1. Childhood Skin Problems Slideshow
2. Childhood Illnesses You Should Know Slideshow
3. Slideshow: Cold and Flu - Treating Your Child's Cold or Fever

Medical Author:

John Mersch, MD, FAAP

John Mersch, MD, FAAP

Dr. Mersch received his Bachelor of Arts degree from the University of California, San Diego, and prior to entering the University Of Southern California School Of Medicine, was a graduate student (attaining PhD candidate status) in Experimental Pathology at USC. He attended internship and residency at Children's Hospital Los Angeles.

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Medical Editor:

David Perlstein, MD, MBA, FAAP

David Perlstein, MD, MBA, FAAP

Dr. Perlstein received his Medical Degree from the University of Cincinnati and then completed his internship and residency in pediatrics at The New York Hospital, Cornell medical Center in New York City. After serving an additional year as Chief Pediatric Resident, he worked as a private practitioner and then was appointed Director of Ambulatory Pediatrics at St. Barnabas Hospital in the Bronx.

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Many therapies (both traditional and holistic) have been tried to help lessen the symptoms and duration of colic. Many of these anecdotal approaches have not demonstrated success in scientific studies. Some involve the following:

• Simethicone drops (Maalox, Gas-X, Mylanta, Phazyme) may relieve gas. There are no documented studies indicating that excessive gas is a cause for colic.
• Ensure a quiet, non-stimulating environment when colic begins. This advice implies that you run the house you would if your child were not in the home. You don't have to "tiptoe around." Conversely, having multiple people pick up and play with your baby may be overwhelming. Many parents find that "white noise" (for example, the vacuum cleaner) is soothing to their colicky child.
• Change the baby's diet and feeding techniques. For many years, it seemed intuitive that breastfed babies may benefit if the mother avoids dairy products, especially if prone to allergies, or resort to a hypoallergenic diet. Other suggestions include eliminating spicy foods, raw vegetables, and caffeine. Further studies have indicated that children are rarely allergic to human or cow milk protein. Likewise, millions of children are successfully breastfed by mothers in foreign countries in which the diet is filled with highly spiced foods. Children of China and Mexico are not all screaming from intestinal symptoms every night!
• Try an alternative to routine milk-based formulas. Switching from cow milk protein-based formula to soy protein-based formula is helpful in a small number of infants. However, it is important to remember that approximately two-thirds of infants demonstrated by laboratory studies to have cow milk protein allergy will also have soy protein allergy.
• Hypoallergenic formulas, such as Nutramigen and Alimentum, are thought to reduce colic symptoms in bottle-fed babies. They are more expensive than other formulas. These formulas are often successful since the protein, fat, and carbohydrate molecules are "partially digested" (for example, broken down) and thus easier to digest.

A variety of herbal and complementary medical therapies have been advocated. Herbal teas (chamomile, licorice, fennel, and mint) have strong support in some communities. It is generally believed that small amounts may provide some relief and will not do harm. They should not be used in place of formula or breast milk..

Several years ago, a medication (dicyclomine [Bentyl, Byclomine, Dibent, Di-Spaz, Dilomine]) was shown to decrease the symptoms of colic. However, rare side effects of sedation, cessation of breathing, coma, seizures, and death occurred and the medication is no longer in use for colic.