Gassy Fussy Baby

I would recommend that you cut out all dairy in your diet if you haven't already. What a difference that made with both my kiddos. Also, we did the bicycle movements and some tummy massage for my daughter, and stayed away from the Mylicon. She learned to pass the gas on her own far earlier than my son did (who we did use the Mylicon with). She is now 2 1/2 months old and really hasn't had a problem passing her gas for a while, unless I eat dairy (a couple bites of milk chocolate doesn't seem to bother her, but a bowl of cereal with milk will).

Check what you're eating. Try eliminating some things and waiting about a week before trying to decide if it's working or not (some things you eat, once they get to your baby through breastmilk, will take up to 2 weeks to get out of their system if it is causing irritability. So, if you change your diet be sure to give your baby's body a chance to eliminate the irritant.) Also, remember, some babies are more sensitive to foods than others. I had one who could tolerate ANYHTHING I ate, two who couldn't take Dairy, and a fourth who had problems breastfeeding altogether but did fine with milk-based formula. Trust me I KNOW it is hard to give up some foods you like. Just try it and take it from me: seeing a happy pain-free baby feels better than any food you might want to eat.

Hope that helps!

Hi E.!

First let me say that I know what you're dealing with is SO hard right now! It will pass, it will. The first 6-weeks are the hardest. Just hang in there, and try to cherish all these moments (even the gassy ones) with your new little guy.

That said, have you tried Mylicon (infant liquid gas drops)? It worked wonders for my little one, Emma. We started giving it to her after every single feeding, and it really helped.

Also, try laying him on his back, and with your hands around his ankles, push his knees gently to his chest. Then push them to one side, then the other. (So you're going: center, left, right, center, left right... does this make sense?) Repeat this for awhile... it'll help him expel the little gas bubbles in his tummy.

And finally, maybe try to think of what you ate before his gassiness. I know when I was nursing Emma, if I ate broccoli or asparagus she got really gassy. Also, she ended up having a milk allergy, so when I had any kind of dairy, she got gassy, too. Maybe his tummy is having a reaction to something you're eating? Just try to keep track of it for a few days and see if you can find a pattern.

Hang in there with your little guy!

And feel free to email me anytime you need to vent! My heart totally goes out to new moms! :-)

Blessings,
S. R.

Mylacon for gas or Little tummys will help.

You have gotten alot of great advice, the gripe water and pushing up the legs to the tummy works well. Also if you are not drinking enough water, your baby will have gas and a harder having bowel movements. Whatever you weigh, you need half of your body weight in ounces of water plus more because you are nursing. Try drinking at least 3 liters a day. I know that is alot but you would be suprised to see how much this helps with the gassiness and helps to keep your milk supply up. As a mom of six this is what helps the most. Good Luck.

Mylicon always worked wonders when my kiddo was little. You might have already tried that, but if not.

My son inherited some big issues with gas and was also a preemie so he just had gas really bad and broke my heart til we found the best remedy: Little Remedies has Tiny Tummies gas drops. They taste better than the more popular Mylicon, worked much faster/longer, and for some reason it was like half the price for the same amount. You can get this at Babies R Us.
There were the other things too: putting him in a warm bath, bicycling his legs, etc but the best and fastest cure was the Tiny Tummies. Also, when he was 6 weeks old we had to go to formula and our pediatrician said that we could even put the dose in his bottle. That did make a difference! SO GLAD the gas thing went away when he was about 6 months old.

Congrats on getting the breastfeeding down. Gripe water! It's a miracle worker. I've even been seeing it at CVS and Walgreens if it's not in the baby section it's somewhere near the children's medicines or ask the pharmacist. Also try to remember what you may have eaten in the past 2 days things like broccoli, harder to digest veggies or fruit, milk, stuff like that can trigger tummy problems for his little system. I gradually added my "normal" diet things when my son was that little - milk and chocolate were always a problem and I LOVE milk like 3 glasses a day (and of course I love chocolate too ha!).

Mylecon infant drop worked wonders for my little girl. I hope that helps - it is hard functioning on little or no sleep!

A.

Have you ever tried a chiropractor? I am a chiropractor and I treat babies for colic and/or digestive disturbances on a regular basis. When areas in the spine that correlate with the digestive tract are out of place, it can cause the digestive tract to function incorrectly. By getting the area adjusted it removes the interference on the nerves. Another cause can be due to antibiotic usage. The antibiotics can cause their digestive tract to get out of balance which can result in problems with gas or yeast. The third cause can be food allergies. At my office, I use Applied Kinesiology (aka muscle testing) and determine what, if any, allergies are present. By using a cold therapeutic laser, we can help to eliminate the allergies. We can also check for underlying nutritional deficiencies. It sounds like a lot, but it is quick and painless for the baby. If you have questions, or would like more information, please don't hesitate to email me or call me at ###-###-####. You can also check out my website at sullivanchiropractic.com. Thanks! Dr. Sandra S.

