The Best Chiropractic Care for Colicky Babies in Appleton
Genesis Chiropractic is a Gonstead-specific chiropractic clinic in Appleton, Wisconsin, that offers gentle chiropractic evaluation for infants experiencing colic.
Understanding Infantile Colic and the Birth Process
Infantile colic is defined as inexplicable, uncontrollable crying in babies roughly 0 to 3 months old, lasting more than three hours a day, at least three days a week, for three weeks or more, typically worse in the late afternoon or evening. That clinical definition doesn’t offer much comfort to an exhausted parent who’s already tried everything and just wants to know why their baby won’t stop crying. Traditionally, colic was assumed to be primarily digestive in origin, though its actual cause remains genuinely unclear across the medical and research community.
One area of interest involves the birth process itself. Cesarean deliveries and deliveries assisted with tools like forceps or vacuum extraction can expose an infant’s spine and neck to significant force during birth. A 1987 study by German researcher Dr. Gutmann, published in the journal Manuelle Medizin, examined newborns shortly after birth and found spinal strain present in 95% of a subgroup experiencing vomiting, hyperactivity, or sleeplessness — symptoms that overlap meaningfully with colic presentations.
What the Research Says About Chiropractic Care and Colic
The Gutmann finding is real, but it’s also decades old and came from a small, non-blinded case series — not the kind of rigorous trial that settles a question definitively. More recent research tells a more mixed story: a 2021 Danish randomized controlled trial published in Chiropractic & Manual Therapies found no statistically significant difference in crying time once results were adjusted for baseline crying, age, and clinic, and a Cochrane review reached a similarly cautious conclusion when only properly blinded studies were considered.
Given this mixed evidence, we present chiropractic care for colic as one supportive option worth discussing with your pediatrician, not a guaranteed fix. A gentle evaluation can identify whether spinal strain from the birth process may be a contributing factor for your specific baby, and adjustments for infants use an extremely light, precise touch — nothing resembling an adult adjustment. If you’re considering this option, we’d encourage an honest conversation about what the evidence does and doesn’t currently show.
What Patients Say About Genesis Chiropractic
Colicky Baby questions
Is There Research on Chiropractic Care for Infant Colic?
Research has explored whether gentle manual therapies may help babies with colic, but the evidence remains limited and results have been mixed. Some studies have reported improvements in crying time, while others have found no significant benefit compared with placebo. Chiropractic care should not replace evaluation or guidance from your baby’s pediatrician.
How Is Chiropractic Care Adapted for Infants?
Chiropractic techniques used with infants are different from those typically used with adults and may involve gentle, low-force approaches appropriate for a baby’s size and development. Because infants require special consideration, parents should discuss persistent symptoms with their pediatrician and make sure any provider caring for their baby has appropriate pediatric training and experience.
When Should My Colicky Baby Be Evaluated?
If your baby is experiencing persistent or excessive crying, it’s important to speak with your pediatrician to rule out illness or other underlying causes. Once your baby has been medically evaluated, you can discuss whether additional supportive or complementary care may be appropriate.
Serving Chiropractic Patients Across the Fox Cities
Genesis Chiropractic proudly serves patients throughout Appleton and the greater Fox Valley. From our office on South Schaefer Street, we’re a short drive for neighbors across the Fox Cities.
Kaukauna, WI
Freedom, WI
Neenah, WI
Menasha, WI
Fox Crossing, WI
Grand Chute, WI
Little Chute, WI
Kimberly, WI
Combined Locks, WI
