Digestive Problems in 16 Month Old

Updated on April 07, 2008
J.K. asks from Great Falls, MT
18 answers

My son has been having some digestive problems since November. We have take him to the doc several times and she says that sometimes they just have some bugs to work out esp. if they have had the flu or thrown up. We give him fruit, and he is still breast feeding. He just started becoming more interested in other foods, but for a while he wouldn't eat much. His little tummy always seems bloated and around Valentines day he got constipated and became afraid of going poo. He has since seemed to hold it in. Like I said, he gets fruit (pears) and water. He hasn't experienced loose stools with that, like some kids might with too much fruit. For the last couple of months we have to grab him when we see that he is holding back and literally bend him and help him push. It has been so hard and we aren't sure what direction to go. We have tried miraLAX with the idea that he wouldn't be able to hold the poops in and they would just come out and he would loose the fear. Lately I am not sensing as much of the fear, but it is a constant battle. I just need some help and direction. I have an appointment with a naturepathic doctor this week. I just want to know what could be causing all of this.

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So What Happened?

Things seem to be going much better. It felt good just to put that question out there and have so many people respond. He has been going on his own and I am not sure what the trick is but he has had pears regualarly and probiotics. If I was to guess, I would say that maybe his system is just maturing also! I am keeping an eye on things and will continue to consider everyone's ideas. Thank you so much! J.

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M.M.

answers from Denver on

Could he have celiac's disease (wheat allergy). Maybe try taking away all of the problem foods for kids (egg, milk, soy, etc.) for a couple of weeks and then gradually add one at a time to see what might be attributing to his problem.

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E.W.

answers from Salt Lake City on

try some chamomile tea they can drink it cold it really helps them have loose stools. You dont have to use a lot half a cup is enough. let me know if it works

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A.D.

answers from Great Falls on

I don't have alot of advice, except to tell you to be patient. My sister went through the same thing 10 years ago. We used to have to hold her for about 1-2 hours and tell her to let it out while she screamed and cried as she pooped. It was heartbreaking. My parent's tried everything, including having her undergo every kind of test imaginable. It was aweful watching a 2-3 year go through that. In the end she just out grew it. We did use supositories, and fed her prune juice. That helped a bit. She too was BF and did not eat much. It started around 2 for her and lasted about a year. Now she is a very healthy, active bright teenager. There seems to be more options out now as well. Good luck, and hang in there!

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C.T.

answers from Provo on

Do you know how hard it is for the little ones to actually have bowel control without accidents? My daughter used to have a hard time, too. I would massage her lower back as she sat on the john and it helped relieve muscle tension and she could then relax and go. She used to complain that her tummy hurt and once I though it might be that so I did the massage(just a slow circular gentle rub). It worked!! You also need to make sure he drinks water, not just milk. At that age they only want to play and eat. If you have ever had to fast or got dehydrated, the next day it seems it's too hard to go and you can irritate any hemorroids as well.

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D.B.

answers from Denver on

Try getting more probiotics. Less fruit. Check out www.bodyecologydiet.com

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A.R.

answers from Denver on

My little girl went through much the same thing, except she has chronic constipation since she was 12 mos old and that cased a whole vicious withholding cycle that took a couple years to work through. However, our ped didn't truly take it seriously enough so we had to figure it out for ourselves. Here are a couple ideas that worked for us...
1. figure out his poop schedule and watch for signs so you can be proactive as you are now. be sure to encourage, not pressure.
2. they have these new yogurts out to help with digestive health and they work wonders for my daughter. They come in several flavors, but vanilla has the lowest sugar. We use the YO+. Not only will the cultures help his system get back to normal but the added fiber will help too.

Best of luck and just remember that this is an age where they start trying to gain a little control and clearly, he has picked poop to be in charge of...

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C.R.

answers from Denver on

I had the digestive problems with my son too. And I did some naet treatments on him.
www.naet.com

Hope this helps.

C.

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R.G.

answers from Grand Junction on

My daughter had some digestive problems as well. I took her to a pediatric gastro. My daughter's problems were different than your son's, but the doctor may have some good adivce. Good luck!

