Strollerderby : colic

Babble Talk: Don't Make Me Stop this Car!

editors — Mon, 25 Feb 2008 20:00:00 GMT

Sarah Irwin admits to moments of rage over a wailing infant at 3am in her essay, Anger Management. Irwin brought (non-physical) parental anger to the surface and many of you were thankful for an opportunity to say, “Me too”. While every one of you are in agreement that anger can go too far, many said that stifling it was the bigger problem. Join in the thought-provoking (and thoughtful) discussion here. - April Peveteaux

Probiotics May Cure Colic

Karen Murphy — Sat, 29 Sep 2007 20:37:00 GMT

Colic. That word is enough to strike fear in the hearts of new parents or parents-to-be. Although two of my kids were constant criers in those early months, I never named it colic, mainly because that seemed to be a catchall term for "we have no other explanation for the hell you are going through."

However, had I known that a simple probiotic can cure 95% of colic cases, I might have thought otherwise.

Colic is loosely defined as extreme crying (three hours a day, three days a week) that lasts from three weeks to three months that persists no matter what you do to attempt to please or comfort your baby. In other words, in colic, no amount of feeding, changing, holding, or burping is going to provide relief. Maybe colicky babies are just pissed off?

But new research suggests that the administration of the probiotic Lactobacillus reuteri can ease colic symptoms within a week. Which could be a godsend to tired, fed-up parents. Breastfeeding mothers may find colic relief in avoiding cow's milk, and also possibly caffeine, chocolate, eggs and nuts.

Though it's clear that no one really knows the cause of colic. There is evidence to suggest correlation between various behaviors and colic, but so far there has been nothing identified as causative. Parents just have to suck it up. There is, for example, no strong evidence linking colic to gas, wind or food allergy, nor to problems with the bowel. Some studies have linked colic to second-hand smoke, but I'll bet money that there are plenty of colicky babies in smoke-free homes. Anther study links it with post-partum depression, but honestly, doesn't almost everything negative about newborns somehow get blamed on the mother's depression? So again, there's nothing causative there either. Surely PPD itself could be caused by a constantly-crying baby, what about that, researcher-people? Huh?

So, again: if you think your baby has colic, I'd try the probiotic. They're good for us anyway, all that healthy bacteria in the gut ad all. Nestle is adding them to its formula, and Beech-Nut is adding probiotics to baby food. So there.

A Possible Cure For Colic? Why Didn't You Tell Me Four Years Ago?!?

Alisyn — Wed, 31 Jan 2007 17:32:00 GMT

File this one under “Why the hell didn’t you tell me this 4 years ago?!” Scientists at the University of Turin, Italy, conducted a study of 83 breastfed, colicky infants divided into two groups: those treated with probiotic, a live culture of a bacteria commonly found in the intestinal tract, and simethicone, a gas remedy.

The babies in the probiotic group, after just one week of receiving five drops of probiotic daily, showed amazing progress. After four weeks, a phenomenal 95% had responded favorably to the treatment, with no negative side effects, compared to just 7% of the babies treated with simethicone. The simethicone babies were crying three times as much as their probiotic counterparts at the end of the 28 day study – 145 minutes daily, as opposed to 51.

Writing for Slate.com, Dr. Sidney Speisel, pediatrician and associate professor of pediatrics at Yale University, hypothesizes that antibodies produced by cells in the intestinal walls, which protect us from disease throughout our lives, also produce bacteria which ferment lactose, thus producing gas – and pain – in the intestines. This is thought to be colic. Probiotic may work help lessen the uncomfortable effects of the gas-producing cells with live bacteria.

Speaking as the mother of a colicky baby, who grew up to be a food-sensitive toddler and kid, I have had tremendous success with probiotic. Our pediatrician recommended it as a remedy for a stomach bug when my older daughter was about a year old. She’s four now, and I still use it regularly for stomach aches, diarrhea, and as a preventative if I know she’ll be eating a lot of dairy. For under $10, you can buy 50 capsules that dissolve tastelessly in liquid. I wish I had known enough to turn to probiotic when simethicone left both me and my newborn crying and frustrated.

Probiotic is not yet being prescribed as a “cure” for colic, but may be, pending follow-up research. For millions of desperate parents, and unhappy babies, this may just be the best thing since disposable diapers.

A Cure For Colic? Why Didn't you Mention this Two Years Ago?

Sarah, Goon Squad Sarah — Wed, 10 Jan 2007 02:21:00 GMT

Anyone who has had a colicky baby understands frustration. I am not talking about a fussy baby. I am talking about a kid that screams from 11:00 pm until 4:00 am every night for a month. Yes. Seriously. When my daughter was two months old she freaked out for four or five hours every single night for about six weeks. I was so sad for her and I was also exhausted. So when I read this Reuters Health article that says probiotics might help with colic I was excited.

Nonbody is really sure what causes colic, althoughtit is suspected that is has to do with painful gas, or something else going on in the child's intestines.

The study was done in Turin, Italy by doctors at Regina Margherita Children's Hospital. They did testing with probiotics or good bacteria. They found that L reuteri had a positive effect in 95 percent of the babies tested. I like those odds.

I know that at the age most babies are colicky you aren't really supposed to give them dairy, but probiotics are found in yogurt. It is just something to keep in mind. You can read more about probiotics here on PDRhealth.com. It is actually quite interesting. Some cultures have been using this "technology" since long before the discovery of microorganisms.