How much spit up is normal?

645 Views 13 Replies 11 Participants Last post by ashcox, Apr 11, 2006

BurgundyElephant

Discussion Starter · Apr 10, 2006

I remember my oldest spit up a lot... my second didn't spit up at all. My baby right now seems to spit up a lot. He's exclusively breast fed on demand... I don't think I make too much milk, I actually drink the Yogi mother's tea once a day to keep my supply up.

Anyway, almost everytime after he eats he spits up some. Is he eating too much? (I'm not going to deny him nursing because I think he's eating too much, I just want to know if it's a legitimate cause.) How do you know if it's reflux? I don't want to call the ped. just to pay a copay to hear "he'll grow out of it".

He weighs about 14# and will be 3 months on Wednesday.

Any advice? Save carring a burp cloth everywhere? Lol

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dove

· #2 · Apr 10, 2006

Do you have a very active letdown? Sometimes if so, you could try unlatching babe at letdown and spraying into a cloth diaper or some such and then relatching when the majority of the spray is over. Sometimes that can make a big diff. Give it a try and see if you notice a change.

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BurgundyElephant

Discussion Starter · #3 · Apr 10, 2006

Thank you for the reply... I wouldn't say it's an active letdown... it never sprays. Sometimes if he has to pull off for a minute then it will drip a little bit, like the drops out of a leaky faucet, but not bad. Very rarely happens, though.

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dove

· #4 · Apr 10, 2006

hmmmm... maybe more mamas with babies with reflux or spitting up could chime in???? The only time ds ever spit up was when he just got knocked out by my milk letting down!

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newbie_mary

· #5 · Apr 10, 2006

Mine doesn't spit up much, but he does seem to choke a lot in the middle of a feeding...maybe I should try that spraying into a cloth? How do you tell if your letdown is too forceful?

Mary

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ashcox

· #6 · Apr 10, 2006

I don't have a really strong let-down and my DS, 14 lbs will be 3 months a week from Wednesday, is a spitter-upper. He spits up after every feeding. He had gotten really bad to where it was just astonishing how much he was spitting up, but we think he had a stomach bug, and he's back to his normal spitting up. Our ped said that it's reflux that he'll grow out of in a few months. I personally think it could be an allergy to something in my diet. We are switching peds so at our next well-baby I'm going to talk to her about it. So... that's our experience. Keep a bib on him and a burp rag handy and if it really worries you, go see your ped. Trust your instincts when it comes to your babies.

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cj'smommy

· #7 · Apr 10, 2006

Both my boys are/were spitters. I was told to worry about it if it was more than a half a feeding. I know, it's hard to tell when you're breastfeeding but use your judgement. Also, if your babe isn't gaining and spitting up a lot that might be a sign that's it's not ok.

I took both my boys to the Ped when I noticed they were uncomfortable with the spitting up, and just not comfortable in general. Does it seem to bother him?

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my2girlz

· #8 · Apr 10, 2006

My youngest was a spitter. He choked a lot and projectile vomitted about 1x a week or so. His dr said he must have silent reflux since he was gaining weight. He was about 17lbs at 4 months. At around 6 months old I took him into our new chiropractor that my dh had been seeing. After examing him he asked me if he spit up a lot. I said yes and then he told me that Alex had a hiatal hernia. Basically, his stomach is rammed up in his diaphram. He got it massaged back into place and he stopped spitting up for a few weeks when it slipped back out of place. It usually happens every few months now and I know I need to bring him back in to get an adjustment. He's 20 months old now. I researched the hiatal hernia and found that many infants with it are labeled as having GERD.

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rmzbm

· #9 · Apr 10, 2006

Quote:

Originally Posted by dove
The only time ds ever spit up was when he just got knocked out by my milk letting down!

Same here...my DD isn't a "spitter" but sometimes she doesn't have much of a choice!!

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Llyra

· #10 · Apr 10, 2006

DD spit up near constantly until she started sitting up alone, and then it tapered off. It stopped completely once she started eating a lot of solids. But until then, it was a LOT. She projectiled at least twice a day, and spat up gently at least three times after every feeding.

I had a long talk with my pediatrician about it. She said that she would consider treatment if 1. DD was fussy or seemed to be in pain either during or after a meal, or if 2. DD was gaining weight very slowly. Otherwise, she said, it was more a laundry problem than a medical problem. Neither of these was true-- DD was no fussier than any other baby, and never showed any signs of pain, and was always tall and heavy for her age, so we did nothing and she grew out of it all on her own. I think some babies are just big spitters.

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Dido

· #11 · Apr 11, 2006

DD, 4 mos old, has spit up a lot since around 2 mos. It definitely got better after I quit dairy (and I had to quit ALL dairy, even in baked stuff) but we still need a bib on her most of the day. She gains weight well and doesn't seem uncomfortable, so I don't think it's a medical issue. I think she's just a big spitter. One thing you can do is carry your DC upright a lot in a mei tai or wrap. When DD is in the wrap she rarely spits up.

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Mrs Dimples

· #12 · Apr 11, 2006

nak, with baby puke covering my entire lower body

i have wondered this too. my son spit quite a bit, but my new baby girl is something else. we're never safe. she vomits almost constantly. she's gaining and doesn't seem to be bothered by it (sometimes she's fussy when she has to burp or something, but aren't most babies? doesn't seem to be more than normal to me).

she vomits upright, laying down, all the time. just after eating, and 3 hours after eating. i think i do have a lot of milk, but i feed off the same side for a few hours at a time and i spray off the let-down if it's really bad. i think i just have a puker.

wish i had some advice for you, but i'm right in your boat. my son was bottlefed EBM exclusively (unable to latch) so it looks like i just have spitty babies. the laundry at my house is incredible. loads and loads every day.

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beaches1098

· #13 · Apr 11, 2006

One thing that worked a little for us was to nurse in a more upright position and to keep the baby upright after nursing for 20 minutes or so. Not so much fun during the night but it helped. Also nursing before he was really hungry helped because he wasn't nursing so fast and didn't nurse for as long so his belly wasn't so overfull.

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ashcox

· #14 · Apr 11, 2006

I had heard the hiatal hernia thing before. Another thing I forgot that someone had told me was too much calcium in mom's diet. Another thing if it gets really bad and baby seems always hungry (even if he is gaining) and fussy is pryloric stenosis. That's a pretty extreme thing though and it's not very likely your baby has it. Our nurse thought DS might have it but we're pretty sure he doesn't. We think it was just a bug, but the poor little thing was spiting up A LOT at a time. Like 3-4 ounces, no exageration. But now it's back to a couple tablespoons max.

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