Dr Kerryn Phelps, Channel 9 Today Show Health Editor
Channel 9 Today Show, with Steve Liebmann - Discussion on colic; SIDS
LIEBMANN: Well, anyone who's ever had a colicky or irritable baby will know the heartache, not to forget the sleep deprivation, that parents go through. And there have also been concerns raised this week about the popular medicine, Phenergan, that many parents, we're told, use to sedate their children, and its possible link, in turn, to Sudden Infant Death Syndrome (SIDS). Well, joining us now to give us some advice on how to settle a baby, we're joined by our Health Editor, Dr Kerryn Phelps. Good morning to you.
PHELPS: Good morning, Steve.
LIEBMANN: I remember, 29 years ago, many long sleepless nights because of colic. What is colic?
PHELPS: Well, colic is a baby in pain - they cry - and it usually comes on at a particular time of the day and lasts for several hours. It can make them unsettled at night, and then it disappears as mysteriously as it came. It seems to come on at a couple weeks of age, seems to disappear at around three to four months, although, for some babies it's a little longer.
LIEBMANN: So what do you do?
PHELPS: Well, if it is colic, I think that you need to make sure that the diagnosis is right first. And if you have a baby that is upset and irritable, I think that you look at the basics first, and you say, 'Well, have they got a dirty or a wet nappy? Have they been fed? Do they just want company? Do they want to be held? Or is there something wrong - do they have a fever? Do they look unwell? Are they feeding or are they gaining weight?' And you go through all those questions, and if the baby is irritable, you can't settle them, then I think it's important that you do take them along to your doctor. Get them looked at, see whether they've got an ear infection or a urinary tract infection, whether they're growing appropriately, make sure that everything's okay, and if that is okay, then I think it's a matter of trying to deal with the irritable, unsettled baby.
LIEBMANN: Okay. So how do you do that, because, the inclination is to go for the bottle of Phenergan.
PHELPS: Well, it is, and you've probably tried it if you've had an unsettled baby.
LIEBMANN: I drove cars in the middle of the night - 2 o'clock in the morning, driving around the suburb, trying to get them to sleep.
PHELPS: Well, that's one way that works.
LIEBMANN: Tracey doesn't believe a word of this, but it's true.
PHELPS: Well, that's certainly one way - a lot of parents would kill for a change of scenery. Take the baby out in the pram, put them in the car, drive them around. Sometimes you're just looking for something, anything, to break the cycle and get them to sleep. But if you're looking at a baby who is colicky, things like holding, massaging, making sure that the baby is not overfed, but has had enough food. And I guess with this concern over Phenergan and other sedatives, you really need to look at avoiding sedatives. Of course, if a baby is not sleeping well, there are other ways that you can go about it. You can look at controlled crying techniques, where you let them cry for a little while, because sometimes a baby will just need to be a little bit unsettled before they fall asleep. But if they cry for more than a few minutes, they need to be picked up and held and feel secure, and try it again. If all else fails, then there are groups like Tresillian which can help by admitting the mother and baby.
LIEBMANN: What about this suggested link between medications like Phenergan and SIDS?
PHELPS: Well, I think it's certainly raised the alarm bells and until it's clarified that there is in fact this link and it's not just an experimental link, and not just a concern, once it's been absolutely confirmed, until that time, one way or the other, we really do need to be very careful about sedating children under the age of two, because that's the age that SIDS is a possibility, and we need to look at these other methods of trying to settle unsettled babies. And I think, also that parents need to be aware, when they're having babies, that they're in for several months, at least, of poor sleep, and to try to catch up during the day. Recruit friends and relatives wherever you can, talk to other parents to see how they've managed to cope, and to develop a support structure around you.
LIEBMANN: Okay. See you next week.
PHELPS: Thanks, Steve.
LIEBMANN: Incidentally, next week, for all those 'mothers to be', next week Kerryn's going to take a look at a subject that we, in fact, touched on earlier this week, and that is 'should pregnant women be banned from playing contact sports'?
- Ends