Purple Tears - The period of purple crying

The period of purple crying, often referred to as colic, can be very frustrating to parents and their babies.  Utah has a campaign Purple Tears to help parents understand and cope.





We don't know what causes it, but babies who are otherwise healthy newborns have periods of serious and prolonged crying, unrelieved by feeding, burping, rocking, etc.  It generally begins at 1-2 weeks of age and disappears by 4 months (though this can be a very LONG month for all concerned).  The crying is usually concentrated in the late afternoon and evening often with arching of the back, flexed legs and clenched fists, grimacing, regurgitation, distended abdomen, and passing gas.

A technique that involves the 5 S's -- shushing, swinging, swaddling, sucking, and side/stomach positioning in the parents' arms -- seems to calm most crying infants. Recent studies show that treatment with Lactobacillus (shown) probiotics decreases infants' crying time greater than the standard therapy, simethicone (brand name Mylicon).  If your baby struggles with this problem, ask your doctor about this.

Check out the Period of Purple Crying on Facebook.  Read more here.  More information which includes a graph showing the period when the crying is most frequent here.