Newborn baby fussy after feeding
Why Is Baby Crying After Feeding?
The question of “why does my baby cry after feeding” is a question that can typically drive mothers and parents crazy.
Oftentimes, it can be hard to know why your baby is crying after feedings. Not knowing how to identify the problem and not having a solution can have a significant effect on the physical and mental health of both your baby and the entire family. This can include increased stress, lower quality sleep, and the physical health of your baby. However, if you identify the cause and solve the problem, you will be able to significantly improve the parenting and breastfeeding experience for you and your child.
That’s why we decided to write an article on this topic – Why does my baby cry after feeding? This is an important topic and should be known by all mothers so that you can get the best results when feeding your baby.
This article will cover the following topics:
- Why Babies Cry After Feeding
- Should You Breastfeed Every Time Your Baby Cries?
- How Do I Comfort A Newborn?
Without further ado, let’s get into it.
Why Your Baby Cries After Feeding
Acid Reflux
The first major reason babies cry after feeding is known as acid reflux. Acid reflux happens when the content in the stomach gets pushed back into the esophagus.
It’s estimated that more than half of infants experience acid reflux at some point. The condition usually peaks at 4 months and goes away on its own between 12 and 18 months of age.
Some symptoms of acid reflux include:
- Spitting up and/or Vomiting
- Refusal to eat and difficulty eating or swallowing
- Irritability during feeding
- Wet burp / hiccups
- Failure to gain weight
- Abnormal arching
- Frequent coughing
- Gagging or choking
- Chest pain or heartburn
- Disturbed sleep
If acid reflux symptoms persist past 24 months, it may be a sign of gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD) when combined with weight gain.
Food Sensitivity / Allergies
In addition to acid reflux, some breastfed babies may be allergic to certain food particles that their mothers are eating. According to the Academy of Breastfeeding Medicine, some of the most common foods that lead to food sensitivities and allergies in babies is cow’s milk protein in the mother’s milk, egg, corn, and soy.
Some symptoms of food sensitivities in your baby include the following:
- Extreme irritability after feedings
- Bloody stools (poop)
If your baby has the following symptoms, you should speak with your healthcare provider about getting them tested for allergies.
Additionally, you can also follow a restricted diet that removes common allergen foods such as eggs, dairy, corn, caffeine, and seeded fruit. Be sure to speak with your doctor before changing your diet significantly.
Start by eliminating one food at a time and analyze the effects of removing certain foods on your baby’s behavior.
That way you can really see what effect each individual food has so you can isolate the diet problem.
Gas
The next reason your baby may be crying is gas. Gas can also be known as a buildup of air swallowed while eating. In particular, bottle feeding can lead to your baby swallowing a lot of air during feeding. This will cause gas to be trapped in the stomach and will potentially lead to baby hiccups and discomfort for the baby.
In order to help prevent gassing in your baby, you may try to change or improve your breastfeeding position. Try to keep your baby upright after feeding. Also, allow your baby to burp gently from the bottom of their back and up through the shoulders to work the gas bubbles up and out of the body. Burping your baby can significantly reduce the chances of gassiness.
Formula
Not every baby gets fed directly from breast milk. For formula-fed babies, a change or switch of the formula you use may be your solution to your baby crying after feeding.
Every formula brand may affect each child differently, so trying a different formula for your baby may be a good solution to solving your babies crying problem. It is important to talk to your own baby’s pediatrician about whether some other formula options can be better for your child.
If you see no change or improvement by switching your baby’s formula, it is unlikely to help for any other brands.
Colic
Colic is also another reason why babies cry after feeding. Essentially, colic means persistent and excessive crying for a baby under 3 months old. More specifically, your baby is doing the following:
- Is crying a lot, for at least three hours a day
- The baby is crying at least three days per week or more
- Is under 3 months old
If all 3 of those boxes are checked, then your baby is likely colic.
Should You Breastfeed Every Time Your Baby Cries?
