My baby wants to eat constantly, is he hungry that much?
A lot of reflux babies “comfort eat”. They will guzzle their bottle down like it is putting out a fire. So, this also can make it hard for the baby to be diagnosed with GERD if they are eating and gaining weight.
How do I thicken baby’s bottle?
Mix one tablespoon of cereal for every oz of formula.
How does thickening help?
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.
Why is my baby all of a sudden refusing his bottle?
A lot of babies figure out early on that eating hurts, so why eat. They will start to refuse. Some will try to distract the baby to get them to eat. Others do a “dream feed” which is, sneaking in when your baby is asleep and slipping the bottle in their mouth.
We’ve started adding rice cereal to thicken, but it seems to be making things worse. What next?
The main problem you may come accross is consitpation as rice can be very binding try a low iron cereal and see if this helps. Other babies have reactions to rice that can make their reflux worse. In these cases adding oatmeal instead has proved to work. Speak to the pediatrician about trying this option.
