Advise from Other Moms

I don't think chocking is so much a sign of acid reflux as spitting up.

Sometimes peds just say it's one thing when they haven't really assessed the problem. It's treat em and street em mentality. I'd get 2nd opinion - it could be swallowing problem. Which could lead to more serious issues such as aspirating (spelling?) formula/milk into the baby's lungs and setting baby up for respiatory problems.

You are being a good mom and seeking more answers. Be agressive and proactive with peds - but nice. But you'll get more out of them if you do.

Get a second and third opinion. I watched an episode on television that was similar to this and the pediatrician overlooked things and told the parents everything was okay and it was not. Get other opinions, please. You will not regret it.

Hi S., You know what almost all mothers have that Dr's do not? Motherly instinct. If you feel concerned, and I by the way would be as well, don't take "everything is fine" for an answer. You can always get a second opinion.

I would see a specialist just to be sure that its nothing more than reflux, like allergies, etc. If it is just reflux, he will outgorw it. My son had it until he started crawling. Dont know why it stops at that point, but it does, or sooner for some. He did not take any medicine because he didnt seem to be in any pain, but it was hard for me because i was afraid he wasnt getting enough nurishment. But he was and he outgrew it. Good luck.

If it's really worrying you, see a different pediatrician or general practitioner. I don't know if your insurance would cover it, but getting a second opinion is worth the money if it will calm your fears.

Get him to another doctor. It does not have to be a pediatrician, it could be a internist that deals with children.
You can not just let your baby continue to have this problem.
Please don't mess around, think quick. Get to another doctor.

well my son did the same thing he still does the doctor told me he hasnt quite learned how to swallow and my kid has asthma thats the reason he has trouble breathing.

I have also heard that acid reflux may be related to food intolerances/allergies.

Go to Dr. James Berman- he is a pediatric gastroenterologist out of Loyola, you can look him up on the net,he has a few different offices. We took my son to him, he is excellent and very personable and to boot he was just named like THE best to go to in Chicago in Chicago magazine. You may need a referal so ask your ped.

What kind of formula are u using? My daughter had a similar problem, and after trying EVERY formula out there, we finally got her onto Lactose Free, and never had another problem. Maybe try this.
good luck

Hi S.!

All 3 of my kids had reflux and went through what you described. What your doctor has said to do as far as thickening the formula, keeping baby upright as long as possible is correct. He should also be on Zantac or Prevacid to keep his throat from getting burned when he refluxes. It is something he will outgrow over time. It's different for every child-mine were 9mos, 5mos and then 6mos when they outgrew it. The one thing I would suggest is taking your son to a Ped GI doc to rule out other things such as pyloric stenosis (more common in boys than girls). You can google it, reflux and GERD and find some great info and support groups!

Good luck and hang in there!

Change the formula ? And maybe get to the bottom of this by doing more thorough exam ?

Ask your pediatrician to make sure your son does not have a condition called Pyloric Stenosis. This condition is the pyloric valve thickening until it is shut. The valve is at the bottom of the stomach. As the valve thickens the child first start spitting up but then start projectile vomiting. It doesn't sound like your child is doing this, but maybe the valve is starting to thicken. Ask about it to just make sure. Normally this condition begins around 4 weeks, not as late as 3 months. It can only be corrected by a simple surgical procedure. Good luck.

My son had something similar, but not as bad as you describe. I'd suggest asking your doctor for a referral to a pediatric gastroenterologist. These doctors specialize in digestive issues for children.

When we are not satisfied with our hair dresser, we see a new one. If you have exhausted your options that your doctor has offered, then seek another opinion. There are a few other options for you as well.
Try a new formula such as Nutragimen which the powder is finely broken down so it is easy to digest. A little more costly, but worth trying. Second, get a second opinion on putting rice cereal, oat cereal in the bottle as recent research is showing this is not going to help "fix" the issue, only masks it or make it worse (as you can tell it is not working for your son). Third, try adding some infant probioitics. If you did not nurse or give him the "golden milk/colostrum" after he was born where all the good bacteria is for their system and help aid in his digestion, then this is an important supplement as he does not have the bacteria to help him digest the dairy in the formula. Here is a nice article about it: http://www.bodyecology.com/07/09/20/introduce_babies_prob...

I also wrote about it in my family health column and you can click on colicky for the research: http://www.examiner.com/x-7158-Chicago-Family-Health-Exam...

Acid reflux/colic/ are all signs of possible food intolerances either to dairy or wheat that may show up later in life. (introducing oats too early can make an infant/child prone to celiac disease, especially before 4m of age).

If you were spitting up after each meal, you wouldn't be happy and would do all you can to resolve it. I use to have acid reflux as an infant, then as an adult until I figured out I had food sensitivities...no more meds, no more pain.

