Hiccups in Newborns: How to Get Your Baby Hiccups Through
Hiccups in infants and young children are most often due to "ingesting too much air or" eating too much. As in the adult, the hiccup in the newborn is given by a repeated and involuntary contraction of the diaphragm. Let's find out together what are the causes, what the remedies and the steps to make the hiccups pass in the newborn. First, however, here is a video on how to interpret the crying of newborns:
Hiccups in the newborn: what it is and when it happens
Hiccups in newborns are quite common and should not cause particular concern in most cases. Parents, however, are always wondering about its causes and possible remedies to get rid of their baby's hiccups. First of all, it is important to know that hiccups are a rather transversal disorder, which certainly affects not only the youngest children, but also adults, and is due to an involuntary and continuous contraction of the diaphragm.
The diaphragm is the muscle that separates the thoracic cavity from the organs of the abdomen, closing the laryngeal glottis. Generally, hiccups in the newborn pass on their own and are not dangerous, although - unlike other involuntary reflexes such as coughing - they do not have some use from a biological point of view, if not that hypothesized by some to remove excess air in the stomach.
Hiccups in children and adults cause the famous "hic" sound that we all know, due to the closing of the vocal cords just 35 milliseconds after the diaphragm contraction. If it lasts a long time it could be a symptom of some disease or disorder, but in most cases it goes away by itself in a short time.
Perhaps, during your pregnancy, you noticed that your baby was sobbing by then! It is not at all uncommon for the fetus to have hiccups and pregnant women often notice the rhythmic movement it causes their baby bump. Hiccups in newborns are one of the most common reflexes: according to statistics, newborns spend 2.5% of their time in hiccups!
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What are the causes?
Hiccups in the newborn can have different causes. Hiccups often occur when the baby ingests an excessive amount of fluid (or food, if it is a little bit older), or he does it too quickly: in both cases he will also ingest a lot of air. it can also be caused by the ingestion of food that is too hot or too cold, or - in the case of crying - it can be due to an excessive ingestion of air during crying.
Hiccups in the newborn, in most cases, occur in correlation with breast or bottle feeding: if he swallows excess air, the baby could easily have hiccups. This is a simple annoyance, which need not worry. parents! It will be good to contact the pediatrician only if the hiccups last for several hours: in these cases it could be linked to a digestive problem such as gastroesophageal reflux or kidney problems or diabetes.
Remedies: how to stop hiccups
There are several remedies for hiccups in newborns: these are mainly some precautions. The first essential step, in case the hiccup occurs during breastfeeding, is to stop it immediately. You will resume breastfeeding the baby after the hiccups have stopped or in any case not earlier than ten minutes. useful if the baby is upset, because it helps him to calm down.
The second step is to change the position of breastfeeding (breast or bottle) if it is not correct: it is good to keep the baby in a semi-upright position both during feeding and for the next half hour, to ensure to reduce the pressure on the diaphragm. A further step is to help him digest thanks to the burp, which will allow him to expel the air in the stomach that causes hiccups.
To prevent the appearance of hiccups in newborns, care must be taken so that during breastfeeding they do not ingest a lot of air: be careful if your baby drinks too quickly and possibly take short breaks to slow down his rhythm. If you are breastfeeding, check that her lips cover the whole areola and not just the nipple, again to avoid ingestion of air. The bottle, on the other hand, must be bent at 45 degrees and the nipple hole must not be too big or too tight.
Hiccups in the fetus during pregnancy
Baby hiccups during pregnancy are common: it indicates that the baby is preparing for breathing, training the muscles. The future mother, if she feels her baby's hiccups in her belly, then doesn't have to worry: those little rhythmic jolts are the sign that her little one is just training to come into the world!
At what week of pregnancy may you feel fetus hiccups? Actually, the future baby may start to sob as early as the first trimester of pregnancy, but it is easier to feel this clearly in the last trimester. Just like hiccups in the newborn, hiccups in the fetus disappear by itself after a few minutes, without any consequences on her. health.
For more scientific information on the subject, you can consult the website of the Bambino Gesù Hospital.
