Does Anyone Have Children with Acid Reflux or Asthma?

Sorry I'm late to respond, and I didn't read the other responses, so this may be repetitive. My 3-month old spit up a lot and was very constipated - so much so he was in pain. I took him to a chiropractor who helped a lot. The chiro also recommended adding pro-biotics to his diet. That has helped a lot too.

I'm a bit late but I wanted to echo what's already been said and add a little bit. Sounds like either acid reflux or forceful let down or sensitivity to what you're eating. We dealt with all of the above.

Starting at around two months my EBF LO was spitting up very frequently. She was also nursing very frequently - every 45 minutes during the day and, between 1 AM and 6 AM, every one to two hours. I also found that as she approached four months old, she would only nap for 45 minutes at a time and always woke up screaming. Because she nursed all the time she was off the growth charts, so we hadn't worried about meds, but now that it was affecting her sleep I knew we needed to do something. We put her on Zantac and it allowed her (and me!) to get a lot more sleep. If you dr. does prescribe Zantac, ask about the Efferdose Tablets. The liquid tastes HORRIBLE, but the tablets are dissolved in water and taste kind of fizzy/lemony. My daughter has no problem taking them - we're still dosing her at eight months and I've noticed that she gets crabby in the late afternoon but perks up once we give them to her. I'm thinking it's b/c her tummy hurts and the meds help.

I also have forceful let down and I think this added to her troubles. The link at kellymom.com that someone gave explains it well, as do the links on that page (there was a good article from La Leche League that I found from kellymom.com) The nice thing about forceful let down is that now that she knows how to cope with the high rate of flow nursing goes very fast! :)

She also had trouble with what I was eating - she definitely spat up a lot more depending upon what I ate. I eliminated dairy and a number of the other "usual suspects" from my diet and saw improvement. Now the only thing that bothers her is onions - she rarely spits up unless I eat onions and then watch out! My little fountain is back! If you're going to try modifying your diet be sure to keep a detailed log of what you eat and when he's fussy or spitty.

Talk to your baby's dr. until s/he hears you. If that doesn't happen, then look for a new doctor.

Good luck!

H.

Definitely get with an LC as quickly as you can, & try to see if you can see one that is in connection with your ped. as they can then work together in trying to diagnose the problems.

My now 3-mth old has been on Prevacid since about 6 weeks. We tried Zantac for a 2 weeks, which improved symptoms a bit, but the stuff tastes terrible. Ask your ped about trying Prevacid & see what happens. Arching the back & throat congestion definitely sound like acid reflux, which can be very painful for the little ones. My son still "leaks" quite a bit, but thankfully he is much happier & content to nurse since being on the meds.

You are your child's advocate, so keep asking for help if your ped brushes it off - yes, it can take some kids up to a year to "grow out of" something like acid reflux. But that doesn't mean they have to be in some level of discomfort the entire time!!

Good luck!

My now 17 month old son starting spitting up ALOT at about 2 months old. We got an ultrasound at that time to rule out the possibility of pyloric stenosis and thankfully it was normal. Our pediatrician told us that he would outgrow as he got older. He kept spitting up and startedto arch his back and cry around 4 months and that's when our pediatrician put him on Zantac for acid reflux. He still kept spitting up, but he stopped crying and arching his back. He finally did stop spitting up all together at around 6 months and we stopped giving him the Zantac soon after that. He was also an exclusively breast fed baby and off the charts for his size. He is now just fine and has no signs of acid reflux or other issues. You might want to ask your pediatrician about Zantac if they do think your son has acid reflux. It seemed to help with the pain caused by the acid. Good luck!

Hi J.!
Sounds like acid reflux to me with a possible dairy insensitivity. My daughter had the exact same symptoms (with the nose stuffiness also) and my doctor told me to remove dairy from my diet. That took care of the nose/wheezing symptom. As for the acid reflux, she grew out of it at six months of age. My son didn't grow out of his until ten months of age. Both of them are fine now. Good luck to you!

