My new born suffers from "the cholic".
The doctor has said it is actually a case of acid reflux and it's "finally" being recognized as such. The doctor also said there is a rising incidence of acid reflux/cholic and she believes it is because new parents are being told that it's safer for newborns to have them sleep on their backs vs. sleeping on their stomachs.
This change in sleeping habits is because of the fear of SIDS.
Meanwhile, older mothers are saying that doctors are full of it, because babies sleep better on their stomachs. Additionally, sleeping on the back helps promote acid reflux, just like it does for some adults.
All I know is, the first day, my kid slept in the hospital bassinet on his back and it was flat. The next few days in the hospital, the bassinet bottom was raised so that the head was elevated higher than his feet.
When we got him home, the cholic started. After speaking with the doctor and having him examined, it was determined that he was suffering from acid reflux.
Now we have a choice between sleeping on his stomach and taking something like Zantac after over the counter drugs failed.
I find this interesting...
More later...
Wow, good luck with that. Is the baby consuming formula or breastmilk? Is that a factor at all?
I had a cousin who lost a baby to SIDS, but "positional asphyxia" was not yet a term in the lexicon. My babies, born before and after my cousin's baby in the '80s, both slept on their stomachs. By the time my newphew came along in 2000, sleeping on their backs was what doctors recommended for babies.
Posted by: brotherbrown | September 08, 2005 at 01:34 PM
Breast milk, which is supposed to be better, acid wise.
Posted by: DarkStar | September 08, 2005 at 10:09 PM
A friend of mine who's baby had reflux put her to sleep in the car seat. It kept baby's head elevated enough to help relieve some of the discomfort. I've stuffed books under my kids' mattresses to elevate their heads when they had colds. Might work in your case.
From what I've read scientists still aren't really sure what causes SIDS. But it seems to have a cultural link. In countries where it's common for babies to sleep in bed with their mothers the SIDS rate is lower than it is here.
Posted by: Samantha | September 09, 2005 at 11:54 AM
We have a strange kid. About 14 minutes in the seat, and he starts to fuss. Once he realizes he's in the seat if he's asleep, that's it.
He used to sleep on top of my wife. Now he has more head and neck control and strength, so he is sleeping in the bassinet. The bottom doesn't raise, so we couldn't put something underneath the bottom. It does have a mattrites, but raising that didn't seem to be a good idea.
This weekend is another family function. I'll get more elder words of wisdom there.
I just find this really interesting.
Oh, and on SIDS...
Two medical professionals in my family said that there is a belief that many cases of SIDS is actually infanticide.
I expect to see a friend of the family who is a peditrician. I can't wait to hear her view.
Posted by: DarkStar | September 09, 2005 at 09:44 PM