Expert: ruth kraft - 9/17/2009

Question
hi, i have an 8 week old son, who is breastfeed but vomits up almost all of his milk after a feed, he is not putting on much weight and crys all day and night also he is not sleeping for more then 10 minutes at a time, i have taken him to the hospital and they told me he most likely has reflux and to put him on AR formula and use special bottles. i have done this last night but my son doesn't seem to be drinking, he sucks and goes to sleep but only drinks 10mils then sleeps for 4hrs. he is finally sleeping and no longer screams, like he has for the past 8 weeks. but doesn't seem to be feeding. also my breast are really swollen, i tried to give him breast milk but after his feed he was screaming and then vomited it all back up. my question is should i keep bottle feeding him because he no longer seams to be in pain or is there something else i can do so i don't have to give a breast feeding? please help.

Answer
Yes, you should take the baby to a gastroentronologist.  if the baby has reflux, then breatmilk is actually the best thing for the baby as its the easiest to digest. They can give you baby zantac for the baby. Going to formula is so much harder for the baby to digest. I wo uld suggest seeing a specialist to make sure that is what it is and see if they cant help the baby this way instead of formula. the breastmilk has far more benefits than formula, so if you can get the baby to nurse, and then give zantac to help keep the milk down, the baby will be better off. Make sure that you let the baby sleep in a reclined position , not flat on its back, and more upright after feedings. you can also try mylicon and gripe water for the fussiness too.

I hope that helped!