Probiotics are one of the newest and most exciting types of nutritional supplements on the market today. Live bacteria that produce beneficial results for the person who takes them, probiotics are proving to be very useful. Unlike some other sorts of nutritional supplements, probiotics have been tested over and over again in scientific clinical studies that have demonstrated their beneficial effects. Probiotics are thought to help with a variety of conditions, such as digestive problems and eczema, and they are even thought to boost the immune system. There is even some evidence that probiotics may be able to help infants with colic.

While experts aren’t entirely agreed about what it is exactly that causes colic, many do believe that colic may be caused, at least in part, or at least in some infants, by troubles with digestion. In some cases, it is believed that colic may actually be a response to a food allergy, such as an allergic reaction to cow’s milk. There are other theories about colic that suggest that it may have to do with being overstimulated, or with the infant’s immature nervous system. Regardless of the cause, probiotics do seem to be able to help a great many infants with colic.

The relationship between probiotics and colic has to do with the infant’s digestive system. Probiotics help an infant’s digestive system in several ways. They help in the process of digestion, for example. They also help to absorb nutrients and minerals, and to synthesize vitamins. Perhaps most importantly, probiotics help to create something of a barrier against harmful bacteria, toxins, and antigens. In this way, probiotics help to soothe an infant’s belly, and even to shield it a little bit from possible food allergies.

Probiotics have been proven to be even more effective at helping with colic that medications like simethicone. In fact, in scientific studies, colicky babies stopped crying as much. One study actually showed that colicky babies given the probiotic L. reuteri Protectis actually cried for as much as an hour and a half less than babies that were not given the probiotic, but were given simethicone.