2 And a Half Year Old Constipated?

My 6 year old had problems in this dept a lot! Eat more fiber-blah blah blah. The best thing that works is Miralax. Have him drink a lot of fruit juices b/c Miralax takes a while to work.

Hi C.,
If his tummy is tight, I'd take him to the dr. or ER. Its not healthy for the system to go more than 3 days. My ped. always says that its ok as long as the tummy is soft. If the tummy is soft, then I would just push lots of juices - apple, grape, gatorade in case he's dehydrated.
Good luck
M.

Try Miralax. I found it to be the best to help get things moving. I have issue w/ constipation and so does my 3 year old niece. My sister found that miralax works great. Its not really a laxitive but more of a stool softener. Give him a teaspoon in his bottle once a day for a couple of days and it should help. If this concerns you try apple juice and prune juice.

try prune juice, apple juice, pears, fruits and vegetables. If he's like my son, he won't eat any of the above! So we mixed prune juice with orange juice and he;s drinking like a champ. Still pretty constipated though,my MD told me today to try a glycerin suppository if that didn't help! Push alot of water also! Good luck

Give him a mix of 1/2 prune and 1/2 apple juice. Take him to the potty 1/2 hour after he eats and make it a relaxed setting...give him a book, nice music...you stay with him and chat/or give privacy with the assurance that you are a call away...whatever relaxes him. Avoid foods that have the opposite affect..bananas, rice, applesauce and breads for the moment. Softly running water from the tap helps to urinate, but can also be soothing...softly running is the key!

I am a former pediatric triage nurse.

my almost 2.5 yo has the same problem and she has since birth. we keep an eye on her diet and limit bananas, rice and cheese while increasing fruit, veggies and high fiber foods. when it has gone too far we give her a little fletcher's (laxative). if this is a new phenomenon than it may have less to do with physiology and more to do with potty training and maybe even because he's on vacation. a family member used to throw up every time we went on vacation and we found out much later that it was because she was so constipated.
i would stay away from suppositories at this age because it can mess up potty training. it may be seen as a kind of attack on his body. the other day i told my daughter a story about how the poo needed to come out so that the food could come in and that is why she was having cramps. she actually did go a little after that but she was so backed up i still had to give her some fletcher's to clear her out. good luck and if this is chronic a doctor may give him something like lactulose which helps the stool retain water and makes it easier to come out but not if it's temporary.

Room temperature (Not chilled) water always works with my daughter. Apples and oatmeal work as well (with room temperature water). It never hurts to massage the tummy with child on back, legs towards chest.

Hope that helps.

Maxine
SingleMamaPreneur!
www.singlemamapreneurs.com
T. Blessings, LLC.
Your Mobile Massage and Spa Company!
www.tranquilblessings.com

You may have gotten this response already - but my Pediatrician told me to give my infant son a teaspoon of DARK Karo syrup in his 8 oz formula each day. So for a toddler you can experiment with a tsp or 2 in milk. Best plan - call your Ped. and get the amount they suggest. This worked like a charm once my son stopped breastfeedng and he got constipated by iron supplements.

You can get a good prescription from the Pediatrician.

Otherwise, limit breads, bananas, and apples. Go for pears and prunes and pear juice. My pediatrician recommended pear juice specifically.

Hope that helps : )

Straight apple juice, raisins and prunes always worked for us. Good luck, I know it is hard for them.

I don't know how long he's been without going, but if its just a day or so, try eating a lot of grapes and/or corn on the cob. Both seem to really get things going for our daughter.

Whatever you do, don't wait very long before seeing a doctor, though, b/c it can be quite laborious to help a toddler recover from constipation, and it doesn't take long to stretch the intestine and need treatment.

Yogurt daily for good health and healthy bowels.
Offer water all day everyday.
It has many other health benefits too!

C.,
Warm compresses on his belly. If you can get castor oil from the drugstore and massage it on his belly, then put a warm washcloth on top of that.
Also, avoid dairy for a while. That will make the constipation worse. Raisins, high fiber cereals, lots of fresh fruits and veggies and plenty of water.
Good luck
L.

a tablespoon or so of Karo syrup(just CLEAR corn syrup) mixed in a sippy cup drink. My pediatrician recommended this when mine was that age & younger. It is a natural stool softener-without a sudden painful "evacuation" of the present issue. Just add to the drinks till then. You can get it at any grocery store. Good luck!

My daughters are regularly constipated. Of course you can give high fiber bread, lots of drinks, raisins, and all of the usuals. Apple juice and pear juice seemed to help both of my girls pretty quickly. When that doesn't work Milk of Magnesia works very well and is safe. My pediatrician said it is safe to use every day if needed. The directions say to give it at night but that isn't necessary if your child wears a diaper to bed.

My little girl has had problems with constipation since she was born. When she was first having problems with it the doctor ordered apple juice whenever she seemed uncomfortable. Since then, she gets apple juice every other time she gets a drink, and in between she gets either milk or water. This helps her. She also eats lots of green veggies and lots and lots of fruit.

