Acid Reflux

My youngest daughter was diagnosed with mild reflux when she was 2 weeks old. We switched her to Enfamil Gentlease and she did much better on it as far as sleeping and not projecitle vomiting anymore. Also, like the previous posters have said, we kept her upright as much as possible.

K., you can easily elevate her head when sleeping by placing a pillow or a folded blanket under one end of her crib mattress. This allows elevation without risking suffocation. Hope this helps! V.

Hi K.,

My son is now 7 months old, but he had acid reflux really bad from the time he was born until about a month or so ago. My ped said he would out grow out of it, but while we wait, to sit him up 30 min. after he ate. At first I was like that's impossible, but with the cradle swing and papasan bouncy, it worked great. Some nights it would be so bad that I would just let him sleep in the swing. I know that sounds crazy, but after talking with other mothers, it wasn't so crazy after all because they have done the same. I promise it gets better, so just hang in there.

My daughter is 7 months old now and still has problems with acid reflux. I've tried everything. We raised the crib mattress which does help a lot at night but she still has problems during the day. She has a dairy allergy so we had to put her on Enfamil Prosobee which is soy-based. Also she started out when she was a week old on Zantac but after a month it still wasnt working so she's on Prevacid now. Also after talking to a specialist about it he said to make sure i give her the medicine because over time it just gets worse and worse if it goes untreated. By the way dont listen to those who say not to medicate I thought the same way until I had my daughter. She has cystic fibrosis on top of everything else so I have no choice but to give her meds. Trust me you definitely want to use meds rather than let your child suffer.

My baby had the same thing and our Dr told us to elevate the head of her bed. You can buy thsoe wedges to put under the sheet of the crib mattress or if she is in another type of bed, we just used a folded blanket. This really seamed to help her. And, she eventually outgrew it so it will get better.

Hope this helps!

A.

Hey K.,
I was about to respond when I read the previous post from Clancy, which is pretty much my advice exactly! My daughter had acid reflux and cried constantly as well. We started on Zantac and then moved on to Prevacid, so I would definitely discuss the medication options with your pediatrician. Also the incline for them to sleep on may help (for my daughter, it didn't she would always slide to the bottom of it).

On a positive note, my daughter is now 16 months old, and she stopped her medication when she was around 9 months old and is perfectly fine now, so it will get better! Good luck!

my son had reflux...the doctor told us to try thickened feedings by either adding cereal to his bottles or enfamil has a formula with rice cereal in it already....it is enfamil lipil AR....the thickened formula helps it stay down...we eventually had to use zantac b/c he had the reflux so bad and it worked immediately...it smells and probably tastes terrible and the bottle said to give it to him twice a day which i tried at first but eventually just gave it to him once a day in the morning and by the time he was 8 or 9 months he had grown out of it

Hi! My daughter who is now 3 had acid reflux when she was born. She also took Zantac for it, and by her first birthday it was pretty much gone. We fed her the bottle holding her at an angle, so she wouldnt choke as much. Also her Dr. had us put a tablespoon of rice cereal in her milk. The rice cereal helped thicken up the milk, and made it harder for her to spit up. We also just learned that multiple showers, and clothes changes were a part of life =) So good luck, and I promise it will get better.

Contact Stephanie Petters at [____@____.com runs a support group for parents of children with acid reflux. Even if you can't make it to the meetings, she is great at answering emails or phone calls.
My daughter was diagnosed w/acid reflux at 4 months. It turned out to actually be a dairy allergy. I had to stop eating dairy while nursing. Now I have to keep her away from milk, eggs, nuts & anything containing those ingredients.
Something to think about & take notice of.
Hopefully, your daughter will simply outgrow her reflux & not have to deal with allergies problems.
Good luck.

Hi K.,

My 8 month went/is going through the same thing! Our doctor prescribed Prilosec and told me to hold him in an upright position for 30 minutes after he eats. Additionally, I put a pillow under his crib matress to keep him elevated while he slept. Although, I just saw a sleep positioner at onestepahead.com that was for easing acid reflux. It looked pretty nice. Anyway, his acid reflux has gotten a little better since he started on rice cereal. Some doctors will start babies on rice cereal earlier than usual to help w/ the reflux. How does your doctor feel about that? I hope I haven't rambled on for too long. M.

Hi K.,

My son had reflux as well. We used a pillow under his head and changed his formula to Alimentum(similac) or Nutramigen (enfamil). Also after zantac didn't help he was on prilosec which tasted much better than zantac. He outgrew the reflux after a year old. Don't use the cereal in the bottle as it damages the esophagus when the reflux occurs. If his stools turn black take his to the doctor immediately as he may have blood in his stools.

