7 Common Questions About Formula and Colic

A few words first about colic: This label applies to babies who are usually between four and 14 weeks of age and who are fussy three or more times a week for hours at a time. Evening is the time when colicky babies feel the most uncomfortable.

Because there isn't a proven physical cause, colic is a behavioral diagnosis. As a rule, colicky babies show good weight gain (they are often chubby) and normal development. For colicky babies, it often seems as if all the stimulation of the day needs an outlet, and crying is the only outlet. Of course, this is very frustrating for parents, and families try hard to find solutions.

Colicky babies are ultimately gassy, because babies gulp air as they cry, and trapped air results in gas. Simethicone drops are useful only in that they dissolve trapped air bubbles, but gas is often the effect and not the cause of colic.

Formula changes are common, too, and sometimes a new formula seems to help. But if the problem were exclusively a formula intolerance, the symptoms wouldn't be confined to a certain time of the day. So, I don't recommend switching to an elemental formula, which easily doubles your cost with no proven advantage.

What may help is changing your bottle system to one that allows less air to be drawn in during feeding (especially if your baby has troubles burping, too). A system with plastic bags inserted into a separate holder and a short, squat nipple usually accomplishes this.