Baby sleep problems: GERD, milk allergy, and snoring

© 2008 – 2022 Gwen Dewar, Ph.D., all rights reserved

According to sleep researchers, about ongoing infant sleep issues are acquired by behavioral factors (French republic and Blampied 1999). You can read more most these behavioral factors–and how to modify the—in this opens in a new windowscientific guide to solving common babe sleep problems.

But some slumber problems are acquired by illness or other medical conditions. Such "organic" causes may include:

• Ear infections
• Yeast and urinary tract infections
• Parasitic infections (like pinworms)
• Fever
• Respiratory infections
• Acid reflux (Kahn et al 1991)
• (Moo-cow's) milk allergy (Kahn et al 1988)
• Snoring and breathing irregularities (Sargi and Younis 2007)

If you doubtable your child has any of these weather condition, y'all should consult your pediatrician. All can be harmful or dangerous if left untreated. This is pretty obvious for infections. But parents may exist less familiar with the effects of acrid reflux, milk allergy, and snoring. So I review them here.

Acid reflux and gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD)

All infants feel some degree of gastroesophageal reflux (GER). But some suffer more than than others, and reflux episodes are known to disturb sleep. In studies that have monitored esophageal acrid levels in infants while they slept, babies were much more probable to experience arousals later on a reflux episode than at other times (Kahn et al 1991: Machado et al 2013).

GER can exist painful and can cause colic and airsickness. It is also risk gene for pulmonary disease (Paton et al 1989).

Gastroesophageal reflux is classified as a affliction ("gastroesophageal reflux affliction" or "GERD") when it causes

• resistance to feeding
• blood in the vomit or stool
• iron deficiency anemia
• irritability (due to an inflamed esophagus), or
• failure to thrive.

The rate of total-fledged GERD among infants is unknown. Some researchers estimate that 4% – six% of children suffer from GERD (Jolley et al 1999; Martigne et al 2012). Others merits the incidence is much lower (Jung 2001).

Whether your baby suffers from GERD or the more than common, less severe GER, you lot may improve your baby's symptoms by avoiding acidic foods and by keeping her in an upright position for the offset 20 minutes or so after a feeding. If reflux is causing baby sleep problems, such remedies may assist reduce night awakenings.

If yous doubtable your baby has an acid reflux problem, consult your pediatrician. There are a number of medical tests—-such as endoscopies and tests of esophageal pH -—that can aid diagnose cases of GERD. Babies with GERD may require special treatments, including drug therapy, to prevent choking and damage to the esophagus.

Cow's milk allergy and baby sleep problems

Studies estimate that cow's milk allergy–an intolerance to a protein found in moo-cow'southward milk–affects betwixt 2% and 7% of infants (Host 1997).

Most sufferers are formula-fed babies. However, breastfed babies can also acquire cows' milk allergy if their mothers swallow milk products.

Symptoms among infants usually have the form of gastrointestinal bug, such equally vomiting, diarrhea, abdominal cramps and bloating (Host 1997). In addition, sufferers may get pare rashes and feel respiratory symptoms, like cough and runny olfactory organ.

Cow's milk allergy may as well cause babe slumber issues—-specifically more arousals, shorter sleep cycles, and dramatic reductions in full sleep fourth dimension (Kahn et al 1988; Kahn et al 1989).

If moo-cow's milk is causing your infant sleep problems, symptoms should improve within a few weeks of removing all cow milk products from his nutrition (Kahn et al 1988; Kahn et al 1989). In one small study, infants (averaging eighteen weeks of age) who stopped consuming cows' milk products for seven weeks increased their total sleep time past over 22%. They besides experienced over 40% fewer arousals. If babies resumed consumption of cows' milk, their sleep problems returned (Kahn et al 1988).

A second, much larger experimental report of babies (average age: 13 months) confirmed these results. Before intervention, sufferers slept an boilerplate of 5.5 hours every 24 hours. After moo-cow milk was removed, babies were sleeping an average 13 hours (Kahn et al 1989)!

Note that cows' milk allergy is different from lactose intolerance, though both conditions involve symptoms of bloating, intestinal pain, and diarrhea.

Lactose intolerance is an inability to digest the principle carbohydrate in all milk (whether it exist human being or cow or caprine animal or whatsoever other kind). In general, babies don't suffer from lactose intolerance.

Babies who do have problem are unremarkably either premature infants (whose digestive systems aren't yet fully adult), severely malnourished infants, or infants who are recovering from an infection of the small intestine. In the latter case, lactose intolerance is temporary (Heyman 2006).

Snoring and sleep-disordered breathing

Snoring occurs in xv-25% of infants (Mitchell and Thompson 2003), and it used to be viewed every bit harmless. Merely recent research suggests otherwise.

