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Appendix A
Red Flags and Red Alerts: When You Should Call the
Doctor
Fortunately, most colicky babies aren’t physically sick. Rather, they’re
sort of “homesick”—struggling to cope with life outside Mama’s womb.
But how can you know when your infant’s cries are a sign of sickness?
Here’s a primer of the ten red flags that doctors look for to decide
when a baby’s cry signals illness, plus a review of the ten red-alert
medical conditions that these red flags may indicate.
The Ten Red Flags Your Doctor Will Ask You About
Whenever you’re worried about your baby, you should, of course,
contact your doctor for guidance. When you do, he’ll likely ask you these
two questions to help him decide if your baby has colic or something
more serious:
1. Is your baby growing well and acting normal in all other ways?
2. Is your baby calm for long periods of the day?
If you answer no to either question, then your doctor will ask you how
your baby acts when she isn’t crying. He is looking for these ten red
flags:
1. Persistent moaning (groans and weak cries that continue for hours)
2. Supershrill cry (unlike any cry your baby has made before)
3. Vomiting (any green or yellow vomit or vomiting more than one
ounce per episode and more than five episodes a day)

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4. Change in stool (constipation or diarrhea, especially with blood)
5. Fussing during eating (twisting, arching, crying that begins during or
shortly after a feed)
6. Abnormal temperature (a rectal temperature of more than 100.2°F or
less than 97.0°F)
7. Irritability (crying all the time with almost no calm periods in
between)
8. Lethargy (a baby sleeping twice as long as usual, acting “out of it,”
or not sucking well over an eight-to twelve-hour period)
9. Bulging soft spot on the head (even when your baby is sitting up)
10. Poor weight gain (gaining less than a half ounce a day)