Last week four of my friends had new babies. Yes, four.
It seriously felt like the Kansas City baby boom was happening all over again! Was there something in the water?
All of the babies were cute, of course. They had soft, wrinkly skin, tiny hands and ears, and little feet that could fit in the palm of my hand.
I love babies.
One of them, however, had colic. Colic is defined as comfortless crying in a baby where the baby cries inconsolably for hours or even days.
Ok. That’s a serious bummer.
But How Do You Know if Your Baby Has Colic?
I mean, every baby cries.
In fact, every baby cries a lot (sometimes for no reason). But only about 10-20% of babies are affected by colic.
As a new parent, though, if you find yourself questioning whether or not your baby might have colic, here are a few questions to ask yourself:
- Is your baby’s cry loud and piercing?
- Are her abs tense?
- Does he flex his legs?
- Does he clench is fingers into little fists?
- Is he around 3 weeks old?
Colic usually begins at around three weeks of age and then can last about three months – but sometimes longer.
What’s the Best Treatment for Colic?
Unfortunately, there’s still no known, definitive cause for colic. This can make treatment tough. The most common treatments for colic are dietary changes, medication, infant positioning and treatment from a pediatric chiropractor.
New research is showing amazing results from pediatric chiropractic care. In a recent study, 94% of colicky babies showed improvement with chiropractic adjustments.
Treatment from a pediatric chiropractor is gentle, conservative and highly successful in treating babies with colic symptoms.
During a clinical trial published in the Journal of Manipulative and Physiological Therapeutics researchers found that “Spinal manipulation is effective in relieving colic in infants.” In this study researchers put babies with colic in two groups. They gave one group an anti-gas medication and the other group received chiropractic adjustments from a pediatric chiropractor.
The babies in the medication group showed a 38% decrease in the amount of crying their moms recorded, but the babies that received chiropractic adjustments showed a 67% decrease in crying.
What Happens During a Pediatric Chiropractor Treatment Session?
Pediatric chiropractors specialize in restoring movement and nerve function to joints that are locked up or fixated. Babies are gently laid face down on their mother’s chest while the doctor examines the bones and joints that make up the spine.
Then, with his hand, the doctor applies light impulses (chiropractic adjustments) to the areas of the baby’s spine that are locked up. This is similar to when you crack your knuckles to relieve stiffness or pressure in your fingers.
A chiropractic adjustment restores motion to the baby’s joints and eliminates any pain that may have resulted from irritated nerves.
Irritated nerves can also cause disturbances to the stomach, intestines and other abdominal organs causing gas to build up in the intestines.
Many babies experience immediate relief and often rest in their mother’s arms afterward, completely content.
Our Kansas City pediatric chiropractors specialize in detecting and correcting areas in the spine and joints that are not functioning properly. When they help to restore normal function to a baby’s nervous system, the baby’s digestive tract has a better chance to receive nerve supply from the brain.
This results in a happy and content baby.
Oh, and my friend who’s baby had colic? She took him in to see a local chiropractor, and he has not only stopped crying uncontrollably, but he’s sleeping for longer periods of time.
Her exact words, “It’s a miracle.”
Fulk Chiropractic’s 12 chiropractors provide service to the Kansas City community 7 days a week. Call 913-764-6237 to speak with one of our doctors or schedule online.
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Find out more:
Kansas City Moms: Don’t Let Your Kids Learn This Bad Habit From You
Is it Safe to Crack Your Own Back?
What Everybody Ought to Know About Children and Chiropractic