Seeking Advice on Managing Baby's Reflux

Updated on September 25, 2006
S.R. asks from Powell, OH
44 answers

My 4 month old daughter has been experiencing issues with reflux since she was about 2-3 weeks old. She doesn't spit up a lot, but has frequent episodes of gagging or choking. Also, you can usually hear a wheezing noise when she breathes.

I am hoping that someone can provide suggestions on how they may have helped their child with this. Here is what we are doing already - she is on Zantac and we use Enfamil AR (it includes rice starch) for her formula feedings. (She also nurses two times a day.) She spends most of her time being held upright or in her car or bouncy seat. If she spends any amount of time lying down she usually has a gagging episode. But no matter what, you can hear her wheezing when she breathes. Any help on this would be greatly appreciated.

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So What Happened?

Wow! Thank you so much for all of the suggestions and sharing your personal stories. I think I'll be going back to our pediatrician or maybe even getting a second opinion on her treatment. Thanks to all of you, I now have so many more questions for the doctors.

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J.W.

answers from Detroit on

My son had reflux, I used Dr. Browns bottles zantac and Nutramigen (enfamil) formula and in a few months it was gone.

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C.C.

answers from Indianapolis on

We use a combination of Zantac, as well as Soy formula. Alone, neither of them were enough, but together, they worked very well within 2 days!

My daughter is now 15 months and is still on Zantac, but is able to drink milk and eat cheese with no problem.

Good luck!

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A.S.

answers from Cleveland on

Hello S.,

my son had reflux really bad when he was younger also and he was on Zantac too but we also had him on the alimentium formula which is a lot but it really helped him and he didn't have a lot of problems after giving him both of those. hope this helps you.
A.

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K.K.

answers from Cleveland on

Hi Shelia,
I would love to offer you advice, but I have none. I can only say that I can relate bc my son-who is now 2, had terrible reflux and he was exclusively breastfed until he started on solids. He would choke or projectile spit up. It was terrible. And with that came wheezing too, and by a year, he had allergies and runny eyes. He was also on zantac. Now at 2 he has asthma and terrible allergies and uses a nebulizer pretty frequently with zyrtec. I think the best thing we did for him was give our 2 cats to my mom and clean our house really well and rid ourselves of all of our stuffed animals which sat around and collected dust and made the allergies worse. Everytime he gets a cold or virus, his asthma is terrible. I did not tell you these things to worry you- just to make you more aware of allergies and what may be to come. Trust your instincts , if it doesn't seem right its not. Talk to your pediatrician nad see that they think. I will say, we switched from a family dr. to a ped, and it was MUCH better-i felt like they were really more in tune to his needs. I also take him to a chiropractor (and no, I really don't use them for myself) but he does accupressure on my son when hes really wheezy and it always helps-so who knows. Good luck!

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T.R.

answers from Grand Rapids on

I would ask your Ped about a drug called Reglan. Reglan makes the stomach diagest food faster making the time that the food can reflux.

My daughter Allie at 4 months was having the same issues even with breastmilk and Zantac. Within 24 hours of Reglan being in her system it stopped. The wheezing that you are hear is because your daughter is refluxing into her lungs. I would get on top of this immediately as it can lead to lung issues. I have a friend that has a little girl who took her daughter of the reglan and she was still refluxing and now she has asthma because of the damage it caused.

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N.D.

answers from Cincinnati on

i'm really not sure if this would help your problem or not, but i recommend Dr. Browns' bottles to all my friends. i dont really think they would help with the problems you are having, but thought i'd mention it. it really reduces the amount of air the babies get when drinking from the bottle.

good luck. poor baby :(

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D.Q.

answers from Dayton on

My son, who is now 3 1/2, had reflux really bad. In fact, he got better as an infant, but last year he had it really bad again. We hated to take him out to dinner because you would never know what food would set him off. We got really good at not making a scene and nobody ever knew that he got sick.

We tried everything and I have a friend who is a chiropractor and I took my son to see him. I have to say that it worked. At that point I was willing to try anything. I know that this treatment isn't for everybody, but it worked for us.

Hope this helps.

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M.

answers from Cleveland on

Hi. My son had similar issues. I put him on Enfamil Nutramigan. It's for infants with a milk Allergy/colic issues. It is expensive, but was worth every penny. Good luck!