Good luck with your little man!

Does he have a favorite potty you can get for him? We had similar pyschological issues over the pooping but I did find that lots of apple juice really helps to get things moving. I also had my son "tell his poop not to be scared and that it was time to come out and stop hiding!" Hope you find something that works.
L.

The best thing I found for natural, easy relief for childhood constipation is Apple juice. A small glass or two during the day usually does the trick, without unpleasant side effects. The apple juice simply helps nature along. If that doesn't work, you might try some warm prune juice -- usually not as easy to get the child to take this, but it will work. Just be sure to stick close to home for a little while...this usually works rather quickly - within the hour.
Good luck ;-)
S.

Hi C.,

Try Hylands Vitaminc C Tablets for babies and toddlers.
Give 4 tablets every morning. They melt in the toddler's mouth. You can get them at the Heritage store in VB.

here is a web site about constipation:

http://www.babycenter.co.uk/baby/health/constipationexpert/

Hope this helps. Good luck. D.

Hello!

Fix him pancakes with warm syrup. Ensure he's drinking PLENTY of water during the day. The beach, although there's lots of water - it's not drinking water.

The other thank that works too - and for many it sounds gross, but I LOVE IT! is putting peanut butter on pancakes, waffles or french toast with warm syrup and within an hour, it's doing its job!

Take care!

Cheryl

In addition to the dried fruits (my daughter loves dried papaya and mango too), try high fiber cereals like Frosted Mini Wheats, raisin bran and (my favorite) Weetabix. Cooked fruit with old fashioned oatmeal. Fresh fruit like melon, grape, strawberries and especially blueberries. Vegetables like corn, peas, beans and green beans. I think cutting back on dairy is good too
except for yogurt. Good luck!

Prune Juice or the baby prunes by Gerber it works like a charm! An old remedy is boiling raisins in water and then having them drink it like a juice once it has cooled down! Good Luck

Annie R

Since my son was only 4 or 5 months old I started giving him fruit leather, made with only the real fruit, nothing added, when he was still a baby I just let him suck on a piece that was big enough that he could hold on to it and now I just give him at least one everyday, he thinks of it's candy because it's so sweet and that along with a little water does the trick within 12 hours every time and he just thinks he's getting a treat.

Fruit leather, like any other dried fruit, is very high in natural sugars so I don't ever let him have some without water, which makes it as healthy as eating fresh.

My son had chronic constipation from about 12 months to 2+ years. We weren't really successful with prune juice or other fiber foods. When he was really uncomfortable, I had to use the Baby Fleet laxitive/fluid. He didn't like it going in, but within 2 minutes, it usually made him eliminate and he'd be totaly comfortable.

in general, fruit like prunes helps, which you probably already know, but even eating an apple helps. Worst case scenario, try this, which I know it's not very pleasant sounding: using your pinky finger (you can use a medical glove, for example a latex free medical glove) OR if you don'thave one, get some saran wrap to use as a barrier. Slather your finger with vaseline petroleum jelly. Gently ease it into his rectum and turn your finger from side to side. Do NOT go in too far - maybe only 1/2 - 1 inch in. It will stimulate bowel mov't almost every time. (Also, make sure your finger nail is short - below your finger). I've done this with my infant a couple times plus i've seen my pediatrician do it and boy did it work! Poop everywhere. But my girlfriend did it with her 2 year old and it helped her too.....BTW, this is a last resort measure like you said " to get things moving" and not to be done all the time. It may help get the hard, impacted poop out and stimulate regular bowel mov'ts after that comes out. In addition to this, give him prune juice - they have prune/apple or prune/pear which tastes better.

Dear C.,
'Getting things moving' has everything to do with having enough fiber and water in the diet! Fiber, of course, is found in all whole fruits and vegetables and whole grains. In choosing water, make it purified. The general rul of thumb is half one's body weight, pounds converted to ounces per day!
If eating enough fruits and veggies is hard to get this 2.5 year old to do, I can offer you help! I am a rep for a company which offers medical-journaled research-supported fruit and vegetable GUMMIES for a fraction of the cost of store-bought produce!
The taste? They are so great, moms and dads have to hide them to keep their kids from eating the whole jar!!!
I am happy to offer more info if you or your cousin are interested to learn more! We also offer these same fruits and veggies in capsules for adults, as well! I've taken them for eight years and have benefitted in so many ways that I won't go a day ever without taking them!
Blessings!
J. F.

You might try lots and lots of water along with a little prune juice, oatmeal, and raisins.

Hello,

When my little girl was constipated my husband and I would give her a good deep tissue tummy massage. Ususlly a little while after she would need to go. Also, we had to use one time a suppository. That worked wonders for her.

Hope this helps.

Fruit will soften him up usually. Particularly grapes and watermelon and stuff like that.

A 1/4 cup of raisins usually works for my kid! I hear constipation is common during potty training. Wouldn't worry to much unless it looks like he's in pain.

-S. K