After feeding, your baby might bring up a little milk. This is very common in young babies and is known as reflux or regurgitation.

Signs of reflux:

  • Bringing up milk after feeding
  • Unsettled during feeding
  • Waking up often
  • Frequent ear infections
  • Crying after feeding
  • Swallowing or gulping after feeding or burping
  • Hiccupping after feeding
  • Coughing a lot after feeding
  • Loss of weight because they can’t keep their milk down
  • Arching their back after feeding
There is also something called silent reflux, which is when your baby shows signs of reflux but doesn’t actually bring up any milk.

What causes reflux?

Your baby is still new to the world and their oesophagus is still developing, allowing the milk to shoot back up almost naturally like a hiccup. They are also prone to spitting up frequently because they spend a lot of time lying down and they have a predominately liquid diet. About 30% of babies go through this and get better by the time they are a year old.

How to ease reflux

  • Keep them upright for 30 minutes after they have been fed
  • Burp them in the middle of their feed
  • Try smaller teats for bottle fed babies so they swallow less air
  • Smaller feeds, but more often, so they get enough food

When to seek medical advice

Reflux is usually completely normal so don’t worry, it will most likely sort itself out, and your baby won’t need treatment as long as they’re still putting on weight. However, if you are concerned or experience any of the following then you should seek medical advice:
  • Your baby can’t gain weight because of reflux
  • Your baby is older than 6 months when they start spitting up