For an adult, hiccups are quite commonplace, which everyone can easily cope with, having a suitable method in their arsenal. What to do if your hiccups infant, for example, after each feeding? Parents often express concern about this and do not know how to properly respond. If hiccups begin to cause inconvenience to the baby, then you need to understand the reason why this is happening.
Thoracic and abdominal cavity separated from each other by a muscle called the diaphragm. In newborns, it is particularly mobile and sensitive. When any irritant is exposed to the muscle, the baby experiences contractions of the diaphragm of a convulsive nature, called hiccups. At the same time, there is a characteristic sound, which is explained by the closing of the vocal cords.
What Causes Babies to Hiccup After Feeding?
Often, hiccups are a short-term phenomenon of natural origin that can go away on its own. In this case, this phenomenon does not cause concern to the baby, and, consequently, the parents do not cause anxiety.
Babies under one year of age are more prone to both spitting up and hiccups. This is especially evident after eating and is explained by the physiology of the digestive tract. But there are a number of factors that provoke this phenomenon. What reasons lead to the fact that the newborn hiccups after feeding constantly?
- Aerophagia. This is the process of excessive swallowing of air during meals. This reason can be attributed to the most common. By swallowing air while sucking, babies run the risk of filling the stomach with more oxygen, which will press on the diaphragm and cause hiccups. This phenomenon is the norm, but one should be aware of the factors that provoke the ingress of air along with food: - sucking on the mother's tide; - improper attachment to the breast or feeding the bottle; - too large a hole at the nipple; - rapid sucking of the crumbs.
- Binge eating. Many mothers worry: “Is my baby eating the required portion?” In fact, very often the baby is overfed, and the stomach is stretched due to the intake of excess food. From here there is pressure on the diaphragm, and hiccups are provoked. The mother can easily test this assumption by limiting the amount of milk or adapted formula offered at the next feeding.
Why can you overeat while breastfeeding?
Firstly, those mothers who feed by the hour, and not on demand, are at risk of overloading the baby. In this case, due to the small volume of the child's stomach, the portion of milk eaten is enough for the baby for a short period of time. By the time the next scheduled feeding comes up, the baby will most likely be already hungry and will begin to drink milk greedily. As a result of such sucking, we will get a children's stomach overloaded with excess food.
Secondly, experts explain that mother's milk is divided into two types: anterior and hind. The latter is more fatty and leads to satiety during meals. If the mother's milk is in excess, then often the baby first of all gets drunk with a more liquid front one. Having received high-calorie hindmilk by the end of feeding, your child may already be full.
Accumulation of gases in the intestines. Newborns under the age of 3 months are characterized by poor development of the system gastrointestinal tract. Babies often suffer from pain in the tummy. The reason for this is intestinal colic. The accumulation of gases leads not only to painful bloating, but can also cause hiccups. It is easy to determine colic by the state of the baby. After feeding, the baby is restless and constantly pulls his legs, trying to lift them up. An enlarged tummy is noticeable, which, when palpated, is distinguished by hardness and elasticity.
Reasons not related to feeding
It happens that mommy fulfills all the requirements for proper nutrition of the baby, but the baby still hiccups after feeding. What to do in this case? You should not forget about other causes of manifestation. It is possible that hiccups caught the crumbs after eating, but completely different factors are to blame:
- emotional shock. The newborn hiccups in an excited state. The children's nervous system is not yet stable, and babies are extremely prone to easily enter this state. They may be frightened of strangers, new surroundings, harsh and unexpected sounds. From an alarming state, there is a spasm of the diaphragm and its further contractions;
- freezing. A baby often hiccups from hypothermia. Feel the baby's hands. If you notice how cold they are, it means that the baby is overcooled. Due to the fact that the thermoregulation system in infants is weak, it is very difficult for them to independently maintain a constant body temperature.
