When a new life comes into this world, there are many things to explore about him/her for parents. For some it is a wonderful and sweet experience while some parents may face several kinds of challenges and difficult situations while dealing with a new born. Of the many things that new parents have to learn, one is to burp a baby.

Ways of Burping Newborn

During feeding, newly born tend to swallow certain amount of air. It is important for the baby to get rid of this air as it may lead to gassiness, crankiness and spitting up. So the following are simple yet very effective ways to burp your newborn:

  1. One of the easiest ways of burping a baby is to gently pat him on his back. Remember not to pat him hard but in a soft way. This mostly does the trick and may lead to burping. One thing to remember here is that sometimes babies tend to have wet burps which may lead to spitting, so to avoid this, you can place a towel or a bib under his chin.
  2. If this simple way doesn’t work for your baby, another way that you can try is by sitting upright and holding your baby against the chest.  Place your baby in such a way that his chin rests comfortably on your shoulder.  Support the baby with one hand and pat his back with the other.  You can also try rocking your baby in a slow motion to help him burp.
  3. Another way which will surely help you in burping your newly born is by making him lay down on your lap in such a way that he lies on his belly.  Make sure you support your baby’s head in such a way that it is higher than his chest.  Now pat his back for him to burp.
  4. If none of these methods result in a burp, then another effective way that you can try is by holding your baby sitting up in your lap.  You must support your baby’s chest as well as his head with one of your hand by cradling his chin in your palm. Now use your other hand to gently pat him on his back.
  5. Some babies may seem really fussy when you are feeding them. This may be because of gassiness and in such cases, you must stop your feeding session in between and try burping them with one of the methods mentioned above.  After the baby has burped, start feeding him again.  You can try burping your baby 2-3 times during one feeding session to minimize crankiness and irritation.

One must always remember to burp a baby after a feeding session.  Sometimes just one burp may not help and in such cases, try burping the baby twice or thrice.  You must follow this practice for about 6 months. But after this, as the baby grows older, burping so often may not be required because he might learn not to swallow air during feeding by this time.

Photo Credit By: meandmychild.com.au