On this page you will learn how to help a gassy baby. Babies can become gassy for a wide variety of reasons. Gas is a normal byproduct of babies digesting lactose, proteins and nutrients in a mother's milk. Some scientists now also believe that gas can also be caused by traces of gas-containing foods crossing from the mother's diet into her milk. Babies can also take in air bubbles through breathing. This often happens during nursing.http://www.coliccalm.com/baby_infant_newborn_articles/gas_problems_treatment.htm

Helping your gassy baby feel better can range from easy to difficult depending on the level of your child's discomfort. For mild gassiness, your baby may be helped immediately by the steps below. However, for more pervasive gassiness, your baby may need more extensive changes to it's eating habits.

Before you get started you should always consult with your pediatrician if you have any concerns about your baby's health. A child with abdominal pain or fussiness might not necessarily be gassy. You may want to have your child evaluated for other medical conditions their discomfort continues for more than a few days.

Some scientists now believe that traces of foods that mothers eat can pass over into the milk that they express. If you are concerned about your baby's gassiness, you may first want to look at your own diet. The following are a list of tips that you can follow to change your own diet to decrease your baby's discomfort.

• Try decreasing the amount of cruciferous vegetables and legumes that you eat. Although it is still necessary to keep yourself on a healthy diet, especially while breastfeeding, you could slowly decrease the amount of cruciferous vegetables and legumes that you eat for a few days in order to see if it is benefiting your child. If it is appearing to help ease your child's discomfort, you can pump extra milk to use on days that you eat the irritating foods.

• Try decreasing the acidity of foods that you consume. Foods that are high in acid such as citrus fruits and drinks, tomato products, and strawberries can be irritating to an infants digestive tract.http://www.coliccalm.com/baby_infant_newborn_articles/gas_problems_treatment.htm

• Try decreasing the dairy products in your diet for a few days. Some infants are more sensitive to lactose than others.

• Try decreasing the amount of soy in your diet. Some babies have intolerances to soy products.

The following are causes of gassiness that can occur during feeding.

• Hyperlactation: Hyperlactation occurs when a mother expresses too much milk during feedings. An infant can be overwhelmed by the milk and take gasps of air, or be irritated by the increased volume of milk. Also, women with hyperlactation express more fore-milk, which has a higher concentration of lactose which can be especially irritating to infants. If you often find yourself dripping or spraying milk, you may want to begin your feeding session by pumping off some of your milk to decrease the pressure in your breast so that your baby can feed more comfortably.http://www.babycenter.com/400_what-can-i-do-about-my-babys-terrible-gas_500562_0.bc

• Remember to also burp your baby every few minutes during feeding. This will prevent any air that has been sucked in during feeding to transport itself through your child's digestive system.

• If you are bottle feeding your child, check the size of the nipple that you are using. Nipples that are too large can express too much milk which will irritate your baby's digestive tract. Nipples that are too small will cause your baby to gasp breaths of air while nursing which will cause bubbles in their digestive tract.http://www.babiestoday.com/articles/sleep-issues/gas-pains-and-babies-172/2/

There are also many steps that you can take after feedings to help your child avoid becoming gassy and fussy.

• When your child is suffering from gas, apply light pressure to their abdomen to ease their discomfort. If your child's discomfort increases when doing this, you should stop and consult with your physician.

• Try holding your child in a "football hold" by placing them face down on your forearm, with their legs straddling your elbow and her upper body resting on your wrist and hand. You may want your partner to help with this if your child is heavy. You should also do this over a soft, stable surface such as a couch. The football hold can help release gas in your child's digestive system, thereby easing their comfort.face down on your forearm, with her legs straddling your elbow and her chin in your hand

Also remember that gas is extremely common in infants, especially from the age of 6-8 weeks while your child's digestive system is still going through rapid developmental changes. Your baby's gas should correct itself in a few days or weeks, though some babies continue to have gas discomfort for the first year of life.

Warning: This Mahalo article is not meant to diagnose or treat any condition. If you are concerned about your babies health, you should consult with their pediatrician.