Prevention measures
Since there are different causes of manifestation, you can prevent hiccups by taking preventive measures:
- feed your baby on demand. It is advisable to give smaller portions of food, but do it at shorter intervals;
- don't express a large number of foremilk during a strong flush;
- adjust the technique of breastfeeding and bottle delivery. Make sure that the baby completely captures the halo. The nipple of the bottle must be filled with formula and at the right angle;
- feed the baby when he is calm. If the baby is naughty, divert his attention and calm him down;
- monitor the temperature in the room. If the baby is cold, immediately warm it;
- when breastfeeding, it is useful for mommy in the first months to follow a special diet in nutrition and avoid foods that can cause gas formation.
What to do if the hiccups have already begun? Try to take the baby in the arms and tightly attach it to your tummy. From the received mother's heat, colic will cease to torment, and the release of excess air will contribute to the cessation of hiccups.
With prolonged hiccups, regular drinking helps. You can attach the baby to the chest or give him a drink of plain water.
When Parents Should Worry
Parents are frightened by the prolonged process of hiccuping of the child. Is it really worth worrying about this? What are the possible pathological causes?
A sign when parents should be wary is a long period. A hiccup is called prolonged if it does not go away within two days. In this case, the physiological phenomenon will cause the child extreme inconvenience and psychological discomfort. The specialist will be able to identify the reason why hiccups do not go away. Parents will be able to understand what to do next. It is necessary to exclude an infectious or viral disease, pathology of the gastrointestinal tract, pneumonia, etc.
Hiccups are a very common and harmless phenomenon in adults and children of all ages. Meanwhile, if this problem is regularly observed in a newborn child, it can cause great anxiety in new parents. As a rule, babies begin to hiccup after feeding. In this article, we will tell you why this happens, and how new moms and dads can help their child cope with this disorder.
Why does a baby hiccup after feeding?
The most basic reason why a child hiccups after each feeding is the swallowing of air while eating. At the same time, the mechanism of its entry into the stomach of the crumbs can differ significantly depending on what type of feeding the baby is on.
So, if a young mother often wonders why her newborn baby hiccups after breastfeeding, the answer probably lies in the fact that the baby does not grasp the nipple correctly during attachment. Under such circumstances, along with the mother's milk, a sufficiently large amount of air enters the baby's esophagus, which comes out in the form of hiccups. To avoid such phenomena, it is recommended to hold the baby upright for several minutes after feeding the baby until a burp appears, indicating that excess air has left the baby's body.
If parents are wondering why their baby hiccups after bottle feeding, it is most likely worth getting a pacifier for her with a smaller hole. As a rule, air enters the body of the crumbs along with the mixture precisely in the case when a hole is made too large in the nipple.
In addition, the factors that provoke hiccups may be different - elementary overeating and bloating for various reasons. In both of these cases, the intestinal wall swells, exerting tremendous pressure on the diaphragm and causing it to contract.
How to get rid of hiccups that occur after feeding?
The first thing young parents who are worried about hiccups in a newborn baby should do is to hold him upright immediately after feeding. As a rule, in this case, the crumbs have an eructation, with which excess air comes out, due to which the hiccups stop. A child older than 6 months in such a situation can be offered to drink some warm water.
Finally, in all cases, compliance should be monitored very carefully. Do not under any circumstances overfeed the child, especially if he is on artificial feeding. Regardless of the requirements of the infant, do not offer him a breast or a bottle until 3 hours after the previous meal.
Hiccups in newborn babies are a fairly common and understandable phenomenon.
However, given the age of the crumbs, sometimes it causes quite understandable concern for mommy.
Especially if the specific reflex is quite long. In order not to worry without a good reason, you should understand the mechanism of this phenomenon and the possible help to the child.
What is hiccups
Between the abdominal and thoracic cavities is a muscular septum - the diaphragm. Its involuntary convulsive contraction causes a peculiar sound and movement. Most often, this is a completely normal process, due to some reasons, which should not cause much excitement.
Only sometimes hiccups are a companion of the disease, especially when accompanied by coughing, regurgitation, visible discomfort of the baby and continues long time. In this case, you should consult a doctor to rule out the presence of pathology.
The most common causes of hiccups in newborns after feeding
The diaphragm under the age of three months is overly sensitive, so the slightest irritation can cause involuntary contraction. Episodic hiccups are most often associated with errors in feeding and occur after it ends:
Too much milk ingested. Stretched as a result of this, the stomach affects the diaphragm;
Swallowing a certain amount of air, which occurs as a result of active sucking or an opening that is too large when bottle feeding;
Some immaturity of the digestive organs, which is inherent in this age.
