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Crying Baby, Sleepless Nights

Why Your Baby Is Crying and What You Can Do About It

Part Two

By Sandy Jones

, an adjective derived from kolon meaning the large intestine. We still don't know, however, whether belly pain is always or even usually the cause of crying in the many babies said to suffer from colic. Some parents assume their babies have bellyaches because they draw up their legs when they cry, but babies do this when they hurt in any part of the body. Besides, specialists believe babies can't localize pain -- that is, no matter where the hurt originates, babies feel it in the abdominal region. Still, when you can hear your baby's belly gurgling, and when she doesn't calm down until you lay her on your arm and massage her abdomen, you know your baby's crying has to do with her digestion.

If you have allergies, or if they run in your family or your spouse's, the best way to protect your baby is to feed him only breast milk for the first six months. You might also watch what you eat yourself. During pregnancy and the first year after birth, you might completely avoid common allergens that are not essential to your diet, such as chocolate, and take only moderate amounts of others, such as citrus. The key to a good breastfeeding diet -- to any diet, perhaps -- is moderation in everything. You might eat an orange for breakfast, for instance, instead of drinking a large glass of orange juice (which is equal to three or four oranges, but much lower in vitamins and fiber). You might have one chocolate instead of consuming the whole boxful, and eat only a small portion of beans, along with rice and meat, instead of a big bowlful of beans. You might change your protein sources frequently -- rotating among meats, nuts, lentils, and cheeses, for example -- since overeating one kind of food increases the chance of a reaction in your baby. Feed yourself as you will your growing child -- on whole, minimally processed foods, in variety.

Want to see more?

• Back to Part One here.

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