Breastfed Baby Not Pooping

My son was exclusively breast fed and often did not poop for up to 7 days. I would not worry about it. Every little bit of the milk is used, so there is not a lot to poop out. My son was perfectly healthy with this. I never gave him anything to make him poop. If he seems comfortable don't do anything.

W.

1 oz of Karo syrup is NOT healthy, it's corn syrup (I know it's a common remedy but it's not good for the baby, but it gives a big jump in blood glucose.)

I didn't sleep at night and was only a few days old and my mom was exhausted so my dad too over. Next thing my mom knows it's morning and I'd been sleeping! She asked what he did, and he said that he gave me 4 oz of straight prune juice! LOL My mom was horrified, but it worked and from then on occasionally she gave me prune juice (diluted, though.)

My breastfed babies would go as long as five days between BMs but they were always soft. My ped said to use the suppository if it had been 5 days, but not more frequently because the baby can become dependent on it. My babies also developed silent reflux, GERD, which caused them to be very fussy. They'd quiet down to eat because they thought maybe they were hungry, but eventually they'd pull away and stiffen up their backs and cry and then I knew they they did indeed have reflux. Meds helped and they never needed an increase in meds because they outgrew the condition.

It is normal for breastfed babies to go for even up to a week without a bowel movement. Breastmilk really is a superfood that gets digested so completely that there isn't much left to pass.

Most babies though are not in pain for not pooping and I would keep an eye of it, though small episodes of crying might just be gas or something other unrelated. If his symptoms get any worse or you are concerned definitely call your doctor. Sometimes babies can get bowel obstruction, it is not common though and completely unrelated to what you are feeding him.

You can help stimulate his bowels by giving him some "excercise": gently push his legs up to is tummy (knees bent like doing squats), bend his legs and move them from side to side, noting crazy, just gentle slow movements. Also give him a gentle clockwise tummy massage.
Make sure you keep feeding him on demand. I would not give water to an infant this young, breastmilk contains everything he needs.
Also don't think that giving him formula will help, it can actually constipate babies, especially if they are not used to it.

I also agree with trying a lactation consultant and finding a doctor knowledgeable about breastfeeding, our doctor was never worried about a couple of days with no BM and never suggested giving any suppositories or laxatives.
Good luck.

It does sound like you need to check with the dr. My advice would be to ask first if this doctor is pro-breastfeeding. Ask midwives in your area, ask La Leche League leaders, even ask the doctor outright.

Any pedi doctor who claims you should stop breastfeeding or that you should begin solids or water at this age, just isn't the doctor you want to be consulting.

Also, my first thought was to ask you about the amount of fiber in your own diet. Instead of the suppositories, I would suggest a dose of the anti-gas medicine and increase both the clear liquids and high-fiber foods you are eating.

Keep us up-to-date! All the best to you and yours!

He's too young for water. What I would to help my girls poop is give them a warm bath, massage their tummies and bicycle their legs.

You could also try gas drops, gripe water and making sure he *really* burps after each feeding. Built-up gas can cause our little babies SO much pain and that won't have anything to do with how often he poops.

Breastfed babies tend to poop less frequently because there's no waste in breastmilk. And when they're going through growth spurts, those little bodies are using everything they're taking in.

If he still seems like he's in real pain then have your doctor check him out. It's likely nothing, but better safe than sorry, right?

I know some say it is normal to go for days, but if he seems uncomfortable or especially if he is in pain, I think you need to have it checked out. Just to be reassured it isn't something serious, of course, and then your pediatrician will hopefully recommend home remedies for you to try.

I agree with you that if he was not in pain, probably not an issue. My baby was partially breastfed/partial formula and she went through a phase at 6-12 weeks where she would go 4 days or so before pooping. Since she was not in any pain and poop was soft, DR said this was fine. She said up to 5 days was acceptable.

But your baby seems to be hurting. My DR also told me that if I wanted to speed up the process, take her temp rectally. I did that a couple times and the stimulation would do the trick, she would poop within a few hours, sometimes right after.

Good luck!