This is a question that is very popular among moms in regards to their baby and crying.
For that reason, we wanted to address this directly because it seems to be a topic that is debated out there.
In short, no. You do not want to breastfeed your baby every time he or she cries. Contrary to some beliefs out there, some babies cry because of a bloated stomach, gas, or some of the other reasons we talked about already in this article.
Ultimately, the best solution is to let your baby decide when she’s had enough milk. When your baby has had enough milk, it will give you signs to let you know it will be done feeding. Including stopping feeding or turning your head away.
How Do I Comfort a Crying Newborn?
Now that you know that you shouldn’t breastfeed every time your baby cries after feeding, I’m sure you’re also wondering how to comfort your crying newborn. With that being said, there are multiple ways to comfort a crying newborn when he or she cries.
Some of these ways include:
- Offer a pacifier for sucking – this can help your baby relieve stress without crying.
- Try gently rocking your baby – this can calm your baby down and relax them.
- Quietly singing to your baby – like rocking, singing may calm your baby and get them to stop crying. You can also put on a rhythmic song or music to have the same effect.
- Cuddle and hold your baby close – Touching, holding, and cuddling your baby makes your baby feel safe and secure. You can also put your baby in a blanket to get a similar effect.
- Try walking or taking your child out for a walk – this can result in a positive change in your child’s mood.
These are some of the main ways that you can comfort your baby when crying. As mentioned above, breastfeeding is not always the answer when your baby is crying. If your baby is crying and it has had enough feeding, try the things that we’ve listed above and see if it helps and improves your baby’s mood.
Why does My Baby Cry After Feeding – Key TakeawaysIf you’re thinking, “Why does my baby cry after feeding?” hopefully this article is helpful for you. Knowing why your baby cries after feeding is extremely important for the health of your child. Some reasons why your fed baby cries after feeding can include acid reflux, food sensitivity/allergy, gas, formula, or colic.
You should not breastfeed every time your baby cries. Instead, it’s best to let the baby tell you when it’s had enough flow of milk.
It’s also important to comfort your crying newborn when he/she cries.
Knowing how to answer the question “why does my baby cry after feeding” can help your breastfeeding experience and the health of your baby. Whether it is with bottle feeding, direct breastfed babies, your baby will be better off if you understand these basics.
If you’re looking to get the best high-quality breast pump, you can order our breast pump here. We offer a wide range of pumps with a ton of different insurances. Some insurances we cover include UPMC, Tricare, Aetna, and many others.
Baby Cries After Feeding: What Should I Do?
Medically reviewed by Karen Gill, M. D. — By Chaunie Brusie on October 3, 2018
My daughter, the “crier”
My second daughter was what my oldest fondly referred to as a “crier.” Or, in other words, she cried. A lot. The crying with my baby girl seemed to intensify after every single feeding and particularly at night.
It was those hellish hours between darkness and dawn when my husband and I would take turns walking around the house with her in our arms, praying and, mostly in my case, sobbing because we couldn’t console our baby.
I didn’t know it then in my sleep-deprived state, but my daughter’s crying after feedings wasn’t that uncommon. In combination with her frequent spitting up, it was pretty much a classic textbook case of colic.
Colic
Colic, in technical terms, simply means a “crying, fussy baby that doctors can’t figure out.”
OK, so that’s not really the definition, but in essence, that’s what it boils down to. The British Medical Journal (BMJ) lists one criterion for colic: A baby that cries for at least three hours a day, three or more days a week, and is under 3 months old. Check, check, and check.
There isn’t one single known cause of colic. Even the actual clinical incidence of colic, estimated by BMJ to be around 20 percent of all babies, can be tricky.
Acid reflux
One of those causes of crying after feeding and spitting up in babies is actually acid reflux. This condition is known as gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD) if it also causes significant symptoms such as poor weight gain.