K.,
My three year old son who also has acid reflux, had to be put on the pescription prevacid to help. He has been on it for a little over a year and has to had his dosage double within that time. It works but as the child grows sometimes the medicine needs to be upped in dose. There are also some very helpful Gerber drops that you can buy. They don't help as much as the prescriptions but are a temporary aid until you can get a prescription. Also, consult a pharmacist about tums for your child. They once again are a temporary aid. Lastly, observe your child's diet, there are some foods that increase the child's acid reflux. Watch and if necessary document what she ate and at what times and what strength the relux was. If any patterns in relation to the food have been observed then try to stay away from those foods. You also could ask your pediatrician for a referral to a gastroentologist. They specialize in this and could be of more help.
Hope this helps,
S. E.

Raise the crib mattress on one side. IF she is using formula, talk to your Dr. about adding cereal to weight it down (I had to pump and add the cereal. That, plus medication. worked for us until my son outgrew it. GOOD LUCK

My daughter which is now 6 was born with GERD. everything she ate she would basically vomit it back it with a vengence. Like your daughter mine would choke up the acid in her sleep. My Dr. put her on a small dose of liquid Zantac when she was 4 mnths old that helped a lot. also I gave her several small amounts of milk with a little rice cereal throughout the day to keep something in her stomach and the acid down. It seemed to clear up when she was around 1.

Hi K.,

I have 2 daughters and both of them have/had acid reflux. With my older daughter we change her formula to Nutramigin and by 7-8 mths, she pretty much outgrew it. With my youngest who is 4mths now, we changed her formula to Alimentum and was told to add cereal to her bottles.. I found that adding the cereal to her bottles made her spit up worst, so at even 2mths old, I feed her about a tablespoon of rice cereal with a spoon with every feeding. She couldnt eat with the spoon very well but I would let her "suck" it off the spoon. It was messy, but it worked wonders. I also keep her propped up as much a possible. She sleeps in a cradle swing. She was choking so bad that she turned blue on me once. She is doing much better now. Good luck!

Hi K., My daughter also had acid reflux. I am not sure if you are nursing. However, we used a formula called AR, its by Enfamil. It is a thicker formula with rice added. It helped a little. Don't worry....it gets better when they start sitting up. Good luck!!! D.

Have you asked your Dr. about medication? My daughter also had acid reflux....she cried constantly. We started out giving her Zantac but that wasn't enough, so then we gave her Prevacid in addition to the Zantac twice a day. Normally I don't like to medicate - but at that point I was desperate! I also put an incline sleep wedge in her crib - which keeps the acid from coming into the esophagus while they sleep.

I also agree with what the others are saying. My daughter also had a mild case of acid reflux when she was very young. She took Zantac too, and within 15 days, she was better. My doctor also suggested putting a hard book under her mattress so that her head is elevated slightly; this will help with keeping things down in her tummy. Keep the burp cloths handy!

I recommend a fruit juice called Tahitian Noni Juice. Go to www.tni.com order a bottle and give it to your child. This juice has helped so many people with acid reflux. You will be a satisfied mother. Go to www.tni.com and use ipc ####-###-####. The product is in the Nonprescription Physician's Desk Reference 2003, 2005, and the 2007. Kids can drink Tahitian Noni Juice. Let us concentrate on not raising our children on drugs.

S.

My daughter had the same problem. I was breastfeeding her, and always made sure to eat non-spicy foods... But after every feeding she would have projectile vomiting. It was awful! I took her to the Dr, and he prescribed a mild liquid muscle relaxer and also some pediatric Zantac. It seemed to help. You may also want to have her checked for Pyloric Stenosis.... while that's not a usual ailment, it's better safe than sorry. If her stomach muscles have not relaxed enough the muscle walls of her pyloris (the exit of the stomach - entrance to her intestines) may thicken to the point of not allowing food to pass..... so she may be forced to throw up just to get it out of her stomach. Chances are she won't have to worry about that... but it can happen.

On a side note, you may also see if there is a pediatric massage therapist in your area. That may help. I am a massage therapist, but that isn't my specialty. However, from what I've learned in my studies is that it can help the digestive system for all ages.
I wish you luck, and if you have any questions, feel free to email me. ____@____.com
Best of Luck!
Jenn

I am sorry that you are dealing with this problem. My father-in-law is a pediatrician and when my youngest, now 3 was born she had acid reflux and a dairy allergy. I was nursing and cut out all dairy, beef, and eggs. This really helped. Outside of that we started her out with a teaspoon of Mylanta. Sometimes this helps and then no prescription medicine is necessary, for my daughter it just wasn't enough so we put her on Zantac which worked for her. The biggest thing we found to help was to always hold her upright, putting her in a front carrier (baby bjorn) was awesome, she loved the snuggle time and I loved having free hands since I had a 14 month old at home. Also raising the head of her bed not just with a pillow or rolled blanket but buy the bed elevators at Bed, Bath, and Beyond and raise the head of the bed only using two of the four. We changed her formula (she nursed and bottle feed) to the nutramigen but hated the taste, so we moved to the Isomil Advanced. She loved it because it isn't as gritty as the Enfamil. It was great to have a doctor in the family and he taught me a lot about reflux. As for now, she is 3 and still has issues if we don't watch what she eats, still no dairy. Also fried foods and anything that is acidic. Hope this is helpful. Good Luck!

