Excessive crying and fussing

Unfortunately, excessive crying and fussing is common in babies and often leads to frustration and sleepless nights for parents. Digestive upset can cause this excessive crying and fussing, which may be due to an imbalance in the variety of bacteria present in babies’ digestive systems. Bifidobacterium animalis subsp. lactis, BB-12^® (hereafter referred to by use of the trademark BB-12^®) may help support a proper bacterial balance, which may have an effect on these symptoms in babies.

Crying, fussing newborns and parental challenges

Whilst becoming a parent and caring for your newborn is an exciting time, it can also be very tough - up to 20% of all babies under 3 months of age are seen by a doctor due to excessive crying and fussing.²

Crying is normal for newborns, but excessive, constant crying and fussing for long periods may be a sign of digestive upset.¹ This can occur without your baby showing any other physical signs of failure to thrive, such as difficulties with gaining weight or meeting normal growth milestones. As parents, this can affect your quality of life by causing worry, sleepless nights and feelings of frustration, hopelessness and guilt.³

Health of your babies' digestive system

To help our digestive systems work well and healthily, we all need a variety of bacteria. If the amounts of the various bacteria becomes imbalanced, digestive issues can occur, which may lead to excessive crying and fussing in babies.^{3, 4}

Bifidobacteria are usually found in high amounts in a baby's digestive system

The potential effects of probiotics are specific, with different probiotics providing support for different parts of our health. Bifidobacteria are a common type of bacteria and are usually found in high amounts in babies, and can even help with their digestive issues.^{5, 6} One such bifidobacterium is Chr. Hansen’s probiotic strain called BB-12^®. Recent scientific studies suggest that the BB-12^® probiotic strain helps support a healthy digestive system of babies.^{5, 7}

BB-12^® may help reduce excessive crying

In a recent study when babies were given the BB-12^® probiotic strain, the various bacteria in the digestive system became more ideally balanced, with an increase in the quantity of the good bifidobacteria. These babies then had fewer episodes of daily crying and they did not cry for as long as babies who did not receive the BB-12^® probiotic strain. Specifically, the length of crying episodes reduced by at least half in 80% of babies given the BB-12^® probiotic strain, but in babies who did not receive BB-12^®, only 33% halved the length of their crying episodes.⁷

This study suggests that BB-12^® may help, soothe and avoid excessive crying and fussing in your baby by restoring imbalances in the bacteria of the digestive system.

BB-12^® is a registrered trademark of Chr. Hansen A/S.

The article is provided for informational purposes regarding probiotics and is not meant to suggest that any substance referenced in the article is intended to diagnose, cure, mitigate, treat, or prevent any disease.

Reference list

1. Wolke D, et al. Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis: Fussing and Crying Durations and Prevalence of Colic in Infants. J Pediatr. 2017;185:55-61.e4. (PubMed)
2. Alvarez M, St James-Roberts I. Infant fussing and crying patterns in the first year in an urban community in Denmark. Acta Paediatr. 1996;85(4):463-6. (PubMed)
3. Zeevenhooven J, et al. Infant colic: mechanisms and management. Nat Rev Gastroenterol Hepatol. 2018;15(8):479-96. (PubMed)
4. Mayer EA, et al. Gut/brain axis and the microbiota. J Clin Invest. 2015;125(3):926-38. (PubMed)
5. Jungersen M, et al. The Science behind the Probiotic Strain Bifidobacterium animalis subsp. lactis BB-12^®. Microorganisms. 2014;2(2):92-110. (PubMed)
6. Fernandez L, et al. The microbiota of human milk in healthy women. Cell Mol Biol. 2013;59(1):31-42. (PubMed)
7. Nocerino R, et al. The therapeutic efficacy of Bifidobacterium animalis subsp. lactis BB-12^® in infant colic: A randomised, double blind, placebo-controlled trial. Aliment Pharmacol Ther. 2020; 51(1):110-20. (PubMed)