Why colic? Intestinal colic in adults and newborns - the essence of the phenomenon, symptoms, treatment, remedies for colic, massage, diet (foods that cause colic)

Infant colic is a very specific problem that occurs in most babies in the first weeks of life and goes away after about 3 months of age. The nature of the phenomenon, which is called infant colic, is still not known exactly, but it is worth distinguishing them from other problems with a small tummy - bloating, excessive gas formation, bowel dysfunction.

Modern pediatricians, led by WHO, claim that infant colic is not related to the mother’s diet and is a physiological process of restructuring the child’s body and adapting it to life outside the mother’s tummy. But bloating and increased gas formation may well be triggered by certain foods. How a mother’s nutrition during breastfeeding can affect problems with the baby’s tummy, says breastfeeding specialist and dairy blogger Nina Zaichenko.

By the way, if in the countries of the former CIS it is believed that in case of colic it is necessary to install a gas tube, then Western parents often put the baby in a car seat and roll it around until he calms down - in this way they influence the vestibular apparatus. There is a version, quite plausible, that colic problems are associated not with the tummy, but with the child’s brain.

How to recognize colic

You can distinguish colic from other childhood problems by characteristic signs:

Infantile colic begins 2-3 weeks after birth
Severe crying for no apparent reason, difficult to calm the child down
Crying attacks begin at about the same time, most often in the evening, and last from 10 to 30 minutes
While crying, the baby may pass gas, the stomach may be tense, and the baby’s legs may be pressed toward the tummy.
Gradually appear less often and disappear completely by 3-4 months

Does diet affect colic?

Mothers often refer to colic as problems with their baby’s tummy, such as bloating, flatulence, and others. The truth is that any discomfort, and even more so, painful sensations, causes a crying attack in the child - after all, this is still his only way of communication.

There are several versions of the effect of mother’s milk on children’s gastrointestinal tract, which in no case are a reason to stop feeding:

The child eats too much milk, and therefore the enzymes, which are still very few, do not have time to break down all the substances that reach them. This especially applies to the so-called “near milk”, which the baby receives as soon as he starts eating. It is less fatty, but richer in lactose (milk sugar), and the baby still has few enzymes to break it down. Expressing a little milk before feeding may help.
Mom eats something that causes increased gas formation in herself. As you know, substances from the mother’s blood enter milk, which means those that come with food. It is not for nothing that in the first couple of weeks after childbirth it is recommended to abstain from those foods that cause flatulence. Thus, a nursing mother’s diet should be adjusted based on her condition and individual characteristics of the absorption of certain foods.

Now listen to what lactation consultant Natalya Zaichenko says about this

Probably, most mothers of children under one year old have encountered problems such as colic, constipation or allergies in the baby. Often the mother has the thought that it is her fault: she ate, drank, did something wrong.

In this article we will try to understand how the mother’s diet affects the child’s condition, what foods can cause allergies, colic, constipation, and we will also suggest ways to combat these problems.

Colic and food allergies

It is important to understand that breast milk – The product is very complex in its composition. It combines hundreds of components, so concern may be caused by the newborn's digestive system adapting to life outside the womb.

To simplify the process of milk production, it is produced in the mammary glands from blood and plasma components. In general, the composition of milk does not depend on the mother’s nutrition, but some substances are able to penetrate into the blood and then – and into milk. Sometimes they can provoke allergies or digestive problems.

There is no universal product that, if included in the menu of a nursing woman, would lead to negative consequences for any child.

However, there are certain foods that are recommended to be excluded during breastfeeding or to reduce their consumption to a minimum, as they can be potential allergens and aggravate or provoke the appearance of abdominal pain, constipation, and skin rashes:

cow's milk;
eggs;
wheat (gluten);
Fish and seafood;
nuts (walnuts and peanuts);
chicken;

Vegetables, fruits and legumes are much less likely to cause a negative reaction in a child than sweets, chocolate, candies, cakes, pastries, fast food, pizza, rolls, carbonated drinks, and packaged juices.

Constipation

It is important to understand that If breastfed exclusively, the baby may not have bowel movements for up to 7 days. But this will be the norm only if the child does not receive any nutrition other than breast milk. If there is no additional water, pathologies of the digestive tract are excluded, the baby is gaining good height and weight, is active, nothing bothers him, his stomach does not hurt, and there is no bloating.

If the absence of stool is accompanied by anxiety, crying, refusal to eat, sleep disturbance, bloating, vomiting, and the feces are dense and defecation is difficult, then we are most likely talking about constipation.

The absence of stool and the child’s anxiety are reasons to consult a doctor. You should not self-medicate and prescribe laxatives on the advice of friends.

If the use of laxatives and enemas becomes a habit, this can cause problems with natural bowel movements - the smooth muscles of its walls will not be able to push food to the exit on their own.

This becomes especially important at the time of introducing complementary foods, when food already has a denser consistency compared to breast milk. The same effect can occur if you use the gas outlet tube too often.

Prevention of colic and constipation

Feeding on demand, alternating breasts (in one feeding).

Reduce consumption of potential allergens. You can try to exclude all possible allergens until the manifestations disappear (colic, constipation, rash), then begin to introduce products gradually according to the following scheme: 1 day in the morning we introduce a new product within a portion, observe the child’s reaction for a couple of days, if all is well, then introduce the next one product, again observing the reaction, etc.

Reducing the amount of foods containing large amounts of starch. They can cause constipation not only in the baby, but also in the mother. We recommend maintaining a varied diet, but reducing the consumption of the following foods should not cause any particular problems: potatoes, flour products, baked goods, white rice, jelly.

Consuming enough fiber. This will avoid problems with stool for both mother and baby. Products containing fiber: fresh vegetables, oatmeal, whole oatmeal, buckwheat, beets, prunes, etc.

If you have eliminated all potential allergens from your diet, and colic and constipation continue, you should consult a doctor for advice.

How should a mother eat if her child is really constipated?

