Burping Baby

Updated on March 17, 2008
J.B. asks from Marrero, LA
29 answers

My little man is now eight months old and is nearly impossible to burp these days. He does still burp of course but he fights me so hard that I just can't do it sometimes. Sometimes I put him in my lap and pat his back and that works. But tonight I tried and couldn't get him to burp and then a little while later he just burped all on his own. So my question is, is he old enough to let go without burping. He is a breastfed baby so I thought I really needed to burp between breasts, but even that seems to be a bother to him these days. Thanks ladies :)

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So What Happened?

Well for that last couple days I have been letting him do it on his own and he seems just fine! Thanks ladies :)

More Answers

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S.K.

answers from Houston on

My little girl is nearly nine months old and I let her burp by herself. I breastfed my children (and also gave them formula towards the end of the first year) and found with the breastfeeding they burped much less than with the bottle.

By the 7-8 month age my children were on more bottles than breastfeeding (they weened themselves) however I found with all of them they didn't really need burping by this age (like they did as a baby) - they seemed to do it by themselves.

I don't think you really need to worry about making your son burp now unless he seems really uncomfortable. I think by now their bodies seem to be able to do it on their own.

I hope this helps.

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J.W.

answers from Houston on

Hi there! Sorry to hear about the problems you are having. An 8 month old baby should be able to burp by themselves with ease and it should not be a problem at this age. My recommendation to you is to get some pro-biotics at your pharmacy as your baby obviously has an indigestion problem. Pro-biotics are wonderful and fill the gut with healthy bacteria....! Good luck!

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C.S.

answers from Austin on

By 8 months, all 3 of my babies burped on their own. I guess they don't gulp as much air at that age.

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D.M.

answers from Houston on

Hi J.

As long as he is not uncomfortable, I would stop fighting with him to get him to burp. He is old enough that his body will start doing it on his own as he needs it to. Mine were younger than yours when i quit burping them. Good luck!!!

D. Mattern-Muck
The MOM Team
Raise your income and your rugrats at the same time!
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"The only thing that counts is faith, expressing itself through love." Galatians 5:6

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J.G.

answers from San Antonio on

Honestly i wouldnt do it anymore, by the time my boys were this age they were burping on their own

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A.E.

answers from Corpus Christi on

Seems that your baby is already burping on his own. Mom let him go burping on its own and just encourage him . If your child is standing already then that helps him burp quicker. You might lay him on his back and massage his little toes and feet. That should help him.

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N.F.

answers from Austin on

Gracious..Of course he can burp on his own. Relax and enjoy.

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R.H.

answers from Austin on

PLEASE don't worry about it. Breast fed babies don't take in as much air as bottle fed babies. At this age, he may even be more uncomfortable with the burping than he is without it because eight month olds don't like to stay still very long. The older a baby gets, the more active he is. This activity also allows the air to work its way out of his body on its own more easily than in an infant who does not move as much. Your little guy is just growing and becoming more independent. :)

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S.C.

answers from Houston on

I have a 7 month old and he too is so hard to burp. Sometimes I can just pass him to his dad and he pats his back just a couple of times and out it comes. When I'm home alone, I'll try to burp him myself and if he starts to give me a fit, I just put him to the other breast. Sometimes after starting on the second breast, he will burp himself and sometimes I can burp him after he's done. There have been plenty of times that I can't burp him and I just leave it. He'll burp soon enough. Hope that helps.

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B.M.

answers from Laredo on

At 8 months I would'nt worry about burping him. He will burp on his own when he is ready and needs to. I have eight month old twins and do not burp them. They have done it on their own since about 6 months.

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Y.S.

answers from El Paso on

I think I stopped burping my baby around this time as well. He did it on his own and didn't like my help either. :) GOod Luck!

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N.R.

answers from Killeen on

By 8 months they are abel to burp on their own and need to do so much less. Even though you are breastfeeding there is no need to burp him however don't be suprised if he takes a break during feeding to let out a little belch.

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B.B.

answers from Houston on

My little sweetpea is also 8 months old. I was wondering the same thing. I've noticed that she wiggles so much that it's really hard to burp her now. She seems to do it herself. She was totally breastfed too until the last 2 weeks. I had swtiched to formula (I am very depressed about that!! I wanted to bf for a least a year! So good job to you!!) I find the formula has soooo many bubbles that she will stop in the middle of a bottle and burp on her own.

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L.S.

answers from Houston on

Hi! My son's Dr told me that after he began sitting up by himslef, burping was no longer needed. I believe it has something to do with gravity aiding in digestion once they can maintain a sitting posture.. hope that helps!

