colic/problems/diarhoea etc more likely after cesarean.TRUE OR FALSE?

[mumandlovingit]

ive been reading up about c sections and came across some literature stating that if you have a cseaction the baby is more likely to suffer from colic, have breathing problems, diarhoea, milk intolerance amongst other things and be alot fussier and arder during the first weeks of life.anyone experienced this or heard this? its the first ive heard of it.
thought id ask your opinions.

both mine were born vaginally and suffered sever colic, constipation, reflux and traumatic births.been advised c section next time and want it to be different.already looked up about dr brown bottles and omneo comfort milk!!
getting prepared before we even try for another one so that we can hopefully have a relaxfull pregnancy unlike the last two.

I had a CS, and mine was a traumatic, 'crash' situation. ds did get colicy in the evenings between 5 - 6pm, I would say for the first 4 - 5 weeks, after which it just stopped.

Apart from that he was a very healthy baby indeed; had no colds or bugs literally for months! He's actually never had diarrhoea and he's four in a few days; he has no allergies or intolerances and eats anything; as a baby he was (apart from the colic) serene and content and alert, adopted a nice regular routine and slept well.

so no prob here, anyway!

my kiddies were all born vaginally and all were colicy babies, 3 had reflux (2 were very severe and classed FTT), and same 3 have milk intolerance probs too.

half sister tho had CS for both her boys and both were wonderfully healthy ( for her, not so much for me!).

the ONLY difference otherwise is that I exclusively breast fed, she bottle fed......that was her reasoning for hers being healthy and mine not.

I personally think that some are born that way....regardless of birth type and feeding type.

PAH to those who try to make us mums feel guilty for the way are kiddies are and try to blame us for everything

As if we don't feel guilty enough......

nope, none of them and i had an emergency c-section.

none of those with my 2 dd's after c/s with both of them. Both were full term, well 42 weeks actually. do you think they've included prem babies that have to be delivered early in this "data"?

I think this is rubbish, and I agree with psychomum that babies just are the way they are, regardless of how they are born.

I had a C-section and my ds never had colic or any of the other things you mention. He's an incredibly unfussy hungry baby who will eat anything, and took to breastfeeding right away. In fact the 2 most colicky babies I know were both vaginal births.

oh and mine was 12 days late.. yeah i wondered about the prem babies whether they are inc in this literature?

thankyou for your responses.i dont know many people who ave had c sections so i can really compare.mine were both bottle fed and born vaginally but i sometimes think that a planned c section is more relaxing for mother and baby than an emergancy c section or difficult vaginal birth.my last son has shoulder dystocia and was completely blue once eventually born through midwife manually turning him inside me.im not risking that again.id rather cope with the pain and mobility problems etc after a c section than risk losing a baby during birth.
anyone else had shoulder dystocia and gone on to have a c section.how did it go?

dont know if prem babies are included.will try to find it again and add it for you all to read
anyone know how i do that?

I had both dds via planned sections, 2.5 and 2 weeks before my due date. Both did not take to breast-feeding (although if I hadn't been so anxious to get home after long hospital stays I think I could have persevered more and cracked it). Neither have been in the least been colicky, fussy with feeding, had bowel problems or have any food intolerances. Dd1 slept all through the night from 7 weeks and has always been very chilled out. Dd2 sleeps fairly well but wakes very early but is very happy and laid back as well.

thankyou
i always expect people to judge when i say im going to have c section next time, especially when i bottle feed too.i cannot breastfeed for reasons and people always assumwe its choice.nice to hear you have happy contented children.hopefully the next one for me will be plain sailing compared to my others.they are gorgeous boys now though and im so lucky to have them.i wouldnt change them for the world.

I think it's difficult to distinguish between the reasons for the c/s and the reasons for any subsequent problems. For example, I'd say that with a planned c/s, baby isn't fully cooked (unless you just happen to start labour on the day of the planned c/s ). (Not a dig btw, I'm having a planned c/s this time too)

I've also heard it suggested that c/s babies don't get the cr*p squeezed out of them (literally!) and that that can cause breathing problems.

Finally, I've also heard that c/s babies can be difficult to establish b/f - although also read that this is very short lived.

