Wondering how often to burp a newborn during feeding? Try fitting it in naturally, experts say. If you're nursing, for example, burp before switching breasts. Bottle-feeding parents can burp between every 2 to 3 ounces for newborns up to about 6 months old. Burp your newborn after they're done feeding too. While a few babies need to be burped more frequently, many parents make the mistake of disrupting feedings with unnecessary attempts at burping.
This prolongs the feeding time, which frustrates a hungry baby and increases air swallowing. There are three common burping positions: over your shoulder, sitting on your lap, or face-down on your lap.
Choose the one that's most comfortable and effective for getting burps out of your baby. Whichever position you choose, though, have a burp cloth by your baby's mouth to catch any spit-up. Over Your Shoulder : Stand or sit comfortably, slightly reclining, and hold your baby under their bottom for support. Make sure they're facing behind you, looking over your shoulder, with their chin resting on a soft cloth to absorb any spit-up from a burp.
Use one hand to hold the baby and the other to burp. Sitting on Your Lap : Place your baby sideways on your lap, with their chest leaning slightly forward. Position your hand under their chin not their throat to support their chest and head. Pat their back across the shoulder blades to burp them. Face-Down on Your Lap: Lay your baby across your knees on their belly, with their head slightly higher than the rest of their body, and firmly rub and pat their back. When burping, "pat your baby on the back, gently, for a minute or so," explains Dr.
Note that to prevent gas bubbles, newborns may need to stop feeding several times to burp. Start by burping every time you switch breasts if nursing, or every 2 or 3 ounces if you're using a bottle. Also, the instructions for how to burp a sleeping newborn baby are the same as burping an awake baby—simply use more gentle motions.
There's no definitive age to stop burping your baby, but as your little bundle gets older and their digestive system becomes more mature, burping will become less of a necessity, says Dr. You'll likely see this change around 4 to 6 months, when your baby starts eating solid food.
That said, if you still notice your baby is gassy, continue with burping and other gas-relief techniques until you feel they aren't needed. If burping doesn't seem to relieve your baby's discomfort, try other positions and techniques to get the gas moving. You can also try examining the cause of the excess gas. For example, if you're breastfeeding, something in your diet could cause your baby's discomfort. Other solutions include letting the bottle settle a bit before feeding your baby shaking adds lots of air to the formula and choosing an age-appropriate nipple.
It can also help to feed and wind your baby in an upright position and keep him or her upright for as long as you can after feeding. Coughing or hiccupping during feeds. Colicky babies — who may cry for three or more hours a day for no obvious reason and can also have trouble sleeping — might also benefit from more frequent burping breaks.
If none of these techniques seem to make any difference, ask your health visitor for advice. Before you know it, those burp breaks will become second nature — and that could mean fewer tummy aches for your little one and more contented smiles all round. How we wrote this article The information in this article is based on the expert advice found in trusted medical and government sources, such as the National Health Service NHS.
You can find a full list of sources used for this article below. The content on this page should not replace professional medical advice. Always consult medical professionals for full diagnosis and treatment. The researchers enrolled 71 mother-newborn pairs. Half of the mothers received advice about immunizations, breastfeeding and other health issues, but none about burping.
The other half of the mothers was instructed on how to burp their babies. And the burped babies actually spit up more: They spit up about eight times a week, on average, compared with 3. The American Academy of Pediatrics advises parents to burp their babies , as do many other doctors, nurses, lactation consultants and parenting websites.
Scrunched up faces may have prompted parents to rub, jiggle or pat the burp up. The study is too preliminary to conclude that burping is actually behind the increased numbers of spit-ups. Plus, little baby burps are funny. While we wait for larger, more rigorous trials of burping infants, which in reality may never materialize, we will have to settle for ambiguity. Subscribers, enter your e-mail address for full access to the Science News archives and digital editions.
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