JAKARTA - Babies who are teething and even often accompanied by crying often make parents worry. This condition is feared to have caused digestive disorders in babies, including gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD).
However, parents don't need to worry too much because not all gumoh and crying in babies are related to digestive disorders. Prof. Dr. Badriul Hegar, Sp.A(K), said that reflux and regurgitation or gumoh in babies are common.
"Some say (GERD) that the regurgitation is excessive. In fact, there must be something broken first before it is called GERD," said Prof. Badriul, during the Media Gathering & Health Talk at RS Premier Bintaro in South Jakarta, on Wednesday, February 4, 2026.
Prof Badriul emphasized that repeated gumoh in infants does not necessarily mean GERD. The condition that indicates GERD if it has caused damage to the esophagus (esophagus) and has a significant impact on the baby's body.
Reflux itself is a condition when the stomach contents go back up the esophagus, while gumoh is stomach contents that are seen coming out of the mouth. In infants, this condition is common because their stomach valves are perfectly formed.
If the baby has GERD, the symptoms that occur are not only gumoh, but also accompanied by other more obvious signs. One of them is a disorder in weight gain.
Babies who experience GERD usually experience a decrease in appetite, which is caused by pain in the esophagus. This results in a reduced daily intake, so that the baby's weight is not appropriate for his age.
"The regurgitation is excessive, the increase (in weight) is only so much. Next month it won't go up again, it needs to be careful," he said.
In addition, other symptoms that indicate that the baby has GERD are vomiting or gumoh accompanied by blood spots. This indicates that there is irritation or injury to the baby's upper gastrointestinal tract.
Parents should also recognize the behavior of babies called Sandifer's syndrome. This is a condition when babies arch their backs while crying in pain.
"He was in pain. If this is the case, we can think, maybe GERD in a baby," he said.
Therefore, it is important for parents to recognize the signs of GERD in infants in order to anticipate it well. The main focus is not on how often babies experience gumoh, but on the overall growth and behavior of babies.
"So I remind you again that excessive crying, irritable, fussy babies can be in healthy babies. It can be thought of as GERD, but not in the early steps," concluded Prof. Badriul.
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