What To Do If The Baby Chokes On Milk?
When you are a mother, one of the most difficult experiences to face is when you don’t know what to do if your baby chokes on milk, be it from the mother’s milk or from the bottle. Choking is not uncommon in early childhood and is more common than it may seem.
Being a mother for the first time means facing many new things regarding the care and protection of the child; At this time, it is important to distinguish potentially dangerous situations that may affect the health of the mother and the child.
When it comes to new mothers, keep a cool attitude and react quickly. If the baby chokes on milk, panic won’t help anything; It could even hinder the solution, putting our children’s health at risk.
What is the procedure if the child chokes on milk?
In addition to trying to remain calm at all times, there are some tips that can be followed:
- Place the child face down immediately, on the mother’s lap.
- Gently but firmly touch the palm of your hand on the child’s back to provoke a cough.
- This should be enough, the induced cough has to clear your airway.
However, it may happen that the child is choking on something solid; In these cases, parents can use what is known as the Heimlich Maneuver. It is important to note that this procedure can only be applied to children older than 12 months.
Heimlich maneuver
- To perform this well-known maneuver, we must sit down and surround the child with our arms.
- Put your hands on the solar plexus or pit of the stomach.
- Then progressively move your hands one on top of the other and apply pressure.
- The pressure exerted between the chest and the navel will make the object or piece of food that was obstructing the airway come out.
Other techniques
- Lay the child on his back on the floor or hard surface.
- Placed on the child, we will exert pressure with our hands one on top of the other, on the area located between the sternum and the navel.
- Press toward the chest with five compressions.
If doing this does not solve the problem, call the emergency services as quickly as possible. It is important to have all the relevant numbers in an accessible place; memory is highly likely to fail in these situations.
Causes of choking
Choking can be due to multiple factors. Some of them are things we can prevent, while others have to do with her newly formed little body. If we notice that choking is happening frequently, it is best to speak with the child’s pediatrician; he will decide what should be done.
External factors that cause the baby to choke on milk
When the child is breastfed, the milk flows directly into his throat. The flow of breast milk may be too strong; This situation can be solved by putting pressure on the nipple or pumping a little milk just before breastfeeding.
The correct way of breastfeeding prevents the child from choking on milk ; it is vital to guarantee the correct attachment of the child to the mother’s womb. The mother must make sure that the child’s stomach faces the mother’s stomach, while her nose must face the nipple; this position will allow the child to suck well.
If, on the other hand , the child is bottle-feeding, the liquid may flow too quickly. Very young children are not able to adapt to this on their own, but this situation is solved with patience.
Internal factors
Some children may have internal conditions that affect their ability to swallow or cause GERD; that is, the stomach contents return to the mouth. To verify if the problem is internal and is not related to feeding problems, you must speak with a medical specialist.
Care to reduce the risk of suffocation in children
In no time, the child will be able to eat and drink without our help. To help you in the meantime, it is wise to follow these tips on what to do if your child chokes on milk:
- Do not let the child sleep lying down after feeding, keep it upright; In the event of reflux, the child can cough or vomit without risk.
- It is necessary to avoid that the child takes the bottle without our supervision.
- Keep the child’s crib close to us, at least the first six or seven months.
With these simple recommendations, we can reduce the risk of this little incident occurring in babies. However, if you notice more serious problems, such as the aforementioned reflux, do not hesitate to consult a professional as soon as possible.
