5 Month Old Spitting up After Feedings

There's not an average of spitting-up. All babies are different. Find out why all the spitting up. The hole/holes may be letting too much formula or not enough, causing gas, making her spit up. Good luck mommy.

Two possibilities that pop into my head instantly are reflux and an allergy to milk. Many babies have an allergy to milk that they outgrow by 2 or 4 years old. I would try switching to soy formula. If the spitting up still happens, I'd look into reflux via the pediatrician.

My son just turned 5 months the 15th of May. He spits up alot too. This is my second child. My first we had on Similac and he was very gassy and spit up with every sip. We switched him to the Carnation Good Start and he did lots better. With my 5 month old we just went straight to the Good Start and he spits up still but he's not horriably gasy and not alot of spit up. So I think spit up is normal. I think If he had a real problem with the formula, you would know.

I started to teach my son how to hold the bottle when he started to hold on to toys. So it might take a few weeks but he will get the hang of it.

Hello L.,

Every child is different and with my first I was really concerned because she spit up all the time, even 2 hours after she ate. I breast feed until she was six months, with occasionaly giving her Enfamil. She spit up until she was 9 months old. The one dr. told me should could be doing that up to a year but I went to get a second opinoin and he said that it usually stops or slows down at 6-7 months but my daughter had an ear infection that made it stick around longer. It was at 9 months on the dot she just stopped all of a sudden. There is a book called first year for dummies that I found a great buy. It gives a lot of information but my favorite thing is in each chapter which is each month has a section that has milestones and says what the child should be doing. Hope this all helps.

D. K.

I worried about this too with my son. I switched formulas several times and ended up right back with the enfamil lipil (acutally the target brand version - its the same thing. I think the only thing that actually worked a little was to add a little more powder to thicken it up and even sometimes then he would spit up. He outgrew the spitting up around 9 months although it was less and less after 6 months, maybe due to the solid foods. Started sitting up, trying to crawl around 7 months. He still wont hold his bottle at 10 months, but can, just wont. Every baby is different. Spit up is pretty normal, but if your concerned or it seems projectile a lot, then ask your ped.

Hi L.,
My first child almost never spit up but the second spit up dozens of times a day! It was unreal. It slowed down a little at 6 months but didn't really stop until about 9. As far as the other stuff, I can't remember exactly!!

L.,

I also recommend the book what to expect the first years. its a great resource. But depending on how much she is spitting up, try switching to Soy. My kids were switched to soy, but they were not just not spitting up a little bit, they were throwing up. If you are concerned talk to th edr too

Hi L.

If your baby is spitting up a little that is normal, but if it is excessive it may be possible the baby has acid reflex. As far as holding the bottle, sitting up, & crawling every child is different, but my son whom was born 2 months early held the bottle @ 5 months, sitting up properly between 6 & 7 months,& actually crawling @ 10 months. He just turned one in April and he is not walking yet. He will take a few steps & just fall on his touché. Be patient & try to enjoy every moment.

Robin S

I was just chuckling reading your question - my daughter was the queen barfer of all time! She used to spit up constantly until she was about 6 months old. I remember vividly the day she was baptized at 4 months - she was wearing a gown that's been in my husband's family for over 100 years. Everyone in the family has been baptized in it. My daughter literally spit up on that thing over 10 times during the mass and ceremony! She soaked through every bib and birp cloth we had brought. I was mortified as my mother-in-law stood by, watching this happen. To my relief, she was very understanding and not upset at all that her granddaughter had basically soaked this antique gown with her barf. She said "it's a gown for babies - and that's what babies do! I'm sure in 100 years, she is not the first baby to have spit up on the thing." Whew!

At any rate, we were of course concerned that her spitting up was excessive, and would talk to our pediatrician about this often. She reassured us that it was completely normal. Some babies just spit up more than others. It has to do with the development of their sphincter muscle - no, not the one at the other end! You also have one that acts as a valve in the tube that connects your esophagus to your stomach. In babies, this tube is very underdeveloped and takes time to mature. Until it does, the muscle does not stay closed and stomach contents can easily come back up. Our doctor said that as long as our daughter was thriving and gaining weight at the right level, then she was getting plenty of nutrients and was fine. Around 6 months old, I remember noticing that she would go a day or so without spitting up - then soon after, the problem disappeared all together. She was never medicated for any type of acid reflux condition and is as healthy as a horse! (As an aside, I strictly breastfed her until she was 3 months old, then from 3-6 months did a combo of breastfeeding with formula - we used Enfamil too. It didn't matter - she spit up both breast milk and formula - she was an equal opportunity barfer!)

As far as holding their own bottles, I think each child is different, but mine started somewhere around 8-9 months. I think she started sitting up and crawling around this time also. 9 months is a big pivotal age!

Hope this helps! Enjoy every moment (even the barfy ones) because it goes too fast!!

L., i recommend the book "what to expect the first year"... it is very helpful and is an easy read... and very easy to just quickly pop it open and look for your answer and you're done :) it includes baby care, milestone reaching, and generally 'what to expect' :)

congrats on your new baby! :)

I think my first stopped spitting up around 9 months, and my almost 10 month old still does, but not as much as she used to. I've known people whose babies spit up until after 12 months too, though I don't wish that on you. Both of mine would spit up after every feeding for a while, and then it decreased. It gets better when they're on more solids and their little esophagus has a chance to develop properly. As for the other skills, every baby is so different it is hard to say. Some crawl by 6 months, some at 12 months, and some never crawl. Your pediatrician should ask what your baby is doing and let you know if she's on track. I feel for you with the spit up. It's tough, but it will pass.

