Burping a Baby – 101

A very important part of feeding your baby is burping. Burping helps to get rid of the gassiness that some babies tend to develop during feeding. Since they drink up all their calories, which means they also do gulp in a lot of air, they need to be burped day and night. Sometimes a baby falls into a deep slumber while eating and you may need to figure out a way to burp them while the baby sleeps. It is necessary to make them burp even if they’re asleep, otherwise, they’d wake up in ache with trapped gas.

If you’re one of those parents who’s facing difficulty in burping your baby while it’s asleep, then read on the ways of how to burp your baby.

How to Burp a Baby

When you’re trying to burp your baby, a repeated gentle pat on your baby’s back will do the trick. A little tip here, cup your hand than using a flat palm while patting on the baby’s back because it’s gentler. Sometimes, to prevent a messy cleanup when your baby has a wet burp, you may want to place a towel or tie a bib around its neck or shoulder. However, there are different positions for burping that may prove to be helpful for you and your baby.

1. Hold your baby against your chest while you sit upright:

In this position, your baby’s chest should sit on your shoulder as you back the baby with one hand. Gradually tap your baby’s back using your other hand.

2. Lay your baby across your knees:

If you’re sitting upright, gently move your baby to a laying position on its tummy across your knees. Rest the heel of your hand on your little one’s chest, but remember to grip your baby’s chin and not the throat. Use the other hand to gently pat on your baby’s back.

3. Lay your baby on your lap:

Make your baby lie on your lap on its belly and support the head with one hand. Use the other hand to gently pat on your baby’s back. If the baby still seems fussy while feeding, then take a halt, burp your baby and begin feeding your baby again. In case your baby doesn’t burp immediately or after a few minutes, change your baby’s position and try burping for another few minutes. Regardless, never forget to burp your baby once the feeding time is over.

How to Burp a Sleeping Baby

Whether you’re bottle-feeding or nursing, babies generally fall asleep when they’re eating. This usually happens at night as their sleep quotient stays strong. But even if your baby is content while asleep, for some it’s very important that you try to get them to burp before lying them back to the bed.

Many a time, mothers sit their baby’s upright on their knees while cushioning their head with one hand and cradling their chin with the other. The benefit of this particular position is that it uses the baby’s weight when it’s sitting up, to get the air out. But doing this could wake up your little sleeping beauty, so aim at trying it when the baby is awake.

You can also hold the baby on your shoulder in a semi-upright position. This is considered to be an ideal position because it makes them cozy when asleep, while the pressure from your shoulder exerts on its tummy to let the gas out. Other than that, you can also hold your baby in a fully upright position by allowing them to rest on your chest. This could be a comfortable position for you if you’re resting on a couch and since babies like to curl up their legs, it puts pressure on their tummy letting the gas out.

Another comfortable position to make your baby burp is turning it at a 45 degrees angle so that its stomach sits perfectly on your forearm. Here you need to hold the head in the crook of your elbow, even though the legs may dangle on either side of the arm. The advantage of this position is that it exerts pressure on their tummy while you can gently pat on their back till they learn to burp.

When to Stop Burping a Baby

Typically it is okay to stop burping a baby anytime between 4 to 9 months old. Since that’s quite a long milestone to cross, it is best advised to burp your little one if it looks cranky and fussy. However, if it burps on its own then phase it out. Once the baby learns to sit up for longer periods, slowly it’ll develop self-burping skills.

Thus, it is highly crucial that your baby’s needs to burp. It will ease them from crying or squirming in pain and aid in recuperating their health. Here’s how you’ll see it affects the health of your baby:

1. Digestion:

The bacterial breakdown of food in the large intestine can sometimes create gassiness. This could happen from the food the baby consumes also along with what the mother eats and transfers in her breast milk.

2. Diet:

If you’re breastfeeding, it could be so that your diet is a major cause of your baby’s discomfort. As per the reports of the National Institutes of Health, food that contains carbohydrates are more prone to cause gas as well as some dairy products, beans, and certain vegetables. However, since it is difficult to pinpoint a particular food that’s causing gas, hence it is advised to take caution in your diet when you’re feeding your baby.

3. Food intolerance:

If your baby is breastfeeding and develops an intolerance from a particular food in your diet that means its body is reacting by creating excessive gas. Dairy products are a common culprit in this case.

4. The excess entry of air into your baby’s formula:

Sometimes, mothers assume that shaking the formula well makes a well-blended liquid diet for the baby. But hold on, it can cause an unhealthy amount of air accumulation in the liquid, causing gas in your baby. Instead, you can allow the bottle to settle before feeding it to your baby.

5. Nipple flow:

Feeding bottle nipples come in a range of flow options that are usually classified by the baby’s age. If you are using a nipple with a comparatively advanced flow option, it may be releasing milk too fast making your baby gulp and swallow a lot of air in that process. Similarly, if you’re using a nipple that’s slow for your baby, it may cause your baby to draw out milk with difficulty, thus swallowing air. Hence, opt an age-appropriate nipple that’ll help to limit the air swallowed during feedings.

All in all, making your baby burp at night after feeding is worthier than any time during the day because at night their sleep drive remains at full-intensity and a good burp will help them take a peaceful sleep for a long period. It also proves beneficial for the parents as it provides them a long stretch of sleep after the feeding.

Burping is a common but very important way in which you can take care of your baby. It keeps them comfortable. Even though your baby is taking a goodnight’s sleep, getting them to burp may be extremely helpful. It allows them to relieve gas so that they don’t get cranky or wake up in pain.