Chiropractic Care for Infants with Colic

There are significant anatomical and biomechanical differences between the adult and infant spines. Infant spines have increased mobility and elasticity due to the underdevelopment of spinal muscles and immature skeletal structure. In addition, the large size and heavy weight of babies’ heads in comparison to their small body size increases the chances of developing joint restrictions in the neck and upper back regions. Birth can often be a dramatic or drawn out process depending on the circumstances surrounding the baby’s arrival. Spinal joint restrictions arising from the birth process have been associated with the onset of colic in infants.

Colic has been defined as “unexplained crying in infants for more than 3 hours per day, for more than 3 days per week for more than 3 weeks in a row”. The cause of colic still remains unknown. Factors such as food intolerance; noise, light or activity related overstimulation of the baby; an immature digestive tract, a fast or traumatic birth and spinal joint restrictions may individually or collectively contribute to the onset of colic in infants. If your baby appears to be experiencing colic-like symptoms and your pediatrician has diagnosed your infant with ‘colic’, chiropractic care is both a safe and natural alternative to consider for your child.

In scientific research studies, chiropractic care has been shown to be effective in reducing the number of consecutive crying hours per day in infants with colic. During my clinical experience in assessing infants with colic, areas of muscular tension and spinal joint restrictions are often discovered in the region of the upper back. Gentle chiropractic adjustments consist of using a small amount of fingertip pressure in these areas to restore spinal motion and decrease muscular tension. In most cases, a reduction in the number of crying hours will often be observed within a short period of time after initiating chiropractic care.

For further information regarding chiropractic research for colic please visit http://www.icpa4kids.org/research/chiropractic/colic.htm