Do probiotics help babies with acid reflux? It seems like a simple question, but the answer is not that clear.
There are some studies that show a correlation between taking probiotics and improved quality of life for children who suffer from chronic acid reflux, but there are others that don’t find this connection.
In order to form your own opinion on whether or not it’s worth trying out probiotics with your baby, read more about what they do and why they may be helpful in reducing the symptoms of reflux.
In this article, we explore how to recognize acid reflux, what causes it, and more importantly how probiotics can help babies with acid reflux
What it is?
Reflux is a common problem for babies, and it can be very painful for them. It’s also really upsetting to parents who have to watch their babies suffer.
Reflux is a common problem in newborn babies. It causes painful spitting up and frequent vomiting, which can lead to weight loss, dehydration, failure to thrive, and other serious health problems.
In the past parents had no choice but to treat reflux symptoms with medication that was not only ineffective but also potentially harmful for their baby’s developing digestive system.
How to recognize it?
Reflux is a common problem among young infants. While reflux isn’t necessarily dangerous, it can cause problems for your babies, such as poor feeding and fussiness.
The stomach acids that are normally squelched by the esophagus can irritate the lining of the esophagus, causing pain.
If your baby is fussy after feedings due to reflux symptoms, you may be considering trying probiotics to help reduce or prevent them.
There are many different symptoms of acid reflux in infants including feeding problems like:
- spitting up or vomiting after eating
- crying during or even immediately after feedings
- coughing
- wheezing
- trouble breathing
- difficulty sleeping through the night
- irritability
- weight loss
- constipation/diarrhea (due to stomach pain)
- excessive sweating around the face and chest area due to increased body temperature from trying not to vomit out acidic bile into the esophagus.
It’s confusing when so many different symptoms arise around the same time. The cause of infant acid reflux is not fully understood by current medical science, but treatments are available to get things back on track quickly.
What might be causing it?
There are many reasons why your baby might be suffering from acid reflux. It could be that he or she is just going through a growth spurt, or it could be due to an allergy. Sometimes, the cause of infant acid reflux can’t even be determined.
However, there is one thing that’s for sure – you want to do everything in your power to make sure your little one feels better as quickly as possible.
Scientific research on this condition
The American Academy of Pediatrics recommends that infants are exclusively breastfed for the first 6 months of life, yet many parents find themselves supplementing with formula due to breastfeeding challenges.
Formula-feeding has been linked to an increased risk of gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD) in babies and research suggests that probiotics may offer a solution.
How to treat acid reflux in babies
Now there is an alternative that has been shown to be safe and effective in helping relieve reflux symptoms naturally – Probiotics!
These are live bacteria found in certain foods such as yogurt, sauerkraut, or kimchi.
They have been proven through clinical studies to help reduce gas production by regulating gut flora balance and improving digestion of food particles while preventing them from being regurgitated back into the stomach where they cause pain due to acidity.
There are many brands of probiotic supplements on the market.
The most common strains used to help infants with reflux include Bifidobacterium animalis subsp lactis CRL-431, Lactobacillus reuteri, Lactobacillus rhamnosus GG (LGG), Lactobacillus rhamnosus LC-705, and Streptococcus thermophiles.
However, the strongest evidence for using these specific strains has only been reported when they are combined into a single product called Align.
Align is a product that combines four strains of probiotics: Bifidobacterium animalis subsp lactis CRL-431, Lactobacillus reuteri, Lactobacillus rhamnosus GG and Streptococcus thermophiles.
The combination was studied in a randomized controlled trial involving 112 infants with moderate to severe reflux.
Researchers found that 60% of infants who received Align experienced much less frequent vomiting episodes compared to only 34% of the control group.
Benefits of taking probiotics
Probiotics are beneficial bacteria that provide many health benefits when consumed in adequate amounts.
They have been shown to help with allergies, eczema, diarrhea, constipation, gastrointestinal disease, blood pressure regulation, weight gain, brain function, and respiratory tract infections.
However, these studies have been mainly conducted on adults, seniors, and children.
The benefits of probiotics in infants are still being researched, but preliminary evidence is promising.
Probiotics have been shown time and time again to help reduce the symptoms of infant acid reflux by balancing out digestive flora levels in the gut and helping break down food more efficiently so they don’t end up sitting in their stomach too long and causing discomfort.
In fact, studies show that infants who take probiotic supplements experience fewer spit-up episodes than those who don’t!
In conclusion
Probiotics are a great option for babies with reflux.
They have been shown to relieve symptoms by altering the bacterial environment in the gut, which has an effect on digestive function and immune response.
If your baby is experiencing any of these symptoms or you’re looking for some relief from them, talk to your pediatrician about probiotic use as part of their treatment plan.
We recommend speaking with your pediatrician before giving any supplements to your child because there are certain risks involved when taking supplements without consulting a doctor first.
Your pediatrician will be able to tell you whether or not it would be safe for your child based on their medical history and current medications they take regularly.
You should also speak with them about how much you should give your child per day so that they don’t get too much or too little from the supplement – every child is different!
There aren’t any known side effects from using Lactobacillus reuteri to treat yeast infections, but if your child has an adverse reaction you should stop giving it immediately and contact your pediatrician.
A quick reminder ..
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