The fastest ways to get gas out of a baby are burping during and after feeds, cycling their legs gently, and massaging the belly. Most infant gas is completely normal and caused by a digestive system that’s still learning how to work. Babies swallow air when they cry and feed, and their gut bacteria produce gas as they break down milk. The difference between adults and newborns is that babies simply aren’t good at moving that gas through and out yet.
Why Babies Get So Gassy
Before birth, your baby spent nine months floating in fluid with no exposure to air at all. From the very first breath, air becomes part of the equation, and every cry and every feeding session means more air gets swallowed. Some of that air comes back up as a burp, but the rest travels into the intestines.
Once milk reaches the gut, some of it goes undigested, and normal bacteria feed on what’s left over. Gas is a byproduct of that process. This is true for both breastfed and formula-fed babies. The issue isn’t that something is wrong. It’s that young babies haven’t developed the coordination to push gas out efficiently, and the sensation itself is unfamiliar and uncomfortable for them.
Three Burping Positions That Work
Burping is your first line of defense, and doing it mid-feed (not just at the end) catches air before it travels deeper into the digestive tract. The key with any position: keep your baby’s tummy and back straight rather than curled up, and use gentle rubbing or patting on the back.
- Over the shoulder. Hold your baby upright with their chin resting on your shoulder. Support their head and neck with one hand and pat or rub their back with the other. The slight pressure of your shoulder against their belly helps nudge air up.
- Sitting on your lap. Sit your baby on your lap facing away from you. Place the palm of your hand flat against their chest, supporting their chin and jaw (not the throat). Lean them forward slightly and rub or pat their back with your free hand. This position works well for babies who spit up a lot over your shoulder.
- Face-down across your lap. Lay your baby tummy-down across your legs. Support their chin with one hand and gently rub or pat their back with the other. Gravity and the pressure of your lap against their belly can release stubborn bubbles.
If nothing comes up after a couple of minutes, it’s fine to move on. Not every feeding produces a burp, and some babies simply need to burp less than others.
Bicycle Legs and Belly Massage
When gas is trapped lower in the intestines, burping won’t reach it. Two techniques help move that gas along.
For bicycle legs, lay your baby on their back and gently move their legs in a pedaling motion, alternating one knee toward the belly and then the other. This compresses the intestines rhythmically and can push gas through the system. It also helps encourage a bowel movement if your baby seems constipated.
The belly massage known as “I Love You” follows the path of the large intestine. With your baby on their back, use gentle fingertip pressure and trace the letter I down the right side of their belly button. Then trace an upside-down L, starting at the top left corner across to the right and down. Finish with an inverted U, starting at the bottom left, tracing up the left side, across above the belly button, and down the right side. Each stroke pushes gas along the natural direction of digestion. Do this when your baby is calm and at least 30 minutes after a feeding.
Tummy Time and the Belly-Down Hold
Gentle pressure against the abdomen can work wonders. Regular tummy time on a firm, flat surface lets your baby’s own body weight press against trapped gas. Even a few minutes several times a day helps, and it builds neck and shoulder strength at the same time.
When your baby is fussy from gas, try holding them face-down along your forearm with their head near your elbow and their legs straddling your hand. This position puts steady, gentle pressure on the belly while you walk around or sway. Many parents find it calms a gassy baby faster than upright holding does.
Preventing Gas During Feeds
You can reduce how much air your baby swallows in the first place. For bottle-fed babies, paced feeding makes a significant difference. Hold your baby upright (not reclined) and keep the bottle horizontal so the nipple is only half full of milk. Let your baby draw the nipple into their mouth rather than pushing it in. Every few sucks, lower the bottle so the nipple empties but stays in the mouth, giving your baby a natural pause before resuming. This prevents gulping, which is one of the biggest sources of swallowed air.
Signs that feeding is going too fast include wide eyes, gulping sounds, milk leaking from the corners of the mouth, or choking. If you notice any of these, slow things down.
Anti-colic bottles use internal venting systems that keep air separated from the milk so your baby doesn’t swallow air bubbles along with each sip. They’re worth trying if gas is a recurring problem with standard bottles.
For breastfed babies, make sure the latch is deep and secure. A shallow latch lets air slip in around the nipple with every suck. If you hear clicking sounds during nursing, the seal probably isn’t tight enough.
Does a Mother’s Diet Matter?
This is one of the most common questions, and the honest answer is that the evidence is thin. There is no scientific proof that specific foods in a breastfeeding mother’s diet reliably cause gas in babies. Many parents report that dairy, beans, onions, garlic, kale, or peppers seem to make things worse, but just as many babies tolerate those foods with no issues at all. Spicy foods have not been shown to cause discomfort in breastfed infants.
The one exception with the most consistent reports is cow’s milk protein. It’s the most commonly identified food substance linked to gas and fussiness in newborns. If you suspect dairy is a trigger, you could try eliminating it for two to three weeks and see if symptoms improve. Beyond that, restrictive elimination diets aren’t recommended without guidance from your baby’s pediatrician.
Do Gas Drops and Probiotics Help?
Simethicone gas drops are widely sold for infants, but the evidence that they actually work is weak. Studies on simethicone for colic, which involves the same trapped-gas discomfort, suggest it performs no better than a placebo. The drops are generally considered safe, but pediatricians increasingly advise skipping them rather than spending the money on something with little proven benefit.
Probiotics have a stronger case, at least for certain babies. In a randomized, double-blind study of colicky infants, babies given a specific probiotic strain for 21 days had their daily crying time drop from around 370 minutes to just 35 minutes. The placebo group also improved, going from 300 minutes to 90 minutes, but the probiotic group improved significantly more. By the end of the study, only 4 out of 25 babies in the probiotic group were still crying more than three hours a day, compared to 12 out of 21 in the placebo group. Probiotic drops formulated for infants are available over the counter, though it’s worth confirming with your pediatrician that you’re choosing an appropriate one.
Signs That Gas Might Be Something Else
Normal gas makes babies fussy, squirmy, and sometimes inconsolable for short stretches. That’s unpleasant but not dangerous. A few symptoms, however, suggest something beyond ordinary gas:
- Feeding changes: refusing the breast or bottle, or drinking noticeably less milk than usual
- Vomiting or diarrhea (not just normal spit-up)
- Increased irritability when held or touched, rather than being soothed by contact
- An unusual-sounding cry that’s different from their normal fussing
- Changes in breathing rate or effort
- Unusual sleepiness or sluggishness
Any of these alongside gas-like fussiness warrants a call to your pediatrician. Individually, most of these symptoms turn out to be nothing serious, but together they can point to infections, food protein allergies, or other conditions that mimic gas pain.