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S.

answers from Dayton on

My son also suffered from reflux and started out on Zantac which didn't relieve the reflux for long. Our pediatrician prescribed Prevacid disolvable tablets. This really helped so much better than the Zantac because it actually neutralizes the acid and helps to heal the problem instead of covering it up. He is now 22 months old and no longer has to be be on the medication. It takes a while for them to out grow this sometimes, per the doctor, but I sure wish I would have switched long before I did. Also our doctor actually recommended that we try to keep him elevated for at least 20 minutes after eating, which is difficult in the middle of the night when your exhausted. There is a foam wedge, made for reflux babies, you can purchase also that will slighty elevate the head of the bed. You place it under the mattress, that seemed to work also. We also used Good Start Supreme formula as the others caused to much gas which did not help anything. Hope this helps, best of luck.

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M.G.

answers from Detroit on

I would suspect an allergy as well. I would try an elimination diet and eliminate dairy from your and her diet. If you need more information about eliminating dairy let me know.

Also, if you need help keeping her upright I would suggest getting a moby wrap so you can wear her upright. www.mobywrap.com

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L.O.

answers from Detroit on

my daughter is 7 months old and also had reflux. She started on zantac syrup at 2 months. She was exclusively breastfed so I had a hard time getting her to take the nasty minty zantac syrup. I know what you are going through with the infant with reflux.

she will grow out of it. My daughter puked a lot when she was very young. Now she rarely spits up. Just wait it out and it will get better. Can you breast feed her more often? Breast milk will not irritate her esophagus as much when she refluxes. Breast milk is easier for infants to digest. Try not to overfeed her, less milk more often so her stomach doesnt get too full. Be careful with carseats some of them put a lot of pressure on the babys's tummy and cause reflux.. we had problems with the carseat, but not the bouncy seat. My daughter could only sleep on her stomach. Maybe your baby would do better sleeping on her stomach also.. Remember this too shall pass.

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M.

answers from Cincinnati on

We too had a son with reflux (chronic - lots of throwing up). He is now two and on Zantac, but much better. During his early months he was on Reglan (not really an antacid, but helps move the food through his system faster. It got better as he got more mobile and was able to sit up and stand/walk. Anyway, one of the items we used in conjunction with elevating the crib mattress was the "Tucker Sling." The website is as follows: www.tuckersling.com. We elevated the mattress with a large brick and covered the brick with a blanket to protect the bottom of the mattress. The sling helped him stay in place through the night rather than slide down to the bottom of the crib due to the incline. At any rate, it worked for us...at least until he got older and too mobile(then it frustrated him as he could not roll over. Also, a friend of ours told us that their pediatrician told them to us Nestle Good Start (with "comfort proteins") as that is easier on the child's digestive system. Hope you find this info helpful. Please email with any questions: ____@____.com.

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A.

answers from Detroit on

My daughter is now 28 months and my son is 13 months. Both experienced some gagging/choking at four months. I was told it was "because they did not know how to swallow their saliva yet". My son has some wheezing monthly and he uses a nebulizer with Albuterol and Pulmicort. (Possible asthma, I'm told. It seems to help.)

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A.

answers from Cincinnati on

My daughter had reflux issues also and they put her on Zantac. We found the best position for her to be in was on her belly. If she sat up at all she would spit up. The wheezing is a little concerning and I would definately demand a doctor to address your concerns.

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T.

answers from Toledo on

Hi S.. I am the mother of two daughters, ages 4 and 2. When my first one was a baby she had reflux and it lasted 9 months. She outgrew it on her own. Does your daughter cough a lot? Wheezing is not a good thing...she is probably getting milk in her lungs. I would worry most about that, and in my case I brought my daughter to a pediatric respiratory specialist. I would also think about adding rice cereal feedings to her diet. In every case, she should sit upright for at least 30 minutes following each feeding. Her esophageal sphincter will mature and she should outgrow this on her own. I know it is scary but it sounds like you are doing everything right. Best of luck!
T.

