Feeding Problem - Baby Throwing Up

by reccamae marasigan
(trece martires city, cavite)

Question: Why does my baby want to throw up when she eats?

Baby Help Line Answer:

Baby Throwing up or Gagging?

I am not sure if your baby is wanting to throw up when actually sucking/drinking or when she is eating solids.

Is she actually throwing up, or just gagging? The gag reflex is at the back of the throat, so if a big amount hits her throat suddenly she may just reflex gag. I know when my daughter was about 8 months she used to love banana, and would shove it into her mouth in huge quantities, all the while gagging! She eventually learned to have smaller mouthfuls.

If when drinking, are you breastfeeding or bottle feeding? Some teats on bottles have holes that are too big for a young baby, and the milk may be coming out too fast. If you are breastfeeding, you may have heaps of milk and again it is squirting and maybe she can't keep up. You can try expressing a little first to ease off the pressure.

If it is when you introduce solids, it could be she is gagging because it is unfamiliar and she is not yet used to thicker food or textures. Just introduce small tastes in tiny amounts slowly until she gets used to it.

Some babies also have various degrees of acid reflux, which is when the stomach fluid goes back up into the throat too easily. This is quite common among babies, and often nothing to worry about unless then baby seems to be in pain when eating or doesn't gain weight.

So in conclusion, babies spit up. Almost all do, especially in the beginning. Unless your baby fails to thrive or seems to be in pain, it isn't really a problem.

Hope this helps,

Paula

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Feeding Problem - Baby Throwing Up

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Oct 24, 2009

Feeding Problem - Baby Throwing Up
by: Tig

I don't know if this is of help or not. I am a UK mum and a friend gave me a book called Baby Whisperer, which had one paragraph that has changed everything for me. It depends how old your baby is and if the throwing up is a new thing or not. My little girl is now 4 months old and started throwing up when she was about 8 weeks. Everyone told me it was normal positing until she drenched my sister!

In this paragraph it listed a few symptoms:
-Does the vomiting look like cottage cheese?
-Does she struggle getting through her feed, spluttering and choking?
-Does the vomiting happen even sometime after feeding?
-Explosive poos?!
-Doesn't like laying flat?

These are all symptoms of reflux and although not serious are more of a nightmare for the mum as you end up feeding twice as much and if by breast getting very sore! See your doctor for support:)

There is light at the end of the tunnel (and medication for your baby if the reflux is severe).

Sep 07, 2011

Swallowing air...
by: Paula (Baby Help Line)

In addition to the gagging reflex and acid reflux, another reason why young babies may throw up when drinking is if they swallow too much air. If they do, the air must come out somehow and with that often comes some milk as well.

There are several ways to minimize the amount of air your baby swallows while feeding that you can read about in this article on common breastfeeding problems.

Hope this helps,

Paula

Dec 11, 2011

Starving sick newborn
by: Anonymous

I have a 3 week old girl, and she acts as if she is constantly hungry. She is always wanting to eat about every half our and sometimes she wants to eat another bottle directly after she finishes one.

In each bottle, I give her 2-3oz so I really feel like she is eating too much, yet she acts like it isn't enough. And I can tell that she's getting too full because she makes all sorts of weird noises during feedings like she's struggling or something.

Sometimes, as soon as she gets done eating, she pukes everywhere! And she throws up A LOT.

I try to satisfy her with a pacifier so that she can slow down a little on her feedings, but she spits it right out and starts crying again.

During the day, she sleeps a lot and around 1AM she's wide awake and constantly wanting to feed and she's so fussy!

Her pediatrician got her on Enfamil Gentlease Fussiness & Gas and that's what she eats and has been eating for awhile now. But she is still fussy. Please someone help me so my baby girl can get full and satisfied when she eats and so I can finally get some rest and not feel so worried.

There's got to be SOME REASON she is like like this....

Dec 13, 2011

Reply to 11 Dec 2011
by: Anonymous

In reply to post of 11 Dec 2011.
Try giving your baby hungry baby milk, my baby sounded just like yours, he was drinking too much then crying after, probably becuase of belly ache by eating too much. I put him on Hungry Baby milk and he has been fine ever since, he's now 18 weeks old and thriving. It was one of the best things i did changing his milk to HB.

Good Luck with everything.

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