First of all, you need to find out the reason. A pediatrician will help you do this. Constipation in a baby is not always associated with the mother’s diet. If, however, the reason is the mother’s unbalanced diet or the predominance of allergenic foods in the diet, then they should be excluded from the diet.

Contrary to popular belief that a nursing mother should exclude vegetables from her diet, this should not be done because this can cause bowel problems for both mother and baby. A sufficient amount of fiber in the diet of a nursing woman is a guarantee of successful digestion.

You should be careful with the introduction of vegetables into the diet if one of the parents has allergies, but, again, Having this problem in mom or dad does not guarantee that your child will also have it.

It is most optimal to introduce seasonal vegetables and fruits into the mother’s diet during breastfeeding (no more than one new product per day). So, for example, on Monday morning you can try eating stewed zucchini. During this day and the next, you observe the child's reaction. If there is no reaction, then you can eat zucchini and try introducing a new product.

Colic is a common occurrence for newborns. They begin when gas formation in the intestines increases, as a result of which its walls stretch and painful spasms occur, causing the baby’s natural reaction - crying.

Do all newborns have colic and how to avoid it?

Pediatricians say that colic does not occur in every baby, or that it often goes away almost unnoticed. However, most newborns still suffer from this problem. According to statistics, this is over 70% of healthy children.

Babies after a difficult birth and with an easily excitable nervous system are more prone to the problem.

Colic can occur several times a week or even every day - everything is very individual. As a rule, boys suffer from them much more often than girls, and the symptoms are much more difficult to tolerate.

This unpleasant phenomenon can be prevented using simple techniques:

Before feeding, you can place the baby on her stomach. After a while, you should turn him over on his back and give a gentle massage to his tummy. The simplest technique is to lightly stroke the palm clockwise. Then, to release the gas, the baby’s legs must be straightened and bent at the knees, pulling them towards the tummy.
You need to feed your baby properly. If he is breastfed, the mother needs to make sure that the baby holds the nipple tightly. This is necessary so that he does not swallow excess air while eating. If the newborn is bottle-fed, it is worth choosing the most comfortable nipple, reminiscent in shape of the mother's breast. .
When the baby eats, you need him to burp - to release the accumulated air. To do this, you need to hold the baby upright for 10 minutes. To make him feel calm, you can stroke his back.

Why do newborn babies have colic in the tummy?

The causes of colic are not exactly known. In some cases, they begin when the baby swallows air with the mother’s milk; in others, the reason may be the composition of the mother’s milk or improper preparation of the formula (insufficient or excessive dilution).

Many pediatricians are inclined to believe that the main cause of colic is the immaturity of the newborn’s digestive system and the enzyme systems of the gastrointestinal tract, which can occur in both premature babies and those born at term. While in the mother's womb, the baby's stomach is not involved, since nutrition enters through the umbilical cord directly into the blood. When a baby is born, he begins to feed on mother's milk, which forces the digestive system to work, which sometimes needs some more time to fully function. As a result, colic often occurs.

Along with the above, there are other reasons:

prematurity;
intrauterine fetal weight deficiency;
difficult, lengthy labor that caused disruption of the blood supply to the brain;
infections during early neonatal period;
violation of the regulatory action of the autonomic nervous system on the gastrointestinal tract;
transition to artificial feeding in the first months of life.

In some cases, colic may also indicate diseases:

Allergy to cow's milk protein (CMPA). This disease is often confused with cow's milk intolerance, which is temporary and not related to the baby's immune system. Along with abdominal pain, patients with ABCM experience poor sleep, red rashes, and a stuffy nose.
Hypolactasia (primary). This is a rather rare hereditary disease, which is often confused with secondary lactase deficiency, which is temporary. Symptoms of this disease include bloating, loose stools, excessive regurgitation and weight loss, etc.
. Sometimes colic may indicate an imbalance between pathogenic and healthy microflora. This phenomenon, to a certain extent, is normal for a newborn, the formation of intestinal microflora is just beginning, but in severe cases it requires intervention. As a result of the development of pathogenic microorganisms, there can be not only colic, but also loss of appetite, slow weight gain, and diarrhea. They are used to treat dysbiosis.

Important! Only a doctor after a thorough examination can determine the true cause of colic.

When does colic begin and go away in a newborn baby?

This unpleasant phenomenon does not occur on the first day of life. It appears at 2 - 6 months, in some infants from 4 - 5 weeks. In babies born prematurely, colic may start later and last longer. However, the duration depends on the baby’s body and how quickly he adapts to the new conditions. As a rule, colic ends in most children by 6 months.

The intensity and frequency of colic also varies. Some people are lucky and the baby feels them only a few times. Other children suffer almost every day.

In this case, parents cannot speed up the adaptation process. You can only alleviate unpleasant manifestations. The main thing is not to ignore the problem, otherwise prolonged crying of the child can lead to divergence of the abdominal muscles and the formation of a hernia, which will be much more difficult to treat.

Why does colic most often occur in the evening and at night?

In the evening, tired parents usually want to rest, but for the baby this is the most anxious time. If the cause of colic lies in a violation of the regulatory action of the autonomic nervous system on the gastrointestinal tract, then it is in the evening at 18:00 to 23:00 that colic will occur. In this case, there is practically no flatulence or it is not pronounced, and the passage of gas does not provide obvious relief.

It is very important to distinguish colic from hypertonicity of the muscles of the newborn, the manifestations of which are also observed in the evening and are similar in appearance to colic. If you have any suspicion, you should contact your pediatrician.

Video by Dr. Komarovsky about the causes of colic

Can colic occur in the morning or during the day?

If a baby has colic due to the accumulation of gases in the intestines, then they can even occur during the day or in the morning. At the same time, the child grunts and strains, and when the gas passes, he experiences relief.

Foods that cause colic and gas in newborns

Many people exaggerate the role of mother's food in the occurrence of colic and advise following a strict diet. Such precautions are in some sense justified only in the first three months of breastfeeding.

