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Michaela
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| Posted: Jan 14 2007 at 11:54am | IP Logged
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Teresa has been very upset lately, and we believe it's gas. Hard stomach, we hear the air moving, pulls her legs up, lots of tears while trying to eat....
(We are constantly patting her back or moving her legs like peddling a bike which only helps a little. Actually it seems to have gotten worse. I'm concerned because she's so young that our "helping" has somehow made her body more dependant on the help instead of doing it naturally.  )
Any suggestions to help her? I remember Nathan going through this, but we gave him drops of something to help. It's been so long ago I can't remember.
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Michaela
Momma to Nicholas 16, Nathan 13, Olivia 13, Teresa 6, & Anthony 3
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mary
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kellymom has an excellent list of ways to treat gas, causes of gas, etc. my baby was a few weeks early and had an immature digestive system. i also had overactive let down and the two combined made for some very difficult (colicky) months. i hope your family fares better!
wanted to add that the drops (mylicon) have not been shown to be effective in studies (or on my baby either!)
good luck! and congratulations on the new babe. 
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kathleenmom
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Michaela,
Are you breastfeeding? If so, you might want to try removing dairy products from your diet for a while and see if you see a difference.
You and sweet baby are in our prayers.
God Bless,
Kathleen
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kingvozzo
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mary wrote:
wanted to add that the drops (mylicon) have not been shown to be effective in studies (or on my baby either!)
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I haven't heard about these studies...I'd be interested in reading about them, if you have a link.
A couple of my kids have been bothered by gas. We have used the infants drops (simethicone is the active ingredient), and we've had good success with it.
Hope the baby feels better soon!
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teachingmyown
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| Posted: Jan 14 2007 at 5:55pm | IP Logged
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Well, I hate to differ with the studies, but we love Mylicon!!!!
Two other products that I used a lot are two homeopathic remedies, http://hylands.com/products/colic.php and
http://www.vitaminshoppe.com/store/en/browse/sku_detail.jsp? id=BI-1115 They were also very effective.
I did have to cut out dairy because my baby was spitting up terribly and in much more pain than my other gassy babies.
Good luck. This time flies by, and then you wonder how they got so big! Every time, I am just as amazed. 
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mary
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| Posted: Jan 14 2007 at 6:42pm | IP Logged
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kingvozzo wrote:
mary wrote:
wanted to add that the drops (mylicon) have not been shown to be effective in studies (or on my baby either!)
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I haven't heard about these studies...I'd be interested in reading about them, if you have a link.
A couple of my kids have been bothered by gas. We have used the infants drops (simethicone is the active ingredient), and we've had good success with it.
Hope the baby feels better soon! |
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we tried them too they really didn't do anything. oh how i wish they had! gemma was so very colicky, it was horrible. i read a book by barry lester called why is my baby crying and it was the most helpful to us. there were 3 large studies cited that showed the mylicon drops were not effective. webmd also cites that mylicon doesn't work.
here's another site that says the following:
"After extensive research at three large pediatric practices in three different states, researchers have concluded that simethicone (the active ingredient in Mylicon drops) is no more effective than a placebo in treating colic, even though pediatricians have recommended it for years to relieve gassiness in colicky babies. The medication is harmless, relatively inexpensive, and available over-the-counter, so it may be worth trying – but if it seems to help, it may be due to the placebo effect: the babies improve because the parents think the medicine will work, and not because of the treatment itself."
but hey, if the placebo effect is working for you, take what you can! 
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kingvozzo
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| Posted: Jan 14 2007 at 7:48pm | IP Logged
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mary wrote:
kingvozzo wrote:
mary wrote:
wanted to add that the drops (mylicon) have not been shown to be effective in studies (or on my baby either!)
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I haven't heard about these studies...I'd be interested in reading about them, if you have a link.
A couple of my kids have been bothered by gas. We have used the infants drops (simethicone is the active ingredient), and we've had good success with it.
Hope the baby feels better soon! |
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we tried them too they really didn't do anything. oh how i wish they had! gemma was so very colicky, it was horrible. i read a book by barry lester called why is my baby crying and it was the most helpful to us. there were 3 large studies cited that showed the mylicon drops were not effective. webmd also cites that mylicon doesn't work.
here's another site that says the following:
"After extensive research at three large pediatric practices in three different states, researchers have concluded that simethicone (the active ingredient in Mylicon drops) is no more effective than a placebo in treating colic, even though pediatricians have recommended it for years to relieve gassiness in colicky babies. The medication is harmless, relatively inexpensive, and available over-the-counter, so it may be worth trying – but if it seems to help, it may be due to the placebo effect: the babies improve because the parents think the medicine will work, and not because of the treatment itself."
but hey, if the placebo effect is working for you, take what you can! |
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Both of these sources are commenting on the effectiveness of simethicone on colic, not occasional discomfort from gas. I haven't had a child with colic, yet, so I can't address the issue at all. My understanding is that just about nothing works to help a colicky baby If the issue is standard baby gassiness, I would still try the simethicone.
