The social origins of infantile colic: questionnaire study covering 76 747 infants

Objective: To describe risk factors for infantile colic. Design: Questionnaire administered by health visitors. Setting: Sheffield. Subjects: Mothers of 76 747 infants born between 1 August 1975 and 31 May 1988, interviewed when the infant was 1 month old. Main outcome measures: Reporting of infantile colic and its duration; weight of infant, feeding, state of the home, socioeconomic characteristics of the parents, parents' age, and mother's parity. Results: The odds of reporting infantile colic were increased with breast feeding (odds ratio of breast v bottle feeding 1.35 (95% confidence interval 1.28 to 1.43), increasing parental age, lower parity, increasing parental age at leaving full time education, and more affluent homes and districts of residence. In a logistic regression analysis, mother's age and parity and socioeconomic factors remained the most important risk factors for the reporting of infantile colic (each P < 0.005), and the effect of breast feeding was attenuated (odds ratio of breast v bottle feeding 1.09 (1.02 to 1.15). Conclusion: At a population level, dietary factors contribute little to mothers' reporting of infantile colic, and dietary change should not be the primary intervention. Key messages Infantile colic is poorly defined but commonly reported and causes parents appreciable distress Often the first advice that parents receive is to change the infant's diet Slightly higher rates of reporting of infantile colic are found when infants are breast fed than bottle fed, so formulas based on cows' and hence allergy to cows' milk protein are unlikely to be important causes of infantile colic Social factors are most important, with older primigravid mothers who have a non-manual occupation and who stayed in full time education longest reporting the highest rates of colic in their infants Dietary change should not be the first intervention for colicky babies