Thankfully both my kids didn't spit up their milk, but I did have a colicky baby that was constipated. I was a new mom at the time, and I didn't know what to do to help my daughter. I explored alternative therapies for her, and now she is a healthy 12 year old. In fact she inspired me to become a homeopath and a Bowen therapist. I would be happy to teach you ( free of charge) how to give a baby massage to your son. The massage will help relax him and his bowels, so that he will become less constipated. It's a good free and safe alternative, that most babies enjoy. My office is in Watsonville, and my direct number is ###-###-####. Good luck :)

My son had both and was diagnosed with Asthma at 6 months (he's now almost 10 years old) I had him go through all the test possible to make sure and then he was referred to a specialist. He started nebulizer treatments, which i usually gave while feeding (bottle) and he has improved tremendously. I will say though it took us a while to get his treatments right, we spent every other weekend in the hospital from 6 months to 1 year and it was not a happy time. But we worked through it and he plays sports and is as active as any other kid his age. We do still have inhalers around and use the nebulizer usually when the seasons change but we're thankful his doctor did what she did and he's healthy and active.
so it can be scary but push your doctor or see a specialist and it can save you numerous headaches later on.
hope this helps you out and feel free to contact me if you have more questions. I'll be glad to help you out.
B.

Have you ever heard of an "over active let down reflex"? It basically means when the milk starts coming it comes very fast. My sister/nephew had this issue and a lot of the symtoms are identical to reflux. basically the milk is coming so fast the baby is gulping to keep from choking and then overeats, thus the spitting up. There are nursing positions that make it easier for your son. The thing that triggered the thought was when you said your son was off the charts, my nephew too was off the charts wearing 18 month clothing at less than 6 months. He eventually went on reflux medicine too. Here is the webpage my sister found most helpful. http://kellymom.com/bf/supply/fast-letdown.html

I also have triplets, one of which has acid reflux. He always seemed uncomfortable when eating and afterwards. My son was put on Zantac, which did seem to help with the pain a bit. It helped to thicken his formula. Since you are nursing, you may want to try to follow with some rice cereal or maybe start with rice cereal. Cereal will sometimes cause constipation, which sounds like your little one may have. I just mixed in a little prunes or prune juice in their cereal and it always worked like charm. You can also use a tiny amount of`karo syrup...light or dark, doesn't matter. Good luck! I know it is very difficult to watch your baby be so uncomfortable.

Hi J.,

There are so many challenges with today's environment. Our children are growing up with many symptoms because their bodies are not balanced.

Acid reflux is caused from to much acid in the body. Asthma is caused from pollutants in the air.

The wellness home concept addresses balance in the home.

Yes, you can get your child healthy naturally.

There will be a children's wellness expo on Sept 12th in the bay area put together with some doctors educating wellness and how important it is to build your child's immune system at a young age.

If you are interested in learning more let me know.

Have a great day.

N. Marie
____@____.com
###-###-####

exclusively breastfed baby often start pooping less. As long as the stool is not hard and dry like rabbit pellets he is not constipated. Some kids skip one day others like you kiddo are longer. The oatmel might start him pooping more often as it is a natural laxative. At this age their gut is so effecient with breastmilk there is little waste. Both my kids (2 1/2 and 8 wks) had/have that "gurgly" wheeze that comes and goes after feeding. Try keeping his head higher than his torso (slight angle) during feedings and after feedings for 1/2 hr. It seems to help my kiddos.

My daughter was strictly breast-fed and would spit up all the time from birth. At six months when she caught a cold, she began wheezing. The doctor gave her a nebulizer and albuterol that she uses occasionally as needed. When she was a year old, we found out that she was extremely allergic to milk, and had a host of other allergies including eggs and nuts. Looking back, i think she spit up all the time because of the food that I was eating, likely an allergic reaction.

I would have the doctor check for food allergies. Once we were aware, it made our lives so much easier!!

God Bless

Hi J.,

My name is J. Simpson and I am a Lactation Consultant in Sacramento. Let's start with the simple stuff: Unless your son is having stools that are dark brown and look like little hard balls, he is not constipated. Fully breastfed (ie - NO formula) babies often poop infrequently going from pooping every day to pooping once or twice a week or even once every couple weeks! :) So no worries there.

Now for the hard part: You need to see a Lactation Consultant ASAP. There are some good ones in your area - if you e-mail me privately at ____@____.com I can refer you to someone I know who can help.

