Parenting Tips : Ten most common reasons for a crying baby
- by Dr.Raja Ashok Koganti MD, DM.
Often worried about why your baby is fussy, check out these ten common
reasons which make your child fussy, and try to address them first.
• Hunger - Baby might express his/her hunger through crying. Simply
feeding the child may calm him/her down. It is wise to look for early
hunger cues and feed the baby proactively, because crying is the final
stage of expressing hunger in a baby. Early hunger cues include fists
moving to the mouth, head turning to the breast, sucking on hands or lip
smacking.
• Wet diaper – Baby might cry to indicate a wet diaper. Recognizing a wet
diaper by visualizing the external color indicator is a smart technique
which many parents do these days.
• Unsuitable weather/ prickly heat - Too hot, humid room or cold room
may lead the baby to express discomfort through crying. We usually tend
to overclothe the baby and switch off ACs. Overheating and humidity can
cause baby to get miliara crystallina (prickly heat) and irritate the baby. It
is important to ensure air circulation within the room, set AC
temperature to 27 to 28, low fan speed and air direction upwards. Avoid,
direct draught of air over the baby. Avoid talcum powder, oil, moisturizer
application when baby develops prickly heat.
• Want of affection – Baby may just cry to indicate the need of being
picked up and being cuddled. Swaddling the baby and appropriate
nesting during sleep may tackle this issue.
• Diaper rash - Red buttocks and sore groin area due to prolonged diaper
usage may make your baby fussy. In case your baby has diaper rash, it is
best you stop using diaper for some time till the rash heals. Let the skin
be dry and be exposed to air as much as possible. Apply a thick paste of
Vaseline petroleum jelly and coconut oil as soon as you clean the area
every time. This combination works better than many commercially
available diaper creams. Just dab the wet surface with a dry cotton cloth
when you attempt to clean the soiled skin surface. Avoid vigorous
rubbing and wet wipes (as they may have certain preservative chemicals)
• Colic pain – Frequent, prolonged, and continuous crying indicates colic
pain. Always make sure you burp your baby well after each feed. Tummy
time, soothing music, simple exercises like flexing baby’s legs onto
abdomen may help too. Sometimes, your pediatrician may prescribe oral
medications on a case-to-case basis.
• Post vaccination pain - Baby may experience pain, fever and thigh
swelling after vaccination. Paracetamol drops in a dose as prescribed by
your pediatrician can be given. Putting an ice pack over the vaccination
site can also help. Avoid massaging the vaccination area.
• Nose block - Nose block can hamper normal feeding in an infant and
cause discomfort. Saline nasal drops put in the nose and using a mucous
aspirator to clear the block can relieve the baby.
• Fever – Fever in infants may cause them to cry, paracetamol drops in a
prescribed dose and tepid sponging may help. Consult your nearest
pediatrician immediately.
• Urine infection – Crying while passing urine, frequent urination, poor
feeding may indicate urine infection. It is advisable to consult your
pediatrician if your baby has one of these symptoms.
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