My baby is 10 weeks old and has always had feeding problems. He was born at 31 weeks and spent a month in the NICU. I've been pumping since he was born and he has always been given breastmilk. He squirms, grunts, and cries during feeds (breast and bottle). We tried zantac & changed to prevacid last week. He now spits up a lot less, but he still cries and squirms during feeds. Today I stopped his multi-vitamins with iron to see if that helps. His Dr. mentioned getting an upper GI study. I'm not sure if he needs it or not. In the NICU a therapist would come and evaluate the feeds of some of the other babies. Can I have this done as an outpatient? Does he have to have the study done before this can happen, or can I have him evaluated to see if he needs the study? Does his Dr. have to order the therapy?
We feed him with his head elevated. When he gets a bottle we use the playtex slow flow. Do you have any advice on other things I can try? It's so hard to watch him struggle so much.
Thank you for your help.
Thank you all so much for your help, I just wish I had asked earlier. My Dr never mentioned that it could be a food allergy. I've completely cut out dairy as of last night. I'm also keeping him off the vitamins with iron for now. He is already a little less fussy today than yesterday. Thank you again!!!
L.
You are on the right track with stopping the supplements. Just give straight breastmilk for a few weeks and I think you will see an improvement.
i would talk to a lactation consultant first. there may be something in your diet that he is allergic to or causing him discomfort. if so, this can be remedied by avoiding that food. most common triggers are milk, soy, wheat, eggs, nuts. usually you have to completely avoid the food for 2 weeks to clear it out of your system. sometimes with a milk allergy it can increase the symptoms temporarily while it is getting out of your system. i found out my 2nd daughter is allergic to soy. once i eliminated that from my diet she was happier, not as miserable, agitated and quit projectile vomiting. her reflux subsided greatly, although she still has it.
with my first daughter we did the upper gi barrium swallow. it is a good test to tell you if there are anatomy problems and how severe the reflux is. we tried prilosec with her and it didnt' work. we ended up used prevacid for 21 months. my second daughter we tried prevacid with and it didn't work. shes on zegerid. there are quite a few types of medicine and you just have to keep trying until you find the one that works best.
good luck! let me know if you have any more question. i'm more than happy to go into more detail.
I second the idea of eliminating foods from your diet. My son was 5 weeks permature. When he fed, he squirmed , kicked, arched his back and cried during feeds. I was told by my pediatrician to cut out dairy, caffeene, chocolate, and spicy foods. Cutting out dairy made all the difference. It took a week for a big change and two weeks for a total change. I cut out all the reccomended foods, but discovered that dairy was the culprit. I will eat dairy in baked goods (maybe the difference with that is the diary is cooked, which apparently starts to break down the milk proteins).
I think it is pretty common for babies' immature systems to have problems with digesting some proteins.
Check with your Dr...your baby may be too young for this, but I was told to give 1/2 tsp of Mylanta (yes, regular Mylanta, no more than 3x a day) to help baby while I was cleaning out my system of dairy. It helped with all his symptoms, coating his tummy and throat, and helping with gas. The Dr actually told me if the Mylanta helped, that would be an indicator to me that his problem was related to my diet.
It IS so hard to see our little ones struggle with eating. I have heard lots of stories of success with cutting out dairy. I think a GI study can be kind of a big deal. For more helpful information, you may want to check out the "Baby 411" book.
God Bless
It could be that he is sensitive to certain foods that you are eating , although he is 10 weeks old he was born very early so technically he is a week old. Are you eating much dairy? I know that can makes babies uncomfortable in their stomachs , it could be something as simple as that , he little tummy is still very immature and probably just very sensitive.
you can try gripe water a few min before his feeds its all naturala nd helps with gas and colic and fussiness, I would also recommend either getting a gi study like your dr recommended or calling you local ECI program to send an ot out and evaluate him
Iron can be hard on babies' stomachs. Give him a few days without the vitamins to see if it helps. How's his weight? If he's gaining I think I'd hold off on the upper GI...just a thought. Good luck!
Hi there. We went through similar problems with our son, right around 6 weeks (although he was full-term). At first I thought it was just reflux. Once I told my doctor (who used to specialize in pediatric gastrointenstinal medicine) about his symptoms, she checked him for a milk and soy protein allergy. He also had reflux, which accompanies most babies with the allergy, but that was not what was causing his tummy pain. It's very common in babies actually, but not talked about a lot. If you're breastfeeding and eating any form of dairy or soy (even breads/pasta made with milk or whey or soy) your baby will react if he has it. However, it's a very simple test that your doctor can perform. They take a sample of his bowel movement, put it on this special paper, if it turns blue, then yes he has it. And it's very easy to fix once diagnosed :) If you've got questions about this, contact me. I'd be happy to tell you my son's symptoms, etc.
Not sure if this is what your son has, but it may be worth trying that before going to a GI doctor. Good luck!
My son had this exact same problem develop at around 6 weeks. The problem was food allergies. I removed soy, dairy and eggs from my diet and his feedings improved, especially the projectile spitting up, and vomiting. When he was 6 months they did blood work that confirmed the dairy allergy (not just to lactose but to many milk proteins). I am an epidemiologist and so I have done a lot of my own research in the literature and found that the addition of probiotics to my life and his (they make them for infants and I mix them in with a little juice) has helped him and I both. The literature shows that many infants GI tract are no longer properly floriated (contain the correct type and amount of different good bacteria) and so allow proteins to pass through the stomach lining into the periphery causing food allergies. My sons mannerisms were indication to me he could smell/taste something in my breast-milk that was not suited to him. I felt rejected (silly, but it was hard for me because I was so determined to nurse). At 6 months we found out that it was a good thing I was determined to nurse because the allergies detected from the blood work showed he was allergic to all types of formula except the amino acid based ones which he will not even let close to his mouth. He is 13 months now, and I am still breast feeding and still avoiding the before mentioned foods (which was super hard during the holidays). Hope this helps and just know there are other moms out their who have felt your frustration and fear.
I would also see a lactation consultant if things don't improve. Its worth it!
Have you watched your diet very closely?
Maybe he is lactose intollerant?
You definitely can have someone come to evaluate his feeds--ask the hospital and/or your doctor. There are also lactation consultants that will come and help with breastfeeding. Seek out these sources for sure because you shouldn't suffer!!
