Reflux and breastfeeding- what can i do?

[plusonemore]

Took DS (17 wks) to docs today as I suspect he has reflux and also because he is still struggling with his breathing since first getting a cold at 2wks and then bronchiolitis. She thinks his chest is a bit wheezy and has prescribed an inhaler to see if that helps. She hasn?t prescribed anything for the reflux as she says best to treat one thing at a time. She also says it?s hard to treat as he is breastfed. Is there is anything I can do to help reduce the amount of sick? Does it make a difference what I eat for example? So frustrating when I spend ages feeding, he sicks it all up and then wakes in the night cos he is hungry!!!

Hi, our DD was refluxy and we ended up trying loads of things to try to 'fix it' (funny how we think we can fix anything!) The things we found most useful were:

• not patting her back to wind her - just rubbing instead (supposed to help the valve in the oesophogus (sp) not bounce around so much
• tilting her cot so one end was about 6inches higher than the other (we used big books under the legs)
• getting her to sleep on her side instead of back (we were frightened in case she was sick while asleep and choked on it!), which we did by rolling up handtowels to use as wedges
• keeping her as upright as possible while feeding (so a kind of modified rugby ball position was best for this until she was a bit bigger)

-then keeping her upright for at least half an hour after she finished feeding (if I had stuff to do, I put her in the baby bjorn carrier) When I changed her over to formula, which was gradual from about week 8 or 9, I found that the blue SMA (for 'hungrier babies') stayed down better than the gold one. I think the whey based powder is thicker somehow..? SMA also do a version of their formula for reflux babies which I've seen on sale in Boots. We didn't use this because the blue SMA worked not bad and our DD's reflux was never severe.

When we were reading up on it, lots of folk recommended baby Gaviscon. I tried giving up dairy for a couple of weeks but it didn't make a lot of difference. Anyway by that time, DD was responding well to using the blue formula...

A good website to check out for tips etc is www.littlerefluxers.co.uk/ and there's an online shop that sells useful things like wedges for baby to sleep at an angle or on their sides www.babyreflux.co.uk/

Hope your baby gets better soon, if it's any consolation if it is 'just' the oesophagus valve not developed fully yet, hopefully she'll grow out of it. Our DD was a lot better by the time she was 14 weeks or so. Otherwise, I think there's actually an operation... but hopefully it won't come to that. And it could easily be a dairy or other allergy so def worth eliminating that from your diet first or as well to see if it helps - take care on whether it's lactose or dairy that you're looking at - I seem to remember there being a bit of difference but can't think of the whys and wherefores at the moment...
All the best!

Oh dear, I think I'm getting carried away, this thread's my first MN posting!

Anyway, I forgot to add one other thing we did that was useful - as well as raising the cot legs, we raised the mattress inside the cot by putting a board underneath it and propping the board up (a lot easier than trying to prop a bendy mattress). We were just too tight to buy the wedge really! The angle we aimed for was as high as possible without causing DD to slip down the bed...!

So there we are, all tipped out. Hope it goes ok

Hope I'm not repeating stuff - have tried to skim read all posts, just want to share 2 tips that helped me.

1. Reflux in baby - you may find it worthwhile taking them to a Cranial osteopath. When the osteo is working on them, you may not be able to see the osteo actually doing anything - but they are, I promise you! www.osteopathy.org.uk should help you find a local one. For babies and children up to 7 they MUST be a CRANIAL osteopath.
2. For dairy-free calcium, eat lots of dark green leafy veg, i.e. savoy cabbage, other green cabbages; spinach, watercress, kale etc. Try to eat raw or cook only briefly to retain nutrients. Organic is preferable, but not essential.

NaomiMB - we took our DD for a couple of cranial osteopath sessions and it sorted her colic out within two weeks (HAPPY HAPPY PARENTS!! ) Unfortunately he wasn't able to help on the reflux side but I have heard of it helping other babes so would agree it's worth a try.

Can totally sympathise with the situation both my 2 dc were terrible from birth - dc1 was later found to be dairy intollerant but fortunately grew out of it by 2 yrs

DC2 not so - i could only say what a godsend the baby swing was no matter how guilty i felt with her not laying flat it was just such a relief to see her settled for some sleep. She is dairy intollerant and I so wish i had pushed it further with the GP rather than being slated for being over anxious.

Gaviscon did work within reason for me as i breastfed so give it a go anything which helps is worth it for ones own sanity
All the best

I'm not sure if anyone's said yet that you can buy infant gaviscon over the counter, you don't have to get a prescription if you want to try it out (it's completely harmless, although may cause constipation). We've done this when we ran out of the prescription. It's really helped ds3 who was arching his back, fighting the breast, throwing up a LOT etc.

