurgitation, and be philosophical about the phenomenon.
Here's what experts say about baby spitting up after feeding.
Contents:
Both regurgitation and vomiting are accompanied by the release of stomach contents, so it can be quite difficult to distinguish them. Here are some criteria by which you can do this:
- Regurgitation most often occurs immediately after eating or some time after feeding and rarely repeats several times in a row. Usually the baby spits up a small amount of unaltered milk or formula or slightly curdled milk.
- Unlike regurgitation, vomiting can be repeated several times and can begin regardless of feeding. Often, when a child vomits, he vomits yellowish liquid (stomach juice mixed with bile).
- Unlike vomiting, regurgitation almost always occurs with good general health child. When burping, the child behaves completely normally, plays, smiles.
Description various reasons vomiting in a child and detailed recommendations how to treat vomiting and nausea in children and when to see a doctor are presented in the article .
Spitting and a restless baby
Since regurgitation throws not only food into the baby's esophagus, but also acidic gastric juice, in some children, frequent regurgitation can lead to irritation of the esophagus, which is manifested by restlessness, which worsens when the baby is placed lying on his back.
Some parents describe this situation as follows: “We can’t put the baby on his back. As soon as we put him on the bed, he starts crying a lot and arching his back.”
In addition to irritation of the esophagus, in children, frequent regurgitation (regurgitation syndrome) can lead to irritation of the respiratory tract and chronic inflammation of the ENT organs (sinusitis, otitis media). In order to understand whether regurgitation in the case of your child requires a visit to the doctor, be sure to study the section When should you take your child to the doctor?
In medicine, regurgitation is called “gastroesophageal reflux.” Detailed description treatment options for this condition in adults are presented in the article Evidence-Based Patient Guide to Heartburn and Stomach Pain.
How to behave when your baby is spitting up?
Most often, regurgitation in children occurs in a lying position. In such a situation, there is a real risk that the child will choke on regurgitated food (aspiration), which in turn can be very dangerous due to the risk of airway blockage or pneumonia.
To prevent aspiration, immediately after you notice that the baby has burped, turn him on his side or lift him into an upright position - this will allow him to easily push all the regurgitated food out of his mouth.
Although placing your baby on his stomach may reduce the risk of aspiration if he spits up, please note that you should only leave your baby on his stomach under adult supervision. You should not leave a child lying on his stomach unattended if he does not yet know how to roll over from his stomach to his back. The prone position is dangerous for newborns and children early age due to risk sudden death child. (cm. )
How to deal with regurgitation in children?
In most cases, the problem of frequent regurgitation in a child can be solved without consulting a doctor, by following simple rules related to feeding a child:
- The most important rule: After feeding, always keep your baby upright for at least 5-10 minutes or until you hear your baby burp. Infants It is convenient to hold it in an upright position, resting it “on your shoulder.”
- Before feeding, you can also hold the baby in an upright position for several minutes so that he can release the air swallowed up to this time from the stomach.
- Try not to overfeed your baby. It is better to feed the child little by little, but more often.
- Try not to feed your baby when he is crying.
- Keep your baby as upright as possible while feeding. If you are breastfeeding, just make sure that your baby's head is higher than his belly.
- If you are bottle-feeding, make sure that the hole in the nipple is not too large or too small, and that when feeding the bottle is in such a position that the nipple is always completely filled with formula.
- Try to refrain from active games with children (do not throw it up, do not turn it over, do not press your legs on the stomach, etc.) for 15-30 minutes after feeding.
Nutrition composition
If regurgitation does not go away after you begin to systematically apply the above recommendations, you can try changing the composition of the child’s diet.
In some cases, thickening the formula the baby receives with rice powder helps to significantly reduce the frequency of regurgitation. Adding rice cereal to the mixture is recommended from the 3rd month of a child’s life. For children receiving artificial mixtures The optimal solution is to add 1 tablespoon of rice powder per 60 ml of mixture.
In the case of breastfed children, you can add rice powder to expressed breast milk in the same proportion.
When should you take your child to the doctor?
Be sure to consult a doctor if:
Take your child to the doctor immediately or call an ambulance if:
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Medicines for regurgitation
In cases where frequent and heavy regurgitation in a child provokes irritation of the esophagus (see above), the doctor may prescribe the child treatment with medications that reduce stomach acidity. A detailed description of this treatment is presented in the article Evidence-Based Patient Guide to Heartburn and Stomach Pain.
Operation
IN in rare cases, with very abundant and frequent regurgitation caused by irregular shape and insufficiently tight closure of the transition of the esophagus into the stomach, the only effective solution The problem is a surgical operation, during which doctors correct the anatomical defect and restore the normal functionality of the gastroesophageal valve. The decision about the need for surgery may be made after neither changes in the child’s feeding nor medications have helped to cope with the problem.
Regurgitation in newborns after feeding is considered a completely normal biological process. It indicates the normal functioning of the gastrointestinal tract. During feeding, the child swallows a certain amount of air, which must come out.
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General concepts
Regurgitation is typical only for infants. It must happen within 30 minutes after finishing a meal.
