Out of all the nursing nuisances I have dealt with, thrush has been the most trouble. Thrush, or candida, is basically an overgrowth of yeast in the mouth. We all have a certain amount of yeast in our mouths, intestinal walls, and genital areas. It becomes problematic when it overgrows. In my experience it is important to diagnose and treat thrush early before it spreads to mom. Generally, there is not really a cause for thrush. . .it just happens. However, if baby or mom has recently been on antibiotics, this could allow for the overgrowth of yeast in the mouth.
Your baby is likely to have thrush if you see white splotches in his mouth and they do not go away. Thrush is often associated with a diaper rash that is persistent and also has some white spots in it. (In fact, with every case of thrush that we’ve experienced it has been with a yeast diaper rash.) It almost looks like peeling skin in the diaper area.
Thrush is not harmful to the baby, but it can be difficult to get rid of. Here are some suggestions for treating thrush:
Acidophilus
This is the friendly bacteria that lives in our bodies. It is available at mouth health food stores and generally comes in powder or capsule form. To treat a baby with thrush using acidophilus powder, make a paste with breast milk and apply it to baby’s mouth once a day.
Nystatin
This is a prescription anti-fungal liquid that is applied to the inside of the baby’s mouth with a q-tip. It most frequently takes a few rounds of Nystatin to get rid of the thrush in baby’s mouth.
Sterilize
You need to sterilize everything that goes into baby’s mouth. This includes bottles, pacifiers, and any toys that the baby chews on.
Many pediatricians encourage mom and baby to get treated together, even if mom has no symptoms. This is partly because thrush can make breastfeeding very painful. Also, thrush is easily passed back and forth between mom and baby. If both are treated at the same time, the treatment will frequently prevent mom from developing thrush. Some symptoms of thrush on mom include:
sore nipples
red or pink nipples
itchy or burning nipples–even when not feeding baby
flaky skin on the nipples and deep shooting pain during or after feedings
Treatments for mom are the same as treatments for baby. You can use acidophilus or nystatin to treat thrush. If the thrush is particularly stubborn, you should make sure to wash bras, shirts or anything else that comes into contact with your breasts or the baby‘s mouth with HOT water. (Water that is 122 degrees will kill thrush). Thrush can be a stubborn nuisance but it is less difficult to get rid of if you treat it in baby early and in mother as a prevention.