You can make your own Gripe Water for Colic- Cheep!

Having a baby with colic can be very frustrating. You may be tempted to go to the store and buy the various brands of ‘Gripe Water’ at approximately $10.00 for 4 ounces. If you read the ingredients on the back of the package you will find that they are usually a combination of the herbs Chamomile, Catnip, Fennel, Dill and Ginger.

You can make your own. It is a simple tea! Be sure and use fresh filtered or distilled water; Steep for approximately 5 to 10 minutes. Make sure the tea is cool enough for your baby before giving the tea. A 30ml
dropper can be used to give your baby the tea (usually comes with a brown glass tincture bottle). I see results with 1 to 3 doses of 5 to 10 drops (approx 10 ml)- spread out every 10 minutes or so as needed.

If you call or email a quality bulk herb supplier such as Mountain Rose Herbs http://www.mountainroseherbs.com/cgi-bin/Main.pl?AID=089203&BID=30 they would be happy to make you a bulk tea formula for Colic- the cost for 1 ounce of your bulk tea would probably around 3 or 4 dollars; this will make about 20 tea bags; each tea bags will make 4 to 6 ounces. You are getting 20 times more ‘Gripe Water’ for half the price!

You can also check your health food store in the tea section; Tradition Medicinal is a good over the counter brand to buy- Check for Stomach blends (same ingredients) A box of tea with 16 bags is around 3 dollars.

Of course you can grow your own herbs as well! Catnip, dill and chamomile are all easy to grow in a pot- you don’t even need a garden!

You can also buy or make children’s tinctures and add a few drops to your warm filtered water to make ‘Gripe Water’ Learn more about how to make tinctures on Kiva’s blog http://bearmedicineherbals.com/?p=304.

Empower yourself! Take charge of the health of your family! Anyone can learn how to make and use safe and effective natural remedies for themselves and their family. Join my online class today Holistic Herbal Remedies For Children http://herbsforchildren.onlineclasses.com/!

Other tips: It is nice to give the baby abdominal massage during this time as well (always in a clockwise direction- with a little pressure so you are not just tickling your baby) Also be aware of any food sensitivities your baby may have through the breast milk or from formula- Visit my blog http://herbalistpath.blogspot.com/search/label/Mothering for more details.