Infant colic can be rough on both the child and the parents. Wouldn’t it be great if your new bundle of joy came with an instruction manual that told you specifically what they needed? When they are deemed healthy and you have tried everything to stop the crying, the diagnosis is usually colic. When all else fails, don’t just let them cry it out. Your little one is crying for a reason. Consider having your child checked by a family chiropractor and you and your little one may just get back to a calm and quiet home.
Parents often tell me, “I didn’t know chiropractors treat colic.” That’s because we don’t treat colic. Colic, like so many childhood and adult conditions, does not tell you what is wrong or what is causing the problem. Colic is a term used to describe when an otherwise healthy baby cries frequently and, for extended periods, without any known reason. Colic is frequently self-resolving past three months of age but it may also last through the first 12 months of life. A chiropractor never treats the condition or symptom but instead looks for the cause of the crying.
If the basics have been covered for your infant and the crying continues, then chiropractic care may be of benefit. There is always a good possibility of your infant having sustained spinal stress or muscular strain in-utero, during birth, or even after birth. One of the greatest physical stressors our bodies go through is birth. Additional physical stressors are car seats, lying on hard or firm surfaces, being passed from person to person held in various positions, and diaper-changing positions.
A study published in the Journal of Manipulative Physiological Therapeutics in 1989 showed that there was a 94% satisfactory result in 316 cases of colic when the infant was treated with chiropractic care. The results occurred within two weeks and after an average of three chiropractic visits.1
Another study (retrospective uncontrolled questionnaire) in 1985 published in the European Journal of Chiropractic reported a 91% improvement in 132 infants with colic when treated with chiropractic care. The improvement occurred after an average of two to three adjustments and within one week of care.2
These, along with other studies throughout the years, have well documented the high satisfaction parents have found when taking their infant to the chiropractor. By scope of practice, you do not have to have a referral from your child’s pediatrician. To learn more about chiropractic care for children you can visit www.icpa4kids.com.
-by Dr. Brandon Crouch
About the Author: Dr. Brandon Crouch is a chiropractor with Crouch Family Chiropractic in Bowling Green, Kentucky. He has been providing chiropractic care to children in his family practice for 19 years and to his two boys since they were just a few hours old. Dr. Crouch is an advocate for being proactive when it comes to your health and encourages people to make healthy, informed decisions. For more information you can go online at: www.crouchfamilychiro.com.
Sources:
- Klougart N, Nilsson N and Jacobsen J, Infantile colic treated by chiropractors: a prospective study of 316 cases, J Manipulative Physiol Ther. 1989 Aug;12(4):281-8.
- Nilsson N, Infantile Colic and Chiropractic, Eur J Chiro 1985;33 (4):264-65.
- www.icpa4kids.com