It is NOT normal for a baby to arch at breast while nursing. It is NOT normal for a 5 month old to be wheezing. I suspect this is not reflux but something more that needs investigation by someone who knows what they are doing. I am surprised your pediatrician has not jumped on the wheezing aspect of this. If you have not brought this up to him I suggest you do so immediately.

Here are my thoughts of what is going on - and I am not trying to scare you but do want you to be aware of some possible things that may be going on that need evaluation: I suspect that for some reason, your baby might be either getting too much milk too fast, or may be having some challenges with swallowing the milk he gets. Some babies will get milk stuck in their vocal folds rather than having it go down the esophagus as it is supposed to. When it gets stuck in the vocal folds, baby will make squeaky noises when they breathe and if there is enough there it can cause them to sound congested in the throat. The wheezing is what really bothers me - I am concerned that he may be getting milk into his airway (lungs). Yes this does happen and often times it is not a problem as breastmilk simply absorbs into the lungs. But too much breastmilk in the lungs can be a problem and warrants investigation. He may also have a severe case of reflux that is causing all these symptoms - but if that is the case, he needs a thorough evaluation and proper treatment - NOT to have Zantac thrown at him as a GUESS and 'let's see if this helps'. And lastly, there may be an allergy that is causing all this (that would be the simple answer!). But you need help determining exactly WHAT is happening.

So listen: Your GUT is telling you something is not right, right? Sounds like the Drs are blowing you off from your note. This is NOT cool and I hate it when this happens to moms. Start PUSHING for answers. DEMAND that someone pay attention to what your son is going through. The nursing behavior you are describing is not normal nor enjoyable - which is what breastfeeding should be. Search for (or I can help) a GOOD LC who has lots of experience with older babies (if you call around on your own ask a LOT of questions to those you talk to) with nursing challenges, take him back to the Ped and DEMAND an evaluation - DEMAND to be heard and not blown off with "He'll outgrow this".

Bottom line: TRUST your GUT, J.. It is telling your correctly that something is up.

I wish you the best in solving this - and just to let you know: my first and second sons had similar issues...one was reflux (severe) and one was a severe allergy to cows milk...and I have worked with well over 300 moms in situations similar to yours with varying reasons for the symptoms. Keep pushing for answers - change Docs if you need to. Just trust your gut...it knows...

Warmly,
J. Simpson, IBCLC, CIIM
www.breastfeedingnetwork.net
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Hi J.,

Before you turn to medication, it might make sense to review your diet. My 5-month old son is on Zantac for his acid reflux, but I've also had to give up dairy completely, as that makes him spit up more. I noticed that he would squirm and arch his back when I was feeding him if I'd eaten nuts (in this case hazelnuts in my oatmeal), which stopped when I switched to plain oatmeal. So perhaps your son is reacting to something you're eating?

My daughter was diagnosed with reflux at 4 months. Prior to that, the doctors just kept telling me that she would outgrow it....but I kept pushing. Emphasize that your daughter is arching her back and crying while nursing and ask for reflux medication. Zantac is what doctors usually start with. It takes a couple of days to take effect. Just a note, because babies gain weight at such a fast rate, I found that the dose needed to be adjusted every couple of weeks. If Zantac doesn't work, then they usually switch to Prevacid or the like. If the reflux medications don't help, then your daughter could have an allergy....most typical is an allergy to milk protein. You can also ask your pediatrician for a referral to a pediatric GI specialist. The pooping every 8 days is a concern. How much cereal are you giving? I would cut that out completely and see if things get better. If so, reintroduce the cereal slowly - by slowly increasing the amount given - and you'll know where the limit is for creating pooping issues. You don't mention the consistency of the poops - are they still liquidy/soft? Rice cereal is binding - so if they're not soft, you might want to cut it out all together. I would definitely talk to your pediatrician about the drop in the frequency of pooping. Babies can hold the poop in (either don't like the sensation, pooping hurt one time etc.) and that can cause something called megacolon. It's nothing really bad - it is just something to be aware of as it makes pooping harder to do. Bottom line - definitely follow your gut and keep pushing your doctors for help in figuring out what is up with your little girl. You're doing a great job! Good Luck!