Further, most lactation consultants advise that if the baby becomes restless, simply temporarily eliminate suspicious foods for one to two weeks, and then try to return to them again. But this must be done very carefully in order to understand how the child’s body reacts to a particular product.

From here http://mama.ru/club/health/207/73843/

"Anastasia

I changed my diet - and it all ended very quickly. I am sending you my story.

When your tummy hurts...

Most mothers remember the time of infant colic as a complete nightmare. I admit, I also had a fair amount of trouble until I finally figured out at random what could be done. My friends didn't have any problems afterwards. I think that my observations may still be useful to someone... It all started, as expected, at 3 weeks. The usually calmly sleeping child screamed until he was hoarse, writhed and simply brought me to paralysis - I did not know where to run and who to ask what was happening to my best and calmest baby. Neither dill water nor the massage around the navel recommended by all the smart books helped - nothing! The week flew by in some kind of frenzy. The doctor finally came and asked me what I was eating. And then it began... It turns out that all the foods that I loved so much, from now on and for three months in advance, I can’t eat!!! For me, who loves delicious food so much, this was not just a blow... And, of course, it was impossible to eat my favorite thing. But it did not help. And then I started experimenting. I removed some product from my diet and tremblingly prepared for the evening watch. It didn’t help for a long time, but I perfectly learned to dance with a child in my arms, watch TV and talk with guests on the go, do laundry and cook dinner with my daughter in a backpack, where she kept warm and calmed down. Apparently, our case was especially difficult, because when my beloved child finally calmed down, it was easier to list what he could eat than what he couldn’t. My entire diet boiled down to boiled sea fish with herbs, lean soup, chicken breast, milk and buckwheat porridge. And no fruits (this is in the month of August)! My attempt to break the fruit taboo resulted in screaming and a rash that did not go away for a month and a half. Of course, all the guests arrived right then, and with hidden horror they admired the leopard-green face of my beloved daughter, nodding with difficulty to my question: she’s so cute, isn’t she? But after a week the colic stopped, and for a month and a half until three we lived calmly. But my friends didn’t have such problems at all; on the contrary, they started with a severely reduced menu and gradually introduced new products, observing the reaction within two or three days. If everything was quiet and calm, it firmly took its place.

First of all, no melons! Cucumbers, melons, watermelons - all this leads to colic, and often to diathesis, since they are usually stuffed with all sorts of chemical rubbish (unless, of course, they are grown in their own beloved beds). Of course, you cannot abuse everything that is obtained as a result of the fermentation process: kefir, sauerkraut, fermented baked milk; in addition - any canned food, including homemade, mayonnaise and anything that contains vinegar. Be careful with bread; it’s better to avoid rye bread altogether; even adults sometimes get stomach ache from it, let alone kids! The same goes for legumes and pearl barley. You should also be more careful with fruits and berries - in particular, with apples and crops that do not belong to our climate zone - you should not get carried away with any exotic things; it is better to eat cherries than sweet cherries, provided, of course, that an hour after you eat the berry for testing your baby will not be covered from head to toe. But the fact that the baby did not react in any way to the innovation does not mean that now it can be eaten in kilograms. I also heard advice that all “red” foods can lead to diathesis and stomach upset - carrots, strawberries (well, everything is clear with them), tomatoes, and so on. I can’t say anything from my own experience, but our reaction to carrots was normal, apparently, this is a purely individual thing, and besides, carrots enhance lactation. Of course, everything that contains preservatives and stabilizers, everything that is hidden under the E symbol with numbers, is absolutely prohibited, because the human body cannot break them down and, accordingly, remove them. These substances - so-called "xenobiotics" - accumulate in the liver and kidneys and are released into milk, which can lead to severe allergies. So it’s better to forget about sausages, sausages, smoked meats and lemonades (and other soda) for a while.

Remember, everything you eat goes into your baby! In fact, everything is much more fun than I wrote. After all, there are still natural products left - milk, lean meat and fresh fish, any porridge (by the way, dark ones are better - buckwheat, oatmeal, millet), potatoes, poultry, butter, milk, cottage cheese - in general, truly healthy products!

In addition, water has an absolutely magical effect - you run a warm bath and, placing the baby’s belly in the palm of your hand, splash him there until the water relaxes the abdominal muscles (this usually takes about half an hour of standing crookedly over the bathtub or lying in it with the little one on your own stomach ). The “pilot” or “Carlson” poses also help - the baby “flies” around the house, lying with his stomach on your clasped palms. Do not forget also that there are herbs that will brighten up your peak moments a little - these are dill water (1 teaspoon per glass of water), fennel tea and special teas for infants. And a good diet will ensure that your baby’s intestines stabilize before 3 months and your evening vigils will be a thing of the past!”

The site provides reference information for informational purposes only. Diagnosis and treatment of diseases must be carried out under the supervision of a specialist. All drugs have contraindications. Consultation with a specialist is required!

Intestinal colic- this is a sharp cramping abdominal pain, occurring in the navel area or in the lower abdominal cavity. The pain is intense, cramping in nature, when painful attacks are replaced by periods of rest. The duration of the pain itself is usually short - from a few seconds to a minute, but the number and frequency of attacks can vary. Intestinal colic is a symptom of many diseases of the intestines or other organs of the digestive tract.

The essence of intestinal colic and the mechanism of its development

Any colic is a sudden cramping pain in the abdomen. Accordingly, intestinal colic is an attack of sudden cramping pain in the abdomen caused by dysfunction or damage to the intestines.

Currently, there are two main types of intestinal colic - pathological and infantile. Pathological colic is always a sign of intestinal dysfunction, and can develop in adults or children from the age of eight months, regardless of gender. Infantile colic occurs only in infants aged three weeks to six months, and is not a pathology. Thus, when talking about intestinal colic, one should always distinguish whether we are talking about pathology or the infant norm.

