Baby got gas! | ExpatWoman.com
 

Baby got gas!

332
Posts
EW EXPLORER
Latest post on 26 November 2011 - 17:30

Hi Ladies
DD is now 5 months old and is a good sleeper except when she is gassy and that is usually in the night. She is on S26-HA formula which agrees with her (have tried several). She commenced solids a few weeks ago and we are keeping these to organic cereal and fruit and veg that are easy to digest as she has silent reflux but is medicated.

In observing DD's sleeping pattern at night, she generally only wakes when she is trying to get her gas out. She swings her legs in all directions and manages to come out of her swaddle. She is still swaddled (have tried sleeping bags, no sleeping bags but she wakes easily without the swaddle). When she wakes at night, usually we pick her up, put some pressure on her tummy and once the gas is out, she settles back to sleep quite easily. I am convinced she would be able to do a full night sleep if it wasn't for her discomfort.

Doctors have suggested Infacol and Pediacol both of which haven't been much help. I have also tried giving her baby camomille tea.

I guess her digestive system will develop over time but if anyone has any useful suggestions out there then I'd be interested in reading about them. She is also on Losec which can cause gas but has been on it for over 10 weeks so I am assuming Losec related symptoms have now settled.

many thanks
M

2340
Posts
EW EXPERT
Latest post on 28 November 2011 - 06:34
I think when we're worried and sleep-deprived, it's worth remembering that there is no conclusive evidence that the introduction of solids means more/longer sleep. In my personal experience, two of my three babies had slightly [u'>more disturbed[/u'> sleep after starting solids. Don't be afraid to cut the solids waaaaaayyy back then slowly re-introduce, one food at a time so you know for sure what is ok for her tummy. xx
2782
Posts
EW EXPERT
Latest post on 27 November 2011 - 22:11
How did your LO respond when you had to changeover as quickly as you did? I have to be stricter with the nanny I think so that DD gets some training during her day naps. As for the foods, I have a list from a book called the Sensational Baby Sleep Plan by Alison Scott Wright. There are some fruit and veggies which should be avoided. My LO gets gassier on rice than she does on cereal which is odd. Last night was quite good, she only woke twice to pass gas and it wasn't much at all and she had cereal for dinner. She has responded really well to Heinz Organics which is made in Oz funnily enough (LO not only loves this type of puree but her favourite toy is a singing koala - how did she work out she was a little Aussie?!) Ok, I truly don't want to scare you but basically, DS was a [b'>great[/b'> sleeper while swaddled, from 10 weeks he only woke once a night, I was convinced he would be sleeping a solid 12 by the time he was 6 months old. We knew we should take away the dummy and the swaddle by 4 months, but we didn't........ .....At 5 months we were back in NZ enjoying out last week of holiday when he figured out how to roll while swaddled. I saw him do it, and we had to stop swaddling the next night. From birth we had been ultra careful not to rock him to sleep ever, but staying with my parents, and not wanting to spend hours settling him instead of enjoying family time, we did it for just 5 nights, ..........big mistake.......... When we got home we stopped with the rocking and worked on patting and shushing him to sleep, and enlisted the help of a safe-t-sleep sleep belt to keep him on his back until he learned he could actually SLEEP on his tummy. His sleep was hellish for about 6 weeks :( then better, but still pretty awful until he was around 9/10 months old. I'm with Greenish on considering ditching the cereals especially since she is only 5 months old and FF. Babies don't make digestive enzymes for starch/complex carbs until 6 months and only in small amounts even then which means the starch ferments in their gut and leads to gas. babyrice is hypoallergenic, but that doesn't mean its easy for them to digest. Thats also why I'm curious about whats on your list of "easy to digest" foods, especially with your baby being a refluxer. We avoided a lot of starchy foods (potato, carrot, greenish banana) anyway, but had issues with oats, wheat & corn and didn't introduce rice until DS was around 8 months. Dairy has also been a trigger for DS, at 15 months he still gets silent reflux with yogurt. Probiotics, if you have access might help???
2340
Posts
EW EXPERT
Latest post on 27 November 2011 - 16:49
M...one of mine was gassy and fussy at night too. It's worrying and exhausting. Before we talk foods, PLEASE don't rely on that monitor too much. So much better to make a decision to start 'weaning off the swaddling' and know for sure that she's as safe as she can be. None of mine started solids until after 6 months, but I found my son couldn't tolerate any cereals at all, except for rice. Since you know rice is no good for your little girl, perhaps ditch the cereals all together? She's so little and her tummy has to work really hard to digest it all. She's getting everything she 'needs' from her formula and really is only beginning to explore flavours and textures with her solids. My older daughter developed a dreadful tummy bug when she was 4 months old...she was sick for almost 10 weeks. :( Throughout her illness she had dreadful 'gas' problems. The only thing that gave her any relief was smethicone drops (I think the brand name was Disflatyl??) Before you try any other medications though, be sure to stay in touch with a good GP or paed. :) Fingers crossed you're all getting more sleep soon.
332
Posts
EW EXPLORER
Latest post on 27 November 2011 - 15:27
Hi Kiwi and Angel_DXB - thanks for your replies : ) Kiwi - I know, I know!! We've been trying with the sleeping bag on and off but she doesn't like it. Tried putting her in it again this morning and as soon as she was popped into bed, she started moving around and then woke herself up. And you are right, she is starting to roll to her side and I've seen her do this in the swaddle so am worried too. But because of her reflux, she has learnt to be rocked to sleep and cannot fall asleep any other way so as soon as her arms get a chance to move around, she wakes up. I have an Angel Care monitor so God forbid anything should go wrong at least the alarm will sound ... I hope. How did your LO respond when you had to changeover as quickly as you did? I have to be stricter with the nanny I think so that DD gets some training during her day naps. As for the foods, I have a list from a book called the Sensational Baby Sleep Plan by Alison Scott Wright. There are some fruit and veggies which should be avoided. My LO gets gassier on rice than she does on cereal which is odd. Last night was quite good, she only woke twice to pass gas and it wasn't much at all and she had cereal for dinner. She has responded really well to Heinz Organics which is made in Oz funnily enough (LO not only loves this type of puree but her favourite toy is a singing koala - how did she work out she was a little Aussie?!) Angel - I'll look for Bonison next time I'm in the pharmacy, thanks for the tip : )
15
Posts
EW NEWBIE
Latest post on 27 November 2011 - 12:32
Hi M, actually u can use 'Bonison' syrup ,it is the product of himalaya. my LO is 9 months and still uses it.u can get it at any pharmacy.
2782
Posts
EW EXPERT
Latest post on 26 November 2011 - 22:59
Out of curiosity, what are the "easy to digest" fruits and veg your LO gets? For most 5 month olds, cereal is actually hard to digest. We found oats were particularly bad for DS's reflux which was silent by the 5 month mark. I hate to say it but you will have to stop swaddling soon, once your LO can roll it is dangerous to be swaddled, we had to literally stop overnight at just before 5 months and it was really hard, so a gradual wean before it gets to that point is probably a good idea, she will have to learn to sleep un-swaddled eventually. As far as the gas, is she constipated, making it harder to pass? if so you may have to review your list of first foods and make it less starchy. You may find that once you stop swaddling and she can move around more, it works itself out more easily. She may also begin to tummy sleep, which also seems to help with moving out the gas and once she is crawling she should definitely start working it out by herself, so be sure to give her lots of tummy-time to help her get to that point faster.
 
 

ON EXPATWOMAN TODAY