Treat Acid Reflux

Understanding Acid Reflux in Infants
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Defined Tag: Acid Reflux In Infants.

Introduction

Acid reflux in infants occurs quite often. Over half of babies experience acid reflux within the first three months of their life. Acid reflux in infants have typical symptoms: vomiting, spitting, irritability, coughing, blood in stools, and poor feeding. While a common occurance, only a small number of infants actually experience severe symptoms. In most cases, infants stop having these symptoms between 12 and 18 months.

Severe symptoms for acid reflux in infants include breathing problems, intense irritability or refusal to feed, poor growth due to not holding down enough food, or blood loss from burning of the esophagus. These symptoms may be a result of another underlying condition. You will need to relate the symptoms observed for an accurate diagnosis of acid reflux in infants by the doctor.

Treatment

Treatment for acid reflux in infants depends very much on the infant’s symptoms or age. Acid reflux in infants often goes away by itself. In some cases, however, treatment is necessary.

Acid reflux in infants can be a factor of how the child is fed. A doctor may suggest that your child's food be thickened with cereal or for your child to be kept upright after being fed. Overfeeding can make acid reflux in infants worse. Another way to reduce vomiting is smaller quantities with more frequent feeding.

If there is any projectile vomiting, a green or yellow substance, anything that looks like coffee grounds, blood in the child’s vomit, difficulty breathing, pain when swallowing, or food refusal, you should seek medical help for your child immediately. The child may also have difficulty sleeping or in rare cases, growth is stunted. These are severe symptoms of acid reflux in infants.

Medication may be prescribed by your doctor. The aim of acid reflux medications is to decrease the acid in the stomach. H2 blockers or proton pump inhibitors may be prescribed. However, be warned that these medications do produce side effects. It is best to discuss with the doctor what they are, so that you are prepared for them.

Here are a few simple tips to help control acid reflux in infants. Add one tablespoon of rice cereal to 2 ounces of an infant’s milk if the baby is bottle fed, burp the infant after 1 or 2 ounces of formula is ingested, hold the infant upright in your arms up to 30 minutes after feeding and do not overfeed. These infants should also sleep on their backs rather than on their stomachs.

The great news is that acid reflux in infants may remain as that. Most children do eventually outgrow the condition. Thus, in most cases, acid reflux in infants is not a permanent life long condition. Very few continue to have the symptoms into their later childhood and teenage years. Treatments do vary with age and symptoms. As your child gets older, treatments for his/her acid reflux are likely to change.

Acid Reflux can be very painful but it is definitely treatable. For more information and resources on acid reflux treatment, please visit this site at http://www.treat-acid-reflux.com.