Burping is what helps to get rid of the air that they might have swallowed during feeding and if your baby makes a fuss or likely gets cranky during feeding or after feeding, it’s mostly because your baby swallowed a bit of air with the milk and it makes babies generally uncomfortable.
When babies are not being burped often and they swallow too much air they can vomit their food and have gassy or cranky feelings, so burping your baby helps them feel better and makes the feeding process a lot easier.
Have you ever wondered why babies need to burp?
New mothers however find it hard to burp their babies, and some babies don’t get easily burped. This article will show you practical steps on how to burp your baby.
Why do I need to burp my baby?
It’s of great importance to burp the baby at each feeding, especially before sleeping. When your baby drinks or eats anything he or she can't help but swallow a little air along with the breast milk or formula. Having those air bubbles trapped in their tummy can make them feel uncomfortable and full even before they finish eating. That’s why burping a baby is necessary to bring up any excess air to make feeding comfortable.
Because of the specialty of babies, they try to communicate their discomfort through crankiness or spitting out their food. They might even start to protest during feeding or immediately after feeding, you should try burping your baby to see if the air bubble in his or her tummy is what is causing the discomfort.
Burping your baby
You should try the following tips to help burp your baby successfully.
When you’re halfway through feeding your baby, you can position your baby on your shoulder or you can make them face-down on your lap. Helping them to sit up also helps to make them burp faster.
You may need to protect your clothes from spit by having a burp cloth or bib to cover your outfit and your baby’s clothes and mouth as well.
To ease the process you can give your baby a gentle pat or rub the left side of the back because that’s the location of your baby’s little stomach. This technique most likely gets babies to burp, but if your baby doesn’t burp, you may just do the pat with a firmer grip and that will do the magic.
What are the best positions for burping a baby?
Majorly there are 3 positions to which babies are mostly burped.
• The first is on the shoulder
• The second is facing down on the lap
• The third is sitting up.
It’s best to try all three positions to see which one gets your baby to burp faster, you can incorporate other positions when the one your baby prefers doesn’t work.
To get and correctly apply for these positions, here are a few tips;
• When your baby is on your shoulder
Hold your baby firmly against your shoulder and ensure you support the bottom with one hand then you can pat or rub your baby’s back with the other hand.
• When your baby is facing down on your lap
You will need to place your baby’s tummy down across your lap (the aim is for the stomach to be on one of your legs and the head on the other, turned sideways, with the head supported and slightly higher than the chest). You’ll use one hand to securely hold your baby, then you can pat or rub her back with the other hand.
• When your baby is sitting up
You will hold your baby in a seated and comfortable position on your lap, ensuring that your baby is leaning slightly forward. Then you’ll support your baby’s head and chest with one arm while you pat or rub with the other hand.
• Another position you can apply is walking
This is mostly used once your baby has control over the head, you can try holding your baby upright in front of you, facing out, while you stand and walk. It’s also a good measure to put one hand under the bottom and the other arm across the tummy to apply gentle pressure. The motion will help give your baby additional release of any trapped air bubbles in the tummy.
A lot of mothers ask how often should I burp my baby?
How often you burp your baby should depend on how often you’re feeding your baby.
When bottle-feeding your baby, it’s advised to burp the baby at least once, mostly about halfway through feeding or after every 15 minutes into feeding, or you can also burp more often if your baby seems fussy or is taking a long time feeding.
When breastfeeding, burp your baby when you go from one breast to the other to make room for more milk. As a mother, you must keep in mind that a baby who has swallowed air may stop eating or even refuse to switch breasts just because he or she feels uncomfortably full. If you find out your newborn is managing only one breast at a time? Burp them mid-feed on the same breast.
What should I do if my baby doesn’t burp?
It shouldn’t be a cause for alarm if your baby doesn’t burp. Some babies don’t swallow much air, so they aren’t frequent burpers which imply there’s nothing to be worried about.
Some other babies pass out enough gas that they don't need to burp as frequently as other babies are required to burp as a typical infant.
If your baby isn't a big burper, and he or she doesn’t seem to be unusually bothered by gas pains, crankiness, or discomfort during or after feeding, it’s nothing to be concerned about.
Mothers should note that every child is different from the others and infants babies should be studied to know what style they would prefer, not all babies can be raised the same.
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