Constipation - Worden, MT

apple juice (cut 50/50 with water) did it for my LO- but prune juice is usually labled as plum juice when I've seen it lately (too many bad relation's I guess)

Try adding applesauce into his daily routine. It has worked wonders avoiding constipation in my family. Good luck!

Make it a GREAT day!

S.

I found prune juice in the juice isle on the very top shelf (not in plain sight)- in little cans near the v-8 type of cans. I mix it directly with the cereal and I dilute about .5-1 oz with 1 oz. water in a bottle for my daughter. It's been working great. However my daughter is 8.5 months old and we didn't start solids until about a month ago. Perhaps you want to ask your doctor before trying the prune juice and see what s/he says.

:)
J.

I completely understand where you are coming from. Both of my boys have cronic constipation and it has been quite the journey to figure out the best solution for them. They both started having severe issues once they were not breastfeeding anymore. My youngest I had to stop nursing when he was three months old and I had a horrible time trying to get him to poop. What I found has been the best and safest way is by using Miralax. This info I got from a pediatric gastro intestinal doctor and you give them a 1/2 tsp and work your way up by 1/2 tsps to meet your childs needs to get them to go daily. My youngest is 1 year now and we have been giving him 1 tsp but are now having to up it to 1 1/2 tsp. My oldest is 2 1/2 yrs and he gets 2 1/2 tsps that we are now switching him to 3 tsps. Keep in mind that by mixing Miralax with fruit juice or applesauce can cause gas. I always put it in their milk but have to get creative to make sure they drink it all.
Good luck. I am open to answer any other questions if you have any.
A.

Find the prune juice - it's out there. Pear and apple juice may work as well but you have to give in larger quantities. Since he's really not old enough for lots of juice yet, go to another store or order online (maybe Amazon groceries). This is the safest, most natural way and probably the most effective.

3 of my 5 kids had to have their anal ring stretched by the doctor. It is not harmful to them. They do not stick things up far. He used his pinkie (gloved of course) and simple stretched the ring. It was too tight to really let things pass.

rice cereal causes constipation. if your doctor has advised you to put cereal in the bottle, i would check with another doctor.

To agree with other mothers I would also say you have started solids a bit early for your young one. Waiting until they can sit and then going slowly with solids is the best way to feed your baby. Their systems aren't ready for solids for several months. I would also recommend you stop giving your baby so much sugar (Kayo syrup). I have never heard of anyone giving this to their babies. It takes a lot of energy and nutrients for a body to digest sugars, making it impossible for the body to use them for building a healthy body. Eating too much sugar can cause malnutrition due to the depletion of nutrients in the body.

However, for the constipation I would recommend using an herbal formula called Kid-e-Reg made by the Dr. Christopher company. It is safe for children of all ages. I use it for all of my children when necessary and they love the flavor. You can get this at any health food store where they sell herbal supplements. You should start out with 3-4 drops 3 times a day until there is a bowel movement. Then go to one time a day. Continue adjusting the amount until you find what works for your baby. You may find that only using it occasionally is what works best. One to two bowel movements per day is normal, although you should not see diarrhea.

If you want to try prune juice, it doesn't have to be the baby kind. We actually get big bottles of it at King Soopers and Safeway so it shouldn't be hard to find. Or you can just stick with feeding him baby food prunes with a spoon. Should do the same thing. FYI, when my baby had that problem, my doc said start with 2 ounces of prune juice in a bottle twice per day (morning and afternoon). I started with 1 ounce and that was enough to do the trick -- but you have to use it consistently.

Chiropractic may be the answer here. Removing any interference in the baby's spine will allow messages to be sent properly to all organs of the body through the pathways of the nervous system, including the colon! I know of several cases personally in which chiropractic has helped this kind of situation. You can google a chiropractor in your area or visit the clinic I'm most fond of on 92nd and Olde Wadsworth - Discover Chiropractic ###-###-####. All the best to you!

you didn't say why you started feeding him solids so early. the baby's body takes some time to be strong enough to move solids through properly. that's why i follow the recommendation to wait until the baby can sit up on their own before feeding anything besides breastmilk or formula. i don't fully understand the digestive system, but i understand that the abdominal muscles need to have a certain strength to handle solid foods. i've had 5 surgeries, all in the abdominal area, and one of the hardest things for me is the time period in which i'm only allowed to eat ice chips. i had an I.V., so i was getting nutrition, but i felt so hungry and thirsty. i wanted so badly to chug a big bottle of water. i didn't see why i couldn't at least sip water, since the ice was essentially turning to water as soon as it hit my tongue. well one time my ice chips had melted before a nurse replaced them so i took a couple gulps. i was immediately nauseous and had abdominal pain as my body reacted to something it wasn't ready for. so when i am tempted to feed my baby something a little earlier than recommended, i remember this experience. there are good reasons to wait.

pear juice
that is what we had to use for my dd starting around 2 months, and she was strictly breast fed but that is what the doc had us do for her just a couple of ounces of pear juice a day, it is soft on the stomach.
GL

That's very young to be giving a baby cereal, too young IMO. Is it rice cereal? Rice does not exactly help move things along, if you catch my drift. I'd stop giving him that. The karo syrup isn't helping either. That's just straight sugar, and your baby has no nutritional need for that whatsoever.

