Colic is every new mother’s nightmare, as their babies incessantly whine and wail because of this. A condition regularly experienced by babies, colic is a fluctuating pain felt around the abdominal area. It is usually caused by intestinal gas, or when any form of obstruction is present in the intestines. Traditionally, colic would mean changing the milk formula that a baby takes, or asking a breastfeeding mom to take herbal supplements. Some products in the market also promise to keep newborns colic-free, such as nipples used on baby bottles. Basically, no clear remedy has been proven to be 100% effective, with different styles working on different sets of babies as well. Recent studies show however, that there might be a clearer and better option in easing and reducing the chances of your baby suffering from colic.
What are Probiotics?
Probiotics are live organisms that are said to help improve overall health and addresses specific problems suffered by some bodily functions. Our digestive system in particular, has a lot to gain with the help of probiotics. According to research, a lot of digestive disorders happen when the good kind of bacteria inside our intestines are disturbed. Yes, our intestines are actually home to over 500 different kinds of bacteria that keep our intestines clean and healthy and help the digestive process run smoothly. These bacteria lose their balance when we experience infections, or when we take antibiotics.
This is where probiotics come in. Probiotics help restore the balance inside our digestive system, helping our resident bacteria return to their daily routine. They are even capable in fighting against the bad bacteria that causes other stomach disorders such as diarrhea. Probiotics are also seen as effective in helping you maintain a strong immune system.
Probiotics and Your Baby
Because of the great benefits that probiotics has especially involving the digestive system, continuous research is done on how it can help babies get over their colic, which is considered to be a functional gastrointestinal disease. Testing the theory on over 500 infants, it has been proven that those who were administered with lactobacillus reuteri, a probiotic form, spent significantly less time crying and had more regular bowel movement compared to others. This means that the babies had improved digestive functions compared to those who were not administered with probiotics. These results show great promise, and continuous testing is done to further show just how much potential probiotics have in solving digestive problems for newborn and adults alike.