Hi E.,

Congratulations on your new baby! What a wonderful and exhausting time. When my 1 year old baby girl was newborn, I had to give her gas drops after every feed. I was also breastfeeding and tried to cut out all of the foods that were suggested but she still suffered from gas. I didn't bother with the expensive Mylicon drops but rather used the generic Wal-mart version and it worked great and saved us a fortune. It's the one medicine you don't have to worry about giving your baby because it actually never enters the baby's blood system. It stays only in their digestive system and basically just helps them to more easily pass gas so they aren't in pain. I would also sometimes lift her legs up towards her tummy gently and the pressure of that on her tummy would often help her to go ahead and pass the gas so she could get back to sleep. Best of luck, D.

You've gotten a lot of good suggestions. Here's what I would add: Instead of buying expensive gripe water, you can make your own fennel tea and feed it to him--grind up 1 tsp fennel seeds (from the spice section) with a mortar and pestle. Steep it in 1 c. boiling water for 20 min, then strain (I used a french press, like for coffee). Once tea is well-cooled, to lukewarm, mix 1/2 tea and 1/2 water in a baby bottle and feed him an ounce or so. (you can keep the extra tea up to 24 hours, to feed to him again if he gets fussy) It will both calm him and help him get the gas out. My dad used to laugh and laugh when we did this with our DD--she'd go from a screaming banshee, to happy baby who sounded like a foghorn was sounding out of her bottom (big noises for such a little girl! LOL!).

Also, for your diet, these were the things I couldn't eat: onions, garlic, anything spicy, and nuts. These were really, really hard to avoid--almost anything commercially prepared has onions and/or garlic in it, and lots of things have nuts when you don't expect (like breakfast cereal, some breads...). It will be different for every baby, but the nuts took me a while to figure out. It made a world of difference once I did.

GL! I know it can be really, really, hard having a crying baby and no sleep! But you'll make it, I promise!

Hello E.,

Congratulations on your baby boy! great advice already. You did not mention if you were breastfeeding...if so, watch your diet. bubbly/carbonated drinks and certain vegetables will give the baby bad gas. Good luck and God Bless! ~C.~

Becareful of the foods you eat that cause you gas. It goes right into his little system too. And it is harder for him to pass it like adults do. But take a warm wash cloth and rub it over his tummy and there are infant gas drops that relives babies really well. Hope that helps take care good luck

Go to www.coliccalm.com. It is WONDERFUL stuff. SO much better than Mylicon! My baby had reflux and terrible gas, I researched solutions online and found Colic Calm. It saved my sanity! I didn't have to put her on reflux meds and it helped so much. She loved it! Its a little tricky to give to them when they are this young, but it can be done, SLOWLY.
Its all natural. Check it out, we are still using it for teething and gas, and she's 14 mo old now!

Gripe water and mylocon is commonly used-But you need to stay off all dairy-milk, yogurt, cheese, etc. You can drink soy or rice milk and there is soy yogurt and soy ice cream. Good luck. V. B.

I'll keep it short:
If you're breastfeeding, what you're eating can contribute greatly. Start with cutting dairy out. That's usually the biggest culprit. Then if necessary, cut out citrus, broccoli, beans.

If you're formula feeding:
may need to change types. Soy or milk based may be tolerated differently.

Be careful with the Mylecon drops...certain ones were recalled recently.

I had a friend who taught me how to massage the gas out of the babies tummy. You rub the stomach (either over the clothing or with some lotion) in a clock wise direction. She taught me a fun little way to do it. You rub straight across the topof the belly from left to right and say "I", across the same way then down the right side (your right) like an "L" and say "love" and then follow the same track across the top and down the right side, then continue left to right across the bottom (to make a "U") and say "You!" So you tell your baby you love them while massaging the gas out. After doing it with my first and seeing it work, my husband started asking me to do it to him when he gets bad gas. It seems to cause a little discomfort up front sometimes, but it usually works pretty quickly.

Have you tried making your diet more bland? Avoid beans, cabbage, broccoli and other gas causing foods while breastfeeding. Also acidic and or spicy things can upset baby also.

If that doesn't seem to work, you can give baby mylicon with each feeding.

Use 1/4 teaspoon of Mylanta origonal liquid... works like a charm!

Good luck
A. J

You might try bicycling his legs this use to help my daughter. You could also try Mylanta (sp?) or some other sort of baby tummy relief medicine.

You've had some great suggestions. We too had success with the Gripe Water (miracle worker!) and baby massage! Hang in there, it will get better.

FYI Mylicon drops just issued a recall on infant gas drops due to metal shaving found in them....I threw mine out and would reccomend Gripe water instead.
Good luck!
J.

I used to watch an extremely fussy baby. She lived on gas drops, but it was not enough. I would give her the gas drops but also "exercise" her legs. Put baby on his back and gently push legs toward abdomen, you can also cycle the legs like the bicycle exercise like you would do. This helped a lot.

