My son is 3 and a half and we had the problem with him not going for 7 days. So when I called the doc. they told me to put him on benefiber everyday to keep him regular it's natural and really seems to help.
Hope this helps.... Just mix it in a drink it has no taste.
i have found (accidently at first) that olive oil is a good laxitive. for a child a tablespoon at a time is good. it is not too harsh.
Try probiotics. You can get them at a health food store. Ask someone there which one they would reccomend for a child your son's age. They have powders that can be put in his milk or juice and some that are like gummi bears. I use Jarrow and put it in my daughter's milk. She doesn't even know it's there. She's 3 and was having a problem with constipation, now I give her probiotics everyday and there's no more problems.
My 5 year old daughter has had this problem since she was around 18 months. We started using a tablespoon of mineral oil everyday and that worked for a while. When she turned four the doctor gave us a prescription for Mycolax and that helped her so much.
Hey Andrea-
Sorry to hear of your problem.........I know how tough it can be!
My husband and I eat a yummy fiber bar and no longer suffer from constipation..........and my little one LOVES them. They are really yummy!
Let me know if you want to hear more about them....i shop at a wellness store to get them and it's a members only store!
:)
I'd love to help you have the same great results that we have!
:)
Stephanie
[email protected]
There's this stuff called Miralax, it was recommended for both my daughters one is 13yrs and the other is 15mos. Its for constipation. It used to be prescription, but is now over the counter. I would ask your doc about it.
Andrea,
I realize your post is from a year ago but I wanted to see how your son was doing. My daughter had/has the same thing. We are FINALLY on the right track. It sounds like your son has Encopresis. We found a Pediatrician (by luck) that deals with this on a daily basis. Her recommendation was, two tablespoons of mineral oil in a drink for 5 days before bed (it is tasteless). For the five days we alternated between enema's and suppositories to do a good clean out. She is now on Miralax daily (a half scoop in a drink). She will be on Miralax for a while, I guess it is a non habit forming laxative that will keep her having a bm everyday to ensure she doesn't get impacted again. Since we started a month ago, she is doing great for the first time in her life! I hope your son is doing better but if you are still batteling this (it is very common I have since learned), I can give you the specialists info. if you need it. Also, just as a side note, for us, this started when my daughter was about 15 mos old and was constipated and had several painful huge bowel movements, this caused her to be afraid to poop, hold her poop and become impacted. She has always eaten very well, lots of fruits and veggies, whole grains, flax oil, water, you name it, nothing worked until last month. This went on for nearly 5 years! If you have any questions, you can email me directly at [email protected]
Michele
One thing that is very common with teens is that they have a poor diet and drink hardly any water. He should be drinking at least 1/2 his body weight in ounces per day. When fecal matter gets impacted that means that the body is having to draw the water back in from the stool to survive, causing it to harden. Make sure that he's also getting his servings of fruits and veggies... I would recommend 6-9 servings of FRESH! veggies and fruits.
One other thing that you can try is increasing his Vitamin C intake. I know it sounds weird but some people will use Vitamin C as a flush. There is an amount... usually around 10,000 mgs a day that will cause diarrhea, but no need to go that high. I would recommend about 3000 a day for him. Don't worry... it's water soluble and will be flushed out if the body doesn't need it.
Cascara Segrada is a natural laxative, but the last thing you want to do is cause hte body to become dependent on laxatives. Try the food and vitamin sources first and use laxatives as a last resort.
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Hi everyone~
Thank you all for your advice. Things are going smoothly now. We found that Kerns Apricot Nectar works wonders! He drinks two cans a day and he is doing great!!
Thanks again for all your help!!