Hiccups correspond to a brief, involuntary, and repeated spasmodic contraction of the diaphragm, which is accompanied by a characteristic noise recognizable among thousands. A natural phenomenon that affects everyone, hiccups are also quite common in babies. Although it is generally not serious, it can nevertheless be unpleasant for the little one, so much so that we often try to make it stop. What are the natural methods and tips to help stop hiccups in babies? Here’s a review of what works.
Change Baby’s Position
If your baby has hiccups, changing positions can help stop the hiccups. Holding your baby vertically against your shoulder, as if you were trying to burp him, can help prevent the hiccups. In fact, any position change that promotes relaxation of the diaphragm can be beneficial. It’s up to you to find the one that will work best for your baby!
Take A Break While Bottle-Feeding
If your baby tends to hiccup during or just after feeding, try slowing down the pace of feeding by taking regular breaks and allowing burps in between. In babies, burps will enable the air swallowed during feeding to be evacuated and help prevent hiccups and regurgitation phenomena. Also, remember to adapt the teat of your bottle if your baby tends to drink too quickly. Then, swap his pacifier for a pacifier with a slower flow!
Pay Attention To The Position Of The Bottle
When you bottle-feed your baby, make sure he is in a semi-recumbent position and that his back and head are well supported. The angle of the bottle should be such that the teat is always filled with milk. A good position of the child and the bottle during feeding helps prevent the occurrence of hiccups by avoiding the ingestion of excess air during the meal.
Practice Gentle Stretching
Gentle stretches can help relax your baby’s diaphragm. Try placing him flat on his back and gently lifting his arms above his head in order to open his chest and, at the same time, release his diaphragm. This “baby yoga” exercise can help stop your little one’s hiccups.
Give Him Smaller But More Frequent Meals
If your baby often has hiccups at mealtime, it may be because his meals, which are too large, are distending his stomach, which puts pressure on the diaphragm and encourages the occurrence of hiccups. So try to break up your little one’s meals more by offering them the breast or bottles that are less filled but more frequently.
Offer Him A Pacifier
In toddlers, sucking can help relax the diaphragm and stop hiccups. If hiccups shake your baby, then offer him a pacifier. This little accessory, generally very popular with babies, can help ease hiccups.
Focus On Spasmolytic Hydrosols
Hydrotherapy is for babies, and aromatherapy is for adults. It consists of providing care using medicinal plant hydrosols, one of the two substances resulting from the steam distillation of aromatic plants with essential oils. But, unlike the latter, hydrosols – also often called floral waters – contain aromatic molecules in deficient concentrations, which makes them usable (for the most part) in babies.
In case of hiccups, it is therefore entirely possible to use hydrosols with spasmolytic properties, such as lavender and Roman chamomile hydrosols. to make it go faster. Spritz a little of one of these hydrosols on the baby’s upper abdomen during hiccups to help your child’s diaphragm relax. Don’t forget to apply a neutral, non-allergenic vegetable oil such as organic avocado oil to your baby’s skin because hydrosols have an astringent effect and can dry out their delicate skin.
Try Homeopathy
The last natural and safe solution for your little one is obviously homeopathy! In case of hiccups, you can give three granules of Cuprum metallicum 5CH to your baby. Melt them in a little lightly mineralized water before administering them to your little one. You can also slide the granules directly into his mouth, trapping them between his gum and his cheek. This natural treatment with no side effects will help you get rid of your baby’s hiccups more quickly.
Check If Hiccups Become Chronic
Generally, baby hiccups – although annoying – are entirely benign and go away on their own without the need to do anything. Common in toddlers, it is therefore not a cause for concern in most cases. On the other hand, if your baby’s hiccups become chronic, if they come back several times a day and every day, or if they last for several hours, do not hesitate to consult a doctor. Hiccups may then be a symptom of gastroesophageal reflux disease or another condition that will need to be treated.
Also Read: How Do Hiccups Occur, And What Can Help Against Them?