Constipated 11-Month Old (Sorry to Ask, but Need Suggestions :)

Try the "Born Free" training cup. It's like a cross between a bottle and a sippy cup. My breastfed son would never drink from a bottle either but he liked both the Born Free and some other sippy cups. Best of luck.

Hi H. my name is Bre,
I had the same problem with my little man. I tried all the same as you and ended up have to use baby enemas. It was very scary at first and could not do all the time but found that it really helped to keep him regular. I dont know if it is something that you want to try, but I know that any advice helps.

Will she drink from a sippy cup? Maybe try giving her some non-diluted apple or prune juice to get some more fiber into her system. Also if she's straining take a q-tip and dip it in vasoline. Then being careful not to go in too far lube her little bum with the vasoline (inserting just the white cottony part of the qtip). The vasoline will help the BM come out and help reduce straining and the possiblity of a small tear from the strain. We do this when my daughter (now 2 years old) would get constipated and it worked like a charm.

H.,
I completely understand. My son went through this stage. I tried everything that has been said. Water is really important and my son drinks more water than anything, He doesn't like juices so it's good he likes water.. But that wasn't helping with the constipation.
I finally took him to a Gastronlogist and she did blood work (This constipation went over for over 6 months, him pooping every 3 days but arching his back so he wouldn't allow the large stool pass) and the dr. said he was extremely anemic and started him on Iron and he was also on Miralax. I suggest at least calling your child's dr and ask about Miralax, its works wonders and my son never even knows its in his water, milk or food.
he takes it everynight and he has a bowel movement every day if not 2 times a day.
This caused me and my family a lot of stress because I felt helpless for my son, but finally going to the GI Dr for him helped, but that might of been a more serious issue and your daughter might be just adjusting to the change in food.
Good luck.......

Just noticed what you said about what I'm guessing is Miralax. You might want to ask the doc is you can mix it into her baby food, or disolve it in water first and then mix it into her baby food. Also, you can disolve it in water or milk, which is what we used. If your daughter will not take a bottle or a sippy cup or straw cup, you might want to get a fat syringe and squirt the mixture into one of the back corners of her mouth and lightly rub the front of her neck to encourage swallowing. The Miralax was a huge help for our son. We resisted the idea of meds early on, but I am so glad we "caved." Also you might want to ask the doc about using Baby/Child Fleet enemas. They're just glycerin, and while your child will not appreciate the beginning of the process, they work very quickly. You certainly do not want to use these on a regular basis, but they were a lifesaver when nothing else was relieving our son's pain. We only needed to use them about five times total over our son's first 2.5 years. I hope you find a way to get the Miralax in!

Check with your pediatrician first, but ours had our son take a small amount of milk of magnesia every day (we had to squirt it into the back of his mouth near his throat with a syringe because it's not the best tasting thing. Nothing really helped our son, though, until we used Miralax (under a doc's advice and supervision). Check with your pediatrician. You want to treat this as quickly as possible, not just because you don't want to see your child in pain, but also because, as a previous poster mentioned, the pain can make a child try not to poop which makes the constipation even worse.

Hi H.,
My daughter, now 3 yrs old, has always had this problem. I have never used any laxatives on her though. I make sure she eats lots of fresh fruits and veggies like pears, prunes, blueberries, and steamed sweet potatoes. I buy canned pears in pear juice as these are easier to eat for a little one. I avoid bananas, ANYTHING with rice, and limit cheeses. She also gets diluted prune and pear juice after breakfast every morning. I feed her plenty of whole grains and make sure she has plenty of water throughout the day. Trader Joe's has a great fiber muffin with blueberries that has over 50% of daily fiber per muffin. Have you tried a sippy cup instead of a bottle? Let me know how things go, or if you have already tried all these things as I have other suggestions.
Sincerely,
L.

She may be a little young for this -but try Fig Newtons. Our son's system runs a little constipated on a regular basis. I was giving him about two a day as a snack and it REALLY got things moving. Maybe you can mash them up or just let her gnaw on them. Hope it helps!!

My suggestions are pricey - sorry. Coconut water, ginger tea, pineapple fruit and papaya fruit.

