How Probiotics Fixed My Colicky Baby

I’m writing this for all the other mamas (and papas) out there with screaming babies.  The ones who are going crazy from sleep deprivation and frayed nerves.  The ones who stay up all night comforting a wailing baby to no avail.  The ones wander the grocery stores at night like zombies because they still hear the echoes of screams in their heads. The ones whose arms feel like they’re going to fall off and whose backs ache from sleeping in crazy positions with the baby, because it was the only way.  The ones who cry desperately with their crying child.

Maybe this is you right now.  Maybe this will be you in four months or in four years when you have a new child in your life.  This was me three years ago with our second son, Z.  I’m pretty convinced that those nine sleepless, stressful, cry-filled months permanently damaged my brain.  I’m not really even sure how, but it definitely feels like things don’t work quite as well as they used to upstairs.  The experience also left me with some PTSD (post traumatic stress disorder).  Whenever I’d hear him crying, even though the colicky phase was over, my heart would sink and race at the same time.  Initially, it was even hard to shake that feeling with our third child!  If you know the feeling, you have my deepest sympathy.

It’s a terrible thing to endure.  I used to joke that it would be an effective form of torture.  But seriously, I think it might be.  That’s why I’d like to share what finally fixed Z; to help end the torture of colic.  The answer was so simple: probiotics.  I still find it hard not to resent the doctors who told us it was a phase we had to wait out, and that Z was just a “difficult” baby.  I wish someone had suggested probiotics to us sooner, so I could have those lost months of my life back.  But what’s done is done. Hopefully what I learned through this experience can help other parents and their babies.

This is our story:

Z didn’t have classic colic; i.e., inconsolable crying 3 hours a day, 3 times a week, from when baby is 3 weeks to 3 months old.  He screamed and cried almost all day, every day….for NINE months.  He rarely slept for more than 40 minutes at a time.  This made him overtired, so he’d only be awake and semi-happy for about half an hour before he’d start crying again.  It was a viscous cycle. Nobody knew what to “label” his condition; I’m still not sure.  His pediatrician called it colic for lack of a better word. So we stuck with that.

At first we thought Z was just fussier than most babies.  After a couple weeks of very little sleep and lots of scream-crying, we thought he might be sick.  I had noticed some white stuff inside his mouth and wasn’t sure what it was.  I called the doctor’s office.  I described the problem to the nurse, who told me it was probably thrush (a type of yeast infection) and had the doctor send a prescription to our pharmacy.  We were desperate to help him feel better, so we gave him the medicine.  Looking back, giving a young baby such harsh drugs, especially without a proper diagnosis, was a colossal mistake.  I genuinely regret it.

Whenever you take antibiotics it kills all the bacteria in your system; it doesn’t distinguish between good and bad.  Our bodies need those good bacteria!  (Side note: Ladies, if you’ve ever taken antibiotics and then immediately gotten a yeast infection, this is why.  It messes with your natural balance.)  Eating yogurt with active cultures or taking probiotics replenishes the good bacteria your digestive tract needs to function properly.  There are a plethora of studies out there demonstrating the many, varied health benefits of probiotics: helping with diarrhea/Chron’s/IBS, improving digestive function, enhancing your immune system, etc.  We take them daily any time we feel sick.  The Harvard Medical School’s article on the health benefits of probiotics has more information, as does the probiotics page on National Institutes of Health (NIH) website.

Back to colic.  My guess is that Z had an underdeveloped intestinal tract.  Not uncommon in infants, particularly in those born earlier.  All of my boys came out naturally 3 weeks early; that’s just what my body does.  His early-ish birth may have predisposed him to some fussiness, but after he took the medicine for thrush (which destroyed any good bacteria he did have in his gut) Z’s fussy behavior quickly turned into completely inconsolable shrieking and wailing.  Giving him that medicine is probably one of my biggest regrets.

Months went by with Z only getting worse.  I did anything and everything I could to try to get him some sleep.  I remember one of the best ways to do that was to lay down with him, his head propped up on my shoulder and facing me.  He would scream and cry and thrash for anywhere from 15 minutes to an hour.  But if I held him close and shushed in his ear, he would eventually fall asleep (or I’d give up).  My arm would always fall asleep, and my shoulders to this day still haven’t fully recovered.

I did it because I’m a firm believer in the importance of sleep for good brain development.  My favorite book on kid sleep is Healthy Sleep Habits, Happy Child by Dr. Marc Weissbluth.  He has a section of the book devoted to colicky children and ways to help them.  There’s even a plan for sleep training those kids once the colicky phase ends when baby is about three to four months old.  Z didn’t fall into this camp.  We tried to train him thinking maybe the phase was ending, but it was torture for all of us.  He seemed like he was suffering.  So we gave up and just did what we needed to do to survive.