Good Luck,
J. W.
Maternal and Child Health Educator

Sometimes there is more to it than just reflux. Have you tried changing formulas?

My first had the same problem and we tried the medicine for acid reflux and it didn't quite do the trick. My doctor had me switch to lactose free-I had to do it for several days...maybe over a week to see if it worked and then when it didn't, we switched to soy-again for a week and that made a world of difference-she was on soy until she was 1. We still did the reflux medicine for a bit.

Hope you can figure it out!

I have 3 month old twins grandchildren that do the same thing. We have been given the same advice as you but have been told to use oatmeal cereal becuz rice is too harsh on them at this age. Their doc has prescriped zantac but it hasn't worked well for them. She also prescribed Raglan but we have since found out that there is a class action lawsuit on this med. So we have stopped that also. Have you tried soy formula? There is also a special formula to cut down on the spitting up (Infamil AR) however, they wouldn't take that either. We have them on the Prosobe with oatmeal. They sleep either in the swing or the bouncer all the time. They still spit up but not as bad. We are assured that at the age of 6 months it will start to get better. Just hang in there.

i suggest you get a new pediatrician, this is not normal

My daughter also had reflux. She took medicine for a few months and that did seem to help. None the less we had to be really careful changing her and holding her as any quick movements or pressure on her stomach guaranteed some spit up. I never saw her chocking or having problems breathing. However, I was paranoid for the first few months that while she slept that she would choke on her spit up.
My daughter was also very fussy/gasy so my doctor recommended that I stop eating dairy. That helped her gas situation over night and I even saw a decrease in the frequency of her spit up. Have you thought of switching type/brand of formula?

There were better weeks and days that she seemed to relapse. However, once she started eating solid foods (around 5 months), her reflux really subsided. She is 13 months now and I can't remember when the last time she spit up or vomited. So if he does have reflux, it does get better. The breathing part would be scary for me too, so it won't hurt to get a second opinion like the other moms suggest.

I heard a story nearly identical to --well, actually worse than-- this from a farmer who helped a family with their little boy. When the boy drank fresh (not pasteurized) goat's milk, he finally could eat without problems. Not saying it's a cure-all, but it's worth checking out. You can learn more on realmilk.com. about fresh vs pasteurized milk.
There's also a wonderful book called Nourishing Traditions by Sally Fallon that has helped my family, my friends and me have much better health through nutrition. You can get it on Amazon.com for a good price. In it there's a chapter on feeding infants and gives you the recipe for a truly healthy make-at-home formula. Good luck.

I'm not sure if this is the same, but my son also spit up after every meal until he was off breast milk and formula. Once he started eating solids, it stopped. He's 14 now. My pediatrician said the same thing as yours and I tried everything like you, but nothing seemed to work until he seemed to outgrow it. The only lingering problem seems to be a sensitive stomach, especially with dairy products; however, even that is improving with time.

He may possibly have a milk allergy. I would suggest having him tested, or trying switching to another type of formula. I wouldn't thicken it with cereal because if he's choking he will have more trouble swallowing the formula. These are just suggestions - hope they are helpful, and hope you can get it figured out! : )

Hi S.. :) I would definitely get a second opinion. I had a friend whose little guy had similar symptoms as a result of food allergies. Maybe try a formula that is dairy free for a bit. My friend's son had to eliminate dairy, shellfish, tomatoes and nuts from his diet (and hers while nursing) until they figured it out. Best wishes! K.

Have you tried switching formula to a soy or non-lactose formula? My oldest son was "colicky" & spit up all the time & the soy formula helped.

My daughter is almost 5 months, and up until this week she would choke on her spit up and fight to breathe for a few seconds at least once a day. It happens at any time during the day, not just right after she eats, and we keep her upright for at least a half hour after she eats. Her doctor says that up until about 6 months of age, the baby has an immature valve at the top of the stomache that allows the liquid to come back up easily. In my daughter's case, I think she is spitting up and then trying to swallow it and is inhaling a little bit of it and then choking herself. Her doctor said that we could get a consult with a pediatric gastrointestinal doctor if we felt she needed it. There is all kinds of testing that can be done and medicine that can be prescribed, but the medicine doesn't usually help all that much. Her doctor also said that as long as the baby doesn't turn blue or gray during one of the "spells" or can catch their breath again before 20 seconds have gone by, then it's not a cause for concern. If they turn colors or can't breathe after 20 seconds, call 911. Our daughter hasn't choked in 3 days, so it's getting better for us. If you feel that you are not getting anywhere with your doctor, then you should get another doctor, or take him to the g.i. doctor. Good luck!