by Lorriellah

Created on: November 25, 2009   Last Updated: November 27, 2009

Before I had my baby I didn't know a thing about colic. I had heard of it but didn't know what it was or how it would affect my husband and I should our baby suffer from it. During antenatal we were taught lots of labour tips and that was about all, the issue of colic was never brought up which now I think it should have been. Colic really affected us as a family and had we been prepared for it before our baby arrived we may not have been so panicked and would have known what to do. I think it should be addressed in antenatal classes so that other new mums will be able to recognise it and not rush off down to A&E like many do.

=== What is colic? ===
Colic can cause complete misery and stress as it is so distressing to both the baby and the parents. Colic affects about 30% of new born babies around 3 weeks old and can last up until 12 weeks. This may not seem like a long time but when you are going through it every evening when colic kicks in it can feel like a lifetime. Colic is excessive bouts of crying due to the baby being in discomfort. The cause of colic is not scientifically proven, so identifying what exactly colic IS is difficult! It is thought to be due to the immature digestive systems of newborns and that the lactose in the milk causes discomfort in the baby's colon which leads to them excessively crying.

=== What causes it? ===
As said previously the exact cause of colic is unknown. Research is on-going trying to establish what is the main cause although it is still not certain. Some suggestions of causes include:
* Over stimulation
* Lactose intolerance
* Under developed digestive systems
* Tense nervous system
* Mother's diet
* Gulping milk

All of the above bullet points have been argued for and against by many researchers. Research was carried out by Guy's hospital in London to look into the digestion of lactose in newborns. All of the babies in this study had an episode of 3 hours per day crying. For ten days mothers fed their babies using a lactase enzyme being added to the milk and then a further ten days with a placebo being added. This lactase enzyme would help the gut to break down the lactose in the milk and should reduce the colicky episodes. The results from the study confirmed this to be the case with a 45% reduction in crying epidoes when the enzyme was used. This suggests that it is the lactose in the milk which makes babies uncomfortable at night and so leads to these colicky epidoes.
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Other research suggests that it may be the mother's

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