Constipation

When my son was constipated, my Dr. told me to give him juice that started with a "P" like Pear or Prune. You would water them down so they aren't so strong for your baby - it worked for us. I hope this helps.
S.' P.

A.-
My son had problems with constipation when he was smaller, too. It was so hard to watch him struggle and be in pain just to go to the bathroom! My nurse recommended giving him Caro Syrup in his bottles (1 teaspoon, 4 times a day). I would call your pediatrician's office to check on how much to give since my son started having problems at around 4 months and the dosage we were given may be too much for your little one. The good news is, my son eventually grew out of the constipation problem (it may also have been that I stopped breastfeeding and switched his formula to Similac Isomil) and he's now 7 months old and is very regular. Good luck and I hope he feels better soon!

My baby is almost 3 months and we have the same problem (on prevacid, reglan and iron drops - no wonder she's consitpated!) The Pedi recommended a glycerin suppository (which helps w/in 2 minutes), but also an ounce of Gerber apple juice or prune juice 2x day. She actually didn't need that much per day to get everything moving. Note - Juice is thinner than breastmilk/formula and your baby may choke on it. You can also put juice in an oral syringe and give it to him.

Good Luck - I can empathize with yoU!!! :)

Water...as often as you can get him to drink it. You may have to add some light karo syrup to it to get him to drink it. It takes 2 Tablespoons to 4 ounces of very warm water.

Now, if that doesn't clean him out and give him some relief...there's always pear juice...but for one that young, I'd even fix it half and half with water...so basically, it flavors the water.

Pears in the 1st foods would help if you feel comfortable about giving them to him by spoon. And there is always prunes in the 1st foods, too. It wouldn't take much to get him going. I just don't know how you feel about giving him such things. Any fruits would help except, NO Bananas or Applesauce. They will tighten his bowels and could cause more constipation.

Be consistent and let me know if you have anymore questions. He's just a little person...and I know the doctor's try to limit their eating until they are 4 and five months old. But his are special circumstances. The single grain oatmeal mixed with his formula or breast milk in a bottle would give him some fiber to help his bowels move. Just thicken the feeding and make the hole in the nipple a little larger...to where he can get it through. Any of these things will work. Or a combination wouldn't hurt...Oatmeal with a half a jar of pears mixed in a bottle with his milk would work wonders, too.

Good luck and God Bless...

Take your child to a chiropractor. It helps with the reflux and will also help with the constipation. Also, putting your child on acidophilus will help with the constipation.

Hi A.-
I am a Pedi RN- we always recommend Flat 7UP and water to help w/ the constipation. It is mixed in a one to one ratio and the baby can have as much as he wants- as long as it does not interfere with regular feedings.
When you see the baby straining to have a BM use q-tip w/ vasoline on it, insert it in the rectum and move it around a bit- stimulating the rectal muscle (ah the joys of parenthood!)
If you need anything else feel free to e-mail.
D.

Is he on formula? If so, you may want to his pediatrician if you can use Enfamil GentlEase formula. Massage his tummy. Start with small circles and then make the circles bigger as you get further from his belly button. Warm baths also are soothing. My daughter had constipation because of her formula.

Hope this helps!

Drs say don't give babies water but I think that's a joke! Have you heard of anybody die from drinking some water!? It's good for babies skin, stomach and digestion. That's the base of the IV fluids too. But I think it should be distilled water though. Warm it a little. Gently massage baby's stomach and the base of the spine (right above the butt)with warm baby oil -- this helps move the fecal matter. If your baby is not poohing a while, this waste accumulates in his intestinal walls and can become toxic. This can trigger food sensitivies or allergies. Many illnesses are borne from a dysfunctional colon...chronic constipation can create an unhealthy colon.

Try to stay away from prolonged use of laxatives and drugs since they only mask the symptoms and are a temporary solution. Look for more natural ways to help the baby's body heal itself. I had chronic constipation for a month and now have a bowel movement everyday with no constipation. Unfortunately, some of tips are only good for adults since they involve daily juicing of a variety of ORGANIC fresh vegetables (dandelion, parsley, celery, fennel, kale, cucumbers, carrots, beets, apple,cabbage). I only juice 3 veggies at a time. Good for adults but I'd research what natural remedies are good for babies on the Net.

Good luck! Baby will be fine. But please be willing to research in the world of natural remedies (foods, etc).

My daughter has the same issue if she doesn't get her apple juice! You can buy the regular stuff (apple juice w/ vit C) and mix it 1:1 with water and it's the same as baby juice. She gets a cup w/ breakfast every morning.

Hope this helps!
J.

