Monday, August 20, 2007

Hiccups!

So, last night I'm settling in to bed for a little spooning so I can 'rub the belly' before it is lights out for PJ. It wasn't hard to find Baby J. He seemed to be quite active. Lots of constant jabs, I thought. But they were so rhythmic. Then Kristen realized, he had the hiccups!

Poor guy! His whole body seemed to be convulsing. The episode only lasted about ten minutes and Kristen was close to a tear feeling bad for the little man. Was it something she ate? Drank? Puzzled, I was determined to learn more!

Well, after some heady research I can safely report, not much is out there on this phenomena. Theories abound, though, and they focus on the intake of amniotic fluid (which is normal). Either by drinking or 'breathing' in the fluid, a reflex is triggered - much the same type of oesophageal reflex we experience. This was a first for us, but supposedly it can be quite common and frequent in maturing fetuses. However, my theory is he takes after his mother and drinks and eats so fast hiccups result!

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