Hypothermia, thirst or stress can also cause hiccups, but this is only indirectly related to the feeding process.
What to do if the child hiccups after feeding
At an older age, hiccups can be stopped, most often with the help of folk methods- suck a slice of lemon, hold your breath, eat a teaspoon of sugar. But what about the baby, for whom these methods are not available? It is unlikely that it will be possible to stop the hiccups that have begun, you should just wait for it to stop, gently stroking the baby, distracting him and giving the small body a vertical position. But to try in the future to prevent an unpleasant state is quite within the power of any mother.
In order to prevent the appearance of hiccups in a newborn, you should heed the advice of experienced pediatricians and follow simple methods to prevent the appearance of a problem:
1. You should not overfeed the little glutton - it is better to feed him more often, but little by little.
2. If the baby has an excellent appetite, he greedily and with pleasure sucks his mother's breast, while swallowing air, you should not wait until he is properly hungry. Starting feeding a little earlier, you can spend it calmly and without haste. The slow process will prevent swallowing air.
3. If hiccups occur right while enjoying mother's delicious milk, you need to stop feeding, give the baby a vertical position and try to burp. You can continue the process after the hiccups stop.
4. If a child, for any reason, drinks milk from a bottle, you should carefully monitor the hole in the nipple. Normally, milk should flow out of it in drops. Neither jet flow is allowed, nor too slow flow due to a small hole. In either of these two cases, air is swallowed and hiccups occur for this reason.
5. The cause of hiccups due to excessive gas formation may also be the non-compliance of the mother with a sparing diet. The tendency to eat legumes, cabbage, tomatoes can cause not only the occurrence of involuntary contractions of the diaphragm, but also cause colic, bloating and regurgitation in a little man.
6. It is undesirable to feed the baby in a horizontal position, the angle of inclination of his body is preferably about 45 degrees, and the head should be above the nipple. After saturation, you can also not put it on the back, it is better to hold it in a column. Pressing the baby to him, he should be stroked on the back and achieve a burp. The same should be done if the child is worried during feeding and presses the legs to the stomach.
7. During the saturation of the baby, the mother should be calm. A sharp loud noise, a showdown with household members, the presence of outsiders are unacceptable phenomena. All this can cause stress in the baby and, as a result, prolonged hiccups.
Few people know that hiccups begin to annoy the baby even in the womb and, oddly enough, help him develop correctly and harmoniously. By contracting, the diaphragm promotes the circulation of the fluid that is in the lungs of the baby, and contributes to the harmonious development internal organs and muscles. After birth, hiccups become increasingly rare and usually disappear completely by the end of the third month of life. But sometimes it signals trouble.
Hiccups in a newborn as a symptom of the disease
If hiccups still occur quite often and last for a long time, it is necessary to consult a pediatrician to exclude the presence of a disease. Developing pneumonia or lesion nervous system capable of causing it.
If the duration of the process, which causes discomfort to the child and excitement to the mother, is more than half an hour, attention should be paid to the presence of concomitant signs. Reasons to see a doctor may include:
Constant regurgitation;
Increased excitability;
The occurrence of hiccups, regardless of feeding;
Presence of elevated temperature.
In combination with constant, prolonged hiccups, these symptoms may indicate the presence of an ailment, so you should not postpone a visit to the pediatrician. In the absence of additional unpleasant signs, in the presence of simply too long and constant hiccups in a newborn, it is advisable to consult with specialists - a neurologist, gastroenterologist and otolaryngologist.
How not to "help" a newborn with hiccups
Lots of folk ways getting rid of hiccups is completely inapplicable to a newborn baby:
In no case should you scare the baby with sharp sounds - clapping your hands or screaming. They will not bring any result other than fright and prolonged crying;
You should also not sharply throw the baby up, turn it upside down, and so on - the result will be similar to the previous one;
You can’t lubricate the child’s tongue with mustard, salt or vinegar - stupid advice from friends or neighbors can lead to unpredictable consequences;
It is strictly forbidden to give a child any medicines without the consent of the doctor. Mom's excuse "and helped the neighbor's girl" in this case is completely inappropriate and even dangerous. indigestion, severe allergic reaction, problems with a small heart - far from complete list problems that can be caused by the irresponsibility of the most precious person for the baby - the mother.
Sometimes, unfortunately, you can not do without medicines. However, they are prescribed by a pediatrician in strictly adjusted doses, and the course of treatment is carried out under the supervision of a doctor.
Summing up
In most cases, hiccups in newborns are a natural reflex that goes away on their own with age. By following the well-known recommendations, you can save your baby from an unpleasant process or significantly reduce its duration.
The main wish for mothers is to be attentive to the child, do not ignore the occurrence of seemingly frivolous phenomena and do not try to cope with the problems that arise on your own. An experienced doctor will help to avoid unnecessary consequences of self-treatment.
Moms and dads often face problems that at first glance seem ridiculous. What if the newborn hiccups after feeding? Many adults are familiar with this symptom. Hiccups do not cause panic at all. If the problem concerns the baby of the first month of life, moms and dads sound the alarm. In fact, there is nothing wrong with hiccups. The child can be helped quickly.
With age, hiccups bother people less and less. An interesting fact is that children under a year old after feeding hiccup almost daily. This process is completely natural. There is no need to worry. Many scientists have proven that the fetus in the womb can hiccup from 6 weeks of pregnancy.
Hiccups do not bring any discomfort to the baby. It only takes a few minutes to hold the child vertically - and everything passes. The problem can only arise when a newborn baby hiccups after feeding at bedtime. Regular contractions keep the baby from falling asleep. As a result, the mode is broken. Mom needs to know how to properly help the baby. Moreover, it is not so difficult to do this.
Mechanism of hiccups
Why does a newborn hiccup after feeding? What to do? Initially, it is necessary to understand the mechanism of this process. The process of hiccups has nothing to do with the baby's respiratory system. The symptom is caused by periodic contraction of the diaphragm as a result of irritation or stimulation. Children's digestive system not yet fully developed. Therefore, the newborn often hiccups after feeding. In most cases, infants under three months of age are affected. At this age, the diaphragmatic muscle is not yet fully formed and immediately responds to any irritating factors.
It is worth noting that children who are on the breastfeeding. This is due to the fact that breast milk has a more liquid consistency than the prepared mixture. Do not wonder why a newborn hiccups after breastfeeding. This is a natural process that should not cause negative emotions at parents.
Need to know about it
In rare cases, a newborn hiccups after each feed due to a serious ailment called gastroesophageal disease. In this case, hiccups will not be the only unpleasant symptom. The child will also constantly spit up, act up and sleep poorly. If you suspect a disease, you should immediately contact your pediatrician for advice.
For a healthy child under one year old, hiccups are a completely natural process. Why does a newborn hiccup after feeding? There may be several reasons. This is often primarily due to the overdistension of the stomach by the air that the infant swallows during feeding. Mom needs to make sure that the baby takes the breast or the bottle with the mixture correctly. Also, don't overfeed your baby. Children of the first year of life do not have a sense of satiety. The baby will eat as much as he will be offered.
There are also causes of hiccups that are not food related. The diaphragmatic muscle can be stimulated due to freezing. If a newborn hiccups after feeding, it is worth touching his arms and legs. If they are cold, the baby needs to be dressed warmer. Fright and anxiety can also cause hiccups in a baby.
How to get rid of hiccups?
It is much more difficult to stop a symptom than to prevent it. Therefore, parents should follow some rules to avoid diaphragm contraction in an infant. It is necessary to properly organize the feeding process. Do not wait until the moment when the child is very hungry. Otherwise, the baby will greedily swallow food and overeating cannot be avoided. Quite often, a newborn hiccups after feeding in the morning. This is due precisely to the fact that he was very hungry during the night's sleep.
Mom should definitely choose the right position for feeding. Don't hold your baby in a completely horizontal position. An angle of forty-five degrees would be ideal. Before offering food to the baby, you need to make sure that he is in a calm state. If a newborn hiccups after feeding, then something is bothering him. In advance, it is worth checking the baby's diaper for filling.
If hiccups could not be avoided
Newborn hiccups after feeding. What to do? First of all, it is necessary to release the air that has accumulated in the baby's stomach. To do this, you just need to take the baby and vilify him for several minutes in an upright position. After belching, the hiccups should go away. What to do if the diaphragmatic muscle continues to contract? Sometimes additional feeding with a small amount of warm liquid helps. Plain water from a bottle will do. To stop hiccups, it is enough for the baby to take a few sips.
Quite often, the cause of hiccups in formula-fed babies is a large hole in the nipple of the bottle. Worth experimenting with various forms. Today in the pharmacy you can find a wide variety of nipples with any holes.
Mother's diet
Of great importance proper nutrition mothers if the baby is breastfed. When a woman's stomach swells or constipation occurs, similar problems will also occur in the baby. A nursing mother should give up legumes, certain types of vegetables and fruits. Fried, spicy and salty foods should be used with caution. New foods should be added to the diet gradually. At the same time, it is recommended to monitor the baby's reaction to new dishes.
Choice is not the only thing that matters the right products. It is also important to have a meal plan. A nursing mother should eat often and in small portions. In no case should you bring yourself to a feeling of hunger. To make milk tasty and satisfying, you should use cottage cheese, kefir, fermented baked milk, yogurt.
Summing up
Hiccups in an infant are normal and should not cause concern to parents. It is worth worrying only when other symptoms additionally appear, such as frequent regurgitation, sleep disturbance and anxiety. And in order to avoid contraction of the diaphragm in an infant, a mother should learn how to feed him properly. Indeed, in most cases, hiccups are the result of overeating or swallowing air.
Some doctors believe the cause is a poorly established connection between the brain and the diaphragm.. There is also an opinion that hiccups come from overeating, when a full stomach presses on the diaphragm, causing it to contract spasmodically. Also, the cause of hiccups in children after feeding may be the swallowing of air. This can cause not only hiccups, but also regurgitation after feeding, and then bloating.
What to do if the newborn hiccups after feeding? Here are some options for solving this problem for parents:
1. If the baby hiccups from overeating, then of course, try not to overfeed him.. Signs of overfeeding a child may be too abundant regurgitation (especially), in an infant, overfeeding can be determined by the presence of undigested curdled milk residues in the feces. You can try to feed more often, but in smaller portions. In order not to overfill the baby's stomach.
2. If the baby swallows air during feeding, then after eating, carry it vertically with a column, pressing it against your tummy. This will help move the air bubbles. The baby will burp and stop hiccuping. If the baby is artificial, then maybe you should change the bottle or pacifier on it. Now there are many options for special anti-colic bottles that prevent air from entering when feeding a baby. If the baby swallows air while breastfeeding, adjust the feeding position, it may be worth feeding, holding the crumbs at an angle, or pressing him closer to the breast. Also make sure that he correctly captures the breast (not only the nipple, but also the areola - the areola).
3. It happens that the baby chokes on abundantly flowing milk from the mother's breast or bottle, which causes hiccups. Change the nipple in the bottle to one that has one small hole through which the milk will flow slowly and the baby will need to make an effort to suck it out. If the baby is choking on milk from his mother's breast, then feed intermittently so that he has time to swallow a portion before getting a new one.
4. The old proven way to stop a baby's hiccups is to give him water.(if he doesn’t drink from a bottle, then give it from a spoon), or put it on his chest for a while, so that the baby took a couple of sips. If this does not help, then you can rock the child, falling asleep, he will stop hiccuping.
As you can see, hiccups are normal for a newborn baby, the older he gets, the less often he will have bouts of hiccups. If the above methods do not help you, then just wait until the hiccups pass by themselves, believe me, it does not cause such anxiety in the child as in mothers and grandmothers. Just do not listen to "experienced advisers" and scare the baby, except for the shaken nervous system, you will not achieve anything with this. It’s better to try to “talk” hiccups, this will at least distract you from bad thoughts, for example: “Hiccups, hiccups, go to Fedot, from Fedot to Yakov, from Yakov to anything.”