When Z was about nine months old, a doula friend of ours asked if we’d ever tried giving him probiotics.  (P.S. Doulas are amazing! I hope to be one when my kids are older and my time is more flexible.  Look into hiring a doula if you’re pregnant.)  We didn’t know much about probiotics, so we read a bunch of articles and research and couldn’t find any negatives.  We figured it might help and wouldn’t hurt, so why not?  Within a few DAYS of giving Z probiotics, he was like a new child.  He started taking naps and he wasn’t fussy all the time.  The endless hours of crying and screaming rapidly tapered off.  The next week we tried sleep training again.  He was sleeping 11-12 hours straight at night (no feedings!) and was napping for a total of five hours during the day.  It felt like a MIRACLE!  I can’t even begin to describe how incredible it felt to sleep for eight glorious, uninterrupted hours again.  It was life changing!

With our third son, L,  I wasn’t taking any chances.  I started giving him probiotics the day he was born.  I also ate a lot of Greek yogurt with active cultures, because I read that the probiotics in it could pass through breast milk to the baby.  Every little bit helps.  So far, L has been the healthiest baby we’ve ever produced.  🙂

The most common question I’ve been asked about all this is how to administer the probiotics.  All you have to do is twist open one of the capsules to get at the probiotic powder.  Then carefully pour about 1/3 of it onto the baby’s tongue right before they nurse (save the rest for later). The milk will quickly wash it all down.  I’ve also heard of other women putting the powder directly on their nipples and then having baby nurse, or mixing the powder in with expressed milk and giving it to the baby in a bottle.  Whatever way you choose.  Just be sure to check the probiotics to see if they need to be refrigerated once they’ve been opened.  Some do and some don’t.

Also, it seems that recent research is suggesting probiotics are much less effective on formula-fed babies.  NPR’s article about probiotics being used to treat colic gives more details if you’re interested.  Something to keep in mind if you’re not breastfeeding or not planning to breastfeed.  For whatever reason, this treatment may not work for your child.

I encourage everyone to give their babies/children/selves probiotics.  While I don’t think it’s a cure-all, it’s certainly not going to hurt to try it.  It won’t even cost much; about $10-$15 per box, or as I like to say, less than a co-pay.  🙂  It’s well worth the potential health benefits in my opinion.  You can find probiotics in every grocery and big box store, they’re usually kept near the diarrhea and gas medicines.  If it’s hard to get to the store with your colicky baby (which I totally empathize with), you can buy probiotics on Amazon and have it sent to your front door.  I know you’re probably skeptical, just like we were, but please read the research for yourself and don’t be afraid to try it.  It might spare you a screaming baby.

Easy Homemade Greek Yogurt

I love Greek yogurt. I mean, looooooove it, love it. The only thing I don’t love about it is shelling out a dollar or more for each delicious little container at the store.

I used to justify the cost because it’s a healthy snack. (But, let’s be real. It was mostly because it’s so creamy and delicious, and the closest thing to ice cream that you can have for breakfast in front of the kids.)
My husband isn’t as much of a yogurt fanatic and started hinting that maybe I should consider dropping, or greatly reducing, my semi-expensive yogurt habit. *sigh* What’s a girl to do? Turn to the internet for help, of course. 🙂
I found a bunch of different recipes and methods for making yogurt. Through trial and error I came up with one that is extremely easy with very little hands-on time (which is ideal for me, because with three littles running around I can’t be wasting a lot of time in the kitchen).
All you need is milk (I usually do a gallon at a time, but any amount will work), a pot, some mason jars with lids, a heating pad, and a towel. Optionally, you can use a funnel and strainer if you like your yogurt really smooth like I do. The first time you make it you will need to have a little bit of plain Greek yogurt as well. But after that just save a some of the yogurt from the previous batch to use in the next one.
The best part about this recipe is how much money you save. A gallon of whole milk costs around $4 and makes about 144 ounces of yogurt. Generally, an individual container of Greek yogurt is 6 ounces and costs at least $1 – you’d need to buy 24 of these to get up to 144 ounces. That’s at least $24. Which means: Buying your Greek yogurt at the store is at least 6 times as expensive as making your own!
I promise that making your own is painless! Give it a shot and put that $20 savings towards something better than yogurt, like a babysitter for date night.

I’ve learned the key is using plain old pasteurized whole milk. The ultra pasteurized milk doesn’t work very well; mine always ended up being runny. If you want a thick Greek yogurt like you’d buy at the store, then make sure you don’t get ultra-pasteurized. And make sure it’s whole milk. So creamy!
I like to make a gallon at a time. It lasts up to several weeks in the fridge, and coincidentally that’s about how long it takes us to use it up too.
Whatever amount of milk you decide to use, the next step is pouring it into a pot.

