Definition: What is a cry baby?
A screaming child or writing baby attracts attention through particularly frequent and persistent screaming. Doctors refer to a screaming baby if a child screams for at least three hours on at least three days a week and this behavior has lasted for more than three weeks. The crying is particularly intense in the first three months of life.
During this time, however, the crying is perceived as particularly shrill. Often, babies clench their hands together, bend their backs towards the hollow back and pull their legs up. You can see the child’s exertion – his face usually turns dark red. Nevertheless, they usually do not manage to find rest during the day and thus sleep for only about half an hour.
What are the reasons for a Schreibaby?
The cause of this sensitivity has not yet been conclusively clarified. However, a study has shown that smoking during pregnancy – as with so many diseases – represents an increased risk. It is also being discussed whether psychological stress on the mother during pregnancy has an influence on this.
In recent years, it has been found that the cause is not three-month colic in most children, but is caused by a difficulty in processing environmental stimuli. A maximum of ten percent of children suffer from food intolerances, such as those to cow’s or soy milk. Often, even without food intolerance, an inflated stomach is visible in writing babies, which is usually caused by the fact that the children swallow air when they cry.
It is assumed that screaming children are overstrained with the new sensory stimuli and stress themselves. Other children will soon find a way to control their attention and switch off or sleep when they are overwhelmed. They can also effectively calm themselves down by sucking on their finger or the pacifier.
A writing baby has great difficulty in doing this. Because of their alert and attentive nature, they participate more in their environment and concentrate too much on what is happening around them. Stress during pregnancy is regarded as a possible causative factor for pen babies.
Strong mental stress plays a role in this primarily. Cigarette consumption during pregnancy could also be a cause. The ultimate causative factor has not yet been conclusively clarified, but it can be assumed that stress during pregnancy is probably part of the causative structure. Future studies will have to investigate the causes in more detail.
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