If you do try gaviscon, use a syringe to give it as there's 15ml to get into baby each time arggggh so a spoon a nightmare. Worth it though, I was ready to give up feeding him and still going at 18 weeks.
I too have only skimmed, but my understanding based on asking a pediatrican is that Gaviscon lines the stomach making lo feel more comfortable and preventing the vomiting, whereas ranitidine neutralises the stomach contents. They're usually prescribed together, but gaviscon first to see if that helps as it's milder.

I'm surprised at the over the counter Infant Gaviscon availability, our local pharmacist said it was only available on prescription... May be our local store is quirky? (Wouldn't surprise me!)

DP & I had to ask quite a few times at 2 separate pharmacies tbh, but it was my friend the pharmacist who told me that in the first place. Don't see why they're so loath to sell it, but they ought to.

thanks gillypoo naomi shuri accessorize and others, so much good advice. Am afraid I have failed on the dairy free front (CSWS I dont know how you do it) I woke up this morning feeling awful after just one day of Dairy free living, and the thought of no real milk in a cup of tea made me want to cry! I am starting to learn some tricks, some by guess work, some ideas from here- the rubbing the back def better than patting. Gonna give it a few more days and then go back to GP for prescription. So glad to hear you dont have to give gaviscon in a bottle as my GP led me to believe- I was ready to drop a feed for formula, glad I wont have to. Have already had a couple of sessions of cranial osteopathy which def helped to settle him more, she didnt think he needed anymore though. Got the mattress propped up with a couple of flatish cusions underneath, he doesnt slip down too much
Thanks again all

Hi, new to mumsnet, but I know a little about lactose intolerance.... I was allergic as a baby, grew out of it, but came back again with the onset of puberty as stomach aches at night, and insomnia. Out grew it again after about two/three years. I believe that cow's milk is the main culprit for a lot of these problems, and some children do much better with goat's milk and goat's milk products. All depending on the child of course. Leafy greens such as kale (numero uno among leafy greens for calcium) can actually provide more calcium that milk, so you have plenty of options for yourself. Also, if you cannot live with out butter, I suggest clarified butter, or easier to find ghee butter, which has all the milk solids removed, so should be fine. As for cheese, I know many people with intolerance who can eat buffalo milk cheese. Be sure to check that it is made with actual buffalo milk and now cow's milk. Garofalo brand is great and can be found in waitrose and most other supermarkets. Best of luck!

it says on the packet that gaviscon isn't for babies under 12 months except from a dr, so although it isn't prescription only the pharmacy shouldn't sell it to you out of licence for a baby, only for older babies iyswim.
i work in pharmacy and often refuse to sell it, and will only sell it for younger babies if they can prove it's been prescribed by a gp.

Hi my DS also has severe reflux. When we gave him gaviscon (breastfed) we were told we could used 5ml cool boiled water (and not 15 ml like it says on the pack) and give before or after a feed. The hospital made it up this way when DS was admitted. I am trying dairy free, rice milk is fab and tea is fine with it in. Now just to try cut out everything else, it's hard! DS is on Omeprozole liquid (like goldust getting that prescribed! Tastes yuk, gonna try request flavouring) and domperidone. These helped but then stopped working and they were upped with his weight gain and he seems better again now. He still chokes etc but is not irritable and inconsoulable all the time which was his main sympton.

I had two reflux babies and it was very hard work but the main thing I learned was that it was MY problem not the babies. They were happy and thrived. Just sick a lot.
Both were BF , probably more often than normal as a good half came back. It was all day and all night.
This lasted until 10 months when it suddenly stopped almost overnight. I believe it runs in the family and is caused by an under developed stomach valve. My midwife insisted my DS2 see a paediatrician who checked for pyloric stenosis ( it wasn't). He basically said it's just a laundry problem. Said I could try bottle feeding and early introduction of solids. I did not follow his advice as I had been through it all with DS1 and knew that solid food made no difference to the reflux. Except of course that by six months he was crwling and deposting orange sick all over the house.
I still can't bear the smell of carpet cleaner.
Dare I say this...please beware of jumping on the food intolerance bandwagon.
Practical tips:-
I used to put several layers of bedding under the baby and lift it as it got soggy. Loads of bibs.
Never get baby ready to go out until last minute.
More bibs.

