These tips may help you to overcome the enormous amount of stress created by caring for a baby with ‘reflux’. Don’t expect that you have all the answers from the beginning- it is a really steep learning curve, and chances are you did not know much about reflux before you had your child.
Silent reflux can be very confusing; there may be no obvious signs of gastro-oesophageal reflux (such as vomiting) and the child generally isn’t ‘silent’. Silent reflux refers to refluxed material that flows back into the oesophagus, but isn’t forced out of the mouth.
This is a checklist of reflux symptoms in children over the age of two years. RISA also has a checklist for children under the age of two years. This checklist does not offer a medical diagnosis, but rather assists parents to record their concerns and provide a framework for a productive discussion with their medical professionals.
This is our first newsletter for the year and we hope that you have a little bit of time to grab a glass of wine, chocolate or a coffee (even if it’s on almond or rice milk for those breastfeeding little ones with cows milk allergies!) to have a read. I would like to extend a huge welcome to our new RISA members!! We have around 12 members joining us each month and hope that we can provide you with support, information and reassurance to help make your reflux roller coaster a little bit easier. We hope that 2014 finds you and your refluxer’s well and getting some sleep!
Secretion of acid by the stomach is a normal function of the body. Acid is secreted by parietal cells found in the stomach lining, involving a mechanism known as the proton pump. Acid in the stomach is useful for breaking down foods, making them easier to digest, and also for helping prevent infection by providing an unfavourable environment for growth of infective organisms.
This week RISA learned of the sad passing of Wayne Blanch, taken too early from his beautiful wife Glenda and their three children. Glenda has been the heart of this organisation for years and they both have helped countless parents through RISA work, friendships & her authorship of Reflux Reality.
As you might be aware, RISA recently learned of the plight of a Tasmanian family who’s battle to find effective management of their 3 1/2 year old’s health issues was getting them no where. Tasmania has no paediatric gastroenterologists and this case is complex because it involves not only gastro issues but significant, repeated (and possibly related) respiratory issues.