Breast-feeding mothers may be able to reduce the symptoms of colic in their babies by avoiding certain allergy-causing foods, according to a study published last month in the medical journal Pediatrics.

Researchers in Australia had one group of mothers refrain from eating foods containing dairy, soy, wheat, eggs, peanuts, tree nuts and fish. Instead they were given rice milk, meats, vegetables, fruits, corn, rice and a calcium supplement. A second group of mothers were told to eat all of the excluded food items and were given a soy and cow’s milk drink each day.

After a week of the new diets, three-quarters of the babies of mothers who avoided allergens were crying less compared with a little more than a third of mothers on the other diet.

The researchers warned that elimination diets do carry risks, especially if sustained for long periods. They recommend breast-feeding mothers consult with a dietitian before making changes to their diet.

Colic – when an otherwise healthy baby cries for more than three hours per day – affects more than a quarter of infants in the first months of life, generally peaking at about six weeks of age. Most infants grow out of it within a month or two.

But researchers are still unclear about what causes colic. Previous studies indicate maternal smoking increases the risk of colic.

The role of diet, however, has been controversial. Among formula-fed infants, use of casein- and whey-based formula has been shown to improve colic symptoms. Breast-feeding does not appear to protect against colic. Each year, more than 1 million babies show signs of colic, often leaving parents exasperated. Last year, the Erickson Institute, a Chicago-based graduate school for early childhood development, developed the Fussy Baby Network, including a hotline (888-431-BABY) to help parents deal with their infants’ inconsolable crying.

”Parents are desperate by the time they call us,” says Network Director Linda Gilkerson. ”In some cases, these parents have been told that nothing is wrong, but mom instinctively feels there is.”

Gilkerson, who was moved to start the network by her experiences with her own fussy baby, says the sustained crying can become a trigger for child abuse. Two years ago, Daniele and Monty Kamath in Hudson, Ohio, started ColicShop.com after dealing with their own colicky baby, Zavier.

”We looked everywhere for help, but only found a few single-product Web sites on the Internet,” Monty Kamath says. ”Once Zavier’s colic was under control and we had tried several products ourselves, we decided to start the only colic superstore.”

Among the products they offer is a vacuum cleaner CD. Moms have been using the noise of their vacuum cleaner to calm their colicky babies for years, they explain. But using your vacuum cleaner for extended periods of time can burn out the motor and it uses much more electricity than a CD player. The CD includes 60 minutes of vacuum cleaner sound.

– Markian Hawryluk