by Aarti Kapur Singh
Home remedies to treat gas in babies which should be followed properly for immediate relief!
Take a look at 7 simple and effective home remedies!
It is one thing to have a bubbly baby (touch-wood!) and quite another to see the same (well, almost) sort of matter causing havoc in that little tummy. New parents are often surprised at the big noises that small babies are capable of making – especially when they are passing gas. In fact gas is often part of the very audible repertoire of a baby’s orchestra till she is six months old. While some babies seem to have no trouble passing gas, others can get a little stuck.
The most common symptoms of gas in a baby are continuous wailing (especially right after feeding), disturbed sleep, constipation (or struggling while having a bowel movement), a stiff and firm belly, and most definitely, if the baby moves her legs towards her chest, the poor thing is doubling in pain.
Here are some ways in which you can ease the discomfort and help the gas pass out:
1. Burping after every feed: Hold the baby upright on your shoulder and massage the back. This should help expel the air ingested while feeding.
2. Bicycling baby: Start by placing your baby on a flat surface, belly down. Lifting her up slightly on her stomach, gently massage her belly. Or place her on her back and try moving her legs and hips around as if she were to be riding a bike. Often these kinds of motions break up bubbles and give gas that little extra push it needs to work its way out. But do remember to give a gap of one hour between this ‘exercise’ and feeding.
3. Homemade Gripe Water:For natural pain relief from gas, boil a cup of water with half a teaspoon of aniseed and a pinch of ajwain seeds for ten minutes. Sieve. Let the water cool down before giving a few drops to your baby. Cumin seed water provides relief as well.
4. Asafoetida: This magic spice most commonly found in Indian kitchens is a sure-shot remedy against gas. It is also the most important ingredient in many digestive churans for adults. If you are only breastfeeding your baby, add half a pinch of asafoetida to the above aniseed tea while it is boiling. Alternately, Dissolve a pinch of asafoetida powder in 1 tablespoon of warm water. Apply it around (never into) child’s navel in a clockwise motion. Reapply as needed.
5. Massage: Massage is another good choice for the parents of a toddler who suffers from gas pain. Massaging the stomach will help relieve the trapped gas out of the intestine. Rub some warm olive on your hands. Gently massage the toddler’s tummy in a clockwise direction for 2 to 3 minutes. Then massage the back for 2 minutes to help relieve gas and promote sleep. Repeat several times a day.
6. Keep the belly warm: Wrap a blanket around the baby’s belly – not too tightly, but still swaddled. The heat does help the gas to ease its way out.
7. A warm bath: Reiterating the efficacy of a warm compress, you can also try a nice, warm bath to relieve the discomfort caused by gas in your baby. You can put one teeny weeny drop of ylang ylang or lavender essential oil into the bath water – if your baby is older than three months. But never more than one drop for a bucketful, please!
Top Tips: Feed carefully, because prevention is always better!
- Feeding time can come with a lot of crying, gulping, guzzling, and suckling — in other words, a lot of air, which eventually manifests itself in the form of a burp or gas. While relief from a burp might be more immediate, air that exits as gas has a longer journey through the intestinal tract first. Try being a little extra vigilant about burping your baby during and after a feeding to see if you can keep some of the gas at bay. Burp your child more often during feedings, and massage his tummy gently from right to left if he becomes bloated.
- Bottle-fed babies can ingest a lot of bubbles. To combat this, tilt the bottle at an angle that fills the entire nipple with milk. Otherwise your baby will suck in air, and more swallowed air means potentially more gas.
- Similarly, a pacifier is also a reason for painful gas in babies. Avoid it.
- If your baby’s gassy-ness is chronic, you may need to re-evaluate how, or even what, you are feeding her (or yourself, as well, if you’re breastfeeding).
Disclaimer: Please consult your children’s doctor if the symptoms are aggressive. Do not try any of these remedies without consulting the pediatrician.
