The Nursing Baby - Q&A

I spent some time pondering your question, and came up with a wealth of information on infant carrying and colic, but could not find some of the studies mentioned in the hlthadv.htm on the net. First I'd like to refer you to an article I've typed up from the OSBH information at [Editor's Note: Article not yet available] Because I have not yet obtained permission to reprint it, I'm not putting it on my main website. But it is available for you to review. It was written by a chiropractor.

LLL has an interesting article which cites and explains one study done on culturally-induced colic here which is the study that says that carrying your baby for 3 hours per day can reduce crying 50% over other (western raised) babies.

Another article describing LLL philosophy, if you (and your daughter) are interested is at: La Leche League

Here is the abstract from one of the articles cited in the Choosing a Carrier article:

Clin Orthop 1990 Jan;250:171-175
"Spondylolysis and associated spondylolisthesis in Eskimo and Athabascan populations.
Tower SS, Pratt WB

Roentgenographic and anthropologic studies have shown a high incidence of spondylolysis in Eskimo populations. It is uncertain whether this is related to a genetic predisposition or to environmental factors. This study of recent roentgenograms and demographic characteristics of patients of the authors' institution notes a lower incidence in Eskimo populations than prior skeletal and roentgenographic studies. An attempt is made to quantitate the contributions of environmental factors and genetic predisposition. A higher incidence was found in full-blooded Eskimos than in part-blooded Eskimos. Rural-dwelling Eskimos had a higher incidence than urban-dwelling Eskimos. Eskimo subpopulations had a greater incidence than Athabascan Indians. Eskimos with spondylolysis were significantly more likely to have an associated spondylolisthesis than Athabascans with spondylolysis. Symptoms in the Eskimo population related to spondylolysis and associated spondylolisthesis rarely warrant surgical intervention.

PMID: 2293926, UI: 90091166 "

I found that using PubMed, but could not find the other 3 references. Two were there, but with no abstract available.

On infant carrying and less crying, I found some information which seems to indicate that increased carrying does not reduce infant crying for already colicky infants:

"Pediatrics 1991 May;87(5):623-630
Carrying as colic "therapy": a randomized controlled trial.
Barr RG, McMullan SJ, Spiess H, Leduc DG, Yaremko J, Barfield R, Francoeur TE, Hunziker UA

In healthy infants, crying behavior is reduced significantly by "supplemental" carrying; that is, increased carrying throughout the day in addition to that which occurs during feeding and in response to crying. To determine whether the recommendation to increase carrying would be effective as a therapy for colic, 66 mothers of infants 4 weeks of age or less who came to their pediatricians with complaints of crying problems ("colic") were randomized to receive standard pediatric advice (standard group) or standard advice plus the recommendation to increase supplemental carrying by 50% (supplemental group). Overall, the supplemental group carried their infants 6.1 hours/d throughout the intervention period, an increase of 2.2 hours/d (56%) more than that provided by the standard group. Despite this significant increase in carrying, there was no difference between groups in the duration or frequency of crying, fussing, or cry/fuss at any time throughout the intervention period. When the greatest treatment effect was expected at 6 weeks, the supplemental group infants cried only 3 minutes less per day (95% confidence interval: 37 minutes less to 32 minutes more per day). We conclude that, compared with standard pediatric advice to be "responsive," supplemental carrying does not reduce crying and fussing behavior further in infants who have colic. In marked contrast to healthy infants, this apparent resistance to increased carrying may indicate an important difference in state regulation and control in infants with colic."

"Pediatrics 1986 May;77(5):641-648

Increased carrying reduces infant crying: a randomized controlled trial.
Hunziker UA, Barr RG

The crying pattern of normal infants in industrialized societies is characterized by an overall increase until 6 weeks of age followed by a decline until 4 months of age with a preponderance of evening crying. We hypothesized that this "normal" crying could be reduced by supplemental carrying, that is, increased carrying throughout the day in addition to that which occurs during feeding and in response to crying. In a randomized controlled trial, 99 mother-infant pairs were assigned to an increased carrying or control group. At the time of peak crying (6 weeks of age), infants who received supplemental carrying cried and fussed 43% less (1.23 v 2.16 h/d) overall, and 51% less (0.63 v 1.28 hours) during the evening hours (4 PM to midnight). Similar but smaller decreases occurred at 4, 8, and 12 weeks of age. Decreased crying and fussing were associated with increased contentment and feeding frequency but no change in feeding duration or sleep. We conclude that supplemental carrying modifies "normal" crying by reducing the duration and altering the typical pattern of crying and fussing in the first 3 months of life. The relative lack of carrying in our society may predispose to crying and colic in normal infants. "

"Acta Paediatr 1996 Apr;85(4):471-475
Crying in separated and non-separated newborns: sound spectrographic analysis.
Michelsson K, Christensson K, Rothganger H, Winberg J

During the first 1-2 h after birth crying occurs during separation from the mother and stops on reunion. In rats, such "separation distress calls" have distinct phonetic properties. We examined this early crying by sound spectrography in 29 healthy, full-term, vaginally delivered babies, randomly assigned either to be kept in a cot or to be placed in body contact with the mother during the 90 min following birth. The former babies cried almost 10 times more than the latter ones. The duration of the cry signal (the smallest element of a cry analysed by spectrography) in both groups was 0.8-09s; the melody contour was flat or slightly rising--falling with a fundamental frequency of around 500 hertz. The cry is provisionally characterized as a discomfort cry, elicited mainly by separation from the mother. "

"Acta Paediatr 1992 Jun;81(6-7):488-493
Temperature, metabolic adaptation and crying in healthy full-term newborns cared for skin-to-skin or in a cot.
Christensson K, Siles C, Moreno L, Belaustequi A, De La Fuente P, Lagercrantz H, Puyol P, Winberg J

The aim of the present study was to compare temperatures, metabolic adaptation and crying behavior in 50 healthy, full-term, newborn infants who were randomized to be kept either skin-to-skin with the mother or next to the mother in a cot "separated". The babies were studied during the first 90 min after birth. Axillary and skin temperatures were significantly higher in the skin-to-skin group; at 90 min after birth blood glucose was also significantly higher and the return towards zero of the negative base-excess was more rapid as compared to the "separated" group. Babies kept in cots cried significantly more than those kept skin-to-skin with the mother. Keeping the baby skin-to-skin with the mother preserves energy and accelerates metabolic adaptation and may increase the well-being of the newborn. "

I hope you found this information helpful. You can look it up yourself by going to mednet and searching in the medline box at the pediatrics page at: here.

A book that I found very helpful was "The Baby Book", by a famous pediatrician, Dr. William Sears and his wife (a nurse). He also advocates baby-wearing, breastfeeding, and responding to your baby's cues. I found it reassuring, since so many pediatricians do not advocate attachment parenting techniques.

I hope some of this information has been helpful to you (and your daughter). It must be an exciting time for you both. I wish you well on your respective journeys into grandparenthood and motherhood.