diet when bf

[cynthia76]

my baby is 1 month old and has been put on zantac. what should i eat to help elimate gas or acid reflux when breastfeeding?

[Mommy2Beans]

My DD was put on Zantac at 3 months. Her dr. said that changing her diet really wouldn't help all that much, that very few babies are "that" sensitive to what mom eats. He said if you ate it while you were pregnant there's no reason to give it up just because you are bf'ing. However, I noticed that broccoli and caffeine gave my DD horrible gas, so I cut it out the broccoli and limited my caffeine intake. I also stayed away from really greasy fried foods. She was only on Zantac for about a month, she would scream everytime we would try to give it to her. The only thing I could figure was she hated the peppermint flavor and smell! Good luck and hope this helps!

[ra11en]

I was given totally different information than Mommy2Beans was. Our pediatrican said that EVERYTHING I ate was passed to the baby during BFing. My DD was put on Zantac at 6 weeks, and I went on the TED (total elimination diet) which included cutting out all dairy / all foods with dairy, gassy veggies (broccoli, etc) to start with. The Zantac helped with her acid reflux, but not with her colic. So, then I started cutting out all spicy foods / seasonings, and it slowly got to me eating nothing but a broiled chicken breast. This was when our pediatrician recommended me to stop BF for my own health (was down to barely 100lbs) and put our DD on a special formula for a cows protien allergy. Holy cow - huge difference in her in 24 hours! She started sleeping through the night within a week of going on the formula!

So, in short, I was told by our ped that everything I ate contributed to her BM. Especially in terms of gas. Dairy and veggies were the biggest hitters. While the TED didn't stop her colic, her gas was cut down almost entirely. Nothing but Zantac helped her acid reflux, and holding her upright for 15-30 minutes after every feeding. Even then, she still spit up a lot - A LOT. But the spit up contained less acid and therefore burned less on the way up.

[cynthia76]

thanks for the info..

[charliesmommy]

Charlie was put on Zantac at 2 weeks old. His doc did not tell me to change my diet at all. I did stay away from spicey foods and tomato sauce because I noticed that it made his reflux worse. Other than that I ate what I wanted to. Mostly chocolate....hehe. :)

Side Note: Charlie is now 9 months old and the reflux is FINALLY slowing down!!!!

[HappyHippie]

My doc also said what I ate wouldn't make much of a difference - I'm a vegetarian, so I was very concerned about having to cut beans (including soy/tofu) and cheese out of my diet. But when he put my son on Zantac, it made him worse, so I stopped that. What worked for us was mostly just the baby getting older, but the "colic hold" and holding him while bouncing on a Pilates ball (and bouncing, and bouncing, and bouncing, and bouncing) were lifesavers for us. I have had friends with histories of food allergies whose babies did very well with the TED diet though - the primary culprits seemed to be wheat and dairy for them.