I'm more troubled by the responses to this comment than the earlier ones.
1) It's critical to distinguish between the diagnosis and the treatment here. Babies' digestive systems ARE immature. It may be that acid reflux really IS that common in babies, just as problems with close-up vision are really that common in older individuals. We don't assume that the need for reading glasses is an indication of some severe illness in the elderly. I don't think we need to jump to the conclusion that the prevalence of acid reflux in babies is an indication of a greater underlying disease, or malpractice by pediatritians.
2) I've grown up hearing the stories of how this was dealt with in previous generations. Either a woman was told, "Your kid has colic. Deal with it." or she was just told she's an incompetant mother. At least the doctors are now TRYING to do something. They know that medicine can help, and that's something they can offer to the poor mom with the miserable child.
3) Which is better, giving a child medicine or letting the first six months of his life be absolute Hell - never getting enough sleep, always being in pain, always crying and hurting - with mom and dad exhausted, stressed-out and disfunctional...Of course, reality may not be a choice between the former and the latter. There may be ways to treat the reflux that don't involve medication. Certainly there are lifestyle changes that a pediatrician should suggest that could potentially help (ie. not eating gaseous foods if breastfeeding). However, if making those changes is insufficient, perhaps medication is better than misery.