Solid Foods Reflux

[Anonymous]

Hello,

I’m new to the site and would first like to start off by saying thank heavens I found you all! I’m so glad a community like this exists!!

Here’s a quick synopsis on where I’ve been and where I am now:

I have an 8-month old daughter who has severe reflux. She was diagnosed around 6-weeks of age and at the time, her GI doctor put her on Nutramigen (she has a milk protein sensitivity) and Zegerid. (Our pediatrician had tried Zantac, Prevacid & Nexium but neither seemed to work as well as Zegerid.) That combination was working like a charm until her milk intake increased. We increased her dose of Zegerid and that seemed to take care of things but now we’re running into problems ever since we’ve tried to introduce solids. My LO is back to short naps and wakes 30-minutes almost to the second after falling asleep and screams/cries. She’s been waking & crying overnight and has been spitting up quite a lot in the past week (despite going months without much spitup). She’s really “jerky” in her movements…like she has a lot of gas pain or something. My daughter seems to get “better” when we stop solids but gets hungrier faster because the milk just isn’t holding her off as long anymore. I have since been to both her GI doctor and her pediatricican. Both have said it doesn’t appear to be a food allergy and both have basically said “plow through this…just deal with it and it will pass”. While that might sound easy, I know the parents on this site know how hard that really is.

The pediatrician we visited wasn’t our regular doctor…this guy was a real jerk. He told me that I needed to continue feeding solids or my LO will require feeding therapy (way to make me feel like a bad mom, doc!). He also told me that Zegerid had to be given on an empty stomach and that we are probably only seeing about a 25% benefit of the med because we give it to her with a little bit of her formula. (Note that my daughter’s GI doctor said it was okay to give it to her with a little bit of her formula so I’m thoroughly confused.)

So here are my questions:

1. Is it possible that the solid foods are causing my daughter to reflux more thereby explaining the “reflux like” symptoms we’ve been seeing (short naps, irritability, gassiness, spitting up, jerky body movements)? The doc said we are at our max dose of Zegerid (40MG packets; 4ml, 2x/day) so increasing it isn’t an option at this point.

2. Does Zegerid have to be given on an empty stomach? Is it more effective when given on an empty stomach?

3. I stumbled upon several discussion threads on this site about mixing Zegerid 40ml with Maalox Cherry Supreme (https://www.infantreflux.org/forum/printer_friendly_posts.asp?TID=5847 ). If Zegerid is more effective if given on an empty stomach, will this help my baby girl take her meds? (I tried administering the Zegerid with a syringe to her mouth and she WAS NOT happy…most of it spilled out of her mouth.)

4. Is BufferBabies still available? If so, will that help me and should I seek it out? I found it mentioned in this older post so I’m not sure what the current scoop is on it: https://www.infantreflux.org/forum/forum_posts.asp?TID=6026

I’m hoping someone can help add some insight to my situation. I do need to continue feeding my baby solids but she’s so miserable and no one in my house is getting much sleep these days. My poor baby girl’s eyes are so puffy and she has big bags under them because of her crying and lack of sleep.

[Anonymous]

Correction to my original post: I meant to say the first link had instructions on mixing Mylanta, not Maalox. I also found the website for ordering BufferBabies but am not sure if this will help. Can someone tell me if that would help or is blending the Mylanta with the Zegerid the same thing?

[hellbennt]

Dr. Philips was on the team of those who developed zegerid. it came out of the U of Missouri (research team) and then sold to the drug company called santarus, I think it is? they now manufacture zegerid.

you do NOT have to give on an empty stomach! this is the beauty of zegerid! yes, you do have to give OTHER meds on an empty stomach, but NOT zegerid!

ok zegerid:

using zegerid rx packets:

https://www.infantreflux.org/forum/forum_posts.asp?TID=14587&PN=1

from the above link:

Here are the directions from Dr. Phillips:

Zegerid 40mg packets, add 6.5mL tap water to 1 packet. This will make 10mL (40mg in 10mL), Do this in an oral dosing syringe (20mL size syringe preferred).
The add 10mL Mylanta Cherry Supreme to the syringe. Now you will have 20mL total volume and 40mg omeprazole. (2mg omeprazole per each mL)
This is stable in the refrigerator for 2 weeks. Shake before each dose. You can put the dose in the bottle of milk. Depends on age and weight.

Must use at least 3.5mL per dose, three doses per day or don’t waste your time.

Alternatively, use a Tums QuikPack in place of the Mylanta Cherry Supreme – then add enough water to make 20mL total volume.

found this:

Tums is an excellent alternative as it does not contain magnesium hydroxide (that is what causes gas and loose stools)
40mg added to 6.5mL tap water in an oral dosing syringe (20 or 30mL size syringe) then add one tums quick pack or smoothies. Then ad enough water to make 20mL total. Then after all this you will have 2mg of zegerid (omeprazole) in each mL. You can give it right before a bottle too.