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M.M.

answers from Detroit on

Hi S.,
I certainlly don't want to scare you...... I would have a Pediatric Cardiologist examine your daughter. When my son was 17 days old he started displaying symptoms of reflux. He was admitted to a hospital, many tests were perofmed and his ultimate diagnosis was reflux. He was discharged home on medication and a change in formula. Kyle did not have reflux! At the age of 7 1/2 weeks he underwent Open-Heart Surgery at Childrens Hospital of Michigan (Detroit) for repair of a Aorta-Pulmonary Window and an ASD murmor. This was two weeks after he was discharged home with Refulx and I was assured he would be fine. Kyle was in congestive heart failure and given a very little chance of survival. He's 9 years old now and his heart is "beautiful". Don't be afraid to ask for a second opinion. Although seeing a Pediatric Cardiologist can be scary in my case it saved my son's life which makes the decision one of the best I've made in my life. Continue to watch your daughter closely and absolutely talk to her Pediatrician again and consider an evaluation by a Cardiologist. I stress the importance of a Pediatric Cardiologist because so many doctor's examined Kyle, including (4) Pediatric Cardiologists at Royal Oak Beaumont and they all concluded that Kyle's heart was fine and his diagnosis was refulx. Depending upon the problem not all Doctor's are equipped to catch it.

The "wheezing" you mentioned is what grabbed my attention in your e-mail. I can still hear the wheezing noise Kyle made before his surgery. Watch your daughter and see if she has labored breathing to accompnay it.

Please let me know how your daughter is doing.
M.

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M.K.

answers from Cleveland on

If you are able to nurse more often that will help. I had the same thing with my son. I nursed all the time. What you may want to try is also let her sleep in a bouncy seat for the time being, or anything else that would keep her more upright. Also try putting the crib mattress on a slant.

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T.M.

answers from Columbus on

I went through the same thing with my first son! We had him on zantac and propulsid (now it has been recalled though) The doctor also ordered a collasia wedge for him. If he wasn't being held or in an upright position he had to be in the wedge. It has a nice waist strap to keep them secure and they can even sleep in it (it fits nicely into the crib) Now though you don't even need a doctors order to get one! I see them all the time in childrens resale stores for aroung $5. Considering I payed 25 (my insurance co pay) that is a really good deal.

We delt with it for almost a year but now my son will be 9 in october and we have not had a single problem in almost 8 years!

I would have the weezing check....it could be allgeries....we had that problem with my second son....that is where the nutramigen was a saving grace!

I wish you and your little one all the best!

R.T.

answers from Cincinnati on

Take her to see a pediatric allergist. My littlest one had the same problem. It's worth the co-pay! I HIGHLY suggest Dr. Mark Michael. He has offices in Mt. Airy, Western Hills and Montgomery Road. He is also a Pediatrician. I have been going to this man for years and all of my children go to him.

You may be tremendously surprised at what is wrong with your baby. She could have an allergy that is instigating this wheezing even if she shows no other signs of allergies. My daughter slept in bed with us for months with this problem with us never knowing when she might choke and/or quit brathing. Zytec syrup made her all better.

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J.H.

answers from Detroit on

My son had Reflux (GERD) so bad at that age also. He would reflux so bad it would foam out his nose. He was on ZANTAC until he was about 8 months old. I switched him to Almentium Formula and put rice ceral in all his bottles which made it heavier and harder to come up. The down side is Almentuim is VERY expensive but you could get on WIC and they will cover it will a prescription from your babies doctor. I know people look down on babies sleeping on their stomachs but I let my son because he was a hundred times more comfortable, slept more, and had less attacks. When they are on their backs it burns them more which makes them fussy and miserable which it turns make long days and even longer nights. Yes she will out grow it and it will get better soon espically when you start feeding her baby food. Good Luck.

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C.B.

answers from Detroit on

I feel for you both of my kids had the exact same problem and we did the same thing-Zantac and Enfamil AR for the formula feedings and I was nursing as well. We also kept them upright after their feedings. The only other thing that we did and it worked quite well is both my kids started Cereal once a day at first at 2mos and that really worked. My pediatrician recommended it. The good news is that reflux is a condition that kids grow out of by the time they are 1yr usually. My kids both were better by 9mos after they were taking more solids. Good luck I hope this is helpful to you. Also another medication you could ask your pediatrician about is Reglan.
C.

