Parenting

Coping With Colic

Posted: 5/7/2013

Doctors recommend the “five S’s”—swaddling, side or stomach holding, shushing, swinging and sucking—to reduce the gas and discomfort of colic.

(NAPSI)—If you ever find yourself walking the floor with a colicky baby, here’s something you may find comforting: You’re not alone.

In fact, according to the American Academy of Pediatrics, colic—a condition where otherwise healthy newborn babies cry for more than three hours a day, for three days a week, for more than three weeks in a row—affects an estimated 20 percent of newborns in the U.S.—and nearly 80 percent of pregnant women are concerned their baby might have it.

“Colic can be a physically and emotionally exhausting experience for families, and many parents don’t know what to do to help relieve their baby’s discomfort,” says pediatrician, author and renowned children’s health expert Dr. Alan Greene. “Several colic solutions have been demonstrated to be effective for some children.”

The Doctor’s Advice

• Motion. Gentle movement, whether from a swing, a car ride, a ride in a stroller or a parent’s arms.

• Massage. Baby belly massage can help.

• Changing the mother’s diet. For breast-fed babies, eliminating certain foods can help—especially if there’s asthma, eczema or allergies in the family.

• Changing to a hypoallergenic formula.

• Changing feeding technique. Switching from nursing at both breasts at each feed to prolonged emptying of one breast cut colic in half in one study. Sucking on a pacifier or thumb between feeds can also help.

• Soothing noise. Heartbeat recordings, white noise machines, recordings of babies yawning or the gentle voices of parents sshhing, humming or singing a lullaby.

• Swaddling. Being wrapped snugly in a wrap, such as the SwaddleMe® wrap from Summer Infant, comforts some babies.

• Probiotics. Compared to placebo, taking beneficial bacteria reduces crying for some.

• Changing bottles. Nearly 80 percent of moms with colicky babies say bottles play a role in reducing the symptoms. Any bottle change can produce improvement in some babies, but in one clinical trial, switching to Born Free® bottles with ActiveFlow™ made a significant difference for 80 percent of babies.

“Breast is best when possible,” Dr. Greene says, “but for the times parents use bottles, those developed to help reduce gas, like Born Free® bottles, can be beneficial.”

A leader in premium infant feeding products, Born Free® clinically designed the unique ActiveFlow™ Venting Technology to reduce colic and gas. The two-part venting system was modeled after natural milk flow to reduce the amount of air ingested, compared to other bottles, and offer babies a calm feeding experience.

Learn More

For expert tips and facts, visit www.newbornfree.com/colicawareness and www.summerinfant.com.

To sign a pledge agreeing to donate an hour of time to help parents with fussy or colicky babies, visit: www.newbornfree.com/TakeThePledge.