My 9 week old is bringing up milk after each feed. It looks like cottage cheese...can anyone help?

Question

This happens about an hour after each feed and has been going on for weeks.Is it acid reflux? She doesn't seem bothered by it . I'm seeing my doctor on Monday but would appreciate any help in the meantime?

thank you to all for your answers , they're all helpful , except one of course to which i say that i don't like cottage cheese but your welcome to try the vast amount around ur knob and spread it on ur toast

Answer 1

Hi, We have the same problem with my daughter, it started when she was 4 weeks old, she is 12 weeks now. We took her to our doctor who changed her milk, which she then choked on. We ended up in hospital where the doc thought she has a milk allery, so she changed her to non cows milk, milk. Long story short, my daughter does not have a milk allergy(I found this out on my own) she has heartburn. The doc also told us it could be acid reflux, and gave us medicine to fix the problem, but she brought that back up also. She did not have any of the symptoms of acid reflux so I knoe it wasnt that. The doc has prescribed her Gaviscon Infant, which you put in her feeds, and I swear, it is amazing, I seen the difference from the very first time we used it, she finishes all of her food and even better, she keeps it all down. She is a much happier baby. When you take your baby to doc, mention that it could be heartburn and that gaviscon could be the answer, because for us it took 3 trips to the hospital before we found out what it was, and even then the doc was determined that gaviscon would not work as she thought she had a milk allergy, and that it could not have been something as simple as heartburn, but she was wrong. Thay only gave us the gaviscon because we asked for it. Best advice I can give is follow your own instincts as a mother, I put my daughter and myself through hell for 5 weeks becuase I did what the doctor told me, (to feed her neocate instead of cows milk, which due to the ingredients, gives children a sore tummy, constipation and extra wind they cant get rid of))and in the end The doc was wrong. Originally i had my daughter on SMA gold, but through advice from friends who had similar problems with their little ones, changed milk to Aptimel which my daughter loves, its the closest to breast milk you can get, so this might also help if you are using SMA. Hope this advice helps you and your wee one! If you are worried that your baby could be over eating, your baby should take 150ml of milk per 1kg of body weight. I use this when calculating how much to feed by daughter and get her weighed regularly, and she is right on track for her age! If your baby is not bothered by bringing up her food, it is not reflux as this is extremely painful for babies.

Answer 2

1) All babies have reflux to one degree or another it only requires treatment if it is either a) causing pain or b) causing inadequate weight gain. Even then all other forms of treatment, positioning, smaller feeds, different parenting techniques should be tried first. ALL medications have side effects, and these effects are generally poorly understood in babies under 6 months.
http://askdrsears.com/html/10/t106004.asp

2) Many babies at this age overeat. If he is spitting up more or less immediatly after each feed then he is probably just overeating. Try feeding a little less if you bottle feed. If he is still hungry 30-60 minutes later then offer the missing .5 - 1 oz. If you breastfeed, like I did, I really don't know how you feed less, but it did help to offer milk more often.

Really though spitting up is absolutely normal and if it isn't causing discomfort or effecting weight gain it will pass on its own and you needn't worry.

More on spitting up:
http://www.kellymom.com/babyconcerns/reflux.html
"If your baby is a ‘Happy Spitter’ --gaining weight well, spitting up without discomfort and content most of the time -- spitting up is a laundry & social problem rather than a medical issue."
(read the whole thing at the link though, this is just my favourite part)

Answer 3

A little boy I watch has acid reflux and that sounds like what he does. He has to lay down for at least 30 minutes after he eats to make sure it's digested enough. That was doctors orders. He's older now and doesn't want to lay down so it's kinda hard for him to keep all of his food down, but he does fine and he's gaining weight normally. The doctor with be able to decide if that's the case or not. Though I do agree maybe feed a little bit less until then to make sure he's not just overeating.

Answer 4

My breastfed 10 week old does this as well and yes it looks like cottage cheese! Thats just because the stomach acid curdles the milk.

If its just a mouthful or so its known as "possetting" and is entirely normal. Arthur will bring a bit of milk up with his burp after a feed and then grin proudly at me (especially if he's done it in my hair or on my clothes!!!)

The only time to worry is if she starts throwing up her entire feed, or "projectile" vomiting, or if she seems unwell in herself (as a mum you'll know). Otherwise, possetting is entirely normal!!

Answer 5

Breastmilk or formula?

Breastfed babies rarely spit up much if at all. If your baby is breastfed, it could be acid reflux.

Either way, try to keep your baby elevated for at least 30 minutes after each feeding. Or if like you said it happens about an hour afterwards, try to keep her elevated at least that long. Babies' digestive systems take a long time to develop and this (gravity) helps the food stay down until it is digested.

Answer 6

Don't lay her flat after feeding for one hour at least. They're tummies and throat is immature and keep that stuff in their stomach if they are flat.

It might be reflux or not, my baby doesn't have reflux I just have to make sure if I put him down it's on an incline ( I use a sleep positioner for at night).

Answer 7

Does sound like reflux. Have a word with your HV or doctor but be prepared to stand your ground - don't be fobbed off.

Good luck

Answer 8

Most babies bring up some milk after feeding. It's perfectly normal!

I also apologise on behalf of the moron who answered your question with 'the finger' which I suggest he removes from his rear-end.

Answer 9

My son had this and the doctors would not tell me what it was ot treat it. He was being sick about 7 times after each feed and it was worrying me sick. In the end I changed his bottle and he improved. The bottles were called podee bottles. See the link below:

Answer 10

my little girl is nearly five now i found that she quite often brought up her milk when she was little but there were no ill effects it was more common for her to do it if she fell asleep while feeding i think the milk just lays heavy in their tummys goodluck with everything