Heartburn, medically known as acid reflux, is caused when the acid from your stomach flows back to your esophagus and causes an unpleasant burning sensation. This sensation is more common among adults and can be taken care of quite comfortably with some lifestyle tips for acid reflux. However, this digestive disorder can prove to be extremely serious if it affects an infant or a child as they do not know the ways to cope with it.

1. Symptoms
Like any other health conditions, acid reflux and GERD come with many symptoms. Some of these signs are:

• Your child is refusing to eat even though he or she has not eaten for quite some time
• The infant is experiencing breathing difficulties which can be understood by the sound of wheezing
• He or she is experiencing pain in the stomach, which can be understood if the child is crying while you are trying to feed
• The child is continuously vomiting, especially right after eating food

So, these are some of the symptoms that are commonly seen among the infants as well as adolescents. Sometimes, these symptoms generally go away on their own if the patient follows some healthy lifestyle tips for acid reflux. However, if the issues are persistent, then visiting a doctor as soon as possible can be a great idea.

2. Tips to prevent acid reflux
As mentioned before, the symptoms of acid reflux can be subdued quite comfortably if one changes their lifestyle. Thus, if you are also thinking to bring some changes in your child’s life, then make sure to follow these lifestyle tips for acid reflux.

• Smaller but frequent meals
  Eating a large number of foods at once can not only cause acid reflux among the adults but also the infants and adolescents. Thus, to avoid this problem, you would have to make your child eat smaller meals. Also, feeding him or her at least 2 to 3 hours before bedtime can prove to be beneficial as it gives the digestive organs some time to digest the food.
• Avoid acidic fruits
  If your child is experiencing frequent refluxes, then avoiding the acidic fruits can be a great idea. The doctor may also advise your child to avoid the foods that are enriched with fats as they can irritate the stomach.
• Elevate the head
  Elevating the head while lying or sleeping is probably one of the best lifestyle tips for acid reflux as it can help the LES to prevent stomach acid from coming upward. Some doctors also think that wearing tight-fit clothes can cause acid reflux. So, to avoid this from happening, you would have to make your child wear loose clothes.

Understanding the symptoms of GERD or acid reflux in children can be quite tough as it comes with the same symptoms as indigestion or flu. Thus, if your child is experiencing some of these issues, then going to a doctor as quickly as possible is better than waiting for the symptoms to go away on their own.