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JamieLynn · Sep 25, 2007, 10:01 AM

I have a 5 month old baby this is his feeding schdule:

Morning: 7 ounce bottle of formula
Noon: 2-3 tablespoons of cereal mixed with juice, 5 ounce bottle of formula
Afternoon: 7 ounce bottle of formula
Night: 1 jar of fruit, half jar of veggies (or vice versa), 5 ounce bottle of formula
Midnight: 7 ounce bottle of formula

He's on soy formula. He weighs 20 lbs and is 28 inches in length. He spits up after every meal at least an ounce sometimes more. It doesn't seem to bother him but it worries me. My friend has a baby the same age and he doesn't spit up at all anymore. What should I do.

tickle · Sep 25, 2007, 10:16 AM

I am not an expert on this, having only had one boy but it seems to me that is a lot of food for a five month old. Even if you cut back on the cereal mixed with juice at noon he wouldn't be missing much. As for the midnight feeding at five months, seems unusual, do you have to wake him up for this? If he is sleeping through the night you shouldn't have to wake him up as he would be content.

Basically what I am saying is, spitting up may be just too much food for the little guy to handle and on the other hand, no two babies are alike so don't judge by how your friends baby handles food.

You are worrying too much and he is not going to starve.

cjonline · Sep 25, 2007, 11:03 AM

Since he is on Soy I take it to mean that he has an upset belly already, right? If so spitting up may just be too much food or he can't handle the "new" sugar in the jar foods and Juice. I would cut the sweet stuff first, the jars of food and juice, and see if that helps cut back on the spitting up. If it does then you know the problem.

I do agree with Tickle -- every baby is different and every new parent worries too much. If you are still concerned say something at the next well-baby check up.

JoeCanada76 · Sep 25, 2007, 11:23 AM

It is an awful lot of food for a five month old baby. I can understand feeding that amount to a 12 month old. You need to stop the juice and fruits for sure. There is way too many foods for this baby in my opinion. Eventually you will want to cut out the midnight feeding.

JamieLynn · Sep 25, 2007, 11:34 AM

Well he's always been a big baby that's why he eats so much. He was 10 lbs 11 ounces when he was born and now weighs 20 lbs. he was eating 4 ounces every three hours when he was a week old (recommended by his doctor). If I don't feed him as much as I do he's still hungry.

JamieLynn · Sep 25, 2007, 11:37 AM

And if I don't feed him at midnight he'll wake up around 4 and won't go back to sleep. When I feed him at midnight he doesn't wake up until 7 or 8.

cjonline · Sep 25, 2007, 11:54 AM

Try to give him more cereal at night that may sit on his stomach longer than liquid, it might help with the spitting up too. Rule things out. What do you feed him right before he spits up? Is it something new, like jar foods or new flavor of juice, or is it formula? Like I said before try cutting the sugar intake that may help. His stomach is still only 5 months old no matter how big he is.

If it works for you to feed him at midnight then do so and sleep in. I like the mornings, I had my sons up by 5am but they were in bed by 10pm when they were babies. That worked for my family.

JoeCanada76 · Sep 25, 2007, 11:56 AM

Why not cereal close to bed time and see if he sleeps longer through the night. I know it can be so confusing with different opinions and suggestions but I guess all it is, is trial and error. My little guy is in bed by 8 pm and up at 7 am. Never used to be that way but everything changes depending on what month he is.

Also, Maybe having less food in his stomach. Eventually he will get used to it and actually adjust. Every baby is different though.

shygrneyzs · Sep 25, 2007, 11:56 AM

Talk to your pediatrician about this and he (or she) could refer you to the dietican. There is a possibility that your baby has GERD and that could cause the spitting up after eating. But I would never tell you that is what is going on. You really truly need to take your baby in and ask your doctor. Maybe there is something you can change in his diet.

J_9 · Sep 25, 2007, 11:58 AM

Before I post an answer in addition to the great answers you have so far... I have to ask if he has always spit up. Did he spit up as a tiny infant before the food?