At the same time you’re using the rx zegerid packets and making it like the instructions above tell you to, I would call the company (email them)? that makes buffer babies. they might make a product to use w/ zegerid. I don’t think so because zegerid already has the ingredients in it (plus you adding the mylanta) to make it able to be taken w/ food- the company info can be found from this link called prevacid 101- last post on the page- you can also use this link to check proper dosing- look for hyper link called ‘marci-kids dosing information’ – once there look for prilosec dosing, since prilosec is the medicine in zegerid https://www.infantreflux.org/forum/forum_posts.asp?TID=1936&PN=0&TPN=1

Ok solids: I would get the zegerid and milk under control and then, with solids, GO SLOWLY. keep track. give one food for four days and watch for reactions. if there’s a reaction, take a note and move on to the next solid. keep going like this.

try avocado, banana, sweet potato, green beans, squash

I would NOT try proteins just yet. no beans, no meat, no poultry or pork. no eggs.

try fruits.

SLOWLY SLOWLY!

that’s all about solids.

YES they can affect your baby! that’s why go slow & take notes – watch for reflux and for mucousy diapers (any change in diapers) and for gas and for behavior change

[Anonymous]

My children were on Prevacid and drank Nutramigen. Beings that the proteins in the Nutramigen were extensively broken down it was easy for my children to digest. But they drank a ton of it. It just didn’t last long. But solids made their sleeping and reflux worse because it was harder for them to digest. I now know that they reason they had a hard time breaking down their food was that their pancreas wasn’t making enough digestive enzymes to properly be able to break down food. By taking a digestive enzyme supplement my children were able to then break down what ever foods they ate. This made their reflux, gas, and pain decrease by at least 90%!!!

I do not promise that this would help your little one but it might be something you would want to try.

You can read my blog (see signature) to learn more about this. Happy Mom2012-08-02 03:54:04

[Anonymous]

Martha,

Thank you so much for the suggestion! Is this something I can get OTC? It’s been almost 1-mo of limited sleep for me and I’m at wits end. My daughter’s GI doc gave me the go ahead to increase her Zegerid to 4.5ml twice a day so I’m going to try that too.

I will definitely check out your blog!!

Laura – thanks for your response too. I tried making the Zegerid with Mylanta as you described and my daughter puked almost immediately (even though it had been 2-hrs since her last bottle). 🙁

[Anonymous]

Yes, you can buy enzymes and probiotics at any health food or vitamin store. There are many brands to choose from. The ones we use you can order by calling the company on line. Core Health Products If you would rather buy some at a store there are some things to look for to make sure they are top quality. I have written some about that in my blog but if you have question you can ask me.

[hellbennt]

probiotics, brands used:

https://www.infantreflux.org/forum/forum_posts.asp?TID=8970&PN=1

[Anonymous]

I actually started using probiotics a few days ago (Florababy) and was concerned because it did have traces of milk in it. So far so good though but I might seek out a dairy free probiotic just to be safe.

Martha – Would you mind giving me some guidance on the type of digestive enzymes to purchase?

Thanks so much to you both!!!

[Anonymous]

Sure! First of all I looked up Florababy. They look pretty good and the reviews are good. They only have 5 strains of probiotics though and the Digestive Health pills that we use have 13 strains. But if you are getting results from the Florababy that you are satisfied with, then that is what counts.

Digestive Health pills also contain enzymes. But most other companies sell probiotics and enzymes seperately.

Here is a copy of some info taken from an article titled “How to Choose your Supplements”.

ENZYMES Look for plant enzymes that are specifically produced for use with foods. All enzyme supplements are not the same. They should:

Be supplied as plant-based food enzymes. Plant based enzymes are more effective than animal or pancreatic enzymes. For a couple reasons. First, plant enzymes have a broader pH activity range, which means they can help digest foods and remain active throughout the intestinal tract. Second, they do not interfere with the natural functioning of the body and therefore have no side effects. Enzymes such as pancreatin, trypsin and chymotrypsin are animal/pancreatic enzymes. Avoid enzyme formulas that contain these ingredients. Instead look for formulas which list enzymes such as protease, lipase, amylase and peptidase. Also with animal based enzymes the body can become dependent on them and slow down in making its own. Whereas plant based enzymes encourage the body to make more of its own.

Include all the necessary co-factors (vitamins, minerals and coenzymes). All the nutrient cofactors (vitamins and minerals) must be present for each enzyme to be fully active and to insure maximum enzyme activity.

Include the full spectrum of enzymes. When choosing a digestive enzyme formula, an additional recommendation applies. Specifically, a digestive enzyme formula should include the full spectrum of enzymes necessary to break down all types of foods completely. To completely break down a food, all the enzymes for each component of the food must be present. This means that a digestive enzyme formula should not only include the major enzymes (e.g. protease, amylase, lipase and cellulase), but the formula should also include the enzymes for the next steps (e.g. peptidase, lactase, glucoamylase and malt diastase).

Hope this helps!

[Author]

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