Baby Colic – Symptoms And Treatment
Jason Rickard
Baby colic is one of the common disorders in infants. Baby
colic is characterized by repeated excessive crying episodes,
without any distinguishable reason. Most often, parents tend to
blame themselves as the cause of the crying and see it as their
incapability to handle the baby. However, baby colic has
nothing to do with parenting, and the real reason behind the
disorder remains unclear. The interesting fact associated with
this disease is that the disorder can typically occur in well
fed healthy babies. A baby suffering with baby colic is seen
crying three or more hours per day, three or more days per
week, ongoing for three or more weeks, however, it is not
considered as a serious disorder since the symptoms will
gradually disappear by its own, without any particular
treatment.
Usually the outbreak of baby colic starts from three weeks of
age and becomes severe in between six weeks and eight weeks. It
will slowly subside by three months of time. Any how, in some
cases, baby colic will last for six months of time. Even though
it does not cause any impairment in the growth and development o
the child, it creates must annoyance to the parents since no
parent can easily tolerate his or her child crying.
Baby colic can be differentiated from other disorders, with its
characteristic symptom of periodic outbreak of crying, which
cannot be soothed easily and associated symptoms such as baby
extending its legs, arching its back, face becoming red,
clenching its fists, passing gas and having difficulty in
passing stools. It is also seen that it will regularly occur in
early evenings, which is related with disturbances in melatonin
diurnal rhythm. The underlying reason that caused the disease
is constantly being searched for and the possible answers
include adverse conditions while pregnancy such as maternal
prenatal anxiety, cigarette smoking, or labor medication,
The treatment for baby colic is not definite since the possible
reason is not clear. However, many reasons can be looked at. The
important reasons include the insufficient neurological
development of baby, digestive system related problems, gas,
protein allergies and diet problems of feeding mothers. The
primary care for the baby is given according to the symptoms
for outbreak of crying.
Baby colic treatment mainly includes measures to console the
child. Primarily check whether your baby has any discomfort
such as the need to change the diaper or hunger. If these are
not a problem, then try to soothe the baby by taking them in
horizontal position and keep them in motion. You can cradle,
rock or dance with them in hand if you have any discomfort to
carry in hand, take the child in a sling or front pack.
Listening to white music and vibrations such as of appliances
is also seen as being soothing for the child.
In case of baby colic due to digestive complaints, you have to
lay your baby on their stomach, in order to pass gas.
Gripewater, Mylicon drops and colic tablets may have to be
given in prescribed dosage to avoid gas and other such
digestive problems. If the baby is milk intolerant or fructose
intolerant, in bottle fed babies, try to use any of the
specific formulas such as Whey-based, Soy-based, and
Hypoallergenic formulas. In breast fed babies, the mother has
to be conscious to avoid spicy foods and allergenic substances
such as high fibre grains, beans, onions broccoli, cabbage, and
caffeine in diet, to avoid discomfort for the baby.
Baby colic is a temporary disorder in infants, which require
patient attention and pampering formulas to overcome the
repeated bouts of crying.
About The Author: Jason Rickard is the owner of
http://www.yourfavouriteshop.com
- Offering White Noise and
Relaxation CDs - Visit http://www.hapahapa.com for more
articles
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