Constipated 8 Month old - Tried everything?!

[Moti]

Hi,

My son has started solids approx 6 weeks ago, and has suffered from constipation almost since. When I first realised he was constipated I stopped feeding him and breastfed him exclusively for approx 10 days until he started doing softer poos again. When that happened I slowly started him back on solids, and he has gotten constipated again. He does not seem particularly upset or uncomfortable, however when I first noticed he definitely was unhappy - he was crying and straining to pass a poo, and his little head would break out in sweat.

His poo looks like dark brown little pellets or 'nuggets', and although they are coming almost every day, they are very small, perhaps the size of a dried apricot at the most.

I have tried to feed him a little prune juice, and over the course of the last 5-6 days he has had a few teaspoons every day, however this has done nothing. Last night I decided to mix a small amount of olive oil into his dinner to see if that would do anything but today his movements have been no different - still very small and hard.

He has absolutely no formula, is only eating fruit and vegetables (pumpkin, carrot, potato, broccoli, peas, cauliflower, apple, pear, strawberry), and 2 tablespoons of baby porridge (which is iron fortified) in the mornings. I have already stopped giving him the baby porridge, thinking that could be the problem, but again no change, so he is once again eating it.

Basically I have tried all of the advice given on http://mothering.com/parenting/solids-and-constipation    short of the enema  

short of giving an enema. I am not comfortable giving him an enema, would rather try other methods first.

Do you have any advice? I am close to just taking him in to the Dr to see if he could help. 

[JBaxter]

pears... try giving him pears only for a day or 2 I had even mixed half pears half prunes in "times of need".    I would ( like you have done) skip the cereal and anything like bananas , potato or broccoli/ cauliflower (they are gassy).  My DS2 had a very sensitive digestive system for many months after starting solids.  he needed one full meal of fruit to keep him regular.  Pears worked best for us along with peaches.  They were gentler than prunes 

[DianeLutzYoga]

Not a Mom yet but in my Mommy and Baby Yoga class, I've heard Moms talking about avocado as an alternate food to help with baby's digestion!  Always check with Drs of course but here is some info for you!!  Good luck with your little one!!

avocado

http://baby.about.com/od/homemadebabyfood/qt/avocado_nutrition.htm

recipes

http://www.homemade-baby-food-recipes.com/avocado-baby-food.html

more dr nutrition info/digestion info

http://baby.about.com/od/homemadebabyfood/qt/avocado_nutrition.htm

 

Diane

[BabySmurf]

water! make sure that LO is getting plenty of water, like several ounces per day.  and pear juice works wonders for my LO.  if i feel like he is backed up i give him about 2 oz (that amount works for us) of watered down pear juice, and he is good to go.  DS doesn't like pears themselves, so that doesn't work, but for some reason, he loves the juice.  i agree also with trying to cut down on the "binding" foods like cereal, banana, etc, and trying to increase foods that make it easier to poop. 

[Moti]

Thank you all for the suggestions! I will be switching him onto a diet of pears (they are in season and very cheap down at my local atm!) and alternating with avocados. Hopefully he gets some softies going soon!

[PatioGardener]

With my DS I had to give him water with every meal, and either pears or prunes as well.

[my2girlz]

My 8 month old had the same problem once we introduced foods. I know for sure she is intolerant to wheat and dairy we both avoid that. She had a chiropractic adjustment and he showed me a massage technique that has worked wonders for her. We haven't had a problem since then. He also mentioned to make sure you aren't introducing new foods too close together. Wait at least a week in between. Anyway firmly press by the right hip and massage in a clockwise motion all the way down below the belly button.

[porcelina]

DS1 had that problem starting around 9 months, and he *still* holds poo in longer than he should at 3.5! They get in a negative cycle where they think it's going to hurt, so they hold it in, and it gets harder, and harder. You think they are straining to get it out, but they are actually straining to keep it in. The little pellets are what comes out when he is really backed up. He has to pass all of the hard stuff first. I know it is a pain to deal with, and so awful to see little one struggling. We tried all of the suggestions above (water, oil, avocado, prune juice, fruits) plus some others, and nothing worked except prunes. At your baby's age, I would just make sure to include as much prunes (the store-bought ones are great) as possible every day. Always avoid bananas, rice, and that baby cereal/porridge with no fiber. Switch to whole grains that you grind up yourself in a coffee grinder, blender, or food processor. I have found that even the slightest amount of bananas in any store-bought baby food will give DS2 (10 months) some very hard poo (and the one time he was badly constipated, to the point that I had to squeeze the poop out, he had had bananas). If he is really backed up, feed only the prunes until the poop passes. Be vigilant about it, because the negative cycle develops quickly, and can cause problems further down the line. DS1 has to take Miralax (doctor-recommended, no long-term effects, safe on system) every day in order to keep his poo loose enough. Actually, now that he's 3.5, I have a sticker chart for going every day, and that is also helping. But yeah, you don't want to get to where we are! Thankfully, I started practicing EC with DS2, and this has really enabled me to help him keep it moving!

[SweetSilver]

The funny thing about my oldest, who was also prone to getting constipated, was that when I eliminated "orange vegetables" the problem got a bit better.  She is now 6.5 and has allergies which I think contributed.  Once we eliminated wheat and gave her oatmeal pancakes with a good dose of flaxseed the problem completely went away.  Now my husband is making the oat biscuits and pancakes, leaving out the flaxseed and the constipation is back.  She is also freakishly sensitive to iron in any supplement form.

[poppiesinjuly]

2 ounces of pear juice mixed with water works for us too.  I don't think a couple teaspoons of juice is enough to get things moving.