Some babies who habitually snore may suffer from obstructive slumber apnea syndrome, in which the upper airways repeatedly collapse or partially collapse. This forces the baby to wake up. Other symptoms of obstructive slumber apnea include labored, irregular breathing and restlessness during slumber.

Obstructive sleep apnea is bad because it prevents kids from getting enough slumber. But it's also bad considering it deprives sufferers of oxygen, which can cause a diverseness of more serious cognitive, health, and developmental bug (Sargi and Younis 2007; Piteo et al 2011). And if infants don't awaken when they feel breathing difficulties, they are at higher take chances for sudden infant death syndrome (SIDS).

Other enquiry suggests that snoring may cause baby slumber problems even in the absence of obstructive sleep apnea syndrome. For instance, eight-month quondam infants who were oftentimes aroused from slumber by snoring performed more poorly on tests of mental evolution (Montgomery-Downs and Gozal 2006). Snoring babies exposed to second-mitt fume may be at increased risk (Montgomery-Downs and Gozal 2006).

Does this mean you lot should panic if your baby is a habitual snorer? No. But you should consult your pediatrician and accept your baby screened for more serious breathing problems. Sleep matted breathing (SDB) is i of the treatable baby sleep issues, and many of the developmental effects of SDB can be reversed (Montgomery-Downs and Gozal 2006).

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More information

For more evidence-based information near babe sleep, come across my article opens in a new window"Baby sleep patterns: A guide for the scientific discipline-minded parent."

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References: Medical causes of infant sleep problems

France KG and Blampied NM. 1999. Infant sleep disturbance: Clarification of a problem behaviour process. Sleep Medicine Reviews 3(4): 265-280.

Heyman MB 2006. Lactose intolerance in infants, children, and adolescents. Pediatrics 118: 1279-1286.

Host A. 1997. Cow's milk allergy. Journal of the Royal Society of Medicine. 90 (S30): 34-39.

Jolley SG, Lorenz ML, Hendrickson One thousand, and Kurlinkski JP. 1999. Esophageal pH Monitoring Abnormalities and Gastroesophageal Reflux Disease in Infants With Intestinal Malrotation Arch Surg. 134:747-753.

Jung AD. 2001. Gastroesophageal reflux in infants and children. American family physician 64: 1853-1860.

Kahn A, Rebuffat Due east, Sottiaux M, Dufour D, Cadrenal S, Reiterer F. 1991. Arousals induced by proximal esophageal reflux in infants. Slumber 14: 39-42.

Kahn A, Francois Grand, Sottiaux M, Rebuffat E, Nduwimana Chiliad, Mozin MJ, and Levitt J. 1988. Sleep characteristics in milk-intolerant infants. Sleep 11(3): 291-297.

Kahn A, Mozin MJ, Rebuffat E, Sottiaux M, and Muller MF. 1989. Milk intolerance in children with persistent sleeplessness: A prospective double-blind crossover evaluation. Pediatrics 84: 595-603.

Machado R, Woodley FW, Skaggs B, Di Lorenzo C, Splaingard M, and Mousa H. 2013. Gastroesophageal reflux causing sleep interruptions in infants. J Pediatr Gastroenterol Nutr. 56(4):431-5.

Martigne L, Delaage PH, Thomas-Delecourt F, Bonnelye G, Barthélémy P, and Gottrand F. 2012. Prevalence and management of gastroesophageal reflux illness in children and adolescents: a nationwide cross-sectional observational report. Eur J Pediatr. 171(12):1767-73.

Mitchell EA and Thompson JMD. 2003. opens in a new windowSnoring in the kickoff year of life. Acta Paediatr. 92:425–429.

Montgomery-Downs HE and Gozal D. 2006. Snore-Associated Slumber Fragmentation in Infancy: Mental Evolution Effects and Contribution of Secondhand Cigarette Smoke Exposure. Pediatrics 117(3): e496-e502.

Paton JY, MacFadyen UM, and Simpson H. 1989. Sleep phase and gastro-oesophageal reflux in infants at possible chance of SIDS. Arch Dis Child 64(2):264-nine.

Piteo AM, Kennedy JD, Roberts RM, Martin AJ, Nettelbeck T, Kohler MJ, Lushington Grand. 2011. Snoring and cognitive evolution in infancy. Sleep Med. 12(10):981-7

Sargi Z and Younis RT. 2007. Pediatric obstructive sleep apnea: current management. ORL J Otorhinolaryngol Relat Spec. 69(6):340-iv.

For more information on baby sleep problems, bank check out this article on opens in a new windowbehavioral sleep problems in infants.

Terminal modified two/2014

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Source: https://parentingscience.com/baby-sleep-problems/

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