Stomach Reflux

This may sound strange, but you may want to try some chiropractic care to help her. Many times we see children with problems like this and just by getting adjusted it gets better. Putting her on meds this early is undesireable because there are always side effects. If chiropractic doesn't help you can always go back to giving her the meds, but at least this conservative approach only has positive benefits. Please feel free to email me if you would like more information.

Have you looked for the new digestable formula, Discovery Health had a baby with the same problem and started her on it and she's doing fine. I hope you can find it in Walmart. At least here you can. Good luck, if you want an old remedy try to find some catnip and fennel in the pharmacy I used that on my kids when they were babies enos ago. Hope this helps.

AS A MOTHER OPF 2 PREMIES:

call the doctor
surgry could be used to close the opening to the stomach some and then prevent the stomach acid from getting out

Hi M.,

I would look into craniosacral massage. I know it sounds crazy, but it works. Our pediatrician recommended it to me after 8 weeks of NO sleep. Our colicky boy was practically cured after two sessions. It was an incredibly gentle, but effective massage. You can visit http://www.iahp.com/ to find a practitioner in your area. I would call everyone on the list in your area and ask how much experience they have working with infants. You want to find someone who can address the issues quickly so your baby can be out of pain. My heart goes out to you. I wish you all the best.

Hope this helps.

M.

Can you try gas drops in her bottles? I don't know because my sons weren't on zantac, but had stomach issues as well from being born early.

I hope this helps and good luck..

J.

There is a product that is completely safe and does wonders, it has aloe in it and lots of other things to help with the stomach, it is called ViaViente, while it is a bit pricy, it is deffinately worth the money and your sanity! i know a couple of people that just put it right in their babies bottles. Hope this helps!
L.
www.TheMomTeam.com/lajeanhuntley
Moms helping Moms across the country!

My daughter had the same thing. She was at the gastroenterologist a couple of times. Zantac didn't work and they finally put her on prevacid which did wonders. Same thing for one of my friend's daughters. It just worked so much better and was very eay to give. Ask your ped - it can't hurt.

Both of my children had/have reflux since birth. In their cases we had them on 3 different meds and they had to be put on breathing monitors. Make sure you set your baby up at a 45 degrees for atleast 30 min after feeding them. Do not lay them down, put them in a carrier. The doc told us to put 2 teaspoons of baby rice cereal to every 2 oz of formula when the kids were 3 weeks old. That will help keep the milk down & ease the pain. Don't over feed her. When babies tummys hurt it's natural to want to eat. That will ease the pain but then they throw up from over eating. Also should use a soy based milk. You can call me if you like. Please e-mail me for my number. ____@____.com Good Luck! A. S.

My daughter had the same thing and we changed her formula to Allimentum and the difference was incredible. Nutramagin (spelling?) is the same thing, but a little less expensive. We also were told by our doctor to use the pre-mixed formula instead of powder because its much easier to digest and mixed perfectly -- which is so hard to do with powder. Ask your doctor if you can use mylicon drops in addition to the zantac. We gave her mylicon before each bottle and that offered a lot of relief for her. Lastly, I would put a wedge in her crib. It just elevates the head slightly and helps keep the acid down while she's sleeping. They sell it at Babies R Us. Good luck and don't worry, she'll get better really soon!

Zantac was not strong enough for our son, his pulmonologist prescribed him prevacid. It is a prescription and a bit more expensive but totally worth it. His reflux caused him late night asthma attacks and he was not gaining weight because he never ate. Now he is finally gaining and he does not need his rescue inhaler anymore.
T.

It could be she's allergic to the formula. Or are you nursing. Make sure you ask your doctor or another doctor. she may need soy formula. But lets see what the other moms say.

My daughter too had reflux and was on Zantac. The best thing I found was to keep her upright as much as possible, especially right after feeding. The doctor recommended that we feed her evey few hrs and keep her upright for at least 20 minutes after feeding. She spent a lot of time either being held or in a swing. Also, I tried different formulas to see if any of them made a difference in the amount or frequency of throwing up. When she would be in alot of pain, putting her over my shoulder with her stomach on my shoulder and walking seemed to help the most. It was rough, but it eventually got better over time and she learned to sit up quickly. Hope this helps. Good luck!

Hi, I feel sorry for you already. My fourth child was born with severe reflux and had to be on medication twice daily. Zantac is just the first levelof medicine tht you an give your child. If it doesn't help him then there are atleast 2 other medications that are stronger. I will have to look back at our records to see what they were exactly. Also, soy did not sit well with my son either but we tried a few other formulas until we found what was best for our son. Lipil A.R. is what we use now, and what we used in the very bginning and he seemed happy. We switched to Nutramigen when our son got groin hernias, as the Lipil A.R. has rice in it and can cause constipation, which made hernias worse. Once hernias were dealt with we swithched back to Lipil A.R. whch is milk-based and he is doing great.
I would ask your doctor about a stronger medication for the reflux and I would try Lipil A.R. The AR stands for "added rice" and that helps keep the formula down. If constipation is an issue you can add one ounce of whit grape juice to one bottle a day and it will help baby.
My son is 5 months old now and has only stopped all the excessive crying in the last 2 months but he was in lots of pain from the hernias also. Time is really the only thing that will help your daughter.
Stay strong! It will get better!