Hey K.,

My daughter had the same problem. She was given a medicine for acid reflux and I would prop her up at night by putting a pillow under her crib mattress to raise it slightly to help her stay elevated...hope she gets better. A.

Ive heard it helped buying a boppy and letting her sleep on it.

my daughter had it too. she didn't sleep through the night till 9 months. but, raise the mattress, with a book or pillow underneath, mylanta or maalox helped a little, keeping her upright for 30 min. after eating will help, and also they eat a lot because swallowing is what makes it better, than they end up throwing it all up, and she would through her nose. they prescribed her prevacid but i was breastfeeding and it was just about impossible to get it down her. i am sorry! just remember, it too will pass, but i have to say it was one of the hardest things i went through, and i am praying this 3rd baby i am pregnant with doesn't have it. good luck.

everything that the others have posted is what i would say... my son is 8 weeks old and has been on Zantac for 2 weeks now, I see a huge difference already. I breastfeed him so formula is not an issue with us.

My son was diagnosed with "acid reflux" at this age as well. We took him to 7 different Doctors in the area to get help and they just kept diagnosing him with acid reflux. After speaking with another Mom I found that my son didn't have acid reflux but had a cow's milk protein allergy. He is breastfed but the proteins that I was drinking were coming through my milk. Two days after I stopped drinking cow's milk his symptoms cleared right up. Most formula (other than soy) is milk based as well. I just thought I would share my experience with you incase you are in the same boat.

For true reflux raising the head of the child bed or for co-sleeping the family bed with a wedge will help keep the acid down.

Try feeding her sitting up. And also if she is sleeping in a bassinet in your room elevate the bassinet. Or buy an elevated wedge. My son had reflux and these helped him along with a rx of Zantac. Hope I helped! God Bless

I second Jessica's recommendation! PAGER is a wonderful organization -- I "lived" on their website/message boards when my son had it for his first year (we lived in PA).

Good luck to you. Be sure that you and your baby DO get out of the house despite the challenges of reflux. You and your baby need it for sanity's sake! Just pack up 2-3 changes of clothes and lots of bibs in a ziploc and go. I did and ended up meeting other local moms with babies with reflux as well.

M.

My doctor put my little girl on med. which doesn't solve the problem but it reduces it. We also give her a very tiny dosage of Mylanta which helps with the burning. She throws up still but not as often. And she doesn't cry as much if we give her the Mylanta before she eats. You can also elevate one side of her bed so the acid can stay down. I hope this helps.

michele

I have a 6 month old son and he was born a month early he also had this.. I took him to the doc and she put him on meds and it helpd alot..So i would try to take the baby to the doc and see if they will put her on some thing.. Hope she feels better soon

Even though the pillow warns not to let your child sleep in it we had my son sleep in the Boppy C-Shaped Pillow for the first several months of his life. Keeping them upright will really help the acid reflux.

My baby had acid reflux as well. She is now 9 months old and i would say she come out of it mostly by 6 months. But you can elevate her bed to where she is not laying completely flat at night. Also during the day when you are able to watch her nap you can prop her up on a pillow. The pediatrician will give you medicine for it, but i never used it as i gave it to her one time and she made a terrible face. I smelled it and it almost smelled like it was so strong the taste may burn a little. So we just finally got through it as she outgrew it.

K.-
My son had acid reflux and was on medication almost until his 1st birthday. He was on Zantac which seemed to work wonders. My nephew had a much more sever case. My sister used to have to keep him sitting upright for at least 30 minutes after he ate or everything came right back up. I have also read you can tilt their crib up slightly. The pediatrician didn't recommend this, but my nephew slept in his car seat when my sister couldn't hold him. I also used the bouncy seat when my son was little. Anything to let them and you get some sleep! The good thing is they grow out of it. We kept reducing my son's dosage gradually until he didn't need it anymore. Good luck to you.

I have heard of a sleeping wedge called the Tucker wedge(also tucker sling) that elevates the head and torso of baby. This keeps acid from coming up during sleep. if you google "Tucker sling" you should be able to find more info.