Ease Baby Gas: 6 Feeding Holds for Mums and the 18cm Pillow Fix

Mother nursing baby with elevated pillow

Try sitting your baby upright on your lap with forward-leaning support, switch to a laid-back koala hold, or use a forearm belly hold, followed by gentle tummy time and bicycle legs once they’ve fed. A deep latch and proper burping matter just as much as the position itself. If gas persists or your baby seems unwell, check in with a health professional.

TL;DR:

  • Using upright or semi-reclined feeding positions like the laid-back hold can help reduce trapped wind in gassy babies by leveraging gravity.
  • Burping your baby during and after feeds with gentle pats or rubs can prevent excessive swallowing of air, especially when done mid-feed or after the baby slows suckling.
  • Ensuring a deep, straight latch during breastfeeding and supporting both your and your baby’s posture minimizes air intake and improves feeding comfort.
  • A stable nursing pillow with consistent height supports better latch quality and reduces the need for mid-feed adjustments that could cause gulping.
  • Symptoms like projectile vomiting, poor weight gain, blood in stool or vomit, and persistent crying suggest conditions beyond gas and require immediate medical consultation.
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Table of Contents

Feeding holds that help a gassy baby pass wind

Different holds change the angle of your baby’s airway and belly, which affects how much air gets swallowed and how easily trapped wind escapes afterward. None of these is a guaranteed fix on its own, but most parents find one or two that suit their baby better than the rest.

  1. Upright on your lap with forward-leaning support. Sit your baby facing away from you, chest supported by your forearm, and let gravity help settle trapped air lower in the belly. This works well straight after a feed when wind seems stuck high up.
  2. Over-the-shoulder burp. Hold your baby upright against your chest with their chin resting near your shoulder, then pat or rub their back gently. It’s the classic position for a reason, though it doesn’t work for every baby.
  3. Forearm or belly hold. Lay your baby face down along your forearm or across your lap, with their head slightly higher than their body and your hand supporting their jaw (never their throat). Gentle pressure from their own weight against your arm can help shift gas through the bowel, according to guidance from Raising Children Network.
  4. Laid-back or koala hold. Recline yourself at a comfortable angle, with your baby lying chest-to-chest on top of you. This semi-reclined position uses gravity to help a baby control milk flow, which Raising Children Network notes is especially useful when let-down is fast or a baby tends to gulp.
  5. Football or side hold. Tuck your baby under your arm, facing you, with their body supported along your forearm. Some babies gulp less in this position because it’s easier to control the pace of feeding.
  6. Tummy time and bicycle legs after feeds. Once your baby has settled, supervised tummy time or gently cycling their legs can encourage trapped gas to move along. The NHS recommends keeping a baby upright for a short time after a feed before trying this.

A few safety basics apply across every hold:

  • Always support your baby’s head and neck, never their throat.
  • Keep tummy time supervised at all times.
  • Stop and reassess if your baby seems distressed rather than just fussy.

Pro Tip: If one position doesn’t settle your baby within a few minutes, switch rather than persist. What works varies feed to feed, not just baby to baby.

Burping and winding techniques during and after feeds

Burping mid-feed and again afterward catches swallowed air before it builds into real discomfort. A good moment to pause is when your baby comes off the breast naturally or slows their sucking, rather than waiting until the whole feed is done.

  1. Hold your baby upright, chest against your shoulder or sitting on your lap with forward support.
  2. Use small, gentle pats or light circular rubs over the upper back, rather than firm thumps.
  3. Give it 60 to 90 seconds before switching position if nothing happens, since not every feed produces a burp.
  4. If the over-the-shoulder method isn’t working, try sitting your baby upright on your lap or laying them face down across your forearm instead, as Raising Children Network suggests these alternatives apply pressure differently.
  5. Finish with gentle rocking or bicycling the legs if your baby still seems unsettled.

A couple of things to avoid: don’t pat forcefully, since it won’t speed things up and can unsettle an already fussy baby, and watch for regurgitation rather than assuming every splutter is a true vomit. Pacing the feed itself, by pausing occasionally rather than letting your baby gulp continuously, also reduces how much air goes down in the first place.

Pro Tip: Burp between breasts, not just at the end. Catching air halfway through a feed often means there’s less to deal with later.

Mother burping baby during feeding pause

Why latch and posture affect how much air your baby swallows

A shallow or awkward latch is one of the main reasons babies swallow extra air while feeding. Raising Children Network explains there’s no single correct position, but keeping your baby’s head, neck and back in a straight line, with their nose roughly level with your nipple, gives them the best chance at a deep latch.

  • Keep your baby facing you directly rather than twisted at the neck to reach the breast.
  • Bring your baby to you rather than leaning down to them, which protects both latch quality and your own posture.
  • Watch for a wide-open mouth before latching, aiming your nipple toward the roof of their mouth.