Have you given any thought to trying goats milk. When you go to buy her formula, read the ingredients on it and several others. Look at all the stuff they put in it. Goats milk is gentler on the stomach. Try it. What do you have to lose. It surely won't hurt her.

Gripe water has been proven to work wonders, 3 generations of my family have used it,the european is the best, you can get it online

My son is on Axid. It's stronger than zantac, he started off take 1ml twice a day now he is on 3ml twice a day (he's 11 months). He is also on Nutramigen Formula.

It sounds like the zantac isn't strong enough for her and maybe her dosage it's high enough. You have to be persistent with the Drs. It took me 4-5 visited before they put my son on medication Ask your Dr. about Axid....good luck.

my friend's baby had the same thing and she swears by gripe water.

M., I understand what you are feeling. I have a set of twins that were 4 weeks early and my son the younger one had the same problem. We did the Zantac thing 2x a day till they were 9 months old. The doc also switched his formula to Similac Alimentum (purple can). It seems to have worked wonders. I weened him off of both the meds and the different formula around the same time, under doctor supervision of course. He is now 15 months and is on Lactaid (he's lactose intolerant) and mostly everything I eat. Most of the time won't touch the baby food. Ask your doc about the switch of the formula and see how it works for you. Also, we did try soy based to no avail.

My son was diagnosed with acid reflux at almost 4 months. Have you talked to your ped? To get an actual diagnosis your baby must have an upper GI tract done at the hospital. This works like an X-ray so the doctors can see if her stomach acid is rising up to her throat. If you have already had this done or are just looking for options, I have a couple things that helped us.
First, your baby needs to sleep elevated. This will help prevent the acid from coming up from her tummy into her throat. You can try having her sleep in the carseat/infant carrier. Our son would not sleep in the carseat so we ordered a Tucker Sling. It's a combination of a wedge that fits under the mattress and elevates the "head" end with a sling that you wrap the baby up in to keep her from sliding to the bottom of the crib. It was a lifesaver for us and the only way our son would sleep. He is now 12 months old and still sleeps in it. If you google "Tucker Sling" it will come up with ordering info.
Second, keep her upright at least 30 minutes after eating. She really shouldn't be horizontal unless necessary (such as changing a diaper).
My son has been on Prevacid since he was 4 months old. If the Zantac does not see to be working then talk to your ped. He may have you go see a gastroenologist to manage her reflux. It peaks at 4-5 months so if she is having the problems now, unfortunately, the worst is yet to come.
There is an on-line support group I found when this all started happening. I can't remember the site name but again, if you google "acid reflux baby" or "gerdlings" something will come up.
One last thing. Dairy may be irritating her condition. It sounds like you are not breastfeeding so soy may be your best option.

Best Wishes!

My son is now 8 mo old and finally outgrowing his reflux. He was also born 4 weeks early. Often, with these borderline preemies, reflux is a very physical problem that can only be remedied through medical science (in my opinion.)

Zantac didn't work for us because it tasted bad and thus my son wasn't getting his full dose (he would dribble some back out.) We switched to Axid and that was MUCH better. We also used Reglan for several months, which helps things move through the stomach more effectively.

We also ended up needing a pediatric gastric specialist, who had an upper GI done to verify the reflux wasn't something more serious. The upper GI turned out not to be a big deal, despite my initial nervousness.

Additionally, I removed all dairy from my diet, since I was breastfeeding and reflux is often irritated by dairy products. Breastmilk is also easier to digest for reflux babies.

I would highly recommend Dr. Sangeeta Bhargava's office. Both doctors there offer great medical and dietary suggestions to deal with the reflux. (615. E Princeton St. Suite 530...###-###-####)

Good luck, best wishes and enjoy your new little blessing. :)
~~T.
____@____.com

My son had the same problem. I switched him to lactose free formula and we started giving him Gripe Water. It is an over the counter product that has all natural ingredients in it. It not only seemed to do wonders for the pain that he was in, but it also seemed to help decrease the amount he was spitting up, which was a lot. I got it at a pharmacy called The Medicine Shop. I spoke with the pharmacist about it as he was only about 6 weeks old at the time and I wanted to be sure it was safe. The pharmacist happened to be British and told me they had been using Gripe Water in the United Kingdom for centuries. He said it was very safe for infants and it was just as safe as Mylicon drops. It's worth a shot. Hope this helps you! Good luck! (By the way, my son is turning one on Sunday and has outgrown all of this. He is still on soy milk rather than regular milk - I believe he is lactose intolerant - and he is still very small, but he is a normal, thriving, extremely happy baby who is already walking, doing some talking, torturing his 3 year old sister, and wreaking havoc all over my house! This will work out for you too!)

