Many first time mothers experience their baby vomiting or spitting out the milk they are fed with. This experience is met with such alarm. "Is my baby sick?" or "Is my precious allergic?" are the most common concerns.

I can assure you not to worry. Baby's normally vomit milk because of improper breast-feeding. After you are finished with this article, you would be free of your worries and your baby would no longer vomit milk.

There are 3 common breastfeeding mistakes that may be causing your baby to vomit milk, check if you are doing them so that you can adjust:

Feeding Then Diaper Change.

It is normal and almost instinctive for us mothers to assume that when a baby cries, it's because our baby is hungry. So our normal course of action is to feed them. After which we also change their diaper just in case to make them comfortable and to prepare.

Unbeknownst to most mothers, this practice may be causing your baby to vomit milk. You see, if you feed your baby before changing their diaper, you are changing their diaper when his/her stomach is full. The act of lifting your baby's legs and buttocks up to change the diaper puts the baby's stomach in a horizontal position which, together with the motion you create as you change their diapers, upset their stomach and causes them to vomit.

Therefore, the best way is to change their diapers first, wash your hands thoroughly, and then feed them.

Air Along With Milk

Regardless whether you are breast feeding or bottle feeding your baby, improper way of feeding can cause your baby to swallow milk along with air as they suck on your nipples or rubber nipple. Too much air would cause your baby an upset stomach and make them vomit milk.

To prevent this, your baby's mouth should have a firm hold of your nipple or rubber nipple to prevent air from being sucked with the milk.

If you are breast feeding, make sure that your baby's mouth covers your nipple as well as part of the areola. Having your baby sucking only on the nipple causes air to be sucked along with milk.

If you are bottle feeding, make sure the rubber nipple is full of milk before you let your baby suck on it to clear the air first. It make cause a little drip spill, but at least you make sure your baby is not sucking air.

Sleeping After Feeding

There is nothing really wrong about letting your baby sleep after feeding since all babies do it, but if certain precautions aren't done, it might cause harm to your baby.

After feeding your baby, carry them and put their head on your shoulder first. Pat their back gently and let them burp. After a few burps, you can let them sleep already.

However, keep in mind to let your baby lie on his/her side (not on his/her back) first. The reason being is that if your baby vomits milk while on his/her back, the vomit might get inhaled through the nose or mouth and might cause choking which may prove hazardous to your baby.

And there you have it, your baby may be vomiting milk but it may not be as serious as you think. It may just be caused by improper feeding methods. Follow these tips to prevent milk vomiting and to put your mind at ease.

If after observing these tips your baby still vomits milk, it may be caused by other things. It may be time to seek treatment through your pediatrician.Iska L