My little girl is usually a once-a-week pooper, exclusively breastfed, but the hard tummy and seeming in pain would be red flags for getting your little man checked out. Poor fella. Make sure you're drinking lots and lots of water, nurse him often, and make an appt to check it out. The "worst" that can happen is that there's nothing wrong with him. Your dr shouldn't give you grief for bringing him in.
Good luck!

I'm not sure about water that young. I would definitely bring it up next visit or schedule a visit. You'll want to keep on top of it so it doesn't become a real issue. The skipping a day or 2 isn't so bad it's the other signs of constipation that you know he is. I would take him in if he were mine.

Yes, definitely normal to go a few days. Your baby is also hitting that stage where it is common for them to get "colicky" as their digestive systems are immature....usually this goes about in a couple more weeks. When your baby does poop is it dry hard or is it normal? try gas drops too or gripe water that is all natural. That tended to help my 2 kids at this stage (similar issues too) and time. Keep an eye on it, suppositories sound too harsh at this stage and could actually exacerbate the problem and not teach the body how to actually get things out!

It's probably just constipation from the foods that you are eating. When my son was a baby and constipated, my mom suggested a small bottle of 3oz water and 1oz light Karo syrup. Sure enough, within a few hours he pooped. The syrup is a laxative. Try it and see what happens. It certainly won't hurt him. My son slurped down the sweet goodness.

Breastfed babies do not have a lot of solid waste products. The milk is so nutritious and easily digested that there isn't that much to poop out. As long as infant is having soft poops and wet diapers... they are fine and doing as they should be.

Try bicycling his legs - you know, pumping them around in a circle, to increase his circulation and bowels. Also, burp burp burp! The gastro intestinal tract will be immature until about 6-8 months old... so yes that may be playing a part too. Try eliminating dairy from your diet for 3 weeks... then slowly re-introducing dairy of the organic USDA certified variety.

Try increasing your own fiber to make sure it is passing to baby. Perhaps oatmeal and lots of water.

Good luck.

my newborn daughter went through the same thing. She is exclusively breastfed and would not be able to have a bm. She would become fussy and irritable at time with a hard belly. She would try so hard to have a bm and nothing or just a ball. That is when my doctor told me that I could give her 1tsp of karo syrup to 4 oz of water. Boy did this work miracles....she pooped within a 30 minute time frame and it was soft. My doctor said I could increase or decrease the karo syrup if it didnt work the first time but it did so I did not increase it. I only gave it to her a couple of times and now her bm's are totally normal. Another thing that worked for my baby before we saw the pedi was 1 oz pear or apple juice to 3 oz water. Baby loved it and was able to have a bm within a couple of hours. Now I do not give it to her all the time only when having a diffifculty with bm. But like I said her bm's have returned to normal now she is about 10 weeks.

My exclusively breastfed kids go upwards of 9-10 days, but typically they don't start that until 3 or 4 months and are not in pain, uncomfortable. I think you need a new pedi. Seriously. I don't know what type of pedi tells you to give a newborn a glycerin suppository that young. When he does poop is it loose or hard, does he cry when he poops, and does he have blood in it? It should be loose, no cry/screaming when he is going and no blood or mucus. I've done extensive research because it freaks me out my kids go so long. Those are the questions most pedi's ask before suggesting you do an invasive measure on an infant. My opinion, get yourself a new pedi and ask them. There are plenty of good and more natural pedi's in Austin. If you don't get some answers you like take him to a specialist at Dell. You could also try a warm bath, but it sounds like you should just find a new doc.

This has happened with my 2 DD , and my nieces, so I believe is totally normal, it can be for as long as 7 days!!! Yes! And be prepared for the big diaper hahaha... maybe a little chamomille tea, or water with Caro syrup, or very watery prune juice will help, also try massaging on circles the stomach with baby oil ( very gently)...I don't remember what else but my doctor say is nothing to worry , ( I don't like supppsitorys as the body can get use to this)... you need drink lots of water , remember to eat lots of fiber too....its has the same effect in the baby than in your body...