Ask your doc how much Miralax you can add to the bottle. We did this on occassion. It varieed by weight but usually just 1/2 tsp would be ok. We also put prune juice in their formula. That really helped. Wyhen the went to babyfoor we fed them prunes w/ apples baby food. Again great fixer. That way you don't torture them w/ the enima. Also Miralax is super easy, it doesn't cause cramps or gassiness like a laxitive.

To echo some of the other posts, I would ease off the cereal. His body is probably not able to process so much just yet. Also, if you wish to continue with the cereal, I recommend feeding it to him with a spoon rather than in a bottle. If he needs cereal in his bottle due to reflux, you should discuss getting medication to help address the reflux. I also agree with stopping the Karo syrup and using pear juice instead. Good luck!

I agree it's awfully young but it is your baby and if that is what you are comfortable with then my advise is Miralax. My Daughter has been on it since she was tiny (she's had constipation issues since the day she was born) It isn't harmful and it works! of course ask your Dr first. I'm not sure if you are giving him juice or not but I would also stay away from Apple juice and use pear juice instead. That also helped.

Good luck!

Hi B. - I see that you agree with your doctor about giving your LO rice cereal and as his mama, you know what's best for him. That said, if you are worried about weight gain, there are plenty other ways to increase calorie intake that aren't as constipating (cereals are quite constipating and starting them too early can increase chances of allergies later on - but I'm sure your doctor told you this).

In any case, there should be absolutely no reason to give your LO Karo syrup. That stuff is HORRIBLE! Could we ask what the purpose is of that? That much sugar on a little one can wreak havoc. If it's for calories, like others have said, do pear juice (which should also help with the constipation), but even then, juices have so much sugar in them, they should be used sparingly. My doctor is actually against any type of juice simply because the best way to get calories is from the fruits themselves. But if straight baby food prunes aren't cutting it, try watered-down prune juice (watering down will help cut the sugar rush). Good luck!

My little girl suffered from constipation for a year -- pain, sleepless nights and lots of tears -- it was horrible. Finally, our pediatricain prescribed Miralax and it has worked wonders! It is now available over the counter but you would want to check with your pediatrician first, just to make sure he/she is OK with it.

Try probiotics; they help my kids tremendously. You can get them at Pharmaca in Boulder, or at Vitamin Cottage, or probably Whole Foods, too.
Good luck,
S.

I stopped breastfeeding my son at 2 months because I had to have major surgery. As soon as he went on formula (and especially when he started baby food/cereal at 4 months) he had constipation issues. I felt so bad for him because he would cry and curl into a little ball every time he had to go. The doctor had me feed him prunes (which you're already doing) and also give him white grape juice (Gerber makes some that doesn't have as much sugar in it). If that was still not working I would use Gripe Water (you can buy it at the health food store), it's completely safe and is usually used for babies with bad gas. I would add a couple of dropper fulls to a 2-3 ounce bottle of warm water. He liked the taste and it would ease the gas pains that went along with the bowel movements. The warm water was definitely the trick to getting stuff to move in his case. You just don't want to over do it on the water. Ask your doctor to be sure, but this is what worked for us. Good Luck and I hope your little guy starts feeling better!

I know the docs recommend giving cereal, etc. starting pretty young, but through my own research I completely disagree. I did not give my son anything but breast for 1 year and he was alway high on the growth charts and is very healthy. I would back off of anything but breast or forumula (which ever you use), if you are breast feeding you need to drink more water. If you are doing forumula, try backing off of the cereal and other stuff and just do formula, if it still persists maybe try a different formula.
I've also found that gripe water works pretty good. You can find it in health food stores or you can find good recipes online it's much cheaper that way.
Some other things you can do is massageing the abdomen, bicycling the legs and a warm rice sock on the tummy (make sure you don't get it too hot!
Hope that helps!
S.

Dear B.,
2 weeks old to be on cereal is way to young. Even being 3 mo. old he should not be on cereal yet. Those grains, even rice is soooo h*** o* their little systems. I would bet that is why he is constipated. I personally would take him off cereal all together & only BF or formula feed him. Hope he get's to feeling better soon. Take care, G