Seeking Help with Infant Constipation and Formula Suggestions

Good ole water is what I used. I had the same problem and it worked it was slow but it did work. Apple juice will work too but it is just as slow as water. keep with it it does pay off. you don't want something that works to fast because it will cause discomfort for the baby. I could also give a diaper rash too.

I found that using gripe water everyday helped us. You can usually buy it at any local health food store. You can put it in her bottle or mix it with a little water and give it to her. The gripe water also helps with gas and to regulate the entire digestive system. If you try the prune juice, mix it with water and give sparingly because this can cause a lot of gas!! Good luck.

I had the same problem with my little girl and saw every doctor @ her pediatricians office and they all said different things, the Kayro syrup didn't work for us either, but I did finally get the gerber Apple/Prune Juice to work. But, be advised to make sure you feed it to your child in the stage 1 nipple and I would dilute it half and half with water. I gave it to my little girl not diluted and I cleaned up poop for days!

Hope that helps!!

-V.

try to give more water and karo. here is how my mom did this she would put the karo in some water heat them together but not too much dont want the water too sweet other wise they wont drink just plain water.

my son had the same problem they put him on Alimentum...and it worked wonderful he is 2 now and we know the problem is that is was lactose intolerante maybe it is something you should look into but please know if you dont get wic that is it very exspensive i tried many of the juices and the karo surp and it did nothing to help Alimentum was the only thing i could get to help if you cant do the Alimentum try pear juice seemed for garrett to work alot better then the apple white grape and prune jucies

Try some asodopholus (sp?) it is the live culture in Yogurt. My daughter had extreme constipation for two months and my natural doctor recommended to go to GNC or a vitamin store and get the one that is in a capsule. They break the capsule over her food each meal. This helped tremendously! And I happened to ask GNC yesterday and they said that is was fine for children to take. plus it helps with their digestion. (PS> this is also great to get rid of a yeast infection)

H.

Hi! Both my children had the same problem around that age. I would not recommend any orange juice though! Most peds don't want patients having OJ until at least a year old! Prune juice is the best bet if you want it to work quickly (4-6 hours, sometimes less) but be prepared! I wouldn't go anywhere outside the home until she has a BM after drinking prune juice. It will go everywhere! While prune juice worked great for my son, it still didn't do the trick for my daughter. The peds doc gave her all kinds of meds. She would strain and she would try but nothing worked and boy would she screamed. She was already on Nutramigen, so formula wasn't really the issue or something we could change. The doc finally went old school and told me to go to the pharmacy and asked for a bottle of Kondremul. The younger pharmacists in there had never heard of it. The older one there had, but he said he hadn't had anyone ask about it in years. 0.4ml 3-4 times a day, and she was going after the 2nd dose. Continued on that for a few days. Then went with out anything. On occasion I will have give her another dose now and then, but it still works like a charm. Ask your doctor about that if you wanna give it a try.

what type of karo, light or dark? The dark is better and are you giving your baby any water? the iron in the formula is what is constipating your baby.

Try the prune juice diluted. I gave Camden 2oz a day. It helped some, but not enough. After a consierably miserable amount of time, I insisted he be sent to a specialist. He had been having this problem since birth and no one wanted to take me seriously like I was a hystrionic mother.

I took him to the WVU hospital and apparently he had initially torn his rectum at some point causing extreme pain. He developed a fistula thanks to this (I think it sounds worse than it is, it is a tearing scar more or less). But basically because it hurt so much, he put off pooping, making his bowels larger and harder so that by the time he went again, he tore himself again.

The specialist put him on Miralax (it is available OTC now).
He started out pretty strong, 2tsp a day, he was about a year old. It took a year to move him off of it EFFECTIVELY. Alot of people balk at a child being on a laxative that long, but each child is a seperate case all together and the problem with his regular Dr. was that he wouldn't put him on a lax for very long.

According to the specialist Camden had been cycling through this for so long, that he literally needed to relearn his bowel habits. Over time, I weened him from the 2 tsp to 1.5, to 1 to .5 to .5 every other day, and then .5 after he had eaten foods that may have bound him up some.

He now is on NOTHING and is maintaing a healthy pooping attitude.