Note! It is considered quite normal if a child spits up after feeding 5 ml three times a day.
Such manifestations are typical for the period from 4 to 7 months. However, there are cases where symptoms persist for up to a year.
At the same time, parents should know exactly how to distinguish vomiting from regurgitation in a baby. The first symptom quite often appears in the form of a fountain. Vomiting is a consequence of overeating or other disorders in gastrointestinal tract. In this case, you must urgently contact for medical help.
Main causes of manifestation
Regurgitation in newborns after feeding occurs due to insufficient formation gastrointestinal tract.
Over time, the organs will fully adapt and get used to new reactions.
At the same time, parents should ensure that the volume of regurgitation does not exceed the maximum permissible norm.
It is necessary to understand why the baby spits up after feeding breast milk. This situation occurs against the background of swallowing air.
This only happens if the baby grips incorrectly nipple or bottle. The manifestation will disappear as soon as the mother manages to establish lactation.
Problems may arise in the background improper feeding. However, they are not always limited to regurgitation. Additionally, the situation is aggravated due to the infant not receiving the required amount of fluid.
A newborn often burps when it is born ahead of schedule . His sucking and swallowing reflexes did not have time to complete their formation. The manifestation will disappear without additional help as you grow older.
Dysphagia is dangerous for the baby. This is fountain vomiting, which is observed against the background of a disruption of the central nervous system. This unpleasant manifestation has a number of characteristic features:
- Education large quantity gases in the intestines. This situation is dangerous for infants the appearance of colic. main reason– insufficient development of organs digestive system. Flatulence and colic can cause a lot of discomfort. To eliminate them, you should consult your doctor.
- A child often burps when the nervous system is not properly formed. Quite often the situation arises against the background high blood pressure inside the skull. Only timely examination by a neurologist and a properly selected course of treatment can prevent the development of a dangerous situation.
- Improper development of the digestive system. For example, the situation is observed in the case of intestinal obstruction or stenosis.
- U infant observed stool disorders. Regurgitation may accompany diarrhea or diarrhea. Mommy needs to reconsider her diet, because perhaps it is because of this that irregularities are observed. As a rule, the situation resolves without additional intervention during the first three months of life.
Spitting up after every feeding talks about. The baby receives a large amount of food. Pediatricians insist on feeding on demand. The baby should not be forced to take the breast.
Differences between regurgitation and vomiting
Mothers should clearly understand how to distinguish vomiting from regurgitation in a baby.
It's important not to ignore pathological changes, because they can lead to serious consequences in the future. Vomiting is a symptom of many diseases .
It indicates diseases of the stomach, intestines and other internal organs.
Distinctive features negative manifestation:
- Baby spits up after every feeding more than 5 ml. The volume of vomit may be much greater.
- Negative manifestations tend to recur after a certain period of time after feeding.
- The liquid when regurgitated is undigested. Vomiting – stomach contents that have already begun to break down.
- The baby's condition continues to deteriorate. The baby can completely refuse food, sleep poorly and behave capriciously.
- Burping should only occur within 30 minutes of finishing a meal. Vomiting does not have a clear time frame.
- Quite often, a baby’s vomit comes out like a fountain.
If a child often spits up like a fountain, then vomiting is diagnosed. Allows you to normalize the situation proper nutrition women. She should exclude fatty, spicy and salty foods from her diet. Poor quality products can also provoke situations. Vomiting occurs in a newborn with allergies. In this case, the woman must adhere to a hypoallergenic diet.
If the reasons were in the mother’s diet, then after its normalization the negative manifestations should completely disappear. Otherwise, hesitate to see a doctor is strictly prohibited. If vomiting occurs frequently, the doctor may suspect improper development of internal organs.
The need to see a doctor
It is important to know up to what age a child spits up in a normal situation.
The intensity of the process also helps the mother.
If, according to a preliminary assessment, it is characterized by three points, then you should immediately consult a doctor.
Because it is fraught with complications.
The right anti-vomiting medicine will help you avoid serious consequences in future.
Vomiting assessment in points:
- 1 point: up to five processes per day, each of which is up to 3 ml.
- 2 points: up to five times a day. The volume ranges from 3 to 5 ml.
- 3 points: more than five times. The volume does not exceed the amount that the child managed to eat during the last feeding.
- 4 points: the process is repeated after each feeding. The volume ranges from 3 to 5 ml.
- 5 points: more than 6 times. The volume exceeds the amount eaten during the last meal.
Attention should also be paid to other signs ailments. For example, a baby may be significantly behind in terms of weight gain. To ensure the opposite, you should check your data with normal ones.
If vomiting is accompanied by stool disturbances, crying and screaming, then you should consult a doctor. It is considered normal if a child, after feeding with formula, burps only up to the age of one year.
Features of eliminating the disease
To reduce regurgitation in a child, you need to consult a specialist. Self-medication will not give results, and can only worsen the situation. Parents need to figure out why their baby spits up after breastfeeding. During the period of eliminating the causes, it is important to adhere to following rules:
In some cases, regular use is prescribed special mixtures. They contain medicinal components that will help the baby cope with the problem. However, only a doctor can choose them correctly.