I definitely think you should have him checked out. All three of my breastfed girls had the same symptoms which you are describing. Turns out it was anal stenosis. Which basicallyeand their anis muscle is really tight and doesn't allow them to pass gas or poop regularly. The good news is that this can be fixed fairly easily. My 4 year old had hers surgically corrected, however hindsight is 20/20 and had I known then what I know now we would not have gone that route. For my mow 21 month old when she was about 6 months started with the same symptoms we visited s pediatric surgeon and he recommended anal dilators. The diagnosis is made pretty simply and usually by your pediatrician who will then refer you to a pediatric surgeon; mainly because they are the experts. Hope this helps, but if you would like any further information or other questions,you can email me at ____@____.com

Call your pediatrician. With the 'hard tummy", it may be that the stool is impacted and a little dry. It may need to be removed manually, but the pain you describe sounds like it could be gas that's having a hard time moving out because of the stool.

Also, herbs are powerful medicine, so please consult an ND for this sort of advice, because they can have severe adverse effects given in the wrong doses.

My daughter had the same issues, sometimes going as long as 5 days without! She did seem to be uncomfortable and we rubbed her tummy and that seemed to help. Our ped. told us to give her a little watered down prune juice, but I can't remember how old she was at the time!

It sounds similar to my son. He is now 13 weeks old but he would be very fussy and turn bright red when he had gas or pooped. I felt like he was in pain. I told his Dr. that I thought he was in pain. He told me not to worry. He sometimes would not poop for 2 days but on the 3rd day it was a big one.

I began giving him gas medicine every time he ate. This seemed to help a bit. Also, the Dr. told me that if he had not pooped on the 3rd day to give him a teaspoon of prune juice. He said I could put some of my breastmilk in a bottle and mix it.

I have yet to do this b/c he always ends up having a bowel movement on the third day.

I will say he is better now. He still turns bright red but he is not as fussy. It does not look as painful anymore.

Going a few days without a BM is not a big deal. Perhaps his red face isn’t so much that he’s trying to poop but rather trying to keep himself from pooping because maybe he has a little tear in his anus? My daughter had that (exclusively breastfed) and would go up to a week without a BM. I could tell by the third day she was uncomfortable but of course, like everyone else, our Pedi said it was normal as long as the poop was soft. It was soft but when she finally went she would go 2-3 times in one day, each time filling the diaper. She would also cry like she was in pain while she was going. Again the doctor said normal, probably just gas. Well it was a tear and apparently it’s very common in babies and LOs. My friend who is a pediatric surgeon knew right away what it was when I described my LO’s behavior. She prescribed some numbing ointment to put around the anus and it worked like a charm – my LO started going every other day to everyday. It is NOT normal for anybody to go several days without a BM even a baby on breast milk – that is an urban legend perpetuated by Pedi’s and mothers who listen to their Pedi’s and other “experts” who don’t go the extra step to check for other causes. My newest addition is 3 months, has never gone more than a couple days without a BM and she is also exclusively breastfed. She doesn’t eat nearly as much as my first and yet she goes almost every day! Go figure.

Also, if you think your baby’s stomach is truly hard, you should really have him checked by a new Pedi.

edit: sorry if I came on strong, but my LO went 2 months in the state of holding her BMs in and crying every time she went and everyone I asked said it was natural only to find out they were wrong.

My third child had difficulty like this. It continued and got worse before we discovered he wasn't getting enough fat/nutrients from my milk. He had plenty of wet diapers but not poopie diapers. If it doesn't become more normal soon I would definitely check to make sure your milk is sufficient. It can quickly become a failure to thrive situation. Just stay alert to it. Make sure he's gaining weight properly.

Haven't read all your answers but with my first I had this come up. He went like 6 days or something one time when he was really little. He also had the hard belly etc sometimes. He was fine, and it is true that babies that are breastfed can go much longer than non bf babies. But with my first, the gassy tummy etc was all apart of reflux and he ate constantly!!! Is yours spitting up pretty much after every feeding? Do you keep a bib on him almost constantly to keep up with the spits? Does he get fussy in the evening and take a long time to console? Has he ever had a really major spit up after a feeding? If so, you might want to get him checked for reflux. I did use mylicon for gasiness with my first, but it really didn't help much bc he actually had reflux. My second did not have it and he pooped a lot more frequently and never had the fussiness. Just a thought, but I think the pooping thing is probably totally normal. Good luck!!