Reflux moms question...long.

timark99

So I was wondering if any of the reflux BFing moms did any diet changes and if they saw any improvements, We mentioned A's spitting up to our pedi but she doesn't seem that concerned. He doesn't have pain or weight loss so no meds at this time, she didnt discuss diet changes either. More of watch and wait to see what happens as he gets older. So just wondering how other LOs are coping with the reflux if they aren't on any meds.

[Deleted User]

How much does LO spit up?  Unless it's lots & lots, it is probably normal.  Diet changes are usually needed for allergies, not reflux.

Are you thinking that your LO has reflux, but your doc just isn't listening?  I am a little confused about your question(s).

mayanut

I combo feed, and noticed that he spits up equally with BM and formula, so that ruled out something I was eating.  According to ped, his spitting up is a result of the muscle at the top of the stomach not being mature enough and causing stuff to come back up.  So in his case it's not really reflux caused by acid, just spitting up.  Ped called it a "happy spitter".  

We get our best results from feeding in an upright position (maybe try football hold?), waiting a little bit after he finishes to move him to burp (letting it settle) and being very careful after feedings with positioning and burping.  Anytime he middle section gets "squished" after a feeding, spitup happens.

timark99

As for amounts of spitup it varies between just dribbling, to full on drenching his outfits and usually ours too. Time length can vary from immedately after we've fed to sometimes an hour or so after hes finished eating. We try to keep to keep him more upright and not to get squished. I am hoping it is more of a underdeveloped stomach sphincter developement but worried i guess if it is more allergy based. (sorry I get the allergy mixed up with the reflux since spitup happens in both). He's always happy and doesn't fuss with spitting up. I've just had several people the last few weeks say their babies never spitup so much as mine does so I didn't want to be ignoring something that I initially thout was normal and that my pedi told to just wait.

GrayGhost13

timark99:

As for amounts of spitup it varies between just dribbling, to full on drenching his outfits and usually ours too. Time length can vary from immedately after we've fed to sometimes an hour or so after hes finished eating. We try to keep to keep him more upright and not to get squished. I am hoping it is more of a underdeveloped stomach sphincter developement but worried i guess if it is more allergy based. (sorry I get the allergy mixed up with the reflux since spitup happens in both). He's always happy and doesn't fuss with spitting up. I've just had several people the last few weeks say their babies never spitup so much as mine does so I didn't want to be ignoring something that I initially thout was normal and that my pedi told to just wait.

This sounds exactly like my DS!

At our 2 month appointment, the pedi gave us the option of putting him on meds or not depending on how we thought he was doing. Even though he spits up a lot and seems to get hungry often, since he's spitting up a lot of what he eats, he seems to be doing ok otherwise, so we've held off on giving any medications. We'll see what the pedi says at his next appointment. If he's still doing ok on weight and such, I guess we'll forgo the medication.

The pedi also mentioned I could try eliminating dairy from my diet just in case he had a dairy sensitivity, but to be honest, I haven't tried that yet. There's dairy in so many things that it would be a substantial change, and I haven't felt like things were bad enough that I needed to do that.

[Deleted User]

timark99:

As for amounts of spitup it varies between just dribbling, to full on drenching his outfits and usually ours too. Time length can vary from immedately after we've fed to sometimes an hour or so after hes finished eating. We try to keep to keep him more upright and not to get squished. I am hoping it is more of a underdeveloped stomach sphincter developement but worried i guess if it is more allergy based. (sorry I get the allergy mixed up with the reflux since spitup happens in both). He's always happy and doesn't fuss with spitting up. I've just had several people the last few weeks say their babies never spitup so much as mine does so I didn't want to be ignoring something that I initially thout was normal and that my pedi told to just wait.

Ugh, how aggravating!  I can totally see why you are frustrated.  Maybe keeping a journal of his spit ups might help?  Then at your next pedi appt, you can review it.  If he is happy, then I would wait to talk to the pedi again.  If he's unhappy, I might go in sooner or get a second opinion. 

Wouldn't it be nicer to just have a reference guide for your LO??  Then when you call the pedi, they'd just tell you to refer to page 47!  GL!

jbark2004

DS is on meds, but we still have good and bad days.  My ped said dairy shouldn't make a difference, but I find cutting out drinking milk is the only thing that has effected it other than the meds.  I haven't cut out any other dairy like cheeses though.  Of course I love drinking milk, so I still do it on occasion and the laundry pays the price. Before we started meds, we tried eating at an angle, eating in the moby in hug hold, being upright for 45+ minutes after eating, no swinging whatsoever, and elevated the head of all sleeping surfaces; none of it worked for us, but may work for other babies.  I wish you luck and hope your LO grows out of it quickly.

timark99

Thanks for all the advice! We will keep trying to keep the food down, and the journal def sounds like a good idea, so i will give that a try too. He still pees a ton and his fontanel is fine so not worried about dehydration. Good thing laundry doesn't bug me and when we go out we both take changes of clothes. Thanks again! Heres hoping he grows out of it since I miss my dairy and it has only been a day or two.