Problems with bottle feeding
If the hole in the teat is too small the infant may swallow
excessive air during the feed and regurgitate it later with milk,
accompanied by bouts of crying. It is valuable to observe the
rate at which the drops of milk are formed when the infant’s
bottle is inverted. The drops should follow each other quickly
but there should not be a continuous stream. If the hole is too
small it may be made larger with a hot needle. If the hole is
too large, infants may swallow excessive air as they gulp to
avoid choking.
By taking a careful history it is usually possible to
determine the likely cause of any symptoms. If growth is poor,
infants need more frequent or larger feeds. If the weather is
hot and infants are not receiving extra water, they may be
thirsty and should have additional water. Mothers tend to use
gripe water as a panacea, not realising that it contains
bicarbonate, which produces carbon dioxide in the stomach.
Check the bottle's nipple
Air needs to enter the bottle to replace the milk your baby has taken in
order to balance the pressure in the bottle. Air enters the bottle either
between the nipple ring and bottle OR through the holes in the end of
the nipple (some nipples have an extra hole at the base of the nipple,
near the nipple ring, for this purpose). Feeding difficulties can develop if
air cannot enter the bottle e.g. if the nipple ring is screwed on too tight
and your baby also maintains a seal over the holes of the nipple with her
tongue. So do experiment with loosening and tightening of the nipple
ring and see if this fixes the problem. You will know you have it right,
when you can see a steady and continuous flow of bubbles entering the
bottle as she drinks. If you can't see any bubbles, loosen the nipple ring
just a little more.
Cows milk formula allergy
Some babies are allergic to cows milk formula. In such cases, switching to
a soy based formula. the symptoms that could indicate a milk allergy
such as wheeze, recurrent cough, eczema, diarrhea, blood in stools,
failure to gain weight.
Baby reflux or Gastro-esophageal reflux (GER)
Babies with GER may develop feeding difficulties because they begin to
associate feeding with the discomfort of heartburn. Reflux occurs when
stomach contents are brought back up into the esophagus, throat or
mouth. It is a treatable condition
Feed baby in a semi-upright position.
Slow down the feed.
Avoid overfeeding.
Hold the baby in an upright position for 15 or 20 minutes following a
feed;
Try thickened milk feeds. The added weight of the cereal in the food
helps to keep the food from splashing around in the baby's belly and
can help keep it down
Oral Thrush
Thrush is commonly known as yeast infection; fungal infection; Candida;
Candidiasis; or Moniliasis. 90% of babies will have this yeast ON or IN
their bodies by the time they are 6 months old - as do most adults. And
in the vast majority of cases it does us no harm.
Feeding difficulties associated with a thrush infection in a baby's mouth
are rare, but can occur if the infection is severe. If a baby has oral thrush,
there's a chance that he may ALSO develop a yeast infection on his little
bottom, because the yeast can PASS from his mouth through his gastro-
intestinal tract.
Things to look out for
:
White or cream colored patches like milk curds can be seen on the roof
of his mouth, inside his cheeks and on his tongue. These may be
surrounded by red areas. OR his entire tongue may have a solid white
coating; don't mistake milk residue as thrush. Milk residue on the tongue
is quite thin and usually wipes off easily, whereas thrush does not