My daughter was the same way. I used to lay her across my knees and burp her to get the gas out. Her stomach was over my knees (providing a little bit of pressure to aid in getting rid of the gas) and I would use the force of a burping pat until she would calm down. I also used Mylicon if it was during the day and she was awake. I hope this helps or you find a solution for your little one.

I've read great advice so far on what to eat and what to give your baby. Also try these movements: Place your hand (with fingers spread out) on the baby's tummy. Slowly and gently press your fingers down moving from left to right - this moves the gas through the system. Do this a few times and then raise down of the baby's legs up (knees bent) toward the stomach. Do this move a few times. You should hear some gas come out. If not, repeat. My son had the same trouble. After giving him Mylicon, I would do these moves. I usually got gas out, plus he was often distracted by the movement.

My child had cholic when I breastfed. It was due to gas too. Stay away from caffeine, green leafy vegetables, spicy, and dairy. I went to a strictly meat and potato diet. Of course I stayed on vitamins. When my daughter turned 3 months, I switched to formula. I recommend Gentlease by Enfamil. It is made for fussy babies with gas. Once I switched she never had cholic again and started sleeping thru the night for at least 6 to 8 hours before needing another bottle. I strongly recommend sleep and formula than just keep trying to breast feed.

Put baby over your lap or a pillow tummy down and try to raise rear end up a little. Rub and gently pat lower back. This usually helps gas escape. Also, give Mylicon with every feeding. In a few more months, this will no longer be a problem. Congratulations on your new baby!!

i had the same problem and my son was living on mylecon drops. we used baby's bliss gripe water. you can get it at market street for about 10 bucks! it's a miracle worker. as soon as i'd give it, he'd start passing gas. it's natural, made with ginger and fennel seed. it works wonders for colic as well. i did lots of research before giving my tiny one anything. this came highly recommended. after recommending it to a friend, she also had her pediatrician tell her about it. it helped her son's colic. all around, it's great!! good luck.

They have these colic tablets made from Hyland. They dissolve in the baby's mouth. Its perfectly safe. My pediatrician recommended it for all of my children. When the baby starts teething, they make tablets for that as well from the same company. Its all natural! Good Luck!

Hi I'm a mother of 9 and my youngest is 4 wks. on mon. I breastfeed as well and she wasnt having BM on her own so I have to stimulate her to go. Here is what you do: Let ur baby nurse about half the time they normally take for a feeding, when they are completely relaxed place a unfolded diaper under them and lay a burp rag over that..take some lotion or KY and rub on the exterior of their rectum using your index finger massage the perineam or scrotum area with the tip of your fing applying small pressure and do the same at the opposite end of rectum right under the tailbone...take you hand and gently massage their belly about an inch below their bellybutton on either side...heres the hard part (it was for me) make sure their is addequate lubricant and using Pedia-lax you can get from walmart for less than $2.00 its a glycerin suppositorie just use a 1/4 inch of the tip no more than what you would insert a thermometer never insert and leave there but gently stimulate the rectum with it however BEWARE you will not only help them relieve gas but will probably get a BM out of the too!
Hope this helps you.
PS. never give the Mylacon infant drops to your baby until you try them yourself first it made my husbands stomach cramp and hurt for 45 minutes when I tested it on him..he was laying on the floor in a ball.
Take care of you and that baby!

If Mylicon does not work, try baby yoga... worked for my baby when she was a newborn! Push, gently, one leg at a time toward the tummy, then both at the same time applying a little not too much pressure on the tummy when you push forward. Repeat as often as needed... beware of gasses that may be emitted! If that does not work, try massaging baby's tummy with a little baby oil. Hope that helps!

P.S. Parent's Magazine has a great baby and me yoga dvd, check it out! My little one loved it.

lay the baby across your legs on their belly and bounce. this really helps.

I did ItsyBitsy yoga with my little guy and PRESTO, it seemed like that always helped to relieve some of the pressure (i.e. he always seemed to poop afterwards!). I did it at Pea In the Pod (for free!) but I know there are some books out there. One that was great was the bicycle where you lie them on their back and move their little feet as if they are riding a bicycle. Try this one! http://www.itsybitsyyoga.com/products/playnflourish.html

Another thing we did that provided A LOT of relief was to buy a little cordless heating pad you put in the microwave to warm that you lay on his/her belly. Just make sure you don't get it too hot! We bought ours at Walgreens or CVS, and it helped so much!

Be careful if you use the Mylicon drops as there was a recall of some batches recently:

http://www.reuters.com/article/ousiv/idUSTRE4A97D520081110

if you are nursing this child,you are needing to watch your diet. eat no gassy foods and no chocolate You can get a list of foods to avoid from your Doctor.
You may need to buy a baby seringe and help him get rid of the gas.
Good Luck.
MK