Infantile colic is not a disease or a symptom of any pathology, but is a feature of the normal functioning of the body at an early age. Colic in infants is not dangerous because it is not a symptom of the disease and does not lead to the development of any pathology. Currently, the causes of infant colic have not been established, but according to statistics, they develop in 30–70% of all children aged 3 weeks to six months. Presumably, colic is caused by the immaturity of the nervous system and the digestive tract, which during this period is still just setting up its work, “learning” to digest food coming through the mouth, and not through the umbilical cord, as was the case during prenatal development. Infant colic goes away on its own and without a trace without any treatment by the age of 3 – 6 months.

Both infantile and pathological colic are alternating attacks of pain with light intervals. Pain with intestinal colic is usually localized in the navel or lower abdomen, most often on the left side. Attacks of pain occur sharply, unexpectedly, suddenly, without connection with any factors. The pain is usually strong, sharp, forcing a person to take a forced position and wrap his arms around his stomach. The painful sensation usually does not last long - from a few seconds to a minute, after which a light interval occurs. The frequency of pain episodes and their number during one attack of colic may vary. That is, with intestinal colic, a person may suffer from frequent attacks of pain that occur every 5 minutes and last for several hours in total, or experience pain once every half hour.

Pathological colic begins suddenly, usually after eating or before the urge to defecate. The duration of the attack can vary - from several minutes to hours. If you do not take antispasmodic drugs, then an attack of colic usually ends on its own as suddenly as it began. Colic can bother a person at any time, but more often it happens in the evening hours.

Infant colic stops as suddenly as it starts, and does so without any treatment or intervention. As a rule, colic in infants lasts 2–3 hours, less often up to 6 hours, and always begins at approximately the same time. For example, in one child colic may begin at 18-00 and end at 20-00, and in another from 20-00 to 22-00, etc. Infant colic may affect your baby daily or only occasionally. However, with episodic colic, they occur at least 2 to 3 days a week. During an attack of colic, nothing helps the baby; he cries or screams angrily until the painful sensation passes. It is impossible to calm the baby down, since neither rocking, nor feeding, nor other methods help to stop his crying, which parents simply need to endure. As soon as the colic ends, the baby begins to smile and stops crying.

The mechanism of development of both infantile and pathological colic includes a strong effect on the intestinal wall and the nerve endings located in its mesentery. This impact may include the following factors:

Distension of the intestine with expansion of its lumen, as a result of which the organ begins to compress the nerve endings of the abdominal cavity (for example, with bloating, flatulence, overeating, etc.);
Intestinal spasm with a sharp narrowing of its lumen, as a result of which the food bolus cannot move normally (for example, under stress or severe anxiety, consumption of stale, poor-quality or exotic food, gastritis, gastric or duodenal ulcers, helminthiasis, etc.);
Irritation of muscles and nerve endings located in the intestinal wall (for example, in case of poisoning, intestinal infections, influenza and ARVI);
Impaired intestinal motility, as a result of which the intestine either contracts too strongly and painfully, or, on the contrary, is practically paralyzed (for example, with irritable bowel syndrome, enteritis, etc.);
Obstacle to the advancement of the food bolus present in the intestinal lumen (for example, tumor, polyp, obstruction, diverticulum, adhesions after surgery or inflammation, etc.).

Regardless of the specific mechanism of development, intestinal colic is always an acute, sharp, cramping pain in the abdomen, which gives a person discomfort.

Treatment of infant colic is not carried out, because, firstly, there are currently no medications that effectively eliminate this condition, and secondly, this phenomenon is not dangerous and does not harm the baby. Despite the lack of medications that can relieve colic in infants, various means to combat this phenomenon are widely used in everyday life, since parents believe that “something must be done, because the child is not feeling well.” However, all drugs and devices used to eliminate colic (dill water, Espumisan, Disflatil, Lactase-baby, gas tube, etc.) simply reassure parents who feel psychological satisfaction from trying to help the baby, but in no way stop colic. By the age of 3 – 6 months, the infant’s colic goes away on its own, and the parents believe that finally some drug given to the baby last helped relieve him of the discomfort. In reality, infant colic does not need to be treated - you just need to endure this period, not paying attention to the baby’s angry crying.

Pathological colic is treated with various symptomatic drugs that relieve spasms, for example, Spasmomen, No-Shpa, Buscopan, etc. But these drugs only eliminate abdominal pain and do not affect the causes of its occurrence. Therefore, antispasmodic drugs are only symptomatic, which can and should be used to relieve pain, but at the same time, a thorough examination must be carried out in order to identify the cause of colic and begin therapy for this underlying disease.

Causes

Causes of pathological intestinal colic

The following diseases and conditions may be the causes of pathological intestinal colic in children over 8 months of age and adults:

Gastritis;
Peptic ulcer of the stomach or duodenum;
Enterocolitis (inflammation of the small and large intestines);
Pancreatitis;
Hepatitis and other liver diseases;
Acute appendicitis ;
Intestinal infections (cholera, dysentery, salmonellosis);
Food toxic infections (botulism, staphylococcal poisoning, escherichiosis, etc.);
Poisoning by mushrooms or plant poisons (for example, when consuming green potato tubers, berry seeds, etc.);
Poisoning by products of animal origin (meat of poisonous fish, honey from poisonous plants, etc.);
Poisoning by various chemicals and industrial poisons (for example, pesticides, nitrates, etc.);
Poisoning with salts of heavy metals;
Helminthiases (ascariasis, giardiasis, opisthorchiasis, enterobiasis);
Systemic viral infections (influenza, ARVI, parainfluenza, etc.);
Intestinal obstruction caused by the closure of its lumen by a tumor, fecal or gallstones, bezoars (clumps of hair or plant fibers), clumps of helminths or foreign bodies;
Adhesions in the abdominal cavity formed after surgery, peritonitis, radiation therapy or infectious diseases of the pelvic or abdominal organs;
Sedentary lifestyle;
Stress or severe nervous tension (this factor, as a rule, causes colic in impressionable and emotionally sensitive people);
Errors in the diet, such as irregular meals, eating “dry” or “on the go”, overeating, consuming large quantities of yeast dough products, fermented milk and fermented dishes, as well as stale, low-quality products and too cold, hot, smoked, spicy foods or exotic food.