Hi H.,
When my Daughter was born she had pyloricstynosis. That's when when the child has the projectile vomit. After we had the surgrey to corect the problem. My daughter was very constipated and would have the same problems that your child is having. The best sugestion that my doctor gave me was to give my child an ounce of apple juice and mix with an ounce of water I belive at the time it was 2 a day couse she was only 2 months old. After the 2nd day of giving this two her she had an explotion and was having to have this laxitive all the time till she was adapted to the solid foods and even then we still gave her part apple juice and part water. It really works. With your 11 month I would sugest that you give only 2 ounces of apple juice with 2 ounces of water to see if that works for you. Also the other thing to use it the children/infants suppositories (glueceren (sorry about spelling)) that helped also. I know what you are going through and it is very hard to watch. But do try the apple juice. Good luck, let me know if it worked for you. K. S.

When my daughter was a baby she had some of the same problems pooping. I tried everything in the book, but nothing seemed to work. This may sound a little odd, but my husband (he has 3 kids from a previous marriage, and we have one together) told me to take a q-tip and put some vaseline on one end of it. Then gently stick it up the baby's rear and let it do it's magic. I was a bit skeptical, but it worked! I guess sometimes the poop is too hard for babies to excrete, so a little lubrication goes a long way. The best part about it is that it is in no way harmful to the baby, and there are no side effects!It is purely up to you if you want to try it, but it worked every time for me, and it was a lot cheaper than some of the other things I tried!

Our daughter went through the same thing when she was starting solids. The thing that seemed to work best for us was to give her the jarred organic prunes every day or every other day.

Maybe she needs some fluids. She breast feeds which is great, but maybe you need to start giving her water or diluted juice. Since she doesn't take a bottle try giving it to her in a sippy cup. She may be curious and take a few swigs. Good Luck!!!

I am sorry your little is having troulbe. i know you are trying to stay away from jared baby food but you need to try the Gerber Purnes stage one. every time my little one got constipated i would feed him those pures and sure even by the end of the day nice runny poop.

ps
don't be sorry to ask we ask each other everything any thing Its great.

A.

She's got to learn to drink from a bottle - keep trying. My son never had an issue with this so maybe other mothers can help advise you on that one.It's important not only for this situation but for her next major fever/illness when you need to keep her hydrated with pedialyte, water or whatever. For this situation I recommend several things. My son had a constipation problem when he started baby food. I cut out the cereals (they are constipating)and gave him a jar of prunes every day. The prunes were essential. When he needed extra help, glycerine childrens suppositories worked like a charm (over the counter). Stick one in and in a few minutes poop comes out! His juice is always watered down to ensure more water intake (1/3 juice, 2/3 water)as well as it being less sugar for him. After 6 months or so (he was eating more and more and drinking juice and water)I noticed his stools becoming looser, even sometimes diarrhea-like but he didn't seem sick. Reduced and then eliminated the prunes and he was back to normal. As food intake increases, water intake needs to increase. Prunes work wonders in the meantime. If nothing is working, use the prescription from the dr.I assume it's Miralax -it works well too.

She is dehydrated. Find a way to get some water in to her... or some watered down prune juice or apple juice if you absolutely can't get the water in to her.

Hi H.,

Try a sippy cup and put pear juice with water. It can help with constipation. Also, if you can even just give her a massage throughout her tummy and push her legs up- that can get things going as well. IF you haven't tried prunes yet, give them a try--most babies like them because they are so sweet~

Good luck!

Molly

I've tried mineral oil and it has worked. However, I do not know if this should be used for an ongoing problem. Light garlic tea also works. The best things to do is increase her liquids as much as possible along with leafy vegetables.

We had the same problem when our 6-month old started eating solids. Our doctor suggested adding a pinch of flaxseed meal to all of her food, plus some prunes (from a jar), and it worked great.

Lots of liquids, and possibly a glycerine suppository would probably do the trick. Have you tried prunes? Preunes are like liquid draino for my kids. Im sorry...I really hope she feels better. My 17mo old did the same thing. She literally nursed every 2 to 3 hours during the day until I weaned her. She just isnt a big eater. Go figure!!!??

I had the same problem 34 yrs ago with my first daughter. I added pureeded prunes to her cereal and it worked great. Just a couple spoonsful was all she needed. It wasn't until I had children that I realized doctors will medicate even when something more natural will do the trick. Good luck.

Hi H. -

Same here - I know it's rough - I wonder if it's Miralax that your pedi recommended. It works WONDERS for us - and helps our little man poo without the pain - I'm convinced the painful poop makes him store it up until it's almost too big to come out - read about "Functional Fecal Retention" if you get a chance - truly fascinating.