L., there is no such thing as normal :) What you want to look for is her attitude towards spitting up: is she seeming to be in pain? does she writhe around? is she arching her back and crying a lot? Those could be signs of acid reflux which can be treated medically... Otherwise it is what our doctor labeled a "laundry problem" or a "happy spitter"... So long as she's gaining weight and seems happy, there's not much you can do other than keep lots of changes of clothes in your car/bag for you and her.

My kid (now 17 mos) wore a bib for the first 10 months of her life! We actually bought a new washer/dryer because I told my husband that if I was doing 1+ loads of laundry each day that I was going to be more eco-friendly about it! It started to slow down around 9 months or so and was over (phew!) around 10 1/2 months.

Every child is different. My daughter would never hold her own bottle unless laying flat on her back because she liked the bonding time with me, started crawling at 8 months exactly, sitting up alone around 5 months, and walking at 14.5 months to the date... thank goodness!!

Try not to compare your kid to others or read too much because you'll just drive yourself nuts! Be patient and enjoy her... the time will fly by!!!

Good luck with the spit up--we called ours the "vominator"

My 9 month old still spits up sometimes. She used to spit up all the time, but it has been much less frequent since she started solids. The doctor told me that as long as she's gaining weight everything was fine. If you're really worried you should check with your doctor, he/she may prescribe a medication for acid reflux. However, the medication doesn't stop the spitting up, it just makes it less painful for your little one.

There are tons of books and baby websites that have timelines for all of the developmental milestones, but they all stress that each baby will do their own thing!

If she is just spitting up (i.e., no painful gas too) and the act of spitting up is not bothersome to her, I wouldn't worry about it. Both of my daughters were "spitters", some kids just are. My second one, finally quit around 9 months. They both spit up with breast milk and formula. As long as there is no retching or vomiting (you would know the difference immediately) and your child is happy, there's not much anyone can do. Changing formulas wouldn't help if she's just prone to spitting up, so why go through the hassle? On the other hand, if she cries when she spits up or is writhing from abdominal gas/pain, I would see your doc.

Hi L. B,
Both my sons had reflux right from the beginning. My pediatrician gave us some tips before trying medication. First of all, I changed my formula to Good Start and that helped a lot with my first son and with my second I had to use Similac Soy. My best friend and my sister both had to switch to Good Start to stop most of the spitting up as well. Secondly, put a small rolled up blanket under her mattress to raise her bed up on one side. Just a little elevation will help digestion. Lastly, burp frequently but do not overburp. This is really important. I burped my kids after every 2-4 ounces. But don't spend more than just a few minutes tapping her back. If she doesn't burp, try a few more ounces. If these don't help the spitting up - talk to your pediatrician about reflux. She may need some medicine. My youngest needed medicine for just a few months. It helped a lot and he didn't seem to mind it.
Good luck!

L., it may not be the formula, check your nipples, they may be too big. the holes may be too big and your baby is getting too much liquid too fast that they cant digest fast enough. Therefore the baby is spitting up the overflow. You should check by sucking on them to see if a lot of air goes thru. Just a suggestion, and holding their own bottles, well depends. It could be 6 mnths, or 8 mnths. Crawling will come around 10-11 mnths. Dont rush the baby, they will learn on their own.

Hi L.,
I have a six month old lille boy and he spits up as well, when I breast fed it was a lot, after 4 1/2 months I switched to formula Similac and it was even worse and then someone told me about Enfamil AR, and it got 80% better. He still spits up a little but it's nothing like before. Everyone tells me that it will go away on it's own. One of my girlfriends son spit up all the way till he was 9 months old ;-( I hope my little guy will grow out of it very soon.
The other day I tried the regular Enfamil and it was back to spitting up a lot so afer 3 days I put him pack on the Enfamil AR and it got much better right away. Good luck-A.

L. B.
Was she born early. 3 of our 4 were born 2 weeks early & had a reflux problem. Our first 1 that had the problem was so bad that if she took more then an ounce of formula she would throw it back up. We were feeding her every hour because of that. Every week we would try to increase it by 1/2 an ounce & keep it at that if she would tolerate it. It took about 3 months to get her to take a good amount so that we could feed her every 4 hours. By the time she was 1 she didn't spit up at all. I hope that you find something that works for your little one.
L. W. a SAHM of 4, part-time sitter

some babies have reflux. many babies- their tiny tummies are to full. baby needs 20-40 oz if there is more then this its to much. many parents give to much at once so I recommend cutting back, increase buroing, leave baby in sitting up position for at least 20 min. find one formula and give it 2 weeks before changing it. once you find a formula stick with it and every baby is different.

Hi L.- Dr. Ettner who is referred here on Mamasource so much recommended that if you supplement that goat's milk is much better. Babies can not digest dairy which is what all formulas are made of. You can go to Meyenburgers.com--they have a recipe online for infants and can get it at Trader Joe's or Whole Foods but they give you other locations where it is sold.

He also sells it in his office. Goat's milk is not a mucus base so it is used by many mothers all over the world.

Let me know if I can be of further help.

Babies vary in ages when they pass milestones and development. I have 4 children and had a daycare for 8 years. It usually starts anytime after 6 months up to 12 months of age. They usually hold there bottles at 4 to 5 months of age. I hope this helps:)

T.