My second son had really bad reflux and really bad constipation...sometimes would go up to 10 days w/o going....while a suppository would work almost immediately, you should not use them frequently b/c it can result in dependency. The best thing that worked for me was mixing about 2 Tbls of Dark Karo Syrup and 2 Tbls of water in a bottle. Do this 3-4 times per day depending on needs...this was recommended by our pediatrician and seemed to be the only thing that worked - but it didn't always work. I sympathize with you b/c this is really hard on everyone - kinda one of those things you just have to wait out. Now that he is on solids, he is very regular - 2-4 times per day. Good luck, hoped this helps. N.

I have a 3 yr old that is constipated often. I've tried several options including prescription (which I didn't care for). But, what has worked the best is Benefiber. I give it to him twice a day, every day. He stool has been regular and soft. I've been using Benefiber for two months and it seems to be the best solution so far. A friend of mine is also using it with her 4 yr old. You can purchase it at any grocery store, or Walgreens. Hope this helps.

Have you tried diluted fruit juice? That really worked for my son.

My child has bad constipation as well, but he is 3 now. He was on prescription medicine for awhile, called Miralax. You may want to ask your pediatrician about it if it's a constant issue because of his other medication. Pear juice works well now for him, but yours is a little too young for juice. Otherwise I would suggest a Tablespoon of Karo Syrup in his bottle. That is what my pediatrician recommended when he was a baby, for constipation. But with his reflux issues, that could make it worse, I'm not familiar with that, my boys didn't have it. Hope this helps.

My little one was about 6 weeks old when we started with constipation issues. My pediatrician recommended the more natural route. Pear or prune juice. An ounce mixed in the bottle every other feeding until things get "moving" and then back off. It took about 24 hours but I probably changed 4 loaded diapers in 45 minutes once it started to work. Pear worked great for awhile and we were giving it once a day. Then we switched to prune, definitely much stronger!!! Didn't need to use that as often or as much. Now, at 10 months, when he has problems, we just give him prune baby food. He actually loves it!

Have you tried baby food apples or prunes in a jar. Sometimes even pureed pears work as well. Good luck,

i had to give my 2 month old daughter 2 oz of apple juice not too long ago. it took a few hours to work but, it solved the problem! double check with your pediatrician just in case, but this is what mine recommended.

A. - My daughter, Emily is on Miralax - it is a prescription but is well worth it. Your peditrician can write one for you. If your son has reflux do not let anyone tell you to try MaltSupex. It has been around for ever, not a prescription, very costly and makes reflux worse. What reflux meds is your son on? Emily is on prevacid. She has had reflux since she was born and we have been through several meds until we got on this one.

C.
http://www.caringbridge.com/visit/emily

C.

When my daughter was an infant she had problems wiht constipation as well. We had to change her formula to the soy. Also if you put jsut a tea spoon of Dark Karo syrup in the bottle it will help with the constipation.

My daughter who is also 2 months old has reflux, she is on Prevacid but we also have to add cereal to her bottle (which makes her constipated).. My pediatrician has us adding Karo Syrup to her bottle. We put a 1 1/2 Tsp in her bottle twice a day.

In the beginning we added Karo to every bottle until we started moving bowels correctly and then cut back on the Karo once she got back to normal. Every child is different so your little one may need more or less Karo than ours. I heard you can also use childrens prune juice. Good luck!

Yes! We had a terrible time with constipation too! It was awful. We finally had her taking 1 teaspoon (tsp) of milk of magnesia in her bottle. You can mix it in with either breast milk or formula. If we missed it one day she was constipated! The other option is crushing a magnesium (not sure how to spell it!) supplement and putting that in the milk. That's what we ended up switching her to after her 1st birthday. But again, the magnesium made a BIG difference and it's natural and affordable. Best of luck. I know how awful that can be. Our daughter actually had to go to emergency one time.

Warmly, S.

Hello A.,,
When my son was constipated after coming home from the hospital when he was born I was advised to give him one(1) teaspoon of dark Karo syrup in his formula once or twice a day and that would help with the constipation or give him baby food prunes or some adult prune juice mixed with water. It worked and he did fine with it. I love using old remedies vs. medications.

Our doc recommended giving ours 2 ounces of pedialyte per day.

See if your child's doctor is comfortable with prescribing Miralax. It mixes very easily and is flavorless. My daughter needed it for almost 1.5 yrs and it helped regulate her. Natural way to help is tummy massage - let me know if you want more details, as I'm a Licensed Massage Therapist.

I've found the most natural way to deal with constipation would be to take Magnesium Citrate, you can get it in a cherry flavored oral solution from Walgreens. I would say you could start out giving him an eye dropper full (certainly less than 2 oz) or ask a doctor.
It is what I give my children and myself (when I was pregnant) and stopped up. Or you could always try adding prune juice to your breast milk or formula, if your bably will take it.
Good luck!