Preface

Colic, a common condition in babies, is associated with long bouts of inconsolable crying.  It often leads to family dysfunction, leaving mothers and fathers feeling incapable, depressed, and sleep deprived.  If you’re reading this, I’m guessing you already know these things from experience. 

When my baby was suffering from colic, no one could help me.   My lactation consultant advised me to avoid eating gas producing foods such as broccoli, cabbage, and beans.  My son’s pediatrician said I should cut dairy products out of my diet.  Neither of these suggestions worked.

I asked every mother I knew if they had any ideas for how to eliminate colic, and I spent hours on the Internet searching for an answer.  What I found were numerous coping strategies and not a single solution.

After nearly giving up hope, I found a medical study that recommended cutting specific foods out of the breastfeeding mother’s diet as a means for reducing or eliminating colic.  The foods listed in the article were not the usual suspects, and they were not foods I had ever heard could cause colic. 

Even more exciting was that the research suggested a link between eliminating these foods and less crying in the breastfed baby; up to 2 hours less crying per day.  With the help of this research, I was able to completely eliminate colic in my baby in 24 hours. 

It is my hope that other mothers will prevent and eliminate colic through this dietary approach, and that my story, the breastfeeding tips, suggested (nutritionist approved) meals, grocery list, eating guidelines, and time-saving strategies included in this book will make applying this research based solution quick, easy, and manageable.