6 Natural Ways to Get Rid of Baby Hiccups Fast – Causes

Breastfeeding a baby is the most special to a young mother; nothing can change with this specialty. The new born baby comes nearest to a mother while feeding breast milk. A mother can see her baby while breast feeding and watches the cute, sweet face and the baby’s funny acts.

This special moment changes into worry after feeding while the baby hiccups! Now the question is, “baby hiccups – is it normal? “ Yes, Hiccups is a normal part of baby development.

Baby and newborn hiccups are completely harmless and just one sign of baby’s growth and development. Hiccups, which occur in the gastrointestinal tract, almost never indicate a problem in newborns or infants.

Newborn hiccups are most frequently caused when baby overfeeds, eats too quickly or swallows a lot of air. Why do babies get hiccups and how to get rid of baby hiccups?

Causes of Baby Hiccups

Keep reading to know the 6 causes of baby hiccups and the natural ways to get rid explained in Medicpole.

Cause of Overfeeding

Overfeeding can cause the occurrence of hiccups. Overfeeding causes baby’s diaphragm to go into spasms. Provide twice as often rather than one time so much. And make it slow feeding. Feed before over hungry.

Cause of Gastroesophageal Reflux

Hiccups may occur because of Gastroesophageal reflux, which is a common condition that the contents of the stomach move into the esophagus. Reflux occurs as babies have an underdeveloped lower esophageal sphincter, which lies between the esophagus and stomach and prevents the upward movement of the food. The irritation caused by the backflow of food and acid triggers the nerve cells to cause a flutter in the diaphragm, leading to hiccups.

Cause of Irritants

Irritation in babies sensitive respiratory system may cause of hiccups. Commonly, baby have airborne irritant such as fumes, pollution or intense fragrance can causes cough that pressure on the diaphragm, making it flutter. And baby hiccups.

Cause of Gulping too much water or air

The baby may over hungry that makes the baby gulping, too fast drinking milk or water. Another reason is, if the baby’s mouth is not properly latch well with nipple, the baby may swallow excessive air. To avoid gulping, a new mother needs to watch and learn from the baby’s signal of hungry. If the baby licks own lips, opens and closes mouth, or sucking on lips, tongue, hands, fingers or cry – the baby is informing “ I am hungry “. We need to feed before the baby is so much hungry to avoid gulping.

Cause of Allergies and Asthma

The new born baby could be allergic or asthmatic which may cause of hiccups.

In formula milk or even in breast milk, there may be certain proteins those not suit the baby and causes inflammation of the esophagus, called Eosinophilic Esophagitis. Reaction with those proteins, the baby’s diaphragm flutters frequently and causes hiccups.

In case of asthmatic, the bronchial tubes of the baby’s lungs get inflamed and restrict the air flow into lungs and cause wheezing due to lack of breath, and create spasmodic movement of the diaphragm and occur hiccups.

Cause of Drop in temperature

Bottle feeding prepared milk temperature drops after a period of time. Drop in the temperature may cause the muscles of the baby to contract which leads to contraction of the diaphragm and causes hiccups.

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Natural Ways To Get Rid of Baby Hiccups

Now it’s better to know the steps to prevent from hiccups in baby by natural way, after we know the reasons of occurring hiccups in baby.

Rub your baby’s back

To make the baby feel comfort while tired from hiccups, a gentle rub on the baby’s back may work nice. Rub upward motion up to shoulder while the baby sit upright position. It will start working after a while.

How to Do it:

Try other way, placing the baby on ground on the baby’s belly and let move around a bit.
Which ultimately will help to get rid of air bubbles that causing hiccups, and rub on back to make baby comfort and rub till hiccups stops.
Sit the baby in the upright position while feeding is better, as an excess air toward the top of stomach for easy release while burping.
Taking a break from feeding while hiccups and sit the baby upright and rub on back.

Burp your baby

Here’s the natural ways to get rid of baby hiccups. Burping helps baby to get rid of any excess gas or air in digestive system. Feed with a gap of sessions with burping to avoid hiccups.

How to Do it:

Placing baby on shoulder and tapping gently on back between baby’s shoulder blades, to induce burp.
After the baby burps, give a break of few seconds, let say 20 seconds and continue feeding again.
A break for a few seconds will help the milk to completely flow down to the stomach from the esophagus that reduces chances of a hiccup.

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Try to put a little sugar

Home remedy, even though unscientific but it works sometime. Applying sugar is a suggestion from old time. Putting a bit sugar on a pacifier or your finger and have the baby suck on it for a few minutes, and hiccups will stop.

Try to hold your baby upright

To prevent air which causes hiccups, from settling into your baby’s stomach is to keep him sitting upright for 20-30 minutes long after feeding to allow food to settle and keep air bubbles from integrating into tummy. Do not do any type of bouncing movement or high-level activity just after feeding.

35 to 45 degree angle vertical position while feeding is the best way of feeding to make smooth flow of the milk through esophagus. Keep the baby upright as much possible while feeding.

Distract with a game

Divert your baby’s attention to some other activity. Distracting with a game or toy while hiccups to make busy. Such as Peek – a – Boo or chew toys.

Use gripe water

Gripe water may help to reduce or stop baby’s hiccups. Even though there is no clinical evidence that gripe water is effective against hiccups. But many parents use gripe water to soothe intestinal discomfort.

Remember that your baby may be allergic to one of the many ingredients in gripe water, which includes alcohol, ginger, dill, and fennel, among others. Dissolve a little bit of gripe water in a bit of water and put it in a dropper.

Indeed, there are many natural ways to get rid of baby hiccups fast. So, do not be panic!

Tips to Prevent Hiccups on Baby

After knowing the causes of baby hiccups and natural ways to get rid will be complete if we know few tips about how to take care of the baby to avoid the hiccups

Do not feed while baby is sleeping. Never do that.
Clean your baby’s feeding bottle regularly while not breast feeding. An obstruction while feeding can cause the baby to suck more air than milk thus causing hiccups.
Do not startling your baby, pressing down on their fontanels, pressing down on their eyeballs, pulling their tongue and slapping your baby’s back.
Visit a pediatrician to look into treatment options, if home remedy doesn’t work well.

Meanwhile, hiccups on baby is common. Do not be worry if your new born baby hiccups. You just need to be ready to follow the fast steps to cure baby hiccups fast.

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