April 22, 2007

Colic and Your Infant

Colic is so widespread with infants and babies that many parents are not surprised anymore when it happens. Yet, for the first time parent it can be a horrible and panicking circumstance especially with her normally quiet infant screaming non-stop in the background. It is most often apparent at approximately three to four weeks of age. It becomes more notable in the first two months and subsides at about three months of age. Colic can totally stop at about three-and-a-half to four months of age.

Colic is actually not so hazardous. It might appear so though from the way babies would yell and bellow at the top of their lungs. In reality, it can be so common that parents may encounter an incident on a daily basis; and subsequently the first episode, parents generally learn to deal with latter ones with aplomb. However, physicians and scientists cannot pinpoint up until now just what exactly causes colicky infants. It just happens.

Colic, to those who are not acquainted with the topic, is a stomach pain that occurs following eating. Because of the continuous ache, babies cry for hours and hours until the colic is relieved. Crying can remain for around one to five hours, depending on the severity of the pain. Babies’ cheeks will also get red from the exertion and maybe the pain.

When there is infant colic, the abdomen of the baby may become bloated or may become enlarged. One leg will be bent while the other will extended straight out. The feet will get cold and the hands clenched firm from the pain. This is really a natural reaction for people whose stomachs ache them.

Often, it will take place late in the afternoon or early in the evening after every feeding. It can however also occur any time of the day. Not all infants experience colic and some even suffer less frequent than others. Medical experts believe that genetics play a role. It seems that if one or both parents have suffered from colic when they were babies, their offspring will also experience colic episodes.

Yet, there are factors that will aggravate a colic state in babies. Next are some of them. Read on so that you can avoid these factors and relieve your baby from more suffering.

1. Overfeeding can only worsen the situations when you have a colicky baby in your arms. Make sure that your child is suffering from hunger and not colic before you feed him again.

2. There are several foods that will worsen the colic. Those with high sugar content, those with undiluted juice will simply produce more gas in the stomach and therefore, intensify the state.

3. Intestinal allergy may also bring about baby colic so it is important for moms to know just what makes their babies allergic. It may be from something that they have directly eaten or something that you passed on through the milk in your breasts.

4. Strong feelings can also promote baby’s colic. Emotions such as anger, fear, anxiety and excitement should be avoided as this will only worsen the pain for the baby.

A good way to remedy your infant of colic is to one not panic and then to read up as soon as possible even prior to an incident occurs. Nonstop crying can be a consequence of a multitude of other things so it is important that you also keep your eyes open so that you will know what precisely ails your infant. Keep in mind that there is no known source; so there is also no well-known cure for it except to make the episode as comfortable and less painful as possible.

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