Loud Early Morning Grunting

My son was having similar issues and I found that Mylicon worked well. It is homeopathic so it can be used throughout the day. Also, pusing his knees to his chest may also help. Good Luck!

Recent studies have determined that probiotics help tremendously in reducing the symptoms of colic, and that one in particular (Lactobacillus reuteri) was found to be far more effective than simethicone (Mylicon) for lessening symptoms such as crying and gas; 95% vs. 7%. See the following link:

http://www.reflux1.com/news/Refluxmainstory.cfm/152

The study referenced in this link only examined the one strain of bacteria. It is likely that others, which are known to be beneficial to adults are also beneficial to infants (my guess is that for ease of analysis the researchers only chose to consider one). However because the many others are unstudied at this point (and despite my own personal experience - see below) I would only recommend the one for now.

The fact is however, mature, healthy guts possess a diverse array of beneficial bacteria that are critical to digestion, immunity, and really, overall health. New babies, unfortunately do not possess this diversity of gut flora and must acqure it over time.

My son had serious GERD (gastro esophageal reflux disease) diagnosed at 4 wks. Incidentally, a lot of colic is thought to be unndiagnosed GERD - not that I think your son has GERD; his symptoms are a little different. I had him off meds with a normally functioning system by 4 mos, largely I believe through the introduction of probiotics. I breastfed exclusively and just took apart a capsule and sprinkled them on my breast prior to his feedings once every few days. I don't remember exactly but I think the results were fast - a few days or a week from the time I realized to do this to when we saw results (less gas, less crying, more formed poops...your description of the latter was very telling, btw, in terms of incomplete digestion).

My experience was a bit of an experiment, as there wasn't much research published back in early 06', but it is great to know that there is now research to support what seems like a logical approach to dealing with this common infant problem.

Another thing: if you (or he) has taken antibiotics for any reason following his birth this is like a double whammy on his little system and even more reason to get some infant probiotics.

And lastly, I read that Hylands Homeopathic Colic Tablets are effective. I never tried them myself, but thought I would mention.

Best of luck! Hope your sleep improves.

K.

My son (who is now 11 weeks old) had the same problem, and is also strictly breastfed. I took him to a local nutritionist, Dr. Susan Player in Clearwater, and in his case he was a little dehydrated and just needed some water (as well as a natural supplement to help calm his irritated intestine).

He drank about 4 ounces of spring water every day for 4-5 days when offered, and then has refused it ever since. The grunting/gas/heavy effort for a bowel movement has completely gone away, as well as the colic reaction in the evenings.

hello, our son kind of had the same problem with the grunting thing and he looked like he was straining a lot to poop (strictly breast milk) and our ped. told us that babies have what she called "angry butt syndrome" meaning that until they learn to control their spincters, (the muscles down there)they resist the pooping until they relax enough to let it out...we used mylocin gas dropps after every feeding and it worked so much better than the gripe water for the gas... also, we put our son in his car seat or his bouncy seat (it sits at about 45 degrees) and we let him sleep in that even at night and it seemed to help having him somewhat upright. We also put him on his belly, pulled his legs up under him like a crawling position and then pat his lower back and butt which helped the gas bubbles. and the bouncy seat can fit on the dryer and that helps to move the bubble around-it worked for us...at least your son is going no.2 regularly and as long as it is not hard when it comes out, he should be ok...that is what our ped told us...our son would not go for anywhere from 3-8 days without a bm and then when he would, there would be 2-3 diapers of squirted no.2 and followed by the big one!!! She said as long as it is not hard, don't worry. Just angry butt syndrome!! Good luck!!!

I know it sounds like constipation, but I doubt it is. My son was breastfed and did the same thing. He was fine all night, but after that last feeding, the grunting began. My sister-in-law came when he was 5 weeks old and stayed in his room for 2 nights to give us a break. She couldn't believe the noises he made during that early morning time! It sounded like he was struggling and in pain, but he never cried. Sometimes, I don't even think he was awake! After trying everything, I learned to just leave him as long as he didn't cry. This went on for just a few weeks and then it stopped. It was like his system was still developing and there was nothing I could do to help. I remember how aweful it was! Anyway, if he isn't crying or upset, just leave him. I also used the Mylacon gas drops in that last feeding if it was a pumped bottle. There really might not be anything for you to do. I'm having my second in August and I have been wondering if she will go though the same thing, I dread it! Turn the monitor down to where you will hear him if he gets upset, but maybe not the minor grunting noises. We called our son a dinosaur because that is what the noises sounded like. This should pass and you will get your sleep back soon!

Hi! I'm the mother of 9 mo. old twin boys, and one of my guys had terrible gas/constipation issues for quite a while. What I found worked best was some of the anti-gas drops that you can get in the grocery's infant section before feedings. I also gave him watered-down juice after each meal or feeding until he had a "blow out". That would usually clear him out for several days before the cycle would start again. Eventually, he began to handle his food and the subsequent output better.

By the way, I did this routine following the advice of my pediatrician. You don't want to overdo the juice. Try apple (gentler) or prune (more effective, but a bit more harsh) after the first couple of meals of the day to try to "clear out" your little guy earlier in the day. Hopefully, by eliminating his distress, he'll sleep better at night. Check with your doc, of course, but I used the juice solution very early in their lives & I still use it if problems come up now.

Hope this helps!
Best,
R.

My son had the same problem, which I found odd since he was strictly bf. My daughter had the “typical” bf poop, but my son’s was more “pasty”. He would strain so hard sometimes that he would spit up a lot of the milk. My pediatrician said that babies have to “learn” how to poop and suggested that when my son was trying to poop, to insert a lubricated thermometer just inside the rectum to stimulate the muscle (he said that after a couple of times, the baby would learn how to use the muscle). This never worked for me, but it might for you. Eventually he outgrew it, but when he was straining during the day, I would put him on his back and push with his feet to bend his knees toward his tummy. It was difficult to see the little guy turn red and strain to have a poop. I agree with Maryanne – during the night when we heard him grunting, as long as he wasn’t crying (which he never did) we left him to do his own thing. He would usually pass gas then fall right to sleep.

J.

Hi A....have you tried the Mylicon drops? They helped my son out alot with the gas and hard BMs...Good luck!

I would talk to his dr. because a breastfed baby should not have that much trouble with constipation.
The gas could be caused by something you're eating, but you'd have to eliminate everything, then gradually add one at a time back in over the course of several weeks.
I hope your little one feels better soon.

You may want to monitor your diet--if he is strictly breastfed, then it may be something you are eating--start takin out the basic problem foods for a while, then reintroduce to see if any changes occur.

Are you burping him after every 5-10 minutes of breastfeeding? That, along with massages and gripe water, helped reduce my daughter's gas... massaging a little A&D around his anus (after he is cleaned and dry) may help too.

I got rid of grunting and pushing element in my baby by just giving babies magic tea. This tea is best for tummy problems in newborns, so if the baby is grunting with gas trouble, then this tea will solve the issue. Even the baby has no such issue this tea will make no harm.