8 Week Old Gassy and Constipated Even Though He's Breastfeed.

My daughter too was very gassy and it seemed constipated. My doctor told us not to worry until 7 days had passed without a bowel movement. But she also said to watch for signs that she was in pain/uncomfortable or that her stomach was hard, not just bloated. She said I could give her a suppository at that time. She grew out of it pretty fast (one or two months). My doctor also told me not to change my diet. She said there are so many things that could cause it that I would drive myself crazy trying to figure it out. Buy some Mylicon drops (I used the Target or Walmart brand) for the gas. My doctor said you can't overdose on those so my kids got those with every feeding. Also, at that age, kids eat what they need and stop when they aren't hungry. I wouldn't worry about the weight. Once they start crawling and walking it soon comes off!!!! My son had rolls around his ankles and wrists and now (2 yrs) he is very lean and only in the 50 percentile. God bless you for watching children all day long!

I have had this kind of problem as well, so I know what you are going through. There is a stage in the baby's life when they go days without a poop. That is completely natural for some babies. Is the poop hard? If so then it really is constipation. Is the poop a pretty bright green chartrous (sp?) color? Then he is getting too much foremilk and it is upsetting his tummy. Instead of switching sides, let him complete his meal on one side, if he's done he's done, and the next feeding offer him the other side for as long as he wants.

My son used to skip about 5 days, then on one day, he would poop about 6 times. I would just have extra diapers and a change of clothes with me because I would never know which day was his "poopin' day".

Quit the suppositories unless it is truly constipation - (hard black balls of poop). Continue tweaking your diet to accomodate him. (I still struggle with giving up dairy because that's what makes my daughter have a tummy ache.)

Keep up the good work. You sound like you are trying your best!

I was told by a couple lactation consultants that breastfed babies could not get constipated. My daughter's pediatrician told me when she was a coulpe months old that it's very normal to go 2-5 days with no bowel movement... they haven't developed any regularity yet. You could try the infant gas drops... or just let him fart it out. It could be something that will pass in the upcoming weeks as his system grows stronger and more consistant.

My son gained alot of weight very fast. He gained 1/2 a pound in two days during the first week he was on this earth. He use to go six to eight times a day when he was breastfed. He is now on formula only. He goes every other day...sometimes every two daysand he goes three times on those days...One of these bowel movements is always a hard little plug of poo. I asked the doctor and he said that it takes a long time for a babies digestive track to regulate itself. Sometimes up to a year or two. He told me not to worry unless he goes an abnormally long time without pooping or he becomes so dehydrated that he doesn't cry tears.

Breastfed babies are affected by everything we eat. even if it doesn't give you gas, doesn't mean it won't give your child gas.

Just use your instincts... You are the best judge as to whether or not your baby us okay.

By the way...my son is GASSY. He toots all the time. He comes by that naturally...I have IBS.

Your doing a good job...just remember that.

Constipation is when their poo is hard or formed, NOT how frequently they poo. It's not uncommon for breastfed babies to only poop once a week. So, if it's the typical runny, orange poo it's probably nothing to worry about.

When our child was taking breastmilk, we called him "Captain Thunderpants" because of his massive farting. We, too, were told that it was completely normal for breastfed babies to:
-pass a lot of gas
-go for up to a week without having a BM (it did not mean they were constipated)

I'd be more concerned about the constipation. Your baby is constipated only if his stool is hard, dry, and pebble-like. If his bowel movements are only once a week but pasty and typical, then there is no need to worry.

My baby is now 6 months old and he was VERY gassy and I elimated EVERYTHING from my diet that could be the culprit. I searched Google for gas producing foods to get a list of things that I could be eating. I ended up using Mylicon drops, you can give them with every feeding and my doctor said you have to use it often for it to work. I think it helped some. My baby gained 2.5 pounds/month while I was breastfeeding and he would only poop about 1x/week but he would strain and turn red. My doctor said not to worry and at 4 months we started 1/2 strength apple juice and that helped and at 5 months we started veggies and now he is pooping like a champ! Good luck!

Hi A.,

My littlest one is 5 1/2 mo. and I'm still breastfeeding him. Out of all 4 kids, he has nursed the longest... he is also the biggest of the kids. He doubled his birth weight of 8 lb by the time he was 3 mo old. He also has lots of gas... I do give him baby gas drops and was told it is ok to give them after every feeding if need be. Somedays are better then others with the gas issues - and oh boy do they smell - lol. There are also days he doesn't go poopoo... but it is still the "yellowish" color when he does - just a little clayier looking.

If your doctor isn't conserned - don't be worried about it. If you can ulter you diet a little to help him - good luck with it. I just have a hard time pin pointing what is the cause, but that could just be me.

Good luck and have a nice holiday season!

Congrats on breastfeeding! I went through the same thing with my daughter, I've eliminated dairy from my diet and she's a new person, with regular poos. But I also don't eat anything that gives her gas; brocolli, cauliflower, onions, garlic, beans, and even soy. I also don't eat or drink anything that may be to acidic, like tomatoes, sauce, orange juice. (No pizza!)

Mylacon drops never worked for us, just watch what you eat. The more bland your diet, the happier you'll probably find your baby. Just make sure you take a good daily vitamin. Good luck.