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L.J.

answers from Cleveland on

i am a mother of 4,, 7yrs, 5 yrs, 2 yrs, and 5 1/2 months, all of my children have suffered from reflux, my first 3 were put on various medicines that didnt seem to work very well and were all an different types of formula, the one i found to work the best with all 3 was either Nutramigen or Alimentum, yes they are both quite expensive but seemed to help alot, also my 5 1/2 month old has only ever been on one med, he is currently on Axid oral solution, and it works like a dream, the Dr. adjusts it every time we go for a check up so it is correct for his weight, but is has helped much better than any other med ever did for my other kids. also i was always told not to put them in their carseat for any longer than a half an hour because it can actually make reflux worse because they need to be proped up not sitting up. i have a pillow under the head of his mattress in my son's bed so that it elevates him enough and he seems to sleep better.also i was told not to give them more than 6 oz of formula at one time. hopefully this helps some.
Lore

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K.C.

answers from Dayton on

Hi S.! My little girl is 5 months old and also has reflux. Her doctors perscribed Zantac for her, but she started having hard stools. We had to stop giving her the zantac. She taks mylanta to help with the reflux~it seems to work pretty well with her. Within the last month or so the reflux has calmed down quite a bit. So I'm hoping she is growing out of this stage. Ask your doctor about mylanta supreme cherry flavor~see if it is a possibility. Hope this helps.....

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J.

answers from Detroit on

ok as a mom with 2 boys that are/were refluxers here is my advice for what it is worth....Cullen had the typical normal reflux and grew out of it by 18 months of age he was on zantec and reglan...If I knew then what I now know about Reglan he would have NEVER been on it. The drawback with zantec is needs to be adjusted CONSTINATLEY FOR WEIGHT - It is RX'd based on weight IMO sucks.....Now Casey my 3 yr old (as of tomorrow) is STILL on meds for his reflux he has silent reflux and is on PREVACID (it is a solutab - self disolving and WONDERFUL)With him we did the following........
Dr Brown bottles
fed and help upright for at least 1/2 hr after feeding
reflex wedge in bed
used the SIMILAC ALIMENTUM formula (bought in bulk on E-bay saved $$$) and had to STOP nursing (was the hardest thing for me)
also saw a pediatric gasternologist my son has had 2 scops and a barrium swollow tests - his reflus is THAT bad...but with the meds he has improved sooo much and was taking 15mg twice a day (equilivant to one adult dose) but now he is on 15 mg just ONCE a day - woohoo ....so if you have any questions I have been dealing with reflux both kinds for a while........

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L.F.

answers from Cincinnati on

Hi S.,

I'm new to Mamasource, but when my son was an infant, he had reflux as well. I highly, HIGHLY recommend Dr. Brown's Natural Flow bottles. They have a tube system inside them that helps keep air out of the bottle and out of your baby. These bottles were absolute LIFESAVERS!!!

That said, they are a pain to clean because each one has 5-6 pieces, but most of the pieces can be put in the dishwasher in one of those bottle parts holders you can buy from Target. If you have an older dishwasher that doesn't have a top jet, then I would suggest handwashing because otherwise they'll come out of the DW covered with food particles and stuff like that. The trouble is MORE than worth it because they can make feeding so much more comfortable for your baby AND for you!!!

And BTW, you might want to ask your pediatrician to check and see if your baby has reactive airways disease. Mine did and daily nebulizer treatments helped a LOT! That might be what's causing the wheezing.

Hope this helps!!!

.....L

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C.M.

answers from Detroit on

I had two children with reflux.....I am convinced that my first one
> was because he is allergic to nuts/peanuts. I was eating peanut butter
> sandwiches a lot because it was easy to eat. Now when he gets
> anything with nuts/tree nuts/peanuts he throws up continuously until
> he gets an epi shot or benadryl.
>
> Raise one end of her crib up so that she sleeps at an incline. I also
> put them on their stomachs to sleep. That really seemed to help,
>
> There is medicine called Ragland (I believe that is how to spell it)
> that help for the burning. Does she cry when she is refluxing?
>
> I would also start on cereal and then work to fruit. She is old enough
> and that REALLY helped.
>
> Good luck and hang in there...it does go away.

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L.F.

answers from Grand Rapids on

My doctor has my daughter on allamentum and i have to give her two rice bottle 6 hours apart a day through a bottle. they also have her on reglan and zantac. witch really helps. When i started giving her the rice bottles the urping and gagging and chocking stopped so maybe you should ask your docotr about maybe putting her on rice bottles?