JamieLynn · Sep 25, 2007, 12:15 PM

Yes he has always spit

He has always spit up

J_9 · Sep 25, 2007, 12:20 PM

Aha, that's what I thought. Has your pediatrician had him checked for a relaxed gastrointestinal sphincter?

You see, some babies spit up when the sphincter that goes from the esophagus to the stomach does not close completely and properly. He will grow out of this. The sphincter will tighten and work properly with age.

Now, as far as the feedings. He should not be getting juice and fruits yet. He should get the cereal in the evening shortly before bedtime as it will "stick to his ribs" better than the baby food will and he should stay satisfied longer.

Don't lay him down immediately after feedings, he should be up until all of the food is down in his little tummy for a while.

Some babies just spit up, while others don't. Out of my 4 kids 2 were spitters the other 2 weren't.

JamieLynn · Sep 26, 2007, 07:13 AM

His doctor told us to start giving him juice and fruits

cjonline · Sep 26, 2007, 08:18 AM

Do what the Doctor tells you then. Just ask the next time you are in about the spitting up.

J_9 · Sep 26, 2007, 11:43 AM

If the doctor approved the juice and fruits that is okay. However, the fruits should be last when feeding them. It should be more of a dessert than part of the meal. You see babies prefer the sweetness of fruits over vegetables. If given the sweets early on in the meal they tend to refuse the veggies.

When mixing your cereal with the juice for the night time snack, don't make it too thin. A little thicker is okay.

Here is some info you may find helpful

All babies spit up, some more than others. When it happens after nearly every feeding, parents often become concerned. They worry that their infant will not be ingesting enough food to grow or that the infant has something seriously wrong with their stomach or intestinal tract. If an infant spits up significantly but gains weight, then it is only messy and a nuisance. After "normal" spitting up, there are three common conditions that pediatricians diagnosis:

* the baby is allergic to the formula
* the baby has gastroesophageal reflux
* the baby has an area of blockage or narrowing in the intestinal tract (pyloric stenosis)

Normally, when an infant feeds, swallowing pushes the milk back into their throat and down into their esophagus. At the bottom of the esophagus there is a muscle that opens to let nourishment pass into the stomach. The muscle then closes when the stomach squeezes to push the food into the small intestine. In children with gastroesophageal reflux, this muscle opens as the stomach squeezes, so food and stomach acid come up their esophagus and out of their mouth. Other times, the acid and food may only come part way up, causing the infant to have abdominal pain or gas similar to when an adult experiences heartburn.

Infants with gastroesophageal reflux are good eaters. Many of them are "guzzlers" and can not be put off when hungry, finishing their milk very quickly. Other symptoms of reflux might include sudden or incolsolable crying (from the stomach acid), general fussiness, bad breath and frequent night waking.

When Baby Spits Up Frequently - KidsGrowth

Nicole_23 · Sep 6, 2008, 11:38 AM

I have my doubts that it is acid reflux because I have a 2mo old that has been diagnosed with this and there's a lot more too it than just spitting up frequently unless its just a mild case.
Here's a website with lots of helpful info on GER
Infant Reflux Solutions for Your Baby - InfantReflux.Org

purple31 · Sep 17, 2008, 08:41 AM

I know what you are going through it is rough and it will probably get worse. Your baby probably has esophigal reflux my daughter had it from the time she was born until she started eating solid foods, she would spit up every time she would eat and sometimes even projectile she would have to sleep beside me because she would do this at night and sometimes choke and I would have to help her. There are medications out there but really did not work for her I tried thickening her formula with dry ceral which would help a lot and feed her slowly not all at once. She needs to be checked by the dr. and have an sonogram done of her esophagus. If it is to bad they will do surgery. They never would do surgery on my daughter and I just had to live with it and do the best I could by changing formula to goats milk and nothing seemed to work but this might be helpful.