What To Do If Reflux Flares After Starting Solids

Your baby recently started solids. She loves the new food and is doing great at eating solid foods.

However, you have noticed that their sleep seems to have regressed. It didn't necessarily happen overnight, and perhaps until right now, you haven't thought that the foods she's been eating could have been a problem. Yet you know something is up, and you've started wondering if the new foods are causing the reflux flare-ups.

If it is, does that mean you shouldn't feed your baby solids anymore?

Let's try to address those questions by first clearing up some common misconceptions about infant reflux.

54% of babies experience flares with the introduction of food

Do you know why?

Because their digestive system is still immature and, simply put, cannot break down the foods they are eating. In practice, this means that foods irritate a baby's naturally immature digestive system.

Do you believe me when I tell you that your baby is born immature?

Do you believe me when I say that their digestive system is immature, too?

Do you believe me when I tell you that the mouth is the beginning of the digestive system?

Do you believe me when I say that the teeth are an intrinsic part of the digestive system?

Do you believe me when I say that your baby's teeth are the greatest asset we have in gauging the development of their digestive maturity?

Does it make sense that a baby without premolars has a digestive system that cannot cope with foods that need grinding?

Does it make sense that a baby with some teeth can digest a moderately complex diet?

Do you believe me that food can ferment in the gut if it's not digested?

Do you know that gas is a by-product of fermented food?

So, what can you do to avoid having reflux flares when starting solids?

Understand them a little more. In this video (part of my online class Reflux Free Baby Solids Course), I explain the state of maturity of your baby’s gut.

You can help your baby by changing the foods they eat. Give them foods that support their digestive system rather than hinder it. Foods that are high in good quality fats and low in complex carbohydrates and complex proteins. Foods that are easy to digest and will not ferment in their gut. Foods that contribute positively to their growth and development. Foods like avocados and olives.

• Do you know that your baby has a much greater ability to digest fats than any other macronutrient?
• Did you know that good-quality fats are an essential part of your baby's diet for brain growth and development?
• Did you know that your baby gets more than twice the amount of energy from a gram of fats than from a gram of carbohydrate or protein?

What else do you not know (yet) that you might need to know to support your baby and free them from their reflux?

Food is the greatest asset you have in the fight against reflux once your baby starts on solids. This topic is quite deep and extensive; hence, I wrote a book and subsequently created an online workshop designed to give you the answers to help your baby's reflux.

How can I help with this?

I have a number of options to help you.

If you have started weaning and seen reflux flare, my online Solids Workshop is for you. If you are about to introduce solids but haven't started yet, let me help you from the very beginning with my Weaning Workshop.

If you aren't sure whether your baby's reflux is diet-related or not, then the 'Reflux Free Baby' Workshop is the workshop for you. I walk you through all the symptoms you need to observe and record for your baby, what they mean, how to use them as clues, and what specific action to take next. The course is suitable for both bottle-feeding and breastfed babies who are suffering from baby reflux.

If you're on the fence, start with your Free Symptoms Tracker (below). Document just how many behaviours and symptoms are directly related to your baby's reflux and how much discomfort you can expect to resolve by addressing the root cause of their reflux.

Head to the links below for similar suggested blog titles:

• Will Weaning Help My Baby's Reflux?
• Reflux & Weaning: Can Food Affect Sleep?