Burping your baby

Some babies are very windy, while others hardly seem to be troubled by wind at all.

Wind is the air that your baby swallows when feeding, crying or yawning, and it has to escape from one end or the other.

Trapped wind can make your baby very uncomfrortable - you'll see her draw up her knees, go red in the face and become distressed.

If she's swallowing a lot of wind during a feed, she's also likely to feel fuller than she really is, so that once the wind has been passed, she'll be hungry again.

Burping your baby halfway through a feed and again at the end by gently stroking or patting her back will help her bring up wind. 

Possetting

It's quite normal for a baby to bring back some milk during or after a feed. Provided your baby is thriving and putting on weight, this possetting or spitting up is usually nothing to worry about.

Even if your baby brings back what seems like a lot of milk, apart from becoming hungry again more quickly, this usually doesn't do her any harm - though it can give you a frequently wet shoulder.

However, you should talk to your doctor or health visitor if your baby seems to be in pain or doesn't seem to be thriving, or if she gags a lot during a feed or produces sick that looks more like vomit than curdled milk.

Information taken from Babycare Week by Week, published by HarperCollins.

Babycare Week by Week covers the first six months of your baby's life, addressing issues of development, what to expect when, simple answers to the questions that worry you most as a new parent, plus worries about parenting skills and your post-natal recovery.

It's a comprehensive handbook to caring for your baby that any new mum or dad will find invaluable. 

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