Causes of infant colic

The causes of infant colic are currently not known for certain. But scientists and doctors suggest that the following factors are possible causes of infant colic:

Immaturity of the central nervous system of a child of the first year of life;
Immaturity of the intestine, which does not completely digest the food that enters it, as a result of which gas formation and peristalsis increase;
Accumulation of gases in the intestines;
Lactase deficiency in a child;
Deficiency of digestive system enzymes in a child;
Deficiency of hormone-like substances that regulate the functioning of the digestive tract (gastrin, secretin, cholecystokinin);
Lack of stable and mature intestinal microflora;
Swallowing air due to improper feeding technique, greedy sucking or sucking on an empty nipple;
Allergic reaction to infant formula;
Increased anxiety of a nursing mother;
Maternal smoking during pregnancy.

Symptoms

Symptoms of pathological intestinal colic in adults

The only symptom of intestinal colic is a sharp, severe cramping pain in the abdomen. The pain can be localized throughout the abdomen or in its individual areas, most often in the navel area or in the lower left segment near the iliac wing. Pain during intestinal colic can spread to the lower back, groin, genitals or diaphragm area.

With colic, the pain is usually not constant, it occurs in episodic attacks. Such painful attacks are always unexpected, sudden and very strong in severity. An attack of pain can last for a varying period of time - from a few seconds to 1 - 2 minutes, after which a light interval occurs. The duration of light intervals between attacks of pain can also vary - from several minutes to half an hour. The total duration of intestinal colic, when attacks of pain alternate with light intervals, is also variable - from half an hour to 10 - 12 hours.

Against the background of a painful attack of colic, a person tries to find a position in which the pain is not so strong, but this fails. As a result, a person simply instinctively clasps his stomach with his hands and tries to press himself against his legs bent at the knees. During pain, the abdominal wall is tense, and attempts to palpate the intestines and other internal organs are sharply painful. After colic has passed, the person is exhausted, apathetic and indifferent to others.

Intestinal colic goes away as suddenly as it appears. In some cases, colic ends with defecation, and in this situation relief occurs after bowel movement.

As a rule, colic occurs suddenly, against the background of complete health and completely satisfactory health. The onset of colic can be triggered by a heavy meal, stress, emotional stress or physical activity. Most often, colic develops in the evening hours, although it can appear at any time of the day.

Intestinal colic always leads to disruption of gas formation and defecation, as a result of which, some time after the onset of pain or simultaneously with it, a person develops bloating, flatulence (increased gas formation), as well as nausea and vomiting. Nausea and vomiting appear only at the peak of abdominal pain, and during the rest of the colic period these symptoms are absent. Flatulence and bloating appear either simultaneously with colic or some time after its onset. A characteristic feature of flatulence and bloating is that they persist for some period of time after the end of the intestinal colic itself.

Intestinal colic can be combined with other symptoms inherent in a particular disease or condition that caused its development. For example, with gastritis, intestinal colic is combined with nausea and vomiting, heartburn, sour belching, with pancreatitis - with girdle pain throughout the abdomen, diarrhea, uncontrollable vomiting, with intestinal infections - with elevated body temperature and diarrhea. In a stressful situation, intestinal colic is combined with anxiety, rapid heart rate, high blood pressure, etc.

Symptoms of intestinal colic in women

Symptoms of intestinal colic in women are no different from the pathological colic described above, which can occur in any adult, regardless of gender.

Symptoms of intestinal colic in children

In children over 8 months of age Only pathological colic can develop. Moreover, their symptoms are the same as those of adults, with the exception of the localization of sensations. Pain in children almost always localized in the navel area or spread throughout the abdomen. Otherwise, there are no differences from adults in the symptoms of pathological colic in children over 8 months old.

In children younger than 8 months but older than 3 weeks so-called infant colic develops, which is a variant of the norm for them. The symptoms of such colic are described in detail in the subsection below.

Thus, when talking about the symptoms of intestinal colic in children, you must first determine the age of the baby. If he is older than 8 months, he will have symptoms of pathological colic. If the child is younger than 8 months, he will have symptoms of infant colic.

Symptoms of infant colic

Since the newborn cannot speak yet, he cannot say that his stomach hurts, so the only symptom of infant colic is certain behavior of the baby.

Firstly, you need to know that colic can only affect children from the age of 3 weeks to 6 - 8 months. Before three weeks and after 8 months, infants do not experience harmless colic. If a child older than 8 months has a stomach ache, then we are no longer talking about infant colic, but about pathological colic, and in this case you need to call a doctor to diagnose the disease. Therefore, you need to remember that infant colic can and should be diagnosed only in children 3 weeks - 8 months.

Secondly, it should be remembered that colic in newborns usually occurs in the evening, some time after eating or during feeding. Moreover, as a rule, colic in children occurs at the same time of day and has the same duration on different days. For example, a baby’s colic begins at 20-00 and lasts for 2 hours, and this means that every day or every other day from 20-00 to 22-00 he will scream and cry for no reason, suffering from colic.

Infant colic lasts from half an hour to 3 hours (occasionally up to 6 hours), appears at least three times a week and lasts for at least three weeks in total.

When colic develops, the child begins to cry for no reason, twists his legs and tries to press them to his stomach. Any attempts to calm the child down are unsuccessful; he continues to scream and cry, no matter what the parents do (carry him in their arms, roll him in a stroller, rock him in a crib). In this case, the child has no objective reasons for crying - he is not hungry (no more than 3 hours have passed since the last feeding), his diaper or diapers are dry, his body temperature is normal, there are no signs of illness (the throat is not red, the nose is not stuffy, the ear does not hurt, etc.), the room is cool (20 - 24 o C). The only objective symptoms associated with infant colic are a swollen abdomen, a tense anterior abdominal wall and a red face.

