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Reflux
Causes …
Gastroesophageal Reflux (GOR/GER or posseting) and/or silent reflux are caused by:
• unbalanced feeding practices — feeding newborns beyond their physiological stomach
capacity, feeding in quick succession or faster than their digestive processes can manage
• retained air (wind) — when optimum levels of air are not released from the stomach
out of the mouth on a consistent basis, the compiling air causes refluxing
• tongue tie — see colic causes for details.
The Oxford Dictionary defines reflux as ‘the flowing back of bodily fluid’. This can be
experienced as a small amount of milk, or a projectile posset which is generally of bigger
quantity and delivered with more force. All newborns posset as a normal process. However,
frequent projectile posseting or large quantities of refluxing after most of the feeds is
not normal.
Babies with reflux generally suffer from the first two causes listed above. However,
ingested wind is the catalyst for refluxing. When newborns swallow air it sits amongst and
under the milk. This air pushes the milk out, with or without the wind that created the
posset. The more wind a newborn holds, the more often and projectile the refluxing. To
counteract any possibility of weight loss, or believing the baby must still be hungry from
their communication, some parents feed more, but unless the wind is released the problem
persists. The refluxing of acid results from the overload of ingested air in the stomach. As with
adults, it can make newborns uncomfortable. However, it is unbalanced feeding practices,
the overabundance of retained wind in the stomach or the wind that is left to travel through
the intestines that causes the majority of distressed communication.
Reflux can happen at any time of the day or night but is often seen after most feeds.
Mass refluxing can happen from Day One — brought about by the air a newborn ingests
from shock when handled without security or carelessly at birth (see p. xiv), lack of winding
thereafter and early feeding beyond a newborn’s digestive capacities.
Note: Some newborns with excessive posseting may have more serious issues such as
Gastroesophageal Reflux Disease (GORD/GERD) (see p. 58) however, this ‘dis-ease’
generally starts with Gastroesophageal Reflux (GOR/GER).
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