Up to 73% of all infants are affected by colic in their first months of life¹.

The signs of colic are agitation, intense and frequent tears, baby’s fists getting tense and legs folding up on his belly. They are furthermore associated with frequent gas and flatus. Infants are inconsolable and seem to have abdominal pain.

Colic is a paroxysm of irritability, fussing or crying that last up to 2/3 hours or more per day and that occur more than 3 days per week for at least 3 weeks². These criteria are commonly referred to as “the rule of three” (3 hours per day, 3 days per weeks for at least 3 weeks).

In the recent Rome IV definition of colic, any reference to precise time (duration of crying per day, time of occurrence of the symptoms…) has been omitted to keep only the idea of “recurrent and prolonged periods of crying that have no obvious cause and that [caregivers] cannot prevent or resolve³”.

The etiology of colic is not fully understood and several factors may contribute to its manifestation (such as a stressful environment, diet…) Although colic is benign, they negatively impact the baby’s and the family’s quality of life and may have long term consequences by disturbing the interaction of the infant with his/her parents but also by causing him/her migraines, recurrent abdominal pain⁴, etc.