I have the same issue with my 7mth old son, he startd with reflux at about 4 wks, I researched a lot and found a website called marci-kids.com, that has info regarding medications called: prevacid and zegerid. My son is currently on prevacid 30mg a day, once in the morning and oncce a night, he has been on it since 2 1/2mths old. One week after getting this dose, he was a completely different baby, no more crying with feeds, happy. The problem is I had a very hard time getting a doctor to give me this dose, my ped's doc would only go as high as 15mg a day, which was not enough. I actually traveled to melbourne to see an ear,nose and throat doctor. I have heard good this about dr nora earhart, (i believe that's the spelling), she is a peds GI. look at the website, print stuff, take to regular peds, if no luck, try a peds GI or a family physician, just don't give up, there is relief if you look for it. Also for support go to www.infantreflux.org/form, great support and info here, lots of mom's with reflux kids. Good Luck.

There isn't much you can do for a colicy or reflux baby. my oldest had it and the zantac didn't help. You may try similac's sensitive stomach formula to see if it's better. I would swaddle her arms and all nice and snug. If you have trouble get one of those miracle blankets online. This always soothed my little guy. It's just something they have to out grow. when we were going thru it, it seemed like forever, but now that it's over it seemed to have gone by so quick. Hope this helps!
God Bless,
R.

I agree Breast milk, straight from the source is BEST, with no side effects, always perfect. Here's another option.

Find out your baby's blood type. If it is O, highly recommend to cut out all milk and wheat products. Anything with gluten.
This diet works with most folks, especially O blood type.
If this method gets no results, see a doctor about testing for gluten allergies, lactose intolerance, and celiac disease. They will probably recommend a stronger presciption up from Zantac.
Try all diet remedies first, even a Feingold diet, prior to medication, is always best.

Warm baths sooth the tummy. Exercise and massage your baby ~ They have books that show you techniques and are wonderful. Have you tried any other formulas?

I'm brand new to this site but your email caught my attention because we went through so much with our son who is now 9.

His stomach problems started around 15 months or so. I won't get into our ordeal but wanted to add something.

DOctors treat symptoms only, they don't deal with the cause of a problem which is a huge disservice to us, the patients.

Any issues with stomach - have your child tested for a wheat/gluten intolerance. My husband has celiac disease which is an allergy to gluten (goes beyond just a wheat allergy). It's treated purely through diet, NO MEDS NEEDED!

It's the most misdiagnosed disease out there and the research claims 1 out of every 200 people have this allergy and don't know it. What happens is the allergy prevents your body from absorbing nutrients from food sooooo, eventually your body shows some physical symptoms....stomach pain, indigestion, loss of appetite, vitamin deficiencies, etc....

Doctors follow what the "typical" symptoms are and if you dont fit the mold they don't even suggest it to you. Something that can be first flagged by blood work alone!

If the blood work shows the indicator for possible gluten/wheat allergy then they must do a biopsy for definitive diagnoses.

Our son was put on meds for asthma, allergies, reflux and all sorts of stuff until I forced the doctors to look at my son as an adult and what would you be considering or doing and we finally got to the specialist. My husband and son were going through the diagnoses process at the same time and my son was finally determined to have a severe case of reflux but my husband had the celiac disease.

It's just so misdiagnosed that I tell everyone now with stomach issues to at least have it addressed by your doctor. DON'T ASK JUST TELL THEM TO RUN THE BLOOD WORK AND INCLUDE CELIAC DISEASE. IT ISN'T PART OF THE BASIC CBC PANEL AND MUST BE SPECIFICALLY INCLUDED.

Something so prevalent as this disease should be part of a basic physical and CBC blood panel but it's not.

Don't give up, trust your own instincts and change doctors as often as needed to find one that will treat you and your family properly.

The specialist we saw was Dr. Reinaldo Figueroa-Colon (he went by Dr. Figueroa) with Nemours Children's Clinic in Orlando, ###-###-####. He is fantastic!!

We also drink Exfuze juice which has helped all of us tremendously for overall health. We had big health improvements just from the juice. It has Noni and Goji and a bunch of other great stuff in it. Look into it. In fact, my son doesnt' take his medicine for reflux anymore because of the juice. www.iexfuze.net/2525

R.

I have twin girls that were born 8 weeks premature and they went through the same thing your baby is going through. We also tried Zantac at first, which didn't work for us either, and finally got them on Prevacid twice daily and switched their formula to Alimentum along with Dr. Brown bottles as well. This was at about 4 months and it absolutely improved their reflux. They started sleeping better, feeding better and the screaming and crying improved greatly. Good luck with your little one.

Are you feeding her in a sitting position and having her up for at least thirty minutes after she has finished eating. Also make sure the head of her bed is elevated at all times. You can do this with a pillow under the blanket at her head. Then roll a towel and put under the blanket rught beneath her behind to keep her from sliding down. This really seemed to help my granddaughter.