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T.

answers from Grand Rapids on

S.,

My daugther to suffers from acid reflux. She is now 9 months old. My daughter experienced alot of the same symtoms that you are experiencing. Keep in mind that if your child seems to be uncomfortable and or crying her Zantac dosage may need to be adjusted. Sometimes the pediatricians don't tellyou this. A baby can take up to 60 mg per day. So adjust if needed.

Also milk protiens found in formula can cause acid reflux to be worse, my suggestion would be to lay off the formula and nurse. While nursing lay off the dairy, seafood, acidic foods etc. and see if this helps. My daughter did much better when I stuck to more of a bland diet.

If your daughter is having problems sleeping I would suggest a contraption that is called an Amby Baby found at the following web site http://www.ambybaby.com/. I waited far to long with my daughter (6 months) to get this because of the expense, but let me tell you that when I put her in it I could physically see the relief on her face. During the day I went from a baby who would only sleep 20 -30 minutes to the normal 3-5 hours. It did take a few days to get her normalized to it but it worked.

Also, I would suggest going to Dr. Sears site, I have found a great deal of support and information here that was helpful http://www.askdrsears.com.

My daughter still has acid reflux to this day I am hoping that it will subside by the time she is one. It is getting better and I have been able to drop her dosage of Zantac.

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E.

answers from Columbus on

Hi S.,

My son had reflux, too, but I think she may have allergies or asthma. If she is wheezing, she may have congestion and is gagging because of that. That would make her vomit, too-- especially if she was laying flat.

Be aggressive with your pediatrician about it, because they can be very dismissive-- if I didn't push my son would never have gotten the Zantac, and he would have been miserable for the first 8 months of his life.

Interestingly, my son is almost 3 and has allergies-- curious if there's a connection?

Anyway, good luck, and enjoy your baby girl!

E.

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J.

answers from Dayton on

Talk to your Dr. about a tucker sling most insurance companies cover them..Also my daughter devloped asthma because her reflux aspirated into her lungs...She still has asthma at 23 months but out grew the reflux...

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C.

answers from Cleveland on

Hi Shelia,

My son was diagnosed with reflux at 3 months. He would spit up quite often, whether we kept him upright and still or not. He didn't vomit very often but at the end of the 2nd month (while we were waiting for the test results to come back) he would double over as if in pain and start to cry uncontrollably. He too would breathe with a wheezing sound, especially at night. We elevated one end of his bassinette to help keep him a little more upright. Our doctor put him on pepcid and we kept him on regular formula (similac advanced). I did try regular enfamil but this seemed to make my son spit up more often. The other thing we did start doing is putting 2 tsp of rice cereal in his bottle at night. Of couse we had to cut the nipple a little bigger but within 2 days he started sleeping through the night. I imagine this is what the AR is supposed to help with but maybe try regular formula with rice cereal one night to see if that makes a difference. Also, ask your doctor about switching to pepcid, I know they are basically the same thing but just like some babies do better with one type of formula, she may do better with pepcid. Good luck.

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B.R.

answers from Columbus on

Good morning! I am by no means a medical professional so my comments are purely from experience. My son had severe reflux when he was born. Projectile vomiting, wheezing, couldn't keep any weight on. He would nurse, or bottle feed, vomit and it scared him so he would immediately suck in and the wheezing came from fluid in his lungs. Has your baby had her lungs checked lately? If not, I would suggest having that done. Since my sons reflux was so bad, he actually had surgery to make his valve at his stomach a one way valve. To this day (he is 12) he still hasnt been able to vomit. However, he is very healthy. He also took the Zantac but I fed him Isomil. His bed was raised on one side and he NEVER laid flat on his back. In addition, he was attached to an apnea monitor in case he was to have an episode and that would set off the alarm if he stopped breathing.(again, he sucked in when he got scared and the formula went down into his lungs)
I know it is difficult but from what my doctors told me, reflux in babies is very common. I would just have her throughly checked out to make sure there arent any underlying factors to her wheezing....in time, she will be fine...good luck! That little valve on her stomach just isn't strong enough yet!

