If you are a nursing mother and your baby is making some sound, it can be there a problem or just normal. If such clicking is creating some discomforts, or the baby seemed not getting some weights as supposed – you better get some help from a lactation expert or consultant. But, if the baby is growing healthy and the mother is comfortable (no pain/soreness in the nipples), there is nothing to worry about.
The time the babies start to grunt, they are also starting to learn the bowel movement. Although they cannot figure out yet how to rest their pelvic floor (while they use the pressure of the stomach to move gas and stool through their system).
Even infants have ways of communicating such as crying, giggling and grunting. The sound it produces is pig-like and is commonly short. Let’s dig deeper into why the baby making noises while breastfeeding.
There can be various reasons why a baby grunts, but the most common is the “Fast Milk Let Down”. So, what is it?
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· Baby grunting usually occurs at any point in the child’s age-it can range from weeks to months. The fast milk let down is believed to be the nearest cause. This is also termed as an overactive milk supply or ejection. This simply illustrated as the active fast flow of milk during breastfeeding time. It can happen at multiple paces during a session.
· Mothers only produce a single kind of milk that is released following the breastfeeding stage. The initial flow contains much fluids and lactose. The mom’s milk is specially designed for the baby’s energy, growth, and brain development.
· As the session continues, the milk content also changes. More fat will be produced and more vital nutrients that promote slow absorption. In turn, your baby will feel satisfied and full after a certain breastfeeding session.
Read also: Breastfeeding facts should you be worried about bleeding nipples
During the fast letdown, a lot of foremilk is consumed by an infant. Since it passes fastly in the digestive system, the risk of distress in the intestines may increase. This will make the baby more colic. Since the baby is trying to cope with such sudden flow, the child ends up taking in more air-leading to a discomfort feeling in the tummy. Since they are still babies, they find it difficult to handle as they are coping up-it resulted in grunting.
What Can You Do?
Baby grunting is not a pleasurable experience for both mom and the baby. It will not provide an uncomfortable feeling to the baby but may lead to show other unnecessary behaviors. Other reactions of the baby can be nipple pulling and biting, this time very uneasy for the moms. This grunting may also lead to choking amid the feeding or spit up after the latching time.
Further, the baby is at risk of not receiving the needed nutrients found in fat. And because it doesn’t feel satiated, it may ask for more food, which can result in more breastfeeding periods.
Read also: What are the essential things to know about the dental health of breastfeeding
Furthermore, your baby can be weak in not getting the desired nutrients. Because no satiation happened, there might be more feeding sessions. If you have no control over the production of your milk, you can do some steps to minimize the baby making noises while breastfeeding.
Try to lean back
Every time the baby will latch, you may need to lean back or recline in a way compensating the milk overflow. If you try such and it won’t make you comfortable, maybe the chair’s back is way far. You can get some firm pillows to support your back instead.
Take the baby off
Removing the baby from the breast during the strong flow of milk is another possible way of decreasing the grunting. As a mom, you will feel that the milk is flowing for the ducts, in making a big letdown, let your baby rest some time for the child to catch the foremilk. After wards gently remove the baby while letting the milk flow. Once lessens, put your baby back and continue the breastfeeding session. Besides grunting, there can be other factors why your baby is making some sounds or noise during the breastfeeding sessions.
Other possible causes of clicking are the following:
Engorgement
The baby finds it challenging or difficult to maintain the suction/make latch hard.
Poor positioning and/or Latch
For instance, if the baby is retracting or curling the tongue during nursing, a clicking sound can happen since the suction is broken. If the positioning is poor, the baby cannot manage a great seal at the breast.
Teething
The usual cause of this is the temporal clicking. If the mouth of your baby has sores due to teething, he will attempt to relieve it through losing the seal around the breast or breaking the suction repeatedly. Or, because the baby is not yet used to the feeling of teething.
Infection of the Ear
This will let your baby suck off temporarily. There is a certain uncomfortable pressure that would be created while sucking, especially if the air is inflamed or in pain. The baby usually does the same reaction as teething.
If you’re a mom (especially first-timers), encountering this situation if not addressed can lead to depression or some suffering. If the baby making noises while breastfeeding becomes worsen, it can decrease motherhood’s joy and excitement. But, always keep in mind that this is only a temporary time being and with proper guidance and help from the experts, you can always have a memorable time with your kid during the breastfeeding stage.
Read also:
- Laid-back Breastfeeding Is This The Best Position
- 9 Best Breastfeeding Books Every Mom Should Read
- 10 Ways to Prevent Bleeding in Your Nipples While Breastfeeding
