Vomiting after 2 feedings or meals in a row
Dehydration occurs when your body loses too much fluid. When you stop drinking water or lose large amounts of fluid through diarrhea, vomiting, or sweating, your body's cells reabsorb fluid from the blood and other body tissues. By the time you develop severe dehydration, there is no longer enough fluid in the body to get blood to the organs, and you may begin to go into shock, which is a life-threatening condition. Dehydration in babies and small children is very dangerous.
Babies are more susceptible to dehydration because a larger portion of their bodies is made of water. Babies also have higher metabolic rates than adults, so their bodies use more water. However, a baby's kidneys are not as efficient, and they do not conserve water as well as an adult's kidneys. Illnesses that cause vomiting or diarrhea can rapidly reduce a baby's fluid reserves.
A problem with your baby's stomach or intestines, such as pyloric stenosis or intussusception, may cause forceful vomiting after each feeding. These are medical emergencies and require immediate evaluation.
Vomiting in babies should not be confused with spitting up. Vomiting is forceful and repeated. Spitting up may seem forceful, but it usually occurs shortly after feeding, is effortless, and causes no discomfort. A baby may spit up for no reason at all. Overfeeding, not burping your baby after feeding, exposure to tobacco smoke, and intolerance to milk or formula are other reasons why your baby may spit up.
| Author: | Jan Nissl, RN, BS | Last Updated: July 12, 2007 |
| Medical Review: | Michael J. Sexton, MD - Pediatrics Thomas Emmett Francoeur, MDCM, CSPQ, FRCPC - Pediatrics | |
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