A newborn’s tummy is extremely delicate. His system is still developing, and occasional tummy troubles are bound to happen. This in turn will cause you to go into panic mode as he’s crying, and you don’t know what’s the cause! Learn how to recognise the common issues and tackle it like a pro.
Gas pain
What it is: Air can get into baby’s belly and, as she's digesting, get stuck. Think of it like a balloon of air in the intestines! It causes pressure, which can be painful.
Causes: Babies are prone to gas. But it’s totally natural—it gets produced by the normal bacteria that live in baby’s gut. Crying, fussing and bottle-feeding can all put extra air bubbles there too.
How to spot it: If baby has gas pain, his belly might look inflated, or he might be arching his back or squirming a lot because it's uncomfortable. Baby's probably fussy too, which can make the gas even worse, since he could swallow a bunch of air while crying. Usually, gas pain is at its worst when baby is about 6 to 8 weeks old. But know that gas pains aren’t usually cause for medical concern, and soon baby will outgrow getting them so badly.
How to help: Try to get the gas out: Lay baby down and gently bicycle his legs forward and backward, and try pushing his knees to the chest, repeating several times. If you’ve seen a doctor for this, they will give you gas drops for baby, that could help too.
Spitting up / Reflux
What it is: We're sure you know what this is, because you’ve probably been slimed many times already!
What can cause it: Chalk it up to an immature digestive system. The valve that closes the stomach off from the oesophagus and prevents food and drink from going back up isn't as strong in babies as it is in adults. The result? Baby’s food can easily make a reappearance—especially when she eats too much or too fast.
How to spot it: Spitting up is just spitting up, as long as baby seems perfectly content afterward. It will only be a medical problem if baby is coughing, choking, gagging, has poor weight gain or projectile vomiting.
How to help: Work on prevention. Stop halfway through a feeding (when you switch breasts or baby's had half the bottle) for a burp so baby has extra time to digest and you get excess air out before it gets stuck in there. Then burp baby at the end of the feeding too. If you’re having trouble getting the burp out, try some different positions. Also try keeping baby upright for about 20 minutes after the feeding, while she’s digesting.
Other than that, there isn’t much more you can do. If you’ve got a frequent spitter-upper, accept that you’re going to have to be super-prepared with extra clothes, bibs and burp cloths when you take baby out. You’ll probably do a ton of laundry too. It’s a pain, but temporary—it usually gets better when baby is around 6 months to one year old.
Constipation
What it is: It’s not what you probably think—babies can poop anywhere from 8 to 10 times a day to once every 7 to 10 days and still be considered just fine, as long as they’re not uncomfortable. Rather, constipation is about them having trouble pooping when they actually have to go.
What can cause it: Baby can get constipated when you switch to a new food, like from breast milk to formula, formula to regular milk, or when you introduce new solids.
How to spot it: Keep an eye on consistency. If baby is constipated, the poop will come out as hard little balls or he’ll be farting a lot and will be straining to try to poop. Also, beware of black, red or maroon baby poop, which could mean there’s blood in it. Blood could be a sign of something more serious, so call baby’s doctor if you see it. Yellow, green and brown poops are fine!
How to help: First, ask baby’s doctor to recommend a treatment. Depending on baby’s age, the doctor may say it’s okay to give baby some apple or pear juice.
Diarrhoea
What it is: Diarrhoea in babies refers to frequent, loose, really watery stools. Diarrhoea is scary in babies because it can cause them to become dangerously dehydrated.
What can cause it: Diarrhoea usually only happens if baby’s exposed to a virus (maybe through a big sibling) or if she’s eaten something that was contaminated or spoiled, though certain foods can also cause a problem.
How to spot it: Normal poop in babies, especially if breastfed, tend to be runnier than the normal poop in adults—so don’t mistake that for the big D. What you’re looking for is an “excessive watery stool”.
How to help: Since baby is losing the fluid she needs, diarrhoea requires a visit to the doctor to make sure baby is not losing too much weight and to detect the root of the problem.
Make sure baby's drinking plenty of liquids (breast milk or formula) and is wetting at least four to five diapers a day if he or she’s an infant (as opposed to the three to four for toddlers).
Avoid giving baby juice as juice can make it worse because all its sugar content causes the gut to excrete more water.
Article was adapted from The Bump.
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