Why do babies spit up?

Since I seem to be the one who tends to recieve this “gift” I kind of got to wondering about it. Also, I guess it is genetic since everytime my kids have done it my Mom proceeds to tell me how much I used to do it as a kid.

So, why do babies tend to regurgitate a large portion of their lunch?

Because they don’t know how not to. Dealing with bubbly, liquid food is something they haven’t learned how to do yet, so rather than choke, all their reflexes say “that’s it for you, then.” This might also explain why so many women have extra milk…

Something like 40% of babies will throw up at least once a day. I have been told this is because something in the stomach relaxes at the wrong time and allows food to return to the esophagus from the stomach, causing regurgitation.

That ‘something’ is called the lower esophageal sphincter.

There are other reasons this may happen. The one I have heard the most about is Gastroesophageal Reflux Disease.

More information can be found here: http://www.niddk.nih.gov/health/digest/pubs/heartbrn/heartbrn.htm

Of course, bubbly liquid food is all they get.

I have heard that breast fed babies do not do it so much, so it may be related to gas in the stomach. Since I know from experience that babies bottle-fed breast milk spit up, too.

It’s called “positing” and happens a lot. get used to it

To ruin damn near every shirt I had when my daughter was a baby. And the smell - I’m so glad that’s all over with.

Isn’t this Jeff Foxworthy’s line:

“There’s something about the smell of a clean shirt that makes babies nauseous.”

I am pretty well used to it, though it is hard to suppress the urge to fling them across the room when it happens. (Not out of anger or anything, just a reflex to get this spewing creature away from me!)

I am more interested in the why. Is it gas? Are they too full? Is it related to the “Can’t drink a gallon of muilk without puking” thread?

Well, there must be more causes than just gas in the stomach. The lestrangelets were breast fed, and the eldest was a veritable fountain. At first, I couldn’t believe that she ever kept any milk down, so much seemed to come back up, but she grew and thrived, and I gave up wearing anything fancier than an old T-shirt. I suspect sometimes it was a full tummy. I just got so I expected it after awhile.

Now, the youngest lestrangelet didn’t spit much at all. But at least based on my experience, breast-fed babies can and do spit up impressively. My WAG would be that there are a variety of reasons babies spit up, from the food to the method of delivery to individual physical differences between babies, and there’s no knowing how (or whether) it’ll come out until you get nailed.

… was going out the other night and needed a jumper (sweater to you Americans). Here’s me looking through my clothes:

“Nope, baby spew…(picks up another one) Nope, baby spew … (and another) Nope, baby spew … etc”

Yes, I’ve heard it’s air. They gulp both milk and air, and some of the air settles under the milk. When the stomach contrasts, kapowie, you’ve got some nice pressure to shoot the milk back up the throat. It’s also a way for babies to dump extra food if they’ve eaten too much. Nursing moms who have a real active letdown have babies who barf milk up often.

The Little Lagomorph was quite the spewer, for the first year or so of his life. He was eventually diagnosed with GERD (Gastroesophagal reflux disease) and allergies to dairy proteins. Mind you, he was breast fed the whole time. Mrs. Lagomorph had to go on a strict dairy-free diet, and the problem greatly diminished (the allergy was contributing to the reflux). Not a fun time for all concerned, though, while it lasted.