On the other hand, I've heard it suggested that some babies born vaginally can have problems from having been squished too much - lot of cranial osteopaths would like to get their hands on fussy babies to sort out their fontanelles (sp? skull!)

I have a 41/2 week old baby girl with increasingly bad colic. I have now been told to try colief, does anyone have any experience of this product, or offer any other helpful advice. Thanks

Not anything to do with sections but an interesting read about colic in babies.

Colic starts within the first week of life and is characterised by regular, nightly crying bouts between about 5pm and 10pm and then again between 2-3am and 4-5am. The baby draws up his legs and appears to be in pain. Suckling
and rocking appear to help for short bursts but nothing gets the baby to sleep for long, until the end of that particular colic bout when baby falls soundly asleep.

Colic is caused by high blood levels of certain hormones that make smooth muscle contract. These hormones are ciculating in all of us and peak daily between 5pm and 10pm and 2 -5 am (bingo!) Gut is made of smooth muscle and so you can see how the pattern emerges. Now... breastmilk contains endorphins which RELAX smooth muscle and so the picture a mum typically sees is... baby in pain with gut contractions; baby thinks "tummy hurts and so I must need to suckle agian"; baby suckles and receives endorphin-rich milk; baby's gut relaxes; baby stops suckling; endorphin level drops over about 10-20 minutes; gut contractions return; baby thinks "Oooh! Tummy hurts and so I must need to suckle again", and so on and so forth. It is easy to see
how mums think that somehow their breastmilk is actually causing the problem whereas, really, the baby is self-medicating on endorphins.

Now, how to deal with the problem. Firstly, it can help to know that there is no cure; just coping strategies until baby learns to ignore and cope with these routine churnings. Next, it is useful to remember that colic is definitely not caused by wind or foods (with a couple of notable exceptions,for which, see later) seeping into the milk. In fact, all the weird and
wonderful ideas put forward really don't bear scrutiny: air cannot enter the milk (if this happened, mum would die quite quickly!); breastmilk cannot become acidic due to overeating, for instance, oranges (if this happened, the mum would die just as quickly!!). The trick is to keep endorphin levels as high as possible. Now, human milk contains endorphins so, breastfeeding will always be the most obvious solution, and you cannot put the baby to the breast too often. Also, you can do things that will stimulate baby to produce his own endorphins: massage; skin-to-skin; rocking and jiggling; car rides; warmth (either with swaddling or a bath), and stimulating his senses
with certain white noises such as the hoover! Just remember that endorphins have a very short half-life, so nothing works for more than 10 - 20 minutes.

Trying to cure baby of his colic is like trying to cure him of being a baby. He will grow out of it at about 3 months no matter what you do (everything or nothing). Of course, if you try different remedies, whichever one you are trying when baby is 3 months old will be hailed as a miracle cure and you will urge all your friends to try it!!

Some great news about colic is that it is protective against SIDS and tends to badly affect the brighter, more sociable babies (Hurrah!). Also, it is more obvious in the atopic baby. If you have eczema, asthma, hayfever or migraines on either side of the family, then your baby will be more severely
affected and will almost certainly be sensitive to dairy. To this end, given that tiny dairy protein molecules can enter the milk and upset sensitive, atopic babies, cutting out all dairy in your diet can cut down the severity
of the colic bouts. Some people also find that cutting out caffeine and/or alcohol can help as both of these cross the blood/brain barrier and so, obviously can reach the milk. Don't let this make you think that other food stuffs can enter the milk (typical "bad foods" people blame are onions,oranges, grapes, curry, garlic and most other foods that we really, really love) There is solid and plentiful evidence to refute this. If anyone suggests cutting out foods, ask them to explain the precise process by which the food gets into the milk. I find that they usually gaze at the sky for a while and then gradually realise that onions just aren't capable of this
marvellous feat!

Your colicky baby will almost certainly turn into an outgoing, physically active baby (the more severe the colic, the more the baby is likely to fit this personality type) who is an utter delight to mother (although you'll
need your wits around you as the little trouper raids every cupboard in sight!) There is light at the end of the tunnel - best to batten down the hatches for 3 months and emerge when the storm has passed and the sun is
shining!

Hope this helps and please feel free to copy this off for desperate mums and
dads.