If the prune juice doesn't help, try the Miralax. It is easy on the stomach/intestines and it IS NOT ABSORBED into the body. It is all eliminated with the poop. Since your baby is 2.5 mo. I would only give a .5 tsp to start with. It can mixed with anything, it has no flavoring.

i use enfamil gentle ease and they have special formulas for this gentleease is one nutrigenmen is another also our ped told us touse a suppoitory for infants cut in have lengthwise when all else fails

My son had an aweful constipation problem. We used Carnation formula. It is suppose to be great for digestion-and it made things a little better. It is made by nestle. It helped a lot but as my son got older, we took him to a specialist and they put him on a softener Mirilax. It was a godsend. Not addictive at all. He used it for about 2 weeks and then he wan fine. Now he is 8 with no problems. Hope that helps

before i can really give u the advice i need to know what u have tried bc my 2 year old is in the same shape

M.,
Both of my boys had constipation issues. Carnation/Nestle Good Start was the only formula that worked for them. Good luck. Believe me, I know how awful it is to watch your baby struggle.
M. B.

I would stay away from apple juice only because apples have a part in the B.R.A.T. diet which stop diarhia...and in turn causes a bit of constipation. B.R.A.T. meaning banana's, rice, applesauce and toast. Almost any other fruit will help to get the relieve the constipation, but I'm not sure how much you want to introduce at this point. Is the baby strictly on formula? It would seem if there's only fluids going in that there should only b fluids coming out. Hopefully the prunes will be the trick-good luck!

Are you using powdered formulas as opposed to ready-to-use formulas? I found that my son got considerably less constipated when we used ready-to-use formulas. Something about the powder makes it harder to measure and mix evenly, and this can cause constipation. The ready-to-use are quite a bit more expensive than powdered, but so much easier and a lot less of a headache in the long run.

We used the Karo and water with our daughter and then switched to the Nestle Good Start formula and everything was better.

Also, have you tried a warm bath, that would sometimes help my daughter, just beware because it may happen in the bath tub!

Good luck!

Have you tried infant massage? My daughter struggled with constipation at around 6 months. I found that rubbing her tummy in a circular motion and gently moving her legs in a bicycle motion really helped get things moving along.... I also tried prune juice diluted with water... 1 part prune juice, to 2 parts water... that really helped a lot too.

C.
www.babybootcamp.com

Have you tired the thermometer trick? My son also had issues with constipation around this age. Use a rectal thermomter (after applying vasoline to it). Place it about 1/2 inch up inside and very gently move it in a circular motion rubbing the walls of the rectum. This will stimulate the muscles and cause the baby to push anything in there out a little harder. I know it sounds weird and gross, but it works. My son got so used to it that when the doctor's office would take his temp, he would poop on them. That was the only bad part. Haha! He is 9 months old and goes fine now with no "help". :-)

Also, formula suggestions. I would try Infamil Gentlease or Nestle goodstart. Both of these formulas have partially broken down proteins that are easier for the body to process and break down.

My daughter had constipation problems when she started with formula at 4 months old (she was exclusively breastfed before that). I gave her a few teaspoons of prune juice (http://www.knudsenjuices.com/products/detail.aspx?groupID...) and that really helped her. She is 15 months now and I make sure to include prunes as part of her diet.
Hope this helps.

My three-month old also would not go for days when she was two months. I thought she was constipated. But, because I breastfeed, she will not go every day. But, the doctor told me to contact him if she did not go in a maximum four days. He told me to give her white grape juice and water. Try one ounce of white grape juice mixed with three ounces of water. My daughter finally went on the third day - and boy did she go!

i recommend flaxseed oil.........

a dd it to orange juice or anything. use a sippy cup with a cover if the kids will not drink it.. i usually stir it quick and have them drink it....tastes fine

this is something everyone should have.. more water is good as well..

encourage lots of drinks..avoid too much sugar

and it could be dairy causing the problem as well...

raisons....figs......good luck...........

What formula are you using? How often is the baby using the bathroom. Up the Karo to twice a day, morning and night. Start giving the baby water to drink in addition to the formula.

I have 3 grls & have had the same problems when they were little. Now have u tried regular or dark karo syrup? It is sapoused to be the dark. Also I used warm water with a little brown sugar. That worked for me with my oldest & I did the dark karo syrup with my youngest it relieved the constipation farely quickly (like with in a day or less). I always used Carnation (the purple & the orange containers not mixed just happened to u use both between all my children). Hope this helps. Good luck with your resurch.
T. A. in Mooresville, NC