Infant Reflux and Babywearing: A Happy Coexistence
The Benefits of Babywearing from LLI
The Benefits of Babywearing from Ask Dr. Sears
The Benefits of Babywearing Vs. Carseat Carrying
Infant Reflux and Babywearing:
A Happy Coexistence
By Laura Heller, M.Ed.
My name is Laura, and I found my way to the world of babywearing because my baby was born with severe Gastroesophageal Reflux Disease (GERD), which is also known as infant reflux. Jonah was in the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU) at birth. When he was brought to the nursery right after he was born, for observation, he turned blue. He had what is called apnea episodes, which means he stopped breathing. After running some tests, the doctors found that he had severe GERD. Acid went so far up his esophagus that his lungs shut down to protect themselves. Jonah was sent home on a monitor, which monitored for apnea and bradycardia (slowing of the heart rate).
Parents of GERDlings wonder, “Why does my baby have reflux?” Some possible causes are listed here. In my son’s case, it was not related to anything he was eating, for he had these episodes right after birth. For Jonah, it was an immature lower esophageal sphincter (LES). He was ‘just born with it.’ For others, it can come from a milk or soy protein intolerance (MSPI) or an allergy to these proteins (learn about the difference between allergy and intolerance). Severe protein intolerances and allergies can result in eosinophilic disorders. There are also those babies who have reflux because they are born with pyloric stenosis (when the muscles in the pylorus, the lower part of the stomach leading to the small intestine, are so enlarged they prevent food from emptying out of the stomach) or a hiatal hernia (a hiatal hernia is when a portion of the stomach protrudes upward into the chest through an opening in the diaphragm).
