Did the Diet During Pregnancy of Mothers of Infants With Colic Differ From That of Control Infants?

Neonatal colic is a problem in many young infants. The dietary intakes of women during pregnancy may play an important role in maternal health and fetal development and also in the health of the baby's body system after birth. The aim of this study was to compare maternal food intake during pregnancy in infants with colic and in colic-free infants. We compared reports of food intake during pregnancy of 149 women whose infants had colic with 151 women whose infants did not have colic using a retrospective food frequency questionnaire. Few differences were found in maternal dietary intake of cheese, fish, and poultry during pregnancy (P <.001, P =.002, and P =.011, respectively). In addition, mothers of infants with colic reported eating fewer fruit and vegetables than controls during pregnancy (P =.005 and P <.001, respectively). There was no significant difference between the consumption of fast foods and beverages as well as the type of dairy products and the type of oil consumed by mothers in the 2 groups. Mothers should not blame their pregnancy diet for their infants' colic, but a healthy diet has proven effects on fetal health. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]