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J.L.

answers from Davenport on

If you let him lay in your arms for a few minutes after nursing, talk to him or play with him some, and then pick him up to burp him, they will come easier. My son wants to see everthing so he won't let me burp him on my shoulder either. I find if I sit him up and lean him forward a little the burps will come easier. If he's getting the burps up on his own, you might just try to help him when he starts squirming, needing to get one out.

Hope this helps,J.

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M.C.

answers from Houston on

i have 3 kids: 6,3,&1. each child is unique, but i remember all of them going through that same stage. my advice is to just let him nurse both sides like he wants (he's hungry,he's getting bigger now) and then burp later -- with or without your help. that's the thing about babies, they change schedules on you all the time. just relax and follow cues from your baby; you'll both be more comfortable. all those books we read are for advice; you don't have to follow exactly what they say.

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J.P.

answers from Austin on

Generally, it's the little babies that are still working on swallowing that need the most burping. By 8 months, he's got that down pat. I'd say he's good on his own as far as burping goes. I've got two kids and think I stopped burping when they went to solids (baby food), my son was about 5 months and daughter about 9 months.
If he's fighting it though, he's probably had enough.

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M.D.

answers from Austin on

My kids were difficult to burp as well and like yours, would do it on their own. If he seems to be fine, then just let him on his own. And I think he's old enough to stop burping.

Good luck to you...

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A.E.

answers from San Antonio on

I know that my little miss, almost 9 months old, once she got mobile and crawling and stuff didn't really need to give me a burp becuase she would work it out on her own. She has reflux and I was extremely concerned about not getting a burp after her eating but she is really doing quite well. I give her a pat a few times but if she doesn't do it then I don't really worry about it and the crawling will help her work it out. Even if he doesn't crawl yet, he will still probably wiggle it out.

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A.K.

answers from Austin on

breastfed babies burp less b/c they tend to swallow less air. lightly pat his back and if he fights or won't burp, don't worry too much about it. if he's in pain trying to burp then that may be another issue.
good luck.

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B.B.

answers from Austin on

My boys wouldn't burp either by the time they were 8 months, however I found that they did fine on their own. As long as they didn't act cranky, or uncomfortable, I didn't worry about it. If they did get fussy, I could always lay them on a pillow on my lap and rub their backs. This ALMOST always was effective, but there is no "sure-fire" method I've ever heard of. God bless your efforts!

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V.C.

answers from Houston on

Yes you are correct !!! at this point he will burp on his own. No need to burp at this age.

I am a pediatric nurse !!!

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R.R.

answers from Houston on

If he's not fussy I wouldn't worry about it. If you still want to try something, try sitting him on your knees in front of you and bouncing them and/or him like you're playing. This has the same result as the other techniques and maybe he'll quit fighting it.

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C.S.

answers from Boston on

It’s important not to get too obsessed about burping. There’s a natural variation between babies as to how much air they swallow. As a rule breastfed babies tend to swallow less air than bottle fed babies so will need less burping. If after a few minutes of back rubbing nothing has happened your baby probably just doesn’t need to burp.
Don't worry you are doing just fine! Good Luck!

C. Safford
www.themomteam.com/anewlife
Moms Helping Other Moms to a brighter future..

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R.C.

answers from San Antonio on

At 8 months old, burping is not as necessary for a baby. I mean he is probably also eating baby food too, right? I say continue to try in between switching from one breast to the other, when you are breast feeding him, but if he seems too restless, don't worry about it and just move onto the other breast. He will be fine.

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F.G.

answers from San Antonio on

he is big enough to burp himself....if he gets extremly fussy after eating then try burping him.
My son is 7 months old and breast fed and i dont need to burp him anymore....

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A.N.

answers from Austin on

My 22 month old is the same way and always has been. They eventually will burp when upright. The only concern is if your baby is having itestinal gas issues and then you do what you can - try many different ways and get creative on burping them. Otherwise I wouldn't worry about burping - some children really don't need much burping by this age as they aren't swallowing that much air anymore.
Alli

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S.L.

answers from College Station on

No, he can just burp on his own if he needs to.

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S.M.

answers from San Antonio on

I personally did not breast feed, but I read that breast feeding does not produce as much air in the baby's tummy and therefore less burps! He may be getting frustrated with you trying to burp him when he doesn't need to burp! If he is burping on his own then don't worry about it unless he starts showing signs of gas discomfort.

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