When my “crier” daughter was 5, she frequently complained of her stomach hurting and as a result, had to undergo a series of testing with a gastroenterologist, a doctor that specializes in the GI system.
At our first appointment, the very first question he asked me was if she had colic as a baby and if she spit up a lot, to both of which I practically shouted, “Yes! How did you know?!”
He explained that acid reflux or GERD can manifest as symptoms similar to colic in babies, stomach pain in school-aged children, and later as actual heartburn pain in adolescents.
While many infants spit up, fewer have actual GERD, which can be caused by an underdeveloped flap between the esophagus and stomach or a higher-than-normal production of stomach acid.
In most cases, a diagnosis of infant reflux is simply based on your baby’s symptoms. If your doctor suspects a severe case however, there are several different tests that actually diagnose infant reflux.
Testing can involve taking a biopsy of your baby’s intestine or using a special type of X-ray to visualize any affected areas of obstruction.
Food sensitivities and allergies
Some babies, especially breastfed babies, may be allergic to certain food particles that their mothers are eating.
The Academy of Breastfeeding Medicine notes that the most common offender is cow’s milk protein in the mother’s milk, but even a true allergy is very rare. Only about 0.5 to 1 percent of exclusively breastfed babies are thought to be allergic to cow’s milk protein.
The other most common culprits, according to the ABM, are egg, corn, and soy, in that order.
If your baby is displaying symptoms of extreme irritability after feedings and has other symptoms, such as bloody stools (poop), you should speak with your healthcare provider about getting them tested for allergies.
Aside from a true allergy, there’s also been some evidence that following a low allergen diet while breastfeeding (essentially avoiding those top allergy foods, such as dairy, eggs, and corn) may be beneficial for infants with colic.
Strict elimination diets can have their own risks, so speak with your doctor before significantly changing your diet.
In our situation, I found that dairy, caffeine, and certain seeded fruit exacerbated my daughter’s crying and spitting up. By eliminating those foods and substances from my diet, I was able to help lessen her discomfort.
If you have a baby with colic, you might want to try anything at all to help ease your baby’s crying. If you’re curious to see if your diet has any effect, you can start by logging your food in a food journal and writing down your baby’s reactions after each meal.
Next, you can eliminate one food at a time and see if reducing your intake of certain foods seems to make a difference in your baby’s behavior. If you hit on one you feel helps your baby to cry less, this does not mean they will not be able to eat that food in the future.
Just be sure to keep in mind that a true allergy is rare. Also, be sure to monitor for any additional symptoms, such as blood in your baby’s poop.
Gas
If your baby is crying a lot after every feeding, it may simply be a buildup of air swallowed while eating. It’s thought that bottle-fed babes in particular may be more prone to swallowing a lot of air during a feeding. This can trap gas in their stomachs and be uncomfortable.
In general, breastfed babies swallow less air while eating simply due to the way they eat. But every baby is different and even breastfed babies may need to be burped after a feeding.
Trying keeping your baby upright after a feeding and burping gently from the bottom of their back and up through the shoulders to work the gas bubbles up and out. Also check out this illustrated guide to burping a sleeping baby.
Formula
If your baby is formula-fed, swapping out the formula you use may be a simple solution to a crying baby after feedings. Every formula is a little bit different and certain brands make formulas for more sensitive baby tummies.
If you decide to try this, talk to your baby’s pediatrician about whether an elemental formula would be a good choice to try for a week. If you try one different brand and you see no change in your baby’s fussiness, continuing to try different brands is unlikely to help.
Takeaway
Colic, along with a few other common conditions, might be the culprit if you too have a “crier” on your hands.
If your baby doesn’t find relief after dietary changes or additional burping, then make an appointment to see their doctor.
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Chaunie Brusie, BSN, is a registered nurse with experience in labor and delivery, critical care, and long-term care nursing. She lives in Michigan with her husband and four young children, and is the author of the book “Tiny Blue Lines.”