The child cries and cannot be calmed by any means until the colic goes away. After this, the baby smiles, becomes happy and calm, in other words, returns to his normal state.

Thus, we can say that the main symptom of colic in a baby is causeless crying, when there are no objective reasons for concern (wet diaper, hunger, cold, fever, etc.), which lasts from half an hour to 3 – 6 hours continuously. At the same time, it is not possible to calm the baby in any way. Therefore, if parents heard the child crying, but did not find objective reasons for this behavior and attempts to calm the child within 15 minutes were unsuccessful, then we are talking about infant colic.

An additional criterion for intestinal colic in infants is good appetite, normal weight gain and development in accordance with age. That is, if a child screams for no reason at least three times a week for some time, and it is not possible to calm him down, but otherwise develops well and gains weight, then he is bothered by intestinal colic and does not suffer from any disease.

Combination of pathological colic with other symptoms

Since intestinal colic itself is a symptom of any disease or condition, it is often combined with other pathological manifestations. Let's consider the most common combinations of intestinal colic with some other pathological symptoms.

Intestinal colic and bloating. Bloating very often accompanies intestinal colic, regardless of the causes of the latter. The fact is that with intestinal colic, the movement of the food bolus through the intestine is disrupted, as a result of which, on the one hand, the process of increased gas formation begins, and on the other, certain parts of the intestine swell from excess contents and gases.

Intestinal colic and flatulence. Flatulence almost always accompanies intestinal colic, regardless of what disease provoked its development. This is due to the fact that with colic, the process of normal digestion of food is disrupted, as well as the passage of the food bolus through the intestine, as a result of which excessive formation of gases begins. Therefore, we can say that flatulence and intestinal colic are related to each other, with the second provoking the first.

Intestinal colic and nausea. Nausea can occur with intestinal colic of any origin at the height of pain. In this case, the nausea is short-term, not accompanied by vomiting and quickly passes after the intensity of the pain decreases. Sometimes nausea, which appears at the peak of pain during intestinal colic, can be accompanied by a single vomiting.

In addition, nausea accompanies intestinal colic if it is caused by a disease characterized by nausea and vomiting, for example, gastritis, hepatitis, cholecystitis, pancreatitis, intestinal infection, poisoning or intestinal obstruction.

Intestinal colic and diarrhea. As a rule, intestinal colic is combined with diarrhea due to intestinal infections and various poisonings, when the body tries to get rid of toxic substances that caused spastic contractions of the intestine and intoxication. In such situations, diarrhea occurs repeatedly.

In more rare cases, intestinal colic may result in a single episode of loose stool in the absence of poisoning or infection. In such situations, diarrhea is provoked by colic itself, as a result of which the intestinal contents are not digested properly, but quickly enter the large intestine, from where they are excreted in a liquid consistency.

Intestinal colic in adults

In adults, intestinal colic is only pathological, and is observed in stressful situations or against the background of various diseases of the digestive tract. In general, colic is not dangerous for an adult, since it goes away on its own and does not entail any serious disturbances in the functioning of the digestive tract. But when colic occurs, it is necessary to remember that the disease that caused the appearance of this symptom may pose a potential danger. Dangerous are colic, combined with vomiting and increasing over time. Other types of intestinal colic are usually harmless and go away on their own after some time.

Treatment of intestinal colic should be comprehensive, aimed primarily at eliminating the causative factor. The colic itself, until the underlying disease has been cured or the cause eliminated, can be treated with antispasmodics so as not to suffer from excruciating pain.

Intestinal colic as a result of gas formation: what foods lead to bloating, what to do with increased gas formation, recommendations from a nutritionist - video

Intestinal colic during pregnancy

Intestinal colic in pregnant women occurs quite often, and although in essence they are classified as pathological, in the vast majority of cases they are not dangerous for either the woman or the fetus, since they are caused by the peculiarities of the intestines during the period of bearing a child. The fact is that during pregnancy, a woman’s body produces a large amount of progesterone, which affects the functioning of the intestines and provokes periodic strong contractions of its wall. And the consequence of such strong contractions is the development of colic. But since colic is caused by the peculiarities of the hormonal balance of a woman’s body, it is not dangerous and does not cause harm.

Intestinal colic during pregnancy can be quite frequent, but always short-lived. After a short painful attack, a clear interval always sets in, and no other symptoms of any pathology appear. Intestinal colic does not increase the tone of the uterus and does not increase the risk of miscarriage or premature birth, and also does not provoke fetal hypoxia. That is why intestinal colic during pregnancy is considered a completely normal phenomenon that does not require treatment. However, if colic is poorly tolerated, then pregnant women can take No-shpa or Papaverine to relieve it. But it is better to avoid taking medications, and to relieve abdominal pain, take a comfortable position and relax.

Safe intestinal colic must be distinguished from pain syndrome, which is a danger signal for a pregnant woman. If intestinal colic or any abdominal pain in a pregnant woman is not accompanied by bloody discharge from the genital tract, increased body temperature, deterioration in general health or severe dizziness, then it is not dangerous. If pain is accompanied by any of these symptoms, then it is a dangerous sign, and in such a situation you should immediately call a doctor.

Intestinal colic in children

Children older than 8 months develop only pathological intestinal colic, and babies younger than 8 months develop infantile colic. Pathological colic is a symptom of a disease, and therefore its appearance requires examination of the child in order to identify pathology and subsequent treatment. Infant colic is a normal variant, and therefore, if it is present, there is no need to examine the baby or apply any therapy.

Pathological colic in children occurs more often than in adults, which is due to the lower resistance of their digestive tract to various negative influences, including unusual or low-quality food. Therefore, the digestive tract of children, more often than that of adults, reacts to unusual, irritating dishes (carbonated water, onions, garlic, etc.) or low-quality food products (products made from yeast dough, too salty or spicy dishes, etc.) with the development of symptoms poisoning or functional digestive disorders. Therefore, children more often develop intestinal colic precisely because of dietary factors, and not against the background of diseases of the gastrointestinal tract.