For some people it's not just a laundry problem though and if I had jumped on the food intolerance bandwagon earlier it would have stopped a lot of true heartache. This thread has had me close to crying as it's brought back lots of bad memories.
Reflux for my DD meant severe choking, i.e not being able to breathe, screaming at every feed, arching her back in pain and failure to thrive - when we started to give her gaviscon she had gone to 5th centile from 75th centile.

I agree that while for some reflux is a laundry issue, it has beel hideous for us with DS and his screaming/crying/choking every waking hour and no sleep at all most nights for 2 months.

Oh...and being sick - a lot. I had 24 muslins!

I agree- a 'laundry' issue it is not when your DD is howling in pain, and cannot stay asleep longer than 5 minutes and is exhausted (never mind her parents)
She was so unhappy until around 12 months or so, when all symptoms had gone. Thank goodness she was a milkaholic, and a pfb, so I had the time to nurse her so much- she didn't have weight problems, but we know plenty f babies that have

Dear plusonemore

My baby who is now 1 had severe reflux so I did lots of research on the subject. We ended up seeing a consultant in hospital. Babies who have reflux and who are breastfed generally have it less severely than those who are bottlefed. Not quite sure of the science, but apparently this is because breastmilk has protective properties. If you can, it is best to continue breastfeeding. Also, because babies with reflux have to be fed little and often, breast is easier than continually having to sterilise bottles e.t.c.

The latest research says that raising the cot or keeping them in a sitting position doesn't help although this is what my GP and HV originally recommended. This is because the angle puts pressure on the tummy. They are better off in an upright standing position or lying completely flat. Charlie used to love being carried on my front in the baby bjorn but was sick and howled in the pushchair or car seat. The consultant also confirmed that this is the case.

Although health professionals generally advise starting solids, if the reflux is bad, this doesn't always help. In fact, this was the stage at which Charlie's reflux got worse. His sick would just be more difficult to bring up and thicker. It can also be concerning as it might mean a negative start to feeding solids. Gaviscon is a thickener, and therefore I found it useless. I did try it though and know others who reckon it works. Charlie never had a bottle so I just mixed it with boiled tap water and spooned it in his mouth.

Charlie tried Ranitidine prescribed by the GP. I forget which type of medicine this is. It worked for 2 weeks - but then the reflux came back. It is appparently quite common that people develop a tolerance to it. The Hospital prescribed omeprazole which is a proton pump inhibitor. It reduces the stomach acid production and worked like a treat after a couple of weeks. The consultant also advised us to try non-dairy. Because of breastfeeding, I had to do it too. However, he made me speak to a nutritionist before I did it. It certainly worked for us.

I hope this helps - good luck. It does all get a lot easier.

Hello all, just wondered if anyone can help. My 10 week old son has really bad reflux. Has been in hospital 3 times since birth due to persistent vomiting and slow weight gain. I initially breast fed him but after 5 weeks changed to bottle as was exhausted due to the stress of hospital and the constant feeding/throwing up cycle! He has been on Ranitidene, Dom Peridone and Gaviscon(none of which worked) and after his last hospital stay (when i gave up breast feeding) he was prescribed Enfamil formula. It took a while, but i did start to see results a few weeks ago and his weight gain became much better. However, the last few days seem to have gone down hill again and the vomiting has returned big time! I'm desperate to get him better as he is so small compared to all the other babies his age...he weighs just 9 lb (was 7 lb 4 at birth) When the vomiting is bad it seems to take over everything and i feel my other son is missing out on time and attention from me, Sometimes all i do between one feed and another is clean up sick and change his clothes! Does anyone have any advice?? I was wondering about mentioning to the paediatrician a possible lactose intolerence as the Enfamil formula just doesn't seem to be doing the trick anymore. Has anyone with a reflux baby had any improvement by changing to a lactose free/ soya milk?? Any advice welcome....am desperate!!!

got no advice for you but just wanted to say you poor thing. You definately need to get referred if it is that bad and affecting weight gain, it must be so waring on you. Go and see your GP (dont hold back on any tears either) and be persistant xx

plusonemore going caffeine free myself, holding ds1 upright for 2o mins post feed and propping up the cot did the trick with ds1, who had not previously slept for more than 20 mins at a time in weeks.
No idea which bit was effective, though.

sazman I don't know enough about such severe problems, and it sounds like you already have a paediatrician's care, but when ds1 was still returning his dinner aged 18 months he had investigations (barium follow-through) to exclude a structural rather than "functional" problem - no idea if that is of any help but feeling for you and your ds.