Do Children Get Acid Reflux?

Reflux in Kids- Health Connection

Do children get acid reflux? Of course they do.

Until recently, many doctors and parents overlooked the complaints of children. Consistent complaints about stomach aches or nausea often were attributed to not liking school, or worrying about an upcoming test.

Children were not believed, and were thought to be trying to get out of doing things. But thank goodness adults started thinking that what goes on inside them, might also be going on inside a kid.

Symptoms for children with acid reflux are the same as the adult symptoms. Those symptoms include heart burn, stomach ache, nausea or vomiting. If you think your child has an acid reflux problem, it is important to catch it now and get it treated.

If your child is at an age where you can talk to them about what they are experiencing and feeling in their body this will help you determine whether a visit to your general practitioner is in order.

If you are unsure after your own investigation it would be the safest measure to get your child checked out any way just to be safe. Otherwise, years of a child with acid reflux going untreated could lead to a number of complications.

There are the obvious physical complications associated with untreated acid reflux. The wearing away of tissue lining in the esophagus, stomach, nose or mouth could create lesions that might become cancer. As if that is not serious enough, think of the other types of damage untreated acid reflux could cause in a child. Damage isn’t isolated to just the physical.

For instance, a child complains of a stomach ache is told he is just saying that because he does not want to go to school. He knows the pain is real because he feels it. So, he comes to believe that he must really hate school. Expect his performance to be poor throughout his entire school career.

Or, a child who has complained of nausea is told it is all in her head. She knows she feels the pain so she loses confidence and self esteem because she does not have anyone who believes her. She also may stop believing and trusting in herself and her own judgement.

No one likes to think their child is sick beyond the regular childhood diseases. That is why acid reflux in children was overlooked for many years. It is good that today's parents are listening to their children and having them checked out by the family physician.

If your child is diagnosed with acid reflux, it is not the end of the world. Chances are that medication will relieve symptoms almost immediately. And maybe as they continue to grow and develop, the reflux will work itself out and they will not need medication for the rest of their lives.

Just in case, though, this is the time to set the example of how important it is to take their reflux medicine.

Show them how important it is to take acid reflux seriously and if they do have to deal with it as an adult, you know they will choose to properly take care of themselves. You may find compliance comes from the relief they experience in itself and this may be the result they will want to experience at all times.

If their symptoms resurface due to, as examples, non compliance with medication or not following diet related recommendations, then this may act as their reinforcer.