Parentpedia

What Experts Say

Some babies are easy to console when they cry, while others are born screaming and don't let up for several months. If your baby is a chronic crier you may be wondering how you'll ever understand what she's trying to tell you. Although the crying may last for several months, the good news is that over time you'll learn to distinguish your baby's cries as you get to know each other.

According to Dr. Ronald Barr, an expert at the University of British Columbia, 60% of infant crying is due to fussiness, 30% to genuine upset, and 10% to "colic," the word medical professionals use to define unexplained crying.

Although inexplicable crying was once thought to be due to gastrointestinal upset, experts increasingly believe that it's actually a normal part of infant development unrelated to tummy troubles. The reason? A newborn's brain is very small at birth, in order for the head to fit through the birth canal. In the three months after birth, the brain increases in size by 20%. While most infants manage that growth without too much distress, some cry constantly as their brain connections mature and their minds become more ordered.

A 2004 study conducted by the National Institute of Child Health and Human Development showed that the majority of infant crying is to elicit care in the parents and that, although there's not a lot of evidence that infant cries are acoustically distinctive, babies do cry in different pitches depending upon their distress. High-pitched cries in particular are associated with sharp pain.

Here's how to differentiate your baby's cries:

• Hunger: Newborns eat constantly and the most likely reason for crying is hunger. You may already feel like a milk machine, but even if your baby's on a "schedule," she may be going through a growth spurt and need to nurse more frequently. This cry, often accompanied by a newborn's "rooting," or turning her head towards a food source, usually starts quietly and escalates in urgency the longer it's ignored.
• Fatigue: Otherwise good-natured babies often fuss when settling down to nap. Parents report that this kind of crying sounds more like low-grade whining or moaning than piercing wails.
• Pain: A high-pitched or sudden cry is an indication that your baby's in pain. It could be a tag on her clothes, a diaper pin, or a stomach cramp. Pick her up, undress her, and make sure she's not hurt.
• Discomfort: If a baby's too hot, too cold, too wet, or uncomfortable in some way, she'll cry and squirm at the same time, as if trying to get away from the pain.
• Overstimulation: If crying is accompanied by a baby averting her face or closing her eyes, she may be overstimulated and is trying to tell you to stop engaging and give her some space.