Yeast overgrowth…can it cause reflux?

[Anonymous]

My son, who is now almost 4 months old, was diagnosed with mild reflux at just a week old. He was put on Alimentum & we were given some advice to help ease his reflux. The doctor that diagnosed him was filling in for his regular doc who was on vacation & when she came back from vaca she retracted the reflux diagnosis & said his “issues” sound like normal baby spit-up issues & it was all developmental, considering he was gaining weight fine & seemed normal in general. She left him on Alimentum, so he’s been on that for almost the whole 4 months, except for when we switched to try Soy & then switched to try Gentle to see if they would help.

My DS:

* Used to cry a lot for the first 2 months. It wasn’t to the point of what colic is considered [the 3 hours, 3 days thing], but it was tough to watch & handle.

* Spits up HEAPS. At least 3-5 times per feeding & sometimes hours after eating. Sometimes it projects & ranges anywhere from a teaspoon to 1/3 of a cup’s worth. It used to project like CRAZY in the hospital right after he was born. The spit up ranges from looking like it did when it went in, to chunky & curdled, to slimy & almost clear.

* He doesn’t burp well, despite our best efforts & often cries in bed & when we go in he proceeds to squirm, then vomit & then seems to feel relief/better. He is a big farter though.

* His stomach makes gurgling sounds a lot. Poor thing.

* He only poops every couple of days & they’re always the same…dark green, slimy & sludgy. & most usually his bum will be red afterwards. I think he’s constipated a lot as well :/

* He’s always been a decent night sleeper, but a horrible napper. He now sleeps on average, 5 hours then he wakes to eat & then back to sleep for 3-5 hours. He’s almost 16lbs & drinks 30oz a day [I think he’s supposed to be drinking around 37 a day, but giving him any more would just make him spit up/feel uncomfy more & I’m not sure if he or we could handle that]. When people hear how much he weighs they’re surprised he doesn’t sleep even better at night.

* He was prescribed Zantac begrudgingly by his doctor, but after just a day of using it he seemed really aggressive & was crying a lot. We think it gave him headaches & we stopped using it.

So….after ALL of that info, here’s more…hehe…

He developed jaundice in the hospital & had to stay in the NICU for a few days after I was discharged. While in the NICU the head doctor stated he had an infection but they weren’t quite sure what it was…just that some levels were high & even thought the jaundice was getting better, they wanted to keep him until the “infection” levels went down. They said it could have been related to him being in my womb for about 35-40 hours after my water had broken. Eventually the levels went down & he was released.

Fast forward to a couple of weeks ago…he spit up & some got on my hand & I didn’t have the chance to wash it right away, only wipe it. Within a couple of hours I had a patch of raised bumps in the exact area…& then they proceeded to spread over the next few days & became red & itchy. That’s the point at which I began to wonder if he had a yeast issue in his tummy…I mean, yeast is a bacteria that can cause rashes & also tummy problems.

So…

Question is….can yeast overgrowth be apparent in young babies even without being placed on antibiotics? & if so, can it cause reflux, spit-up, gastro issues etc?

DS has an upper GI this Friday, because we called the doctor & said things haven’t changed a bit & actually started to get worse in recent weeks. I have my doubts they’ll find anything, so I’m trying to look at other possibilities as to what could be causing these problems.

Any help or advice is appreciated!missnita2008-11-26 12:12:53

[Anonymous]

yeast isn’t a bacteria it is a fungus, but it can cause problems all the way through the GI tract. it isn’t likely that it could have spread to your hand like that, though—–but i’m beginning to think that anything is possible. two of my kids have had esophageal thrush—my local doc said sylvia couldn’t have it without it being obvious. (i already knew better, but asked anyway) our ped gi said it is not as uncommon as people think and that it can be caused by a chronic condition, such as reflux.

as far as zantac goes—i think it is worthless, didn’t do much for me or my kids. PPIs work much better.

the variation in spit-up is normal, as far as spit-up goes…….it just has to do with how soon after eating it comes back up and the degree to which it has been digested.

have you considered going to a ped gi? it would probably be a good idea—your regular ped doesn’t sound the most informed (or helpful) when it comes to reflux.

[Anonymous]

Yes, yeast can be an issue in babies even if they’ve never been on antibiotics. Their immune system is still immature and may not be able to keep the yeast and bacteria properly balanced. The way baby was born (vaginal vs. c-section) can affect this too. Vaginal birth actually helps colonize the baby’s gut when born, as long as mom wasn’t on antibiotics or experiencing yeast overgrowth at the time of birth. And to answer your other question, yes – yeast overgrowth could contribute to a wide range of GI issues.

A very safe thing you could do is supplement with probiotics – whether yeast is an issue or not. Probiotics should help build or restore the healthy bacteria in the gut, and this can be very helpful at choking out the “bad” guys (yeast, bad/pathogenic bacteria, etc.).

It’s hard to say if your little guy has yeast problems or not, but if you try probiotics and he improves, then it would seem that there may have been some sort of imbalance. Has he had thrush?

[hellbennt]

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

[Anonymous]

Thanks for the info, ladies.

He was born via c-section, unfortunately. He has not had thrush & he has been formula fed since about 3 days old.

We started probiotics 2 days ago. Sisu Kiddie Acidophilus. He started pooping more & he seems more fussy…die-off starting, perhaps? Then again, today he was SUPER fussy, but he also had an upper GI.

Either way, yeast overgrowth or not, it can’t hurt…but I’m hoping it will help some of the tummy problems he seems to have.

[Anonymous]

I’m having similar issues.. DS has had HORRIBLE gas the last two nights and I don’t know if it’s the probiotic or the prevacid (we started both at the same time!)

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