8 Wk Old Constipated Looking for Suggestions to Help Him

My daughter had the same issue, she had a little jaundice and we also had to massage her butt to get her to go #2. She eventually grew out of it and I also brestfeed. I hope this helps!

White grape juice works everytime for me. It even worked better than the milk of magnesia that the peditrition perscribed at first!

C., I breastfed my son also, and it seemed like his bowels were always changing, despite not many changes in his feeding habits. It is normal that they can go without pooping for a long time because they utilize almost everything in the milk. My son would go as many as 7 days sometimes. If he goes longer than 7 days, I would let the doctor know, because there can always be other issues causing the lack of pooping, especially if you think he seems bothered by it. I think that's the key, if he seems not like himself there could be other issues going on. I know Diflucan can cause issues if baby takes, but I don't know that he would be getting all that much just through the milk. However, if he has yeast in his system (the thrush) the Nystatin could be killing it off, and therefore causing the stinky gas. My son and I dealt with thrush that we couldn't get rid of easily, and I remember his stinky gas. I think it was the yeast dying off. You can offer him probiotics. Just buy some probiotics capsules (which is good for you to take yourself) and empty a capsule into a container, dip your finger into it, and let baby suck it. You can do this once a day. This is good bacteria which can help restore the good bacteria in his system, which can help battle the thrush. If you need any help with the thrush, send me a message, and I can give you more details as to what helped with me. Good luck!

My daughter had the same problem! I would first recommend taking your son to the doctor's. He can feel your son's tummy to see if he is backed up. A way you can help stimulate your son to go is to put some vaseline at the end of a thermometer and VERY GENTLY insert it into his anus. I know this sounds weird. You do not need to push it in. And make sure he is still. I had to do this a few times. It is supposed to urge them to go. Also, I had to put Karo Syrup in my baby's bottle. But ask your doctor before doing so. If he is backed up, your doctor may prescribe medicine or an anema (which is usually last resort) to help clean him out. They usually take an x-ray if he suspects that he is backed up. I hope your son gets better soon! Oh, and one more thing - if you are bottle feeding, the formula could be what is causing his constipation...try switching to Soy to see if this helps.

When my son was a couple weeks old he went through that. I was breast feeding and learned that when babies on breastmilk are going through a growth spirt, they will use up every drop of milk and there is no waste. He went 11 days without pooping. That is the limit I hear. But my friend (mother of two under the age of two) has had much success with Shaklee's optiflora. It is safe for newborns and works wonders. Even for babies that have colic. I can e-mail you info on how to get some if you like. Heather is one of my best friends, so I was able to experience what she was going through with her kids even thought it wasn't my own son. Hope this helps.

Give him lots of water and clear fluids and call your pediatrician.

NATURALLY HEALTHY BABIES & CHILDREN by Romm

and ENCYCLOPEDIA OF NATURAL HEALTH & HEALING FOR CHILDREN by Weber

Try to take care of things naturally vs giving meds so early, if you can.

GLYCERIN and/or good ole' castor oil will help do the trick.

prune juice 50% solution diluted with water, worked everytime with my sons, give him an ounce or two if your that worried. If your breastfeeding not pooping for a day or two is completely normal. Babies will digest almost all the milk with very little waste. Unless he is extremely fussy then try the prune juice and start a diary of everything you eat. If he is fussy it may be due to something your eating, the most common offenders are dairy, onions, garlic and tomatos. Good Luck.

take him directly to your pediatrician. if he hasnt gone in that long hevery well could have a bowel impaction and that can be extremely painful.also, his bm's will start to back upintohislittle stomachandmake things even worse. my 5 year old had the same problem with not having a bowel movement. she was only a couple weeks old and it lasted upuntil she was a couple months old. we would have to hold her legs up in the air and push towards her stomach, we would have to rub her belly. anyhow, when she was old enough we could water down apple juice and it would keep her regular to drink an 8 ounce glass every day. now, she justs asks for apple juice automatically. hope this helps

Hi C.. If your son is being breastfed (exclusively), its not unusual for this to happen. This will go on for a little while more so dont stress out.
You can give him a little water (about an ounce a day). that helps a whole lot. My doctor recommended this and it works. Gripe water is great to help them pass gas and break wind (ie burst the bubbles from feeding). its not for constipations so use it when u think your son is gassy.
If you are very worried that he is constipated, as your doctor if you can insert a suppository. That too will help.
Good luck and take it easy :-)

Have you seen a physician? He could have a virus or a bowel blockage which could need medical attention. If you have and nothing seems to work. I