Gripe water is a traditionally used homeopathic home remedy for colicky infants especially up to 4 months of age, gastrointestinal discomfort, gastro esophageal reflux, teething pain, hiccups ,abdominal cramps and several other gastrointestinal ailments which are not of serious nature. And it is thought that the main benefit of gripe water is that it actually calms the digestive tract. It soothes an irritated stomach and an irritated small intestine, thereby helping a baby to feel better.

If the history of gripe water is traced back we come to know that lots of home measures used to be taken in several ages for helping infants sleep. As a matter of fact the gripe water was discovered accidently in 1851 by an American, Williams Woodward working in England for the treatment of malaria and fen fever and the original brand is still named after him Why Woodward chose the name gripe water is not clear. He may be influenced by the 19th century name of gastroenteritis, watery gripes. Gripe may be related to“gripping nature of disease”, associated with gripping of gastrointestinal tract and thus responsible for all the symptoms. It was used for the first time by nannies in England.

These days a vast variety of ingredients are being used in gripe water with different combinations in different countries. Original Woodwards Gripe water contained 3.6% alcohol, dill oil, sodium bicarbonate, sugar and water. However gripe water may contain caraway, ginger, peppermint, aloe, blackthorn, lemon balm, glycerin, sugar, fructose, dill weed oil, cinnamon, clove bud oil, cardamom seed oil and vegetable charcoal. Gripe water is still waiting approval of United States Food and Drug administration for being used as an over the counter medicine because of the considerable amount of alcohol and bicarbonate used in it which may be unsafe for the newborn and infant. This concern has also been mentioned in 2000 review in the Journal of the Royal Society of Medicine.

While evidence of gripe water’s effectiveness has been limited to anecdotal accounts, there has been speculation about the reasons for the effectiveness of gripe water. The ingredients of gripe water speak for their effectiveness and relieve of some symptoms according to some studies .For example., Sodium bicarbonate decreases the acidity of the stomach, chamomile decreases irritability, anxiety and insomnia; fennel helps indigestion,; caraway for heartburn, gas and intestinal spasm; peppermint as an antispasmodic and for the stimulation of bile flow;; cinnamon bark as a carminative, astringent, stimulant and antiseptic; clove bud oil as an antiseptic, antiviral, anti helminthic, and relaxant; blackthorn as an antispasmodic; dill weed seed oil for its antimicrobial properties and to increase appetite; cardamom seed oil as a smooth muscle relaxant. It also seems that the soothing effect of gripe water is derived from its sweet taste.

Although pediatricians and physicians prescribe this colic remedy in routine but still they are not united regarding the exact dose of the gripe water. However ranging from 2 ml to 10 ml in the liquid form can be safely given to the infant according to weight with the help of a dropper. Infants usually are relieved within 30 minutes.

Gripe water is indeed an effective and harmless homeopathic remedy as it works by exploiting the ability of even the smallest doses of natural ingredients to augment the innate self-healing abilities of the body with no side effects or toxicities as compared to allopathic medicines. This freedom is enjoyed only in homeopathic medicines where wrong medicine may sometimes be used for wrong condition with no harmful effects.

In conclusion the accidental but fortunate discovery of gripe water is today a very popular treatment for colic with great commercial value.