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D.J.

answers from Cincinnati on

You might want to try a soy formula...something lactose free and see if that helps. I know my son had problems with lactose, and i switched, it helped!!! D.

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E.

answers from Toledo on

My daughter who was one in July has reflux. I breast feed so I dont know much about the formula. She would choke during every feeding. We were told to only feed her every 2 hrs., She slept only in her bouncy chair or car seat. Due to the gaging. The thing that seemed to help was that at 4 mths she was put on cereal, the weight of the solid food seemed to help if she was given this before nursing. She still has some problems now when drinking, but with age it seems to be getting better. She had the all the testing done for reflux when she was a little less then 2 weeks. The doctor said that the choking and gaging was comeing from the fact that she was trying to swallow as she was spitting up. As for the weezing that could be so many diffrent things. It could be nothing a lot of times its just upper respitory, but it could also be something....you should get that checked.

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A.

answers from Cincinnati on

Hi, my daughter (now 22 months) had reflux. We put her on Nutramigen and it worked great. It is expensive but it was the only formula that worked for her. She was much better by nine months and was able to sleep in her crib. Good luck.

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T.M.

answers from Cincinnati on

My daughter was also diagnosed with GERD. We went to a Pediatric Gastrointestinal Specialist. After several grooling tests she was diagnosed. We were told to keep her on her regular formula (Enfamil Lipil) because changing her formula could do more harm than good. We were also told to start putting cereal in her bottle, one teaspoon per ounce of formula. It would weigh the formula down. We were also told to try Dr. Brown bottles specifically made for GERD and put cereal nipples on them. We got a ton of them from Babies R Us. It worked! We went from her throwing up every bottle to maybe one a day. That was a huge improvement. The breathing was an issue with us as well, my daughter stopped breating on several occassions. We were told to put a wedge in her crib and anywhere she sleeps. We also purchased that at Babies R Us. She was also put on Zantac. A little hint, put it under the bed sheet to keep the baby from slipping off of it. Her breathing problems also got better after the wedge. The biggest thing I had to remember was to keep her as elevated as much as possible during and after feedings.
I hope this helps! Tarisa

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A.

answers from Dayton on

Wow, you sound so much like me. My son was diagnosed with asthma and reflux when he was about 6 weeks old. He constantly spit up his food and I don't just mean spit up...it flew across the room. Our doctor suggested putting him on a formula, Alumentum. I will not lie, it is expensive. I also was told by his pediatrician to put rice cereal in his milk because it helped thicken things up a bit to help it stay down. It did seem to work somewhat. He was also put on Zantac for a little while. What really seemed to help him was the combo between the formula, the rice cereal and ALWAYS feeding him in an upright position. I even went so far as to put a phone book under two legs of his crib and made it no more than about a 40-45 degree angle to help him sleep better. I do not suggest putting a pillow under the mattress. I also suggest using angled bottles with the liners in them. The less air, the better. I feel your pain and sympathize with you. As I write this response, I can remember sleeplesss nights and nights that he slept in his swing all night long. He lived in his swing because it helped keep him upright. I hope that helps. Hang in there. It will take time for her little digestive system to grow! A.

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S.

answers from Cincinnati on

Hi S.,
To have a four-month old on medication must be terribly difficult. I suspect this issue could be managed without medication and may be caused by Candida Albicans, which means an overgrowth of yeast. Let me know if you want specific information.

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M.

answers from Toledo on

S.,

My son was diagnosed with acid reflux around 4-5 months also. We did an upper GI on him and our doctor put him on Prevacid. He did not get off the medicine completely until after we started whole foods with him around 10-11 months. He also could not sleep at nights laying flat. We had to have him sleep in his portable swing until he was around 6-7 months old. Then after he gained some weight, and was growing more (after we found a formula he would tolerate, which was Nestle Good Start with Comfort proteins which is already broken down somewhat for their digestive system) then he would lay flat in his crib. I carried him around a lot with me in the upright position also in a baby sling when he got older and had head control. The bad thing about him not having tummy time like most kids, is that he did not flip over until he was 5-6 months and did not walk until almost 14 months. So, right now I can't really give you much more advice but to keep up what you are doing and it is just a matter of time until they out grow it.

Good Luck!