Last medically reviewed on October 3, 2018
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- ABM clinical protocol #24: Allergic proctocolitis in the exclusively breastfed infant. (2011). DOI:
10.1089/bfm.2011.9977 - Harrel MC, et al. (2015). Is there a correlation between maternal diet in breastfeeding mothers and infantile colic? DOI:
10.1097/01.EBP.0000541032.94135.ca - Mayo Clinic Staff. (2018). Infant reflux.
mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/infant-acid-reflux/diagnosis-treatment/drc-20351412
- Rosen LD, et al. (2007). Complementary, holistic, and integrative medicine.
pedsinreview.aappublications.org/content/28/10/381 - Saavedra MA, et al. (2003). Infantile colic incidence and associated risk factors: A cohort study. .
ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/14502331 - Sung V, et al. (2014). Treating infant colic with the probiotic Lactobacillus reuteri: Double blind, placebo controlled randomised trial. DOI:
10.1136/bmj.g2107 - Symptoms & causes of GER and GERD in infants. (2015).
niddk.nih.gov/health-information/digestive-diseases/acid-reflux-ger-gerd-infants/symptoms-causes
Our experts continually monitor the health and wellness space, and we update our articles when new information becomes available.
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Oct 3, 2018
Written By
Chaunie Brusie
Edited By
Nizam Khan (TechSpace)
Medically Reviewed By
Karen Richardson Gill, MD
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Why does a baby cry - an article in the newspaper of the EMS clinic "On Health"
— The simplest answer to the question about sedatives is definitely: no. Parents should not use painkillers, sedatives, herbal “bye-bye”-fees and other means to calm the baby. In any case, until it was recommended by a neurologist after a comprehensive examination. Giving a sedative to an infant is like hiding your head under a pillow when the alarm goes off: it won't stop time and you'll be late for work anyway. You need to try to understand your baby, make sure that his most basic needs are met, and only then proceed to the exclusion of more complex and rare problems. nine0003
Try to remain calm and act only in the interests of the child
Up to three weeks of age, the most common cause of constant crying of a child is banal malnutrition. A common mistake of parents is the desire to stick to the schedule when breastfeeding in the first month of a child's life. A baby can suck out 150 ml of milk in three minutes, or maybe 20 ml in an hour, and a nursing mother is not able to understand how much has been eaten by the sensations of "emptying the breast". With free feeding in the first month, record the dynamics of the baby's weight gain. When feeding on a schedule, conduct a series of control feedings with measurement of body weight before and after feeding, so you can make sure that the amount of one feeding is sufficient. If the baby's crying stops instantly as soon as you give the breast, this is absolutely normal. nine0003
What to do if the baby cries even after you have changed the diaper, tried to feed, picked up? If this happens often and the mother does not succeed in calming the child for more than an hour, you should consult a doctor. It is not always obvious to parents, especially good ones, in what order to seek medical help: should I call an ambulance or go to see my pediatrician in a couple of days, or maybe it’s better to grab the child and the CHI policy and rush to the nearest city hospital? Try to remain calm and act only in the interests of the child. Here are some tips to help you. nine0003
- If the baby cries and cannot be calmed for more than two hours, call emergency services.
Pre-measure the baby's temperature, check for rashes on the baby's body, and remember if there was a stool within the last 12 hours. Also make sure you have enough breast milk for a single feed. Report this information to the emergency services
- If a child often worries , sleep is short, but there is no monotonous crying-crying for more than two hours, then this can be dealt with on your own, and then with the help of a doctor at a clinic appointment or by calling him at home. The better prepared you are for your consultation, the more productive it will be. Things to do before the consultation:
- Determine breastfeeding volume by three to four checkweighs before and after feeding
- See if there is a connection between baby crying and feeding. When does the child worry and cry - immediately after eating, during feeding, an hour later, etc.?
- Recall the circumstances in which anxiety and frequent crying appeared: vaccination, errors in the mother's diet, starting to use or changing formula?
