Colic

Colic is where a baby will continually and excessively cry.

All babies cry. A baby with colic will cry for extended periods and be generally unsettled.

Colic is so common that is is known to affect 1 in 4 babies!

What is colic, what can help or how do you treat it?

Caring for a baby who has colic can be overwhelming, challenging and distressing.

Colic can be described as when babies go through seemingly unexplained crying on a regular basis.

The reason behind the crying and distress is that the baby is usually suffering from abdominal pain caused by wind/gas.

It’s very distressing for the baby (and the carer) as colic can make a baby scream in pain.

Bouts of crying can last for long periods and often hours.

Colic usually occurs from when a baby is 2 weeks till around 16 weeks but it can occur longer.

It generally peaks around the 6-8 weeks mark.

Colic usually affects babies in the late afternoon or early evening. Why this is the more common time is not completely understood.

• Screaming fits which are loud and long.
• The baby kicking or pulling their legs up.
• Frequent burping or passing of wind.
• A reddened face, grimace or frown often.
• The baby is inconsolable.
• Frowning and grimacing.
• Grumbly belly that you can sometimes heard.

Unfortunately, the cause of colic is not actually known.

Some of the theories are it is caused by a food allergy.

Studies have shown that the foods in a mother’s diet can affect the milk and can lead to colic in breastfed babies.

This is said to include foods such as chocolate, onions, peas, broccoli, cabbage, cauliflower, etc. Maternal smoking and caffeine consumption is also said to be related.

Sometimes there seems to be no apparent reason and is just a way of the baby dealing with life outside the womb.

• There is no one way to treat colic. It can be a difficult process and often involves trial and error to see what works best for your child. It is also recommended that you seek a doctor’s opinion that it is colic and make sure there is no underlying cause.
• One suggested treatment is the mother changing their diet, if breast feeding, or changing formula, to see if that makes a difference.
• Reacting quickly to try to calm your baby is important but not always easily done. It may take some time to calm them. You could try to soothe them by rocking, cradling playing or singing music, bathing…… basically whatever soothes your baby.
• Some have had great results from ‘alternative’ methods such as seeing a chiropractor.
• Have good support. This is important as it is hard and draining coping with a baby that has colic so being able to talk, share and have a break about the concerns and issues is vital.
• A good suggestion is to try to find a trigger or at best a trigger time. For example, if it seems to happen in the afternoon/evening (which is generally when colic does rear its head) then if possible be as prepared as you can. By this we mean everything in place to help yourself help soothe your baby. So bath ready, dinner prepared, etc so that you can concentrate on you and your baby at this time.