Since the most common cause of intestinal colic in children is food, this symptom, as a rule, is not a signal of any serious diseases of the internal organs. As a result, pathological intestinal colic in children, as a rule, needs to be treated and eliminated as food poisoning or overeating.

In general, there are no differences in the course and approaches to the treatment of pathological intestinal colic in children and adults. The main difference between colic in children and those in adults is that in children, the causative factor of the symptom is much more often errors in diet, intolerance to any type of food or poisoning, rather than diseases of the digestive tract.

Intestinal colic in newborns

General characteristics of the phenomenon

Colic in newborn babies is called infant colic because it occurs between the ages of three weeks and eight months. Infant colic does not occur earlier than three weeks and later than eight months of age. And if a child older than 8 months develops colic, then it is pathological, not infantile, and indicates the presence of some disease or digestive disorder. Thus, when talking about colic in newborns, we mean infant colic.

Infant colic is a normal feature of the digestive tract in children and does not harm the baby. According to statistics, colic occurs in 30–70% of newborns in various countries.

Colic in newborns can appear from three weeks of age, and in the vast majority of cases goes away on its own by three months. In rare cases, colic continues until the age of 6 – 8 months.

It is quite easy to identify infant colic because it always meets the following characteristics:

Appear between 3 weeks and 8 months of age;
Occurs at least three times a week or daily;
They always start and end at the same time of day;
Most often develop in the evening hours;
Continues for at least three consecutive weeks;
Develop either during eating or some time after feeding;
Begin and end suddenly, against the background of complete health;
During colic, the child screams, cries, twists his legs, tries to pull them to his stomach;
During colic, a child’s belly is tense, swollen, and passes gas;
There are no objective reasons for crying (the child is not hungry, his diaper or diaper is dry, the temperature in the room is comfortable, there are no signs of any disease - that is, the throat is not red, there is no runny nose, etc.);
Attempts to calm the child by any means do not have an effect; he still cries and screams until the colic ends;
After the colic ends, the child calms down on his own, begins to smile and behave in a normal, familiar way.

Thus, if a baby has no objective reasons for crying, but he persistently screams at least three times a week at the same time, and it is not possible to calm him down by any means, and at the same time he develops normally and gains weight - then this is an infantile condition. colic.

The appearance of colic is a normal feature of children in the first year of life; they do not require treatment, are not dangerous for the baby and do not disrupt its development.

What causes colic in newborns?

Unfortunately, the exact causes of infant colic are not known. However, based on many years of observations, it was found that colic is most often provoked by the following factors:

Accumulation of gases in the intestines;
Overeating (the child eats too much food for him, which he is not able to digest);
Overheating (the child is in a too hot room with dry air);
Lactase deficiency in a child;
Swallowing air due to improper feeding technique, greedy sucking or sucking on an empty nipple;
Allergic reaction to infant formula;
Excessively emotional reaction of the mother to the crying of the child;
Increased anxiety of a nursing mother;
Maternal smoking during pregnancy.

Symptoms of colic in newborns

Infantile colic is manifested by persistent crying and screaming of the child, which begins and ends at the same time of day, appearing at least three times a week. It is impossible to calm him down by any means, although there are no objective reasons for screaming (the baby is not sick, his diapers are dry, he is not hungry, his throat is not red, there is no runny nose, etc.). Screaming and crying begin and end suddenly, and this happens by the hour, since colic goes away at the same time of day. That is, the baby, at least three times a week or more often, begins to cry and scream against the background of complete health for a strictly defined, identical period of time.

During colic, the baby's stomach is tense, he twists his legs, tries to pull them towards his tummy, and he may pass gas. The passage of gas usually brings relief, but the baby does not stop crying until the colic ends.

Unfortunately, there are currently no effective methods and medications for relieving colic in newborns, and numerous drugs used for this purpose only reassure parents, but do not bring relief to the baby. Since colic is not dangerous and does not harm the development of the child, then, in principle, there is no need to treat it. Experienced pediatricians and scientists recommend that parents simply endure the period of colic in the baby - they will go away on their own by three, or maximum by 6-8 months.

At the time of colic, pediatricians advise holding the baby in your arms or trying to soothe him in other ways for 15 minutes. If the child has not calmed down in 15 minutes, and he has no objective reasons for crying, then it is recommended to simply put him in the crib and let him scream. To relieve pain and provide emotional contact with parents, you can massage the tummy.

If the nervous system of the mother or father cannot withstand the child’s crying, then You can try to alleviate the baby’s suffering with the following safe but ineffective means:

Dill water;
Preparations based on simethicone (Espumizan, Disflatil, etc.);
Enterosorbents (Smecta, Enterosgel).

In principle, attempts to give the baby medicine for colic bring relief and reassurance only to parents who feel that they have not abandoned the child and are trying to help him in every possible way. But we must remember that there is currently no truly effective cure for colic in infants.

Intestinal colic - treatment

Treatment in adults

Since intestinal colic in adults is most often a symptom of some disease, for its effective treatment it is necessary to undergo an examination in order to identify the pathology that caused the colic, and to treat this particular disease.

Considering that intestinal colic can be a symptom of a serious disease that requires urgent surgical intervention (for example, intestinal obstruction), then when it develops for the first time, it is necessary to immediately call an ambulance, and until the medical team arrives, do not take any medications or apply a heating pad to the abdomen and do not carry out any actions aimed at reducing the intensity of pain, as this may blur the overall picture and lead to incorrect diagnosis.

If colic does not occur for the first time, and its cause is precisely known, then symptomatic treatment can be carried out aimed at relieving the pain syndrome. For symptomatic treatment of intestinal colic, use either a warm heating pad on the abdominal area or various antispasmodic drugs that can relieve spastic pain:

Preparations of drotaverine hydrochloride (No-Shpa, Drotaverine);
Papaverine preparations (Papaverine, etc.);

If colic occurs in combination with diarrhea, then to relieve it it is recommended to take enterosorbents, such as Smecta, Enterosgel, Polyphepan, Polysorb, Filtrum, etc.

