>>>>Date:    Tue, 22 Jul 2003 16:00:54 EDT
From:    Dee Kassing BS MLS IBCLC <[log in to unmask]>
Subject: Re: GERD in babies

This has been an interesting thread.  I particularly noted Pat's comment
about the use of car seats.  We've all seen so many of these "bucket
babies".  The
pediatric chiropractor I refer a lot of babies to has pointed out that "the
foam cushion under the fabric seat cover usually goes only partially down
the
seat.  Baby is sitting on a hard bleacher seat!  What's more the difference
of
foam and no foam at the mid thoracic level will put pressure at about the
level of the nerves that come out of the spine to the stomach and digestive
tract.
 The can contribute to many conditions, the most common being colic."  So if
this can cause colic, why not also GERD, which so often has colic as a
symptom?  He suggests installing a complete piece of foam, or adding to the
one
already there, to make a smooth transition from head to toe.  Of course, he
also
tells parents that this shouldn't be the child's only chair, and that the
children need to spend time on their tummy.  But, at least in the USA, we
have
become a very mobile society and babies tend to spend a lot of time in the
car, so
adding the foam can be a good idea even if parents are very good about
seeing
that their child gets plenty of tummy time.<<<<<<<


I need to comment on the safety of adding foam to carseats.  All approved
carseats are tested as is and if installed correctly are meant to protect an
infant in a crash.  Most after market safety equipment is unsafe when used
with a carseat and adding a piece of foam to the back would affect the
straps and the fit.  We don't recommend making any changes to carseats and
if parents want or need more head support recommend using a rolled infant
blanket.
We also recommend pretty strongly that carseats belong in cars and are
actually not very safe infant carrieers.  Handles break, they are not stable
on other surfaces and so on.
I think that recommending adding foam is a very bad idea and possibly very
dangerous to the infant.

Pat Thomas PHN IBCLC
Winona County Community Health Department
Winona, MN 55987








Confidentiality Notice: This e-mail message, including any attachments, is for the sole use of the intended recipient(s) and may contain confidential and privileged information.  Any unauthorized review, use, disclosure or distribution is prohibited.  If you are not the intended recipient, please contact the sender by reply e-mail and destroy all copies of the original message.

             ***********************************************

To temporarily stop your subscription: set lactnet nomail
To start it again: set lactnet mail (or digest)
To unsubscribe: unsubscribe lactnet
All commands go to [log in to unmask]

The LACTNET mailing list is powered by L-Soft's renowned
LISTSERV(R) list management software together with L-Soft's LSMTP(TM)
mailer for lightning fast mail delivery. For more information, go to:
http://www.lsoft.com/LISTSERV-powered.html