Infant colic: what to do if the baby is affected?

Very common in newborns, colic is impressive but pass as they came. Massages, lullabies, even herbal teas can soothe baby’s crying.

What is colic in babies?

Infant colic is the manifestation of baby’s stomach pains. They translate into repetitive and regular crying attacks. They appear at least 3 hours a day, 3 days a week, for more than a week.

Seizures usually occur at the same times of the day, most often after a feed, bottle, or meal.

Infant colic: up to what age?

Colic occurs in toddlers, from a few weeks to three – four months, or even five months. It is estimated that about 25 to 40% of babies under 4 months of age have colic, whether they are breastfed or bottle fed.

What are the symptoms of colic in infants?

Characterized by intense cryingetrecurrent, rather after meals and usually in the evening, these ‘seizures’ begin between the second and sixth week after birth, with a peak at 2 months. Your baby seems inconsolable, he folds his legs onto his stomach, stretches like a bow, calms down for two minutes in your arms and begins a new series of crying. Drinking relieves it, but for a limited time. He is restless when he sleeps. the belly may be bloated, hard under the fingers.

During these colic, baby turns all red neighborhoods, are the face is contorted, Its clenched fists. Colic is sometimes accompanied by flatulence or burping. But even though these attacks are extremely distressing for his parents, the colic is not serious. Your child is well, he still has a good appetite and continues to gain weight regularly. If this is not the case, consult your pediatrician as soon as possible.

Causes of colic in infants

The origin of these colics, which disappear on their own around the age of about 4 months, remains poorly defined. It may be a Lactose intolerance. Indeed, sometimes, a sugar contained in milk can be at the origin of a colonic fermentation (the intestine is home to billions of ‘normal’ microbes, because they facilitate digestion), gas and therefore colic. It may also be related to the formation of intestinal microbiote, a real upheaval that takes place in his intestine during the first months of his life and could be painful.

THEmom feeding breastfeeding is sometimes implicated. Constipation can also hurt and lead to crying. In the absence of proven organic explanations (when an organ is clearly involved), psychological hypotheses are also sometimes advanced.

How to diagnose colic in babies?

Even though colic is mild, it can be so bad that you will see your pediatrician. He or she alone, after examining the baby and checking that there are no problems with his diet, will establish the diagnosis. This will eliminateother malfunctions such as gastroesophageal reflux, constipation or an allergy… He or she will also give you advice on how to better relieve your little one’s colic.

How can I relieve stomach aches in my infant?

All means are good to relieve your child! We can massage gently her bloated belly and we do not overfeed him by believing him to be hungry, at the risk of continuing the vicious circle of colic. If we breastfeed, we avoid eating cabbages, broccoli and other salads, major suppliers of gas.

With a bottle, we prefer milk that spares the immature digestive system, long enough for it to become so naturally. Then, we check that this milk is well reconstituted (not too much powder) before giving it at the right rate and in a quantity adapted to the age of the child.

How do you get a colicky baby to sleep without medication?

Apart from homeopathic treatment which can sometimes be prescribed, there are no colic medications. It is especially important to relieve baby during his attacks. Calm it down by rocking it, massage it gently the belly. Above all, keep calm! Baby is very sensitive to your stress.

For nursing mothers, avoid all stimulants: coffee, tea, but also chocolate, dairy products and especially not to smoke. If the baby is bottle-fed, we can try an anti-aerophagia teat but we do not change the milk unless our pediatrician recommends it.

In December 2019, researchers from the University of Naples Federico II successfully tested a probiotic. The latter is the Bifidobacterium animal sous-specific milk BB-12. The reduce crying daily for more than half of babies tested in 80% of cases. It also allows the infant to sleep better, and to have selles more regular.

Fennel herbal teas to relieve baby’s colic

Fennel in the form of herbal tea would seem calm and soothe stomach aches, in adults and children. This recipe is suitable for infant feeding from two weeks old and can also be consumed by the breastfeeding person so that its effects are felt in their breast milk!

• Mix 30 g of fennel seeds, 30 g of green anise seeds and 30 g of caraway seeds. Put them in a glass jar.
• Boil 100 ml of water, then, when boiling, remove from heat.
• Put 1 teaspoon of the mixture of seeds to infuse in hot water.
• Infuse for a good 5 minutes and filter.
• Let the infusion cool down and give it to your baby to drink to relieve it.

This herbal tea can be kept for 24 hours in the refrigerator. However, we pay attention to do not give more than 100 ml of infusion per day to our baby so as not to make his little kidneys work too hard!

How to calm infant colic using osteopathy?

Very different from an adult session, an osteopathy session for babies does not include “crunches”, nor strong pressures. The osteopath will gently mobilize the baby’s body, with palpations and slow movements. He or she will look for areas of tension that “block” the intestines, by unrolling the pelvis for example. A second session may be necessary.

Note: we make an appointment at a time when baby is relaxed : in the morning, or in the afternoon just after the nap. We avoid the end of the evening, when baby can be more nervous. And we speak to him very softly to explain to him what is going to happen: even if he does not understand everything, he will feel our confidence.

Colic: the particular case of cow’s milk allergy

What if her milk doesn’t suit her? 8% of children are indeed subject to an allergy so-called ‘delayed’ cow’s milk proteins (as opposed to acute, very serious allergies). It manifests itself, depending on the case, by diarrhea, colic, constipation, sleep disorders, growth retardation and / or sometimes, increased sensitization to allergens other than cow’s milk proteins.

So many symptoms ‘not very specific’ of allergy, but which all disappear miraculously if we remove cow’s milk. And reappear immediately during a new attempt. The solution: milk that is already partly ‘digested’, with attempts to reintroduce classic milk at regular intervals, to see if the intestine has become ‘ripe’.