Actually, A., this sounds like your little one has an intolerance to something you're eating... typical culprits are cow's milk products and/or soy products. If your baby were on formula, you'd likely be switching back and forth to find something he was more comfortable with --> luckily, you're a breastfeeding mom, and you can control exactly what you eat (which is what he gets via your breastmilk). My little newborn boy sounded very similar to how you describe yours: gassy, bowel issues, probably poor sleep and maybe even some dry/red patches of skin. And it turns out that cow's milk products were the big trigger for my son - within 7 days of my eliminating all cow's milk proteins from my diet, my exclusively breastfed infant was a comfy, happy baby with normal poop, little gas, daily stools.

You can absolutely figure this out, so keep your "Detective Mom" hat on, read the following excellent webpage on breastfed babies, gassiness, and food intolerances (how to determine if this is the issue, how to avoid it, etc.):
http://www.kellymom.com/babyconcerns/food-sensitivity.html

And of course, you can always go to a local LLL meeting where you are more likely to meet and share tips with other breastfeeding moms who have been where you are right now!

Congrats on your new baby! I do not believe that it's "normal" for a baby to go 7-10 days between bowel movements and be super gassy (even if some pediatricians say it's ok), so follow your instincts and keep on digging until you find the cause of your baby's discomfort. :)

Hi A.,

I used Mylicon with my two kids. It worked like a charm for the most part. Try putting his tummy on you wrist/forearm. The pressure seems to help. A massage therapist friend of mine said to rub his tummy in an upside down u. I think you start on the right side,going up and down the left side. Kinda like you are wiping crumbs off of the table. It is normal to the docs, but absolute horror for us. Good luck!

D.

Keep on your pediatrician. If you don't get some advice that works talk to another doc in the office. Sometimes I think they just think your a worried mom and don't know what your doing or know your instincts. I had a similair problem only my daughter had colic and reflux. Talk until someone listens. Also, I wouldn't give him suppositories unless your doc recommends it. Especially if you are seeing sometimes when he goes and goes. When they are that young sometimes you can over stimulate them. Also feeding will stimulate him to poop and release gas. Mylacon drops do work and you can use them with as young and he is. Good Luck. I don't know which peds office you go to but Dr Cowley and All Children Pediatrics is the doc who finally listened to me. She trusts moms insticts and likes it when parents do their own research. She knows that parents know their children better than and doc does.

Babies, unlike what most believe, do not have to have a bowel movement every day. They can go two or three days between bowel movements. I would be more likely to suggest giving him a little baby pear juice, like 1 tsp, twice a day to help keep him more regular. I wouldn't suggest prune juice, even the baby prune juice, since he is already gassy it would just make him worse. You can put it in a little medicine dropper and give it to him like medicine. If you use suppositories at such a young age they can become addicted to them and not be able to poop without them. Breastfed babies may not burp as much but can be equally as gassy out the bottom as bottle fed babies. Also, if the poop is more liquid like, the gas can go around it and get out, and they do not have the muscles built up push the liquid/not soild stool yet. So even though it may appear as constipation is may not be constipation. Weight gain of 6oz. a week is completely normal for a child his age. That's 1.5lbs a month. If he started out slow gaining weight, he could still be catching up, or possibly had just gone through a little growth spurt the week before he was last weighed. I hope something here helps!

Google vitamin K. My son had this problem. It was more noticable after I stopped breastfeeding but I changed my diet right before due to work. A friend of mine recommended more vitamin K so I bought him nutripals and it worked beautifully in 2 days. Try changing your diet to include more, its easy and it should help.

please stop the suppositories! as another mom said, breastfed babies may only go once a week. if all he is having is breastmilk (which at 8 weeks, should be all he's having) then it probably isn't constipation. breastmilk is very easily digested and much of it can be absorbed by the baby, particularly during big growth spurts. do not worry about how much he poops. worry about the firmness of the poop.
the fact that he is gaining weight should not worry you, but make you proud. that means your milk is awesome, and he is getting the fatty hind milk, which is natures way of plumping our babies and developing the myelin for the nerve cells... that's how they get so smart! my advice for you is this: trust that nature creates the perfect milk for your baby's system. suppositories, medications and juice could only disrupt that harmony.

My son had the same problem. My doctor had me give him maylox ( not sure I spelt that right, its the blue bottle in the pharmacy), 1 tsp once a day. You don't want to keep doing the sopsitories it will make the body depend on them. Good luck.

S.

A.-are you watching what you eat? Remember, whatever you're eating your baby consumes also, and their little digestive tracks are not as forgiving as ours as adults. Try less spices, no beans, buffalo wings etc. things that would cause you to have gas...stop giving him suppositories! Try getting him to have a bowl movement "naturally". Remember, there are a lot of perks to nursing! Eat more fruits and vegetables- raisins are good along with salads. If you eat a well balanced meal, you're baby will have a well balanced meal! I hope this helps...

Hi there,
congratulations on the new addition in your family.
I know how you feel.My baby boy is 7 months old now.He was gassy and colicy for the first 3 months.The doctor gave him some compound called Prometh/Bellad/Simethico.Its a prescription syrup and it did wonders for my baby. whenever he was gassy he cried with pain,and with about 1/4th tsp of this syrup,it gave him instant relief.I know other moms who used the same syrup for their infants.SO ask your doc if this works for your baby too.
I eliminated cabbage and cauliflower from my diet and ate lots of semi solids though our diet doesn't much affect their gas problems.
I forgot to mention I too breastfeed my baby and still he was gassy.Try and burp him between switching breasts and feedings.

ALL the very best to you for yor baby!!!