What Causes Baby To Spit Up After Feeding?

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Tiny babies spitting up immediately after being fed is a normal thing, and parents should not find this to be a hassle. Babies normally burp and spit out that extra food, or at times while they feed they spit out or throw up.

Since this is not one of the major problems to worry about, experts confirm that this spitting up causes no loss of important nutrients, neither does it indicate a health anomaly such as indigestion.

It is said that babies who spit up often are regarded as 'happy spitters', since this indirectly means that your little one is comfortable, content with the meal and is growing up with no problems. However, if your baby doesn't spit up even after being tapped during a burping session, it is best to consult a child specialist in such cases.

Spitting up after a meal makes the baby feel comfortable on the chest, since most babies are fed while lying down in the parent's arms. Spitting up after a meal or breastfeeding also prevents the babies from choking on their food. It further increases digestion, and this in turn helps the baby to have a sound sleep and promotes a better growth.

Here are some of the things every parent needs to know on why a baby spits up after feeding, read on:

What Causes Them To Spit Up?
If you've ever wondered why babies spit up after a meal, it is said that when a baby swallows milk, the content of the milk glides down past the back of the throat and then passes through a muscular tube called the oesophagus and then to the stomach. There is a ring of muscles connecting the oesophagus and the stomach, which opens up to let the milk reach the stomach. It then closes back up after the content has been passed through. Now, if this ring does not tighten back up, the milk or food that the baby has ingested can come back through the oesophagus, which is nothing but spitting up.

Can You Avoid The Spitting Up?
No, it is not possible to avoid this. If you don't allow your baby to sit straight after the meal,he/she can feel suffocated on the chest, which could be alarming to the health.

How To Decrease Baby Spits After Feeding?
Since you can't avoid this spitting up after a feed, it is possible to decrease it. After you have fed the baby, keep him/her upright for about 30 minutes. You can also reduce the amount of food intake and separate it into little meals during the day. It is also important to let the child sleep on the back after having been fed, as sleeping on the tummy or the side can increase them to spit up more food consumed and can also cause vomiting.

Can Spitting Up Become A Serious Problem?
It is said that when the child grows up, this spitting up of food habit slowly fades away. However, it can become a serious health issue, if the baby is spitting up forcefully, not gaining weight, spitting up abnormal fluids and has difficulty in breathing.