Constipated 2.5 Year Oid : (

I have had severe constipation issues with my 3 year old (started when he was a baby). He was a premie so I have no idea if this has anything to do with it or not. But my dr. finally prsecribed Miralaz (it's actually not a prescription - it's over the counter). We give him 1/4 of a capful every day. WHAT A DIFFERENCE IT HAS MADE! It has no side effects. It is a stool softener and it has been a miracle for us. I put it in his milk and he doesn't even know its there! Good luck!

Absolutely control her diet, usually that's where the problem lies. Laxitives only under a pediatritions advice. Does she eat a lot of cheese, whole milk, processed foods, high fat content? These are just the places to start and eliminate them from her diet. Encourage fresh fruits, veggies. Limit juice to no more than 4 oz per DAY, encourage lots of water instead. Use 2% (or less) milk and offer that only at meal time. Otherwise offer water to drink. Encourage her nutrition from her healthy foods rather than milk and juice. When offering juice, use only 100% juices, not the sugar water flavored by juice(Kool-Aid, 10%juices). If she starts "withholding" her bowel movements because it hurts it could lead to other issues. If you encourage more fresh fruit and veggies along with fiber and get her to drink water you will find her bowel movements more frequent(maybe daily vs weekly), softer and easier to pass. If you keep the 'bum' happy, the rest of the body will be happy too! Another help is to encourage her to listen to her body...is she really done with the bowel movement or does she just want to run off to play? Patience is key factor. If she doesn't allow herself to finish it will be more difficult next time. And beleive it or not, getting enough sleep also plays a part.

We have had the same problem and our pediatrician said it was best to modify our daughter's diet rather than give meds because it's a more long term solution. Activia yogurt (vanilla is yummy), dried fruit and apple prune juice (we water down the gerber kind and call it "purple juice") are good things to try. My daughter also likes Fiber One granola bars because they taste like the chocolate chip quaker ones that are so popular with kids. Cutting back on milk might help too if your daughter is a big milk drinker like ours. It has taken us a long time to find foods that are popular with a picky toddler and that work, but these seem to do the trick. It is so sad to seem them uncomfortable. Good luck!

Hi L.,

My son has had and sometimes still has that problem. Most important thing is to make sure she is drinking. Kids at that age get so wrapped up in what they are doing they often forget to drink. Also up the fiber content in what she is eating. My son thinks fresh fruit and veggies are yucky, but loves dried fruit or will eat them when I sneak them into other foods. Oatmeal is another great food for constipation. Good luck.

Hi L.!
Fruit always works for my daughter. Not all kids like prun juice, but I found pears work REALLY good too. If your daughter doesn't like to eat whole pears, Dole even has the pears cut up in little cups.
Good luck!

Hi L.,

My 3 year old has the opposite problem.. This kid has barely had hard poops his whole life!.. and he LOVES to eat fruit and drink water. I would say to try and have her stay away from cheese and although I think I read someone here say to have you give her bananas.. since doing research to harden my son's poops, I read bananas are good to harden poops.. so read up because I think her best bet is to eat pears. Of course prunes are good but if she doesn't like them, try mixing the gerber stage 2 prunes that come in the little plastic squares with something she likes. Changing her diet is the way to go. Have her drink apple juice too, but not too much.. about 4 oz or so of apple juice. Good luck, I know it must be awful to see her in so much pain, but the solution is within reach.

I definitely agree with everyone that mentioned changing her diet! Cut out dairy and processed foods. Eat lots of veggies and drink tons of water! Cooking with olive oil is great too! Lots of good oils...flax seed oil too. Fish instead of beef and chicken. Foods that are easily digested are best for a while. I cook everything in olive oil and it keeps things moving for my child!

I would agree with the other poster that prune juice definately works--that is what our pediatrician recommended. What we do is discreetly put 1-2 oz of prune juice mixed in with his milk and it usually does the trick. You do not want to overdo it b/c it could cause the opposite to happen--diarhea so you may need to experiment at first.

I would suggest doing 2-3 oz total in 2 different feedings, one in the morning and one for dinner.

Call your pediatrician for how much to give her, but my son used to take Mineral Oil daily to regulate him. It worked.

Goat milk is a natural way to have things move along nicely and it is VERY good for children(and adults for that matter)! It is at Market Basket in the milk section or by powder(tastes the same) at Amazon OR I can hook you up with a farm in your area.

Fruit is good. Bananas and apples are the best. Cheese is a culprit for constipation if not combined with fruit during the day. Water is terrific to drink.

Hi L.,

Fruit is great, but keep bananas at bay for maybe once a week. They have so much potassium, for such little bodies. My daughters get constipated if they eat too many of those. I usually buy them the Pedia-Sure kids drinks when they get constipated. I don't know why they work, but they do, and they're flavored, so the kids love them. They're full of vitamins, so for children younger than 3, who can't take the regular vitamin tablets, these drinks once a day are awesome for their health. Let us know what happens. :o)

Our now 3 year old daughter has been battling constipation for at least a year. Our pedi suggested daily Benefiber doses...if you're not familiar with it, it's a white powdery fiber product that you mix in with liquids or meals. We put it in her milk every morning. The doc said that it's not habit forming (so her body won't become dependent on it; with luck, as she learns to like more veggies, she'll become more "regular" without the fiber. It's worked really well for us, though it can be expensive...(I tend to watch for sales and stock up). I also just bought the "Sneaky Chef" book to try to work more fiber into her diet. Popcorn is the one thing our daughter likes that seems to help her go as well. Hope this helps!

Try 2 - 3 oz of prune juice everyday, after a couple of weeks cut back on the amount of ozs per day until she's not taking any more. If symptoms return after stopping or cutting back go back to the 2 to 3 oz. Nice thing is that prune juice works well and its natural. Good luck.
C.

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