Regardless - we give him 2 teaspoons of miralax in the morning, and 2 teaspoons in the evening - but he loves his bottle so it's easy for us. If you can mix it into baby food, or put it in a sippy cup, I would try that. Our pedi says it's totally safe to give him that much - and even though he has really soft mushy poops now, that it's better for him so he won't be afraid to go in the future.

Anyhoo . . . good luck!

C.

Our pediatrician recommended suppositories when my son was about 6 or 7 months old. Ask the pharmacist where the pediatric suppositories are located and use one HALF!!! If that doesn't help after three hours, use the other HALF. If that doesn't work, you need to call your pediatrician again. It worked for us within thirty minutes. I have only had to use both halves once...but never more than that. Increasing her water intake is also a must! Use a sippy cup. (Prune juice is also a plus! GREAT source of Vit. C and works all that fiber through her little system. Don't dilute it though!) Good luck!

Try mixing benefiber in her solid food.
Good luck!

Try sweet potatoes and green beans, and more breastmilk, which is a natural laxative. Maybe she would drink caro syrup in water out of a cup or a bottle, since it's sweet. That helped my babies, too.

you can try diluted prune juice in a sippy cup, or apple juice works too, good luck and hopefully her digestive system will adjust to food and not react so strongly

Your daughter may need some extra help producing the proper amount of flora in her gut. I have used probiotics for my daughter and it has always worked. Probiotics are found in yogurt, but you can also buy it at the natural foods coop in powdered form, add 1/8th tsp. to 1 ounce of water and mix in with her food, three times a day when needed. I also agree with giving her water throughout the day. I hope things get better!

Remember... not being able to poop is the pits... so eat fruit with a pit... and it will help you Poop... LOL... It's true... bananas are WAY constipating... not "could be"...

I would also warm her fruit...

And I would start avocado... it's so healthy... and the fat and fiber will keep her moving quite nicely...

Also, I used to a add about a tablespoon of prune juice to my boys formula... that got them moving quickly...

Warm bath... gentle tummy rub (no forcing!)

Oh... and since she won't drink from a bottle... i would get a little dropper for the prune juice (you can get it at the pharmacy... for liquid meds.)
Good luck!

I had this problem with my daughter and ufortunately it can become a viscious cycle of her not wanting to go to the bathroom because it hurts. First I would suggest giving her some mineral oil, I made a milk shake and just mixed it in with that (only give her enough milk shake that she will drink it all). You can also mix it with juice or milk. If that isn't working as a last resort try a glycerin suppository it works everytime.

Give her a spoonful of Karo Syrup.

For prevention, include water. Yogurt is great for softening poops too.

One of my children was always constipated when he was younger. I started him on liquid vitamin shakes (and we became distributors after wonderful results). He has a shake every day and NO constipation. He'll 11 now. If your daughter is still finicky, it may not be the right time to do such a thing. But start with natural, whole raw fruits and vegetables.

Good luck

Mom of 4: girl, boy, boy, and baby due in 5 wks!

Hi,

My name is L. M. and I work as a nutritional consultant in Lincoln..

Consitpation is a sign of toxicity/ lack of fiber/ sluggish bowels.. possible dehydration. I encourage giving some
prune juice which will help with the fiber issue..
Also, you can pick up some natural suppositories at the health food store to loosen up the bowels .. an enema may be necessary if the bowels are hardened just to relieve the pressure....encourage
drinking water...also I would encourage you to go to

www.sharethecause.com/live

for info on the toxicity issue.. I can be reached via that site in the comments section if you want further info on what to do with this issue.

Take Care.. L. M.

My middle daughter suffered from constipation for a long time, even after cutting out all the constipating foods and giving her prunes and pears, apricots, all of the good stuff. Finally, when she was about 2 years old, we switched doctors, and he told us about Miralax. What a lifesaver!!! I would highly reccommend it - you just add a little to juice and it works wonders. Try getting her to drink out of a sippy cup, or even just give her spoonfuls of juice mixed with the Miralax. (My daughter finally outgrew the constipation around age 3 1/2, so there is light at the end of the tunnel!) Good luck!

-K.

My son sometimes get constipated and I just make sure he drinks tons and tons of fluid and if anything, prune juice (diluted with water). I don't know about the powdered laxative. I'd hold off on that personally and just try water and prune juice. Also massage her belly a bit. I remember in my baby massage class, there was a massage to help with that. Sorry I don't know the technique exactly but I bet you could look it up. Good luck!