Also, my oldest was very sensitive to broccoli in my diet . I never knew that was a gassy food till I was nursing him. Also, I believe onions and cabbage are big offenders as well.
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Michaela
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| Posted: Jan 14 2007 at 8:37pm | IP Logged
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She's not colicky, just gassy. It's been four days of little sleep for both of us. Thinking back, it started when I took her in Thursday for a well baby check & pumped milk into a bottle. The doctor even commented that she doesn't seem to like the bottle & has a lot of gas. It just hasn't really gone away, and maybe it's gotten worse. Sitting up each night patting her back helps her, but not me. Sleep deprivation....
That's what took so long to respond. DH is home & he spent time trying to make her feel better while I took a long nap.
The only dairy is a yogurt each morning. I remember the midwives in Italy telling me to stay clear of tomatoes. The article shared says it has nothing to do with what I eat. That's the first time I've heard it doesn't matter what we eat.
DH went to get the drops. It may be a placebo, but it's hard not to try...plus, he wants to give her fennel tea & I'd rather not do that. I just have to keep her from my mom or she will.  Yes, I'm treating the symptom instead of the cause, but I want to help her ASAP...while working on what actually caused this (could be my let down, a stage, something I ate)
Mary, the article was very helpful in answering additional questions I had.
She's doing all of this except spitting up. The constant gasping & clicking had me concerned, but the article has been helpful:
Does your baby do any of these things?
`Gag, choke, strangle, gulp, gasp, cough while nursing as though the milk is coming too fast
`Pull off the breast often while nursing
`Clamp down on the nipple at let-down to slow the flow of milk
`Make a clicking sound when nursing
`Spit up very often and/or tend to be very gassy
`Periodically refuse to nurse
`Dislike comfort nursing in general
Thank you all. 8-)
Sorry for the extra thoughts that made this such a long reply.
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Michaela
Momma to Nicholas 16, Nathan 13, Olivia 13, Teresa 6, & Anthony 3
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mary
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michaela, i don't blame you for trying the drops, i did it too! i only wish they worked. my dd began with gassy/fussiness for a month that morphed into full blown screaming for hours. my understanding is that "colic" is the baby's response to pain from reflux/gas. i suppose it kinda makes sense that babies wouldn't scream for hours for no reason. in hind sight, what i wish i had done differently, was to have gotten baby antiacid rather than trying to ride it out. i had no idea how bad things were going to get and how long it would last.
do you have overactive let down?
i hope your baby is just run of the mill gassy and she will be happy and content for you again.
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teachingmom
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I just have to chime in from my recent experience with this. My 3 month old is the gassiest baby I've ever known. She "toots" LOUDLY very often. (It can be quite embarrassing, since it really doesn't sound like it should be coming from a little baby!  )
Somewhere between 6 and 8 weeks of age, she went through a very colicky stage, with painful gas. Mylicon did not help at all. The thing that made a huge difference in her pain level was avoiding milk and broccoli on my part. I can still have cheese, but no milk. She is still very gassy, as mentioned above, but it doesn't give her pain at all now. The change in my diet has made a huge difference -- people often comment now on how she seems like the happiest baby. (And truly she is!) 
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doris
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Try drinking the fennel tea yourself, every four hours, like medicine! Worked a treat with my dd.
Have you thought of cranial osteopathy? That also really helped my lot.
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Anne McD
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Michela,
Before DD was born #3, I was diagnosed with acid reflux, and was told to stay away from coffee, oranges, tomatoes, chocolate, high fats, etc (I can't remember the list, since it seems to be under control now ), but she was the only one who didn't have tummy troubles, until I started introducing them back in my diet. That could be worth a try, but it also sounds like she's getting a lot of air while she's eating? (I think that's what the clicking while nursing thing refers to . . . )
Good luck and God bless!! This is tough to deal with, esp if you don't sleep!!
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anniemm
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| Posted: Jan 21 2007 at 10:16pm | IP Logged
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My youngest was the same way, very gassy but not colicy. Everything I tried didn't work, excpet staying up all night long patting her just as you mentioned.
One of my friends suggested Gripe Water, it's by Baby's Bliss, they sell it at a local vitamin shop, but getting there was too hard with my two little ones. So, I ordered it on Drugstore.com. It just saved my sanity. Maybe worth a try? It was expensive...but worth every sweet drop. I hope it gets better for you all!!!
Baby's Bliss Gripe Water
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Jane Ramsey
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I used Gripe Water with my first two babies, who were both very gassy, and it worked great!
Give it a try! It has safe, all natural ingredients (ginger, mainly) Our local pharmacy carries it, so I think a lot of pharmacies must have it by now (we are out in the country). Plus it's sweet and they like to drink it.
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4Real Forums : Mothering and Family Life
Topic: Baby with Gas
