Guide to Breastfeeding a Gassy Baby

As many experienced parents are aware, an excessive build up of gas in babies can cause discomfort, pain, sleep disturbances, and extreme fussiness. While many medications and methods exist for treating the symptoms of gas in infants, most parents feel it necessary to treat the underlying cause rather than merely the symptoms.

When it comes to preventing and treating gas in infants, the approach parents should take varies upon whether the infant is breastfed or formula fed. Important things to consider in breastfeeding a gassy baby include:

Proper Suction Should Always be Insured

Many breastfed infants (especially newborn babies) experience difficulty in properly latching on to the nipple during feedings. This poor suction allows the child to swallow large amounts of air during feedings, which causes an excess of gas.

Mothers can insure proper suction during feedings by listening for sounds of air movement. If air movement is noted, the child is not fully latched on to the breast.

Everything in the Mother’s Diet Matters

Much like adults, infants can become gassy from nearly anything consumed – this includes breast milk. Most anything that a breastfeeding mother consumes is excreted through her breast milk during the baby’s feedings.

Should a breastfeeding mother consume foods known to cause gas, such as cabbage or beans, it is not unusual for the breastfed infant to experience gas due to this excretion.

Some babies experience gas due to other elements of the mother’s diet, including foods not known to cause gas, beverages, medications, and supplements. When a baby experiences gas due to a sensitivity to the mother’s diet, other symptoms are typically present, such as vomiting, diarrhea, rash, congestion, or a runny nose.

Practicing Proper Burping Techniques Does Make a Difference

Babies prone to gas should be burped much more consistently and often than babies not prone to gas. Proper burping techniques to follow in gassy breastfed babies include burping after each ounce of milk is consumed and burping thoroughly after feedings are complete.

Positioning During Feedings Can Cause Gas

Many new mothers fail to understand that the position in which the infant is in during feedings can cause an excessive build up of gas. Infants in a flat or lying position during feedings are much more likely to develop gas than those in a sitting or upright position.

In order to prevent gas caused by positioning, a baby should be at a forty-five degree angle during feedings. This position can easily be achieved during breastfeeding sessions by gently sitting the child up, supporting the head and back with one arm, and holding the legs with the other.

Overfeeding and Feeding Too Often Should Always be Avoided

Overfeeding an infant or allowing the baby to eat very quickly can cause gas, among other complications, such as reflux and constipation. It is recommended to feed a gassy breastfed child several small meals very slowly throughout the day rather than a few large and quick meals.

Source:
http://www.kellymom.com/babyconcerns/gassybaby.html