Give her 2-3 ounces of prune juide dilluted with 2-3 ounces of water everyday until the problem goes away on it's own. It will take a day or so for the prune juice to start working We had to do this with my daughter for about 3 months. Once she turned a year old she doesn't have this problem anymore.

100% prune juice not from concentrate no sugar added. Mix 50/50 with water not to exceed 8 oz in one day. By the end of the first day maybe even the second, be very prepared, but your little one will feel much relieved. As for her bottom, caldesen power and butt paste over that. use a warm wash cloth to clean the bottom and do away with the wipes, at least for a while. You should see changes soon. Good luck.

T.

Hi
I am sorry you daughter is going through this. My son did as well when he was 8 months old. I know the doctor said mixing a spoon of prun juice in his milkwould help but it didn't. Milk is constipating itself. You might want to introduce yoghurt in her diet if she is not on it. My son liked yoghurt with any fruit pulp added. I don't know if you have heard about carom seeds. It is a herb and given to post-partum women in India as well as babies to avoid constipation. I also gave it to my baby. Basically I would take a 1/2 teaspoon of carom seeds, boil in in a litre of water. And then add that water to his apple juice. If she doesn't take from a bottle. You could give her with a spoon or syringe.
I hope this helps. Good luck

I add well ground flax seeds to my son's yogurt. They have so much healthful oil that everything runs "smoothly"! :) Hope that helps!

Hi H.,
The one other thing I didn't see anybody mention was some Karo syrup, about a teaspoon in a couple of ounces of fluid, preferably water. I never had any luck with sippy cups with my children, but they loved the straw cups, and those are better for their dental development anyway. She definitely has to have more fluids, as many moms have mentioned already. She'll have this problem forever (and many more problems) if she doesn't get fluids. Water is best, of course, but whatever she will drink. Pediatricians are not recommending giving juices on a regular basis anymore, because they are full of sugar and empty calories, but if you can get a brand with no added sugar, that would be okay. Dairy does constipate, so you might back off on that for a bit, but remember she still needs some, and it needs to be whole milk until age 2 for proper bone and brain development. As far as not getting her to take the Miralax because she doesn't like a bottle, you have to view it as she basically doesn't have a choice. Get a syringe, like someone suggested before, and squirt into the side of the back of her cheek. It's just like any other medicine our kids have to take. They don't get to make the choice, and it's up to us to get it down their throats! This is a very common problem, but usually very easily taken care of. Good luck with it!

When my little boys(22 & 18 now) had problems I used the glycerin suppositories. Sometimes all it took was to place it in and move around a little bit. There should be suppositories for babies as I recall. My grandmother swore by them and they worked for me. Please check with your Pediatrician first to make sure it is ok. I hope all is well with your precious baby girl.
Much love, D

I have 4 little ones and all I find to help long term as a healthy option is more fluids. My kids love water to this day. They all started a sippy cup when they started solids. Teaching your baby to love water is a great way to get them loving it for life. Good habits start young. Be careful not to shy away from other foods because of this problem. She needs a healthy balance. Good Luck!

You can mix Miralax in with her pureed pears, plums, etc. if she won't take it in a bottle or sippy cup.

I don't know if she is on any dairy at all, but if so you might want to cut that out of her diet for now. Both of my girls got very constipated around that age due to dairy products.

As a last resort, you can feed her a few tablespoons of mineral oil to loosen things up. It's perfectly safe to do so, but make sure to put that diaper on her pretty tight, because things can get messy... If she's trying not to poop because it hurts, you might have to kind of hold her in a sitting position so she'll have to go. (Sorry, the things we talk about as mommies! =)

Hi H.,

First of all, never be sorry to ask questions. We all have them. As for the issue, when my kids were little, and now when my grand-daughter who is presently 2 has problems, we use apple juice. When she was smaller we would dilute it 50/50 with water. Now that she is older we just give it to her in a cup from the bottle. We would also give her applesauce. As for the juice, we always used juice that was 100% juice with no fillers or preservatives, yet purified so it would not make her, nor my other kids sick. It did work for us. (Once I used prune juice on my youngest daughter and it worked too... really well... all over the place! EEWWW) But, I have always understood that apples and apple juice work to alleviate constipation. Just my thoughts from a mom and grand mom who thinks that laxatives are just too much for a baby.

Take care and God Bless and I hope you find something that helps soon.

Sincerely,

B. T.