Healthdirect’s breastfeeding guidance points out that your own comfort matters here too: relaxed shoulders and a supported back make it easier to bring your baby in close rather than hunching toward them, which in turn supports a calmer, deeper latch.

An elevated, stable support matters more than it might seem. Repeated repositioning during a feed, common when a pillow is too low or loses its shape, can unsettle a baby who was starting to feed calmly, increasing the chance of gulping. This is the gap a nursing pillow was built to close: an elevated lift brings baby up to the breast instead of requiring a hunch, and a compression-resistant fill holds its shape through a full feed rather than flattening underneath your baby’s weight.

Gas versus reflux: knowing when it’s something else

Typical gas usually looks like brief fussiness, a slightly distended belly, pulling the knees up, and passing wind that brings quick relief. It’s uncomfortable for your baby but short-lived.

Some signs point to something beyond ordinary wind and are worth a professional opinion:

  • Projectile vomiting rather than a small posset.
  • Poor weight gain over time.
  • Blood in vomit or stool.
  • Persistent, high-pitched crying that doesn’t settle with the usual soothing.
  • Refusing feeds altogether.

Raising Children Network’s guidance on reflux suggests ruling out other causes before assuming gas explains every symptom. In the meantime, try a different hold, burp thoroughly, double-check the latch, and keep an eye on feeding and weight. If none of that helps, or any red flags appear, contact healthdirect or your GP rather than waiting it out.

What trial and error taught me about feeding positions

No single position works for every baby, or even for the same baby every day. I’d suggest trying two or three holds in your first week and keeping a loose mental note, or an actual note, of what settled your baby fastest after each feed. Patterns tend to show up faster than you’d expect.

What trial and error taught me about feeding positions — overview diagram

It’s easy to focus entirely on your baby’s comfort and forget your own posture matters just as much. Hunching forward to bring your baby to the breast, feed after feed, catches up on your back and shoulders eventually. Bringing baby up to you, rather than leaning down to them, is worth protecting from day one.

For more on posture and burping specifically, our guides on burping positions and newborn feeding posture go deeper than we can here.

— Marietjie

A nursing pillow built for consistent, gas-reducing posture

A pillow that collapses mid-feed forces you to reposition constantly, and every repositioning is a chance for your baby to gulp air or lose a good latch. Our nursing pillow was designed around that exact problem: an 18cm lift brings your baby up to breast height so you’re not hunching down to meet them, and a compression-resistant fill keeps that height steady through an entire feed rather than flattening after ten minutes.

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That stability translates into a few practical benefits for gassy babies specifically:

  • Consistent height means fewer adjustments mid-feed, which means less disruption to a settling baby.
  • A stable base makes it easier to hold the laid-back or forearm positions described above without your arms tiring.
  • The hypoallergenic French flax linen cover is machine washable, which matters given how often feeding pillows get used.
  • It doubles as supervised tummy time support once your baby is a little older.

Our practical tip: set the pillow’s height before you sit down to feed, not after, so your baby is at the right level from the first latch rather than needing correction halfway through. You can see the full details on our nursing pillow product page.

This article is general information, not a substitute for advice from a qualified doctor. Consult a qualified healthcare professional about your own circumstances before acting on anything here.

FAQ

What is the best position to help a baby hold gas?

Upright positions with forward-leaning support, such as sitting your baby on your lap facing away from you, tend to help trapped gas move down and out. The forearm or belly hold is a close second, since gentle pressure against the belly can encourage wind to pass, according to Raising Children Network.

Does bouncing help a gassy baby?

Gentle, rhythmic movement can help some babies settle, though it isn’t a specific technique for releasing gas the way upright holds or bicycling the legs are. Combining gentle movement with an upright position after feeds tends to work better than bouncing alone.

Is side lying good for a gassy baby?

Side lying isn’t typically recommended as a gas relief position during or straight after a feed, since it doesn’t use gravity the way upright or laid-back holds do. The NHS recommends keeping babies upright for 15 to 20 minutes after feeding before placing them down.

How do I make my breastfed baby less gassy?

Focus on a deep, comfortable latch first, since shallow latching is one of the main causes of swallowed air during breastfeeding. Pair that with a position that suits your baby, such as laid-back or forearm hold, and burp both mid-feed and afterward to clear air before it builds up.

When should I worry about my baby’s gas?

Ordinary gas usually settles within minutes once wind passes and doesn’t stop your baby from feeding or gaining weight normally. If you notice projectile vomiting, poor weight gain, blood in vomit, persistent high-pitched crying or feeding refusal, contact healthdirect or your GP rather than waiting for it to resolve on its own.

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