Joy Anderson wrote:
I am also not convinced that cabbage necessarily causes colic anyway,
even when consumed by the mother.

Joy, you beat me to it with this reply.  That's my thinking, too.  Folk beliefs tend to colour anecdotal reports about cabbage ingested by the mother "causing" colic or gasiness ("wind") in the breastfed baby, and there is a strong belief in Anglo-Celtic communities about cabbage in this connection.  It is hard to tease out the effect of these beliefs from the solid facts in any journal reports I've seen on infantile gas-iness, espec where these beliefs can lead to recall bias when mothers recruited because of windy or colicky babies are asked about recent food intake.  I remain skeptical about links between cabbage in the maternal diet and "wind" or gasiness in the baby, until convinced by rigorous studies where this potential bias is address - difficult to do.
    As regards the cabbage on the skin, I'd suspect the baby didn't like the taste.
    Virginia
     in sunny Brisbane

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