Kim

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D.

answers from Cincinnati on

HI Shelia
My is D. and my first child had reflux. Real bad. She actually had projectile vomiting. We would feed her and had to keep her in her pumpkin seat for 45 min. after feeding. This helped somewhat but not completely. She did have an upper GI done at 6 weeks. I also was told to mix cereal in her bottle of formula and to make it as thick as needed to prevent vomiting. She finally out grew this at around 9 months. My only concern is that you say your daughter wheezes. I would definitely have that checked out by a doctor. Perhaps could be related to allergies. I really feel that is the first place to start at this point. Wishing you and your loved ones well.
D.

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K.

answers from Toledo on

My son had reflux with vomiting where the distance was measured in feet. I tried both reflux medications with no improvement. Another mom suggested visiting a pediatric chiropractor. We did and she was wonderful. Not only did the reflux improve but he was happier, more mobile, and the best part is my relationship with him improved because I was no longer getting spit up on and could cuddle with him. It took about 10 visits and most of those were 2-3x a week for the first few weeks. I highly recommend it... a natural way to get improvement with out drugs or formula feeds.

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J.S.

answers from Lansing on

You poor things! My son had horrible reflux and still does but it is under control now. He is now 7 months old and is FINALLY able to sleep on his back in his crib.

I am curious to know how long your daughter has been on Zantac?

When my son was just a couple of weeks old I noticed that his crying wasn't just the normal "I'm a baby so that's what I do" sort of cry. He was gurgly and spitting up (but not a lot) and wheezed when he would sleep. As a new parent, I barely slept when he did because I was worried about his breathing.

For about three months he slept in his car seat. That was the only thing that would work. We would put his carseat in his crib and let him sleep that way. I know that isn't the best solution but he didn't seem to like to sleep any way else. The pediatricians offered a wedge for him to lie on in his crib. You could probably talk to your doctor about getting a wedge from them or having them refer you to a company that provides these wedges. They just elevate the baby enough but still allow them to sleep safely on their backs.

I know that when I started giving my baby his Zantac, he HATED it! He would spit and gag and I don't blame him because I tasted it and it was pretty nasty. So, for the first month or so, I'm not sure if he received his full daily dose. However, after being on Zantac for about five months now, he is doing great. It is the best at controlling his reflux and if he misses a day, I can tell that the reflux is back and bothering him. I eventually started laying him down flat on his back - and if he woke up and wouldn't go back to sleep, I would put the car seat (or wedge in your case if that works better) back in the crib. Eventually, he was able to sleep on his back all night. Now if he has problems, I know that it might be something else bothering him and not his reflux. As he got older, the wheezing stopped.

I decided to have my son stay on Zantac rather than taking the matter further. He did have a test done where he had to drink a chalky fluid and then a specialist watched that fluid go down into his stomach to see how much reflux he had. You could actually see on screen his stomach digesting the fluid. It didn't really act up at the time but I had the choice of seeing a gasto-intestinal specialist to discuss my options. I decided to see if the Zantac would work before I put my baby through any more tests.

I hope my rambling advice helps you a little. Each baby is so different and I hope that your daughter just grows out of it soon and if not, that the medicine will take effect. It's no fun at all to have a reflux baby - for you or for them!

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M.V.

answers from Cleveland on

My girlfriend's baby was having the same problem. She ended up getting so scared about the choking after a particularly bad insident that she took her to rainbows and they said that her baby didn't get sucked out well enough when she was born and that stuff was still in her lungs they sucked her out really good and no more problems! I don't know if its the same thing but its another option for you to try that does not involve giving baby drugs!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! good luck i hope she feels better

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C.T.

answers from Detroit on

Hi! my daughter had the reflux.(she is now 22 months old).My son 7 weeks old has it also! With my daughter, they had her on the nutrmagen(allergy )formula, and had rice cearal added to it.also was on zantac.she would throw up across the room and spit up bad. For my son, he is just like your daughter. he gags and chokes. He is also having a real hard time with formula.(constipated andVERY fussy) they have switched his formula 4 times. he is now on the allergy formula by simalac and is on zantac.we tried the ceral with him in his bottle, but he couldnt handle it. It sounds like your doing everything right.I would make sure your doctor knows about the wheezing. sounds like it isgetting in her lungs.GOOd luck to you! if you find any new trick that works please share with me! C.

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