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A.C.

answers from Denver on

Have you tried probiotics? They are the good bacteria that can help with digestive and immune problems. Also, does he have any dairy (cow's milk, cheese, yogurt). Many children don't tolerate dairy very well. I bet your naturopath will have some great advice! Good luck!

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M.L.

answers from Denver on

I would check for food allergies. My family has food allergiest and constipation and bloating sound like it could be allergies. I have heard of people being allergic to fruit. One of the things we are allergic to is gluten (wheat). Maybe see a peadiatric gastroenteroligist. Children's hospital might be a good place to start. Good luck

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M.H.

answers from Portland on

I agree with the suggestions to try probiotics, I've given my son (now 2 yrs) BioK a couple of times when his digestive system has been messed up - mostly the other direction with diarrhea - but it helps get the good bacteria growing in their bellies and gets everything working correctly. You can find it at Pharmaca and it works great. Also, kefir or just yogurt every day works well too and isn't as spendy.

Suggestions for corn or Karo Syrup are good too, my son went 10 days without a poop a couple of times when he was between 5 & 8 mos. and it really helped.

Good luck, I hope this helps!

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P.R.

answers from Pueblo on

He is probably highly sensitive to breast milk and foods. Try giving him children's digestive enzymes from the natural health stores. If not, contact a BioSET practitioner.

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K.S.

answers from Denver on

my dd had this same problem she has had issues for 6= months before i saw my ped and she sugested a high prune diet i give her a sippy cup with half prune juice and hale apple juce and that will clean her out no holding can be done we started giving her one a day like this til things normalled out a little now i give her some everyother day or with less prune and more apple juice or milk. i have also tryed to give her more fiber and kashi makes good cookies and gronalla bars with a lot in them water also helps as well as exercize also there is some yoga that helps with digestion my little one is 2 1/2 and loves to do them but needs help on some poses we made more child friendly names good luck ill have to try the yogerts too :)

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L.J.

answers from Denver on

HI

Have you considered Chiropractic? They can do some amazing things! Here is the name of our Chiropractor.

Dr. Joe Arvay
www.SpineGeek.com

He is located in Northglenn. About 104th and I-25. Check out the website. I think you can even email him and ask if he thinks he could help. God bless your search for answers!

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R.T.

answers from Denver on

Probiotics, suggested by others might help. Natriopath should help also. We also take our son to a pediatric acupuncturist. They don't use needles with babies, so I guess it's more like acupressure. They use these little brush, comb and tapping devices to stimulate points. If you don't think the natriopath helps, you could give her a call. Her name is Michelle and her number is: 303/921-6263. I had luck personally with a natiropath when I had gut problems after time in Africa; no one else (top ranked GI specialists included) were able to help. I've also had great luck with acupuncture. Good luck. I hope you're little guy feels better soon!

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S.M.

answers from Denver on

Hi J.,

This can be very frustrating. Miralax didn't work for my son as well as Benefiber. Also, our Ped told us to us a few drops of corn syrup in his water, this actually worked the best. Have you tried prune juice or prunes?

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H.W.

answers from Boise on

Have you tried yougurt? I also suggest getting a stool sample tested. My daughter had similar problems and ended up with a bacterial intestinal infection. There were several other factors, like she's been on antibiotics too much (7 ear infections since September), and it's a rare occurane, but you might get it checked out.

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R.O.

answers from Boise on

My daughter had the same problem. Her stools were so hard we had to help pull them out, it makes you feel so bad! I worked for WIC for ten years, and at 16 months your son should be eating 3 good meals a day of regular table food. Increase the vegetables, give him a prune a day (my daughter still loves them 14 years later!), and oatmeal is great, too. Just make sure he is getting three servings of fruit and three servings of vegetables every day, and lots of water and sugar free juice.
One other thing, in our area we have very hard water. This can cause constipation if they are drinking a lot or if you use if for formula (I know you said you were BF, goood for you!) Buy some distilled water in the gallons to see if that makes a difference as well. I had to buy it for my daughter for about two years before she could handle the tap water again.
R. O.
Gooding, ID

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