How to help baby reflux
Baby reflux. It’s one of the most common symptoms in babies in their first year. Here are some baby reflux remedies to help prevent and ease the symptoms.
- Baby spit up (reflux) is common and usually resolves over time. Your doctor may suggest some small changes to help reduce the reflux until it goes away.
- Babies with severe reflux may cry, act fussy, or have trouble eating. They also may not sleep well or grow as expected. Speak to your doctor about your baby’s reflux.
- Check your breastfeeding technique. Make sure baby is latching on well—your doctor or lactation consultant could help with this. You could always read our breastfeeding guide to getting a good latch.
- Make sure baby’s head and body are in a straight line when breastfeeding.
- Hold your baby fairly upright when bottle-feeding.
- Try having more breaks, gently burp baby a few times during each feeding.
- Ask your doctor or lactation consultant to watch while you burp your baby. They may have some tricks.
- Keep baby upright for up to 30 minutes after each feeding. Stick to calm cuddles and gentle activities, save playing airplanes for later.
- Avoid feeding too much at one time. Try giving smaller meals more often.
- Changing your own diet while breastfeeding is rarely necessary.
- Make sure you’ve got clean towels or burping cloths on hand for clean-ups.
- Speak to your doctor about probiotics—research has shown that a probiotic called L. reuteri can reduce the frequency of mild spit-ups in babies^,1.
- Continue to speak to your doctor if baby’s reflux symptoms do not improve after a couple of weeks or if you are concerned about how your baby is growing.
Sources
^In breastfed babies
1Garofoli F, et al. Int J Food Sci Nutr. 2014;65(5):646-648.
Health Link BC. Gastroesophageal Reflux in Babies and Children. https://www.healthlinkbc.ca/health-topics/tb1848 Accessed September 2020
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