If colic is combined with flatulence and bloating, then to relieve it it is recommended to take antispasmodics simultaneously with drugs containing simethicone (Espumizan, Disflatil, etc.), which reduce gas formation in the intestines. In addition, in case of colic with flatulence and bloating, it is necessary to refuse food for 12 hours, and then follow a diet in which foods that promote gas formation (peas, beans, lentils, corn, cabbage, etc.) are excluded from the diet.

Treatment of intestinal colic in children

Pathological intestinal colic in children is treated according to the same principles and with the same medications as in adults. Infantile colic does not need to be treated, since this condition is a normal variant and not a pathology.

Remedy (medicine) for intestinal colic

Currently, the following medications are used to relieve intestinal colic:

1. Pain relief medications:

Preparations of drotaverine hydrochloride (Bioshpa, No-Shpa, Nosh-Bra, Ple-Spa, Spazmol, Spazmonet, Spazoverin, Spakovin, Drotaverin);
Papaverine preparations (Papaverine);
Preparations containing belladonna extract (Becarbon, Bellalgin, Besalol);
Preparations containing hyoscine butyl bromide (Buscopan).

2. Medicines to reduce gas formation and eliminate flatulence and bloating:

Products with simethicone (Espumizan, Disflatil, Sab simplex, Bobotik, Antiflat Lannacher).

3. Medicines to relieve diarrhea:

Enterosorbents (Smecta, Laktofiltrum, Polysorb, Polyphepan, Filtrum, Enterosgel, etc.).

Treatment of colic in newborns

General principles of treatment of colic in infants

Since, firstly, infant colic is not dangerous for the child and does not harm him, and secondly, there is currently no effective means for stopping it, experienced pediatricians recommend not treating colic in newborns, but simply endure it until they will not pass. However, if parents still want to try to somehow help the baby tolerate colic more easily, then The following medications and non-drug methods can be used:

Products containing simethicone that reduce gas formation (Espumizan, Disflatil, Sab Simplex, Bobotik, Antiflat Lannacher);
Products containing lactase, which promote better absorption of food (Lactase-baby);
Massage the tummy with your fingers;
Warm heating pad on the stomach;
Holding a baby in a prone position on an adult's hand.

It is best to use non-drug methods to combat colic (abdominal massage, a warm heating pad, or holding the baby on the tummy in an adult’s hand), which are guaranteed not to cause any harm to the baby. However, if parents feel uneasy until they try to alleviate the child’s suffering with medication, then they can give the baby dill water, a product with simethicone or lactase, which are also harmless, but can still create additional stress on the child’s internal organs due to the need to remove them from the body. Among medications, according to reviews and observations of parents, Lactase-baby is the most effective in relieving colic, since it helps the baby to better absorb food and, thereby, eliminates the provoking factor of colic.

Anti-colic heating pad for newborns

A warm heating pad placed on the baby's tummy relieves the painful spasms of colic and helps him to cope with this condition more easily. The heating pad should be placed on the stomach when colic begins, and not beforehand - this will not help prevent the appearance of abdominal pain.

For a child, a heating pad should be warm, not hot, so it is very important to choose the right temperature. The optimal temperature of a heating pad is determined as follows: an adult’s wrist is applied to it, and if the skin does not burn, but only feels pleasantly warm for a minute, then this temperature is ideal for a baby. Having set the optimal temperature, you need to wrap the heating pad in a diaper, place it on your own lap and lay the baby on it with his tummy so that his back is on top. You need to hold the baby in this position for 15 to 30 minutes, then transfer him to the crib, and if necessary, after half an hour, put his tummy back on the heating pad.

Applying a heating pad to the stomach of a baby lying on his back is useless, since he will throw it off with active movements of his legs in a few minutes, and attempts to hold it will only lead to increased screaming and crying.

Massage

Massaging the tummy during colic helps relieve the baby’s suffering, and this happens not so much by reducing the intensity of pain, but by emotional and tactile contact between the baby and the adults who love him. Massage can be done at any time, including during colic. In this case, the duration of one massage approach should be 3–7 minutes, after which a break is taken for 10–15 minutes, after which you can start the massage again.

A tummy massage for a newborn is done as follows: the child is placed on his back on his own knees so that his head is at the level of his kneecaps and his legs are thrown back onto the adult’s stomach. The head is supported with the left hand, and the wrist with the right, inserted between the child’s legs, is pressed against the pubis. Next, use the fingers of your right hand to make circular movements clockwise along the baby’s tummy for 3 to 7 minutes. Actually, such stroking movements are a baby abdominal massage.

Medicine for colic in newborns

Unfortunately, there are currently no effective medications that can relieve babies from colic. Therefore, parents try various means that theoretically can be effective, and select the optimal one for this particular child. Today, the following drugs can be used to relieve colic:

Dill water (to give to the baby during colic);
Products containing simethicone that reduce gas formation (Espumizan, Disflatil, Sab Simplex, Bobotik, Antiflat Lannacher);
Products containing lactase that promote better absorption of food (Lactase-baby).

Dill water and products with simethicone are given to the child immediately at the onset of colic, and Lactase-baby is taken before each feeding. According to reviews from parents, Lactase Baby is the most effective at preventing colic, as it helps the baby digest food better, thereby eliminating one of the significant provoking factors for colic.

Colic in newborns: massage techniques, gymnastics and other useful tips - video

Colic in newborns and infants: what it is, its causes and symptoms, what helps with intestinal colic (Dr. Komarovsky) - video

Intestinal colic in newborns and infants: description, reasons, what to do (massage, gas tube, simethicone for a child), advice from a pediatrician - video

Diet for intestinal colic

The diet for intestinal colic is quite simple - you just need to exclude from the diet foods that contribute to gas formation, such as:
Nasedkina A.K. Specialist in research of biomedical problems.

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