- Note accompanying symptoms and their relationship to crying: regurgitation, constipation, frequent stools, flatulence, appearance or increase of skin rash
- Assess the change in stool frequency and consistency
- Observe whether restlessness and crying persist after passing stool or flatulence
- Find out if there is an effect when placing a gas tube or a glycerin suppository.
The task of a pediatrician when complaining of frequent and prolonged crying of a child is to determine why the child is crying, whether he has any disorders (including digestive disorders) and what kind they are - functional, that is, this is a conditionally normal condition associated with the growth and development of the body or a reaction to changes in external (primarily nutritional) factors, or it is a pathology that must be suspected, diagnosed and treated. nine0003
Three types of crying
Experts say that babies have three types of crying:
- Basic . This is, in fact, a means of communication between the child and others. This cry is intermittent, smooth, the sounds are not sharp.
- Angry . This is how babies cry when they really don't like something or they really want something. In this case, parents may notice how the child's facial expressions change. He roars loudly, confidently, mostly on the exhale. Angry crying is usually the longest. nine0045 - Painful . With his help, the baby reports that he is in pain. At the same time, he screams to a screech, with piercing notes until he exhales completely.
Article | Why is he crying?
The baby is not yet talking and at first cannot even point to or approach the desired object. How can he communicate, tell about his needs? He uses the method that most attracts the attention of adults - cries and screams. And adults have no choice but to learn to understand this not the most pleasant language. nine0061
No healthy, well-cared for baby will cry for no reason. Baby crying is not a way of manipulation, but a means of communication. With its help, the child communicates about his needs and condition. Modern psychology claims that the faster the mother responds to the requests of her baby, the less stress his nervous system receives and the faster he develops a sense of confidence and security. Remember that you cannot spoil a child under 1 year old. Our task is to answer his request, not to deceive his trust, to give him a sense of the reliability of this world. nine0003
Eight options
The reasons for crying may be different, but the message is always the same: the child asks the mother to pay attention to him and eliminate discomfort. Of course, it is difficult to understand all the options for crying at once, especially if the child is the first, but over time, parents begin to correctly decipher children's signals. All the "requirements" of the baby can be divided into several groups.
“I want to eat!”
Distinguishing the "hungry" cry from other types is quite easy: it is a loud cry of rage that does not stop even on the hands. The baby makes sucking movements with his mouth, tries to “catch” the chest, stretches out his arms, makes a compassionate face. If the mother does not give him a breast or a bottle, the crying becomes choking and hysterical. If the crying is caused by hunger, the baby will immediately calm down after feeding. nine0003
Gases and colic
These unpleasant phenomena are the result of the still immature enzymatic system of the child, possible allergic reactions, nutritional disorders of the nursing mother. Gases, accumulating in the intestines, put pressure on its walls, causing pain. Crying is intermittent, attacks. The baby screams piercingly and starts crying, and then calms down for a short period. He pulls his legs up to his stomach, pushes and blushes. Feeding does not eliminate crying, and the baby starts crying immediately after eating. To fight colic, take the baby in your arms, hug it to you, preferably “skin to skin”. You can put a salt heating pad or a warm diaper on his tummy. A gas tube often helps: the gases will go away, and the child will feel better. There are also special preparations that are not absorbed by the intestines, but act only on the gas bubble, breaking its wall and thus relieving the baby of pain (use only after consulting a doctor!). nine0003
“I feel wet, uncomfortable, unpleasant…”
Any discomfort causes the child to cry. Perhaps he has a wet or full diaper, diaper rash has appeared, or maybe the seam on the clothes rubs or the vest has folded into an uncomfortable fold and presses on delicate skin. The baby may cry if he is just tired of lying in one position and wants to roll over. Perhaps he does not want to sleep now, and they are trying hard to put him to sleep - in this case, protest cannot be avoided.
"I'm overtired!"
Infants are highly excitable. This is a property of their nervous system. The baby cries after a period of wakefulness, is tense, his eyes may be closed - this is a sign of overexcitation, fatigue, inability to fall asleep. This type of reaction is often accompanied by yawning, whining, emotional expression of anxiety and resentment. Overwork is first expressed by a loss of interest in the outside world, after which the baby begins to move restlessly, whimper or cry loudly. Know that the longer the baby cries, the more tired it gets. Keep in mind that the baby is not always able to calm himself down and fall asleep: the greater the fatigue, the stronger and longer he will cry. nine0003
How to calm the baby in this case? The following tricks will help.
- Place the baby on your chest or stomach, preferably skin to skin. The warmth of your body and the sound of your heartbeat will soothe him.
- Change position. To reduce muscle tension or reduce the load on a certain muscle group, carry the baby vertically or, conversely, lay it horizontally.
- Ventilate the room. The influx of fresh air will give the child the opportunity to breathe deeper, and additional ventilation of the lungs will increase the flow of oxygen to the brain. nine0016
- Change lighting. Maybe the light in the room is too bright or, on the contrary, it is very dark? The baby may be frightened by loud and sharp sounds. In this case, eliminate the cause of the noise.
- Sing a lullaby. Lullabies have a calming effect even on the smallest children.
"It hurts!"
Crying even and constant, with occasional outbursts of desperate cry associated with increased pain. In such crying, it is as if suffering is heard.
If the stomach hurts , the baby, screaming, jerks his legs, pulls them up to his stomach. When baby is teething , in addition to crying, he will put everything in his mouth, he may have increased salivation. The child will be capricious, his temperature will rise, loose stools will appear. Weeping is tedious, prolonged, with loud splashes at night.
With pain in the ear the child pulls on the ear (or both). As a rule, in newborns, acute otitis media (inflammation of the middle ear) occurs as a complication of intrauterine infection or against the background of a runny nose. Crying is loud, piercing, with painful intonations. The baby, as soon as he starts eating, drops his breast and for a long time refuses to start sucking again. Refusal of the breast and crying can also be caused by an inflammatory process on the oral mucosa. nine0003
Finally, sometimes babies cry before peeing . If this happens systematically, this may be a signal of an inflammatory process. If at the same time the temperature also rises, you should definitely consult a doctor.
“I'm hot! I'm cold!"
Due to the immaturity of the thermoregulation mechanism, babies quickly overheat or become cold and, of course, react to discomfort with tears. If the child is hot, he blushes, begins to whimper, release his arms and legs, toss about in the crib. Sweating may appear on the skin. If the back of the neck is wet, then the baby is sweating from overheating. Crying intensifies, the temperature may rise (up to 37–37.5 ° C). If the baby is cold, at first sudden and piercing crying gradually becomes whimpering, hiccups begin. nine0003
Headache
Breast migraine is a special cause of children's tantrums. Some babies who have been diagnosed with hypoxia during pregnancy or childbirth suffer from headaches due to increased intracranial pressure, disorders of the nervous system, and increased excitability. Such children are often meteorologically dependent: they react sharply to changes in atmospheric pressure, weather changes, and begin to behave restlessly. You learn about a headache by prolonged crying, which is difficult to appease. It is difficult to calm the baby, he refuses the breast or bottle, and a pulsation can be seen on the fontanel. nine0003
"I'm bored and lonely!"
Yes, yes, the baby is just bored. At the same time, he cries intermittently, with open eyes: as if he is calling and listening, checking if anyone is nearby. If nothing happens as a result, the crying becomes continuous. How to comfort him? Just take the baby in your arms, talk to him, entertain him.
Exclusion method
Be sure to find out the cause of crying, eliminating them one by one. They put it to the chest, changed the diaper, ventilated the room, picked it up, sang a song, and he cries? Do not despair! You will definitely find the right way out. Shake, gently talk to the baby, show something interesting.
