The fact that your child is sad is easy to work out, what’s not so easy to decipher is your child’s signals and know what the problem actually is.

It can sometimes be difficult to understand your baby’s signals and as a parent you can sometimes feel powerless.

Colic usually manifests as screaming where your child can become tense and even contract. The screaming often occurs in the afternoon or evening and can last for a number of hours. Your child will often also appear to be hungry and you can end up in a vicious circle where your child eats and eats and only gets a worse stomach because they cannot rest. Many times you hear that their stomach is churning and that there is some gas, which can also relieve the symptoms.

Smaller children, under the age of two, have difficulty explaining specific pains, and as a parent you have to try to interpret the signals that your child gives you. It may be that you see your child has a reduced appetite, whines more, has restless nights and that they become tense and irritable.

The appearance, frequency, consistency and amount of poo can also be a sign of stomach problems. It is good to watch for signs of constipation such as hard and dry stools. Sometimes you may find that your child has a very loose stomach, and there is a condition known as overflow diarrhoea, which occurs if there is stool in the intestines that does not come out, but whatever is loose can flow past it.

For questions about your child and their little belly, you can always turn to a children’s health centre for tips and advice.