Now turn your burner to medium heat and walk away. Chase your kids around or, if you’re lucky, kick up your heels and relax for 20-25 minutes.
Check on your milk about 20 minutes later, it should be boiling. Ideally you want to get to it before it’s a roaring boil, but if you get busy and forget about it (guilty!) all is not lost. It just takes longer to cool down if you overdo it.

Turn off the heat and take it off the burner.
I like to give it a good stir at this point, being sure to scrape the bottom of the pot a little. There is usually a skin of burned milk on the bottom of the pot that you want to take out at some point. If I’m careful I can usually manage to get it all out in a few long pieces with my spatula.

Fish out all the large pieces of milk skin and throw them away.

Leave your milk to cool for about an hour. No need to check on it or stir it. You can if you want to, but it’s not necessary.
After an hour or so check the temperature.

If you have a food thermometer you want the milk to be somewhere in the range of 110°-118°F. I shoot for close to 114°, because the next step is adding in yogurt. This will cool it down a little, and you don’t want it to go below 110° or the live cultures in your yogurt won’t multiply. You also don’t want the milk too hot or you’ll just be killing the cultures. If you don’t have a food thermometer, you can check with your finger. It should feel hot, but not hot enough to burn you…and hotter than just warm (technical, I know). Be careful not to burn yourself!
If your milk is too cool when you check it, just turn the burner back on low for a couple minutes, stirring to distribute the heat, until it’s where you want it. This is great if you forget about your yogurt project while you’re entertaining kiddos or cleaning the house (again, guilty!).

**Important notes: 1. Make sure your starter yogurt says it has live cultures, or none of this will work. 2. To complete these next few steps you’ll need about 15 minutes of uninterrupted time. I try to make it so this step falls during nap time.
When your milk is at the right temperature, stir roughly a tablespoon of plain Greek yogurt into about a cup of the milk.

I use a fork to whisk it, because it seems to dissolve better that way. You don’t want to over-whisk it and kill the cultures. Mix until it’s mostly dissolved.

Pour your yogurt milk back into the large pot. Stir slowly with your spatula for a minute to distribute the yogurt cultures throughout the milk.

If you haven’t already, get your jars and lids out.

Set up your funnel and strainer on the jar, if you’re using them, and start scooping milk into your jars with a ladle or measuring cup. Things can get a little drippy, that’s why I put a towel over the crack between the oven and the counter – one of the most annoying places to have to clean.

This is why I use a strainer. Catches any gunk you missed with your spatula before.

I use the pint sized Mason jars for my yogurt. I fill them up to the neck and it makes about 9 jars worth.

Put your jars on the heating pad. I put mine on the medium heat setting, but I’ve tried it on low and high as well. They all work. You just want to keep them nice and toasty without making them too hot – the cultures like to reproduce (which is what turns your milk into yogurt) around 110°F.

Now put a big towel on top of your jars to help hold in the heat.
Congratulations! The “hard” part of yogurt making is done. Now leave your yogurt to cook on the heating pad anywhere from 7-11 hours. The longer you leave it the thicker it will be. It also gets a little tangier as time goes on, so decide how you like it and let it cook accordingly. I leave mine for about 9 hours. You may want to check your heating pad occasionally; most of them have automatic shut-offs. After a couple hours I turn mine back on. Once I left it to cook overnight and it still cooked up fine even though I didn’t restart the pad. The yogurt is forgiving, so there’s room to experiment. 🙂
When your yogurt is done cooking put it in the fridge.
That’s it! Yay!

When it cools down, mix in some honey or jam or granola or fresh fruit – whatever your heart desires. Now go enjoy your delicious, inexpensive, protein packed, good-for-your-body Greek yogurt! You can even share with your family if you’re so inclined. 🙂

My favorite way to eat Greek yogurt – fresh fruit and a little honey. Mmmmm!

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Homemade Greek Yogurt

1 gal. whole milk (not ultra-pasteurized)

1 Tbs plain Greek yogurt (with live cultures)

1. Heat gallon of milk in a large pot to around 180 degrees, or until just boiling (about 20-25 minutes).  Turn off burner and remove from heat.

2. Let milk cool to approximately 114 degrees.

3. Mix 1 Tbs of plain Greek yogurt with 1 c of the cooled milk.  Whisk gently with a fork until yogurt is mostly dissolved.

4. Pour yogurt milk back into the large pot and stir softly for a minute to distribute the live cultures.

5. Line up 9 pint sized Mason jars and lids.  Place a small funnel in the first jar with a strainer on top of the funnel.  Using a ladle or measuring cup, begin scooping milk from the pot into the jars.  Fill to the neck of the jar, then fasten the lid.

6.  Place the full jars on a heating pad set to medium heat.  Cover with a large towel to insulate.

7. Cook yogurt on the heating pad anywhere from 7-11 hours, depending on the consistency desired.

8. When the yogurt has cooked, place all the jars in the fridge.  Will keep for about 3 weeks.