Acid Reflux In Babies

You’ve had that burning pain down the center of your chest after a spicy meal more than once, and you are fairly certain it’s acid reflux.

But, what about your baby? Can she experience the same uncomfortable abdominal issue? Yes, she certainly can.

What Is Infant Acid Reflux?

When food backs up (or refluxes – hence the name) from the baby’s tummy, she can spit up. This common problem happens because the band of muscle that separates the esophagus from the stomach doesn’t fully contract. Why? In most cases, the band (called the lower esophageal sphincter) is still somewhat immature. The only partial contraction allows food/liquid to sneak back up and irritate the baby’s esophagus.

What Symptoms Does Acid Reflux Cause?

The main symptom you’ll see is spit-up after feeding. Talk to your baby’s doctor if you have any concerns or she seems overly fussy. If your baby is spitting up yellow or green fluid, has blood in her spit-up or stool, isn’t putting on weight, projectile vomits often or won’t eat, it may be a more serious condition. These symptoms require a call to the pediatrician – right away. Only a trained medical professional can make a diagnosis of acid reflux or something more serious.

What Treatments Are Available For Acid Reflux?

As long as your doctor rules out a more serious medical issue, it is possible that they will tell you to offer your baby more frequent (and smaller) feeds. This decreases the amount of food or liquid that is in your baby’s stomach at any given time. The less food your baby has in her belly, the quicker she’ll digest it. Why is this helpful in treating infant reflux? Digested food can’t make its way back up into your little one’s esophagus.

Bear in mind, though, you aren’t just cutting back on her feeds. She’s still getting the same amount over a 24-hour period. The difference is in both the amount and the frequency. If you’re giving her half as much, you also need to feed your baby twice as often. The doctor can help you to come up with an acceptable feeding schedule that meets your baby’s needs.

Another way to alleviate acid reflux is to keep your baby upright after feedings. Let gravity work in her favor. It’s more of a challenge for the food to make its way up her esophagus and work against gravity if she’s sitting up. You may also want to change what you’re feeding your baby – or what you’re feeding yourself (if you breastfeed, that is). While not all food sensitivities cause reflux, some formulas (or foods passed through breast milk) may add to tummy troubles.

How Will Acid Reflux Affect Your Baby’s Photo Shoot?

In many cases, it doesn’t have any affect at all. That being said, reflux may causes fussiness – which may make your little one’s shoot a challenge. Along with the occasional cranky outburst, spitting up on her outfit doesn’t exactly make for an easy experience.

However, in our experience, babies with acid reflux do tend to be fussy with the poses we put them in and dislike lying on their back. Some babies may prefer to be lying on their tummy or being elevated. We will take note of the signs that your baby gives during the photo shoot. For example, some babies less than four months old may not like to lie on their backs on baskets or beds. In this case, we will switch their position to lying on their side or on their tummies to make them more comfortable.

All our sessions cater for baby’s feeding time, diaper changing and also for soothing baby down for the shoot. As we do have a service guarantee for delivery of good photos, we will ensure that your baby is well settled and we will have good shots and photos for you before we end the shoot. Having said all that, your baby’s safety and comfort will always be our top priority in a photo shoot. We will not compromise your baby’s safety or comfort for a pose.