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When a baby spits up, food comes back up without effort or warning; the baby
usually is not upset and may want to eat again immediately. This is common in the
first year of life, especially when babies are burping or drooling, and some babies
do it much more than others do (although rarely so much that it interferes with
getting enough food). It is sometimes part of gastroesophageal reflux which
occurs when the muscle between the stomach and the esophagus is not fully developed
enough to prevent backflow. Time usually cures this, but if your baby spits
up very frequently, talk to his doctor about it.
The doctor may recommend changing your baby’s sleeping position or modifying his feedings.
Although you can’t stop the spitting up altogether, these suggestions should
decrease its frequency:
• Keep each feeding calm, quiet, and leisurely.
• Burp your baby at least every three to five minutes during feedings.
• Feed your baby when he is in a semiupright position, rather than lying down.
• Keep your baby in a semiupright position for an hour or so after eating.
• Do not jostle or play vigorously with your baby right after he’s eaten.
• Try to feed him before he gets frantically hungry.
• If bottle-feeding, make sure the nipple hole is neither too big (which causes
formula to flow out) nor too small (which causes him to gulp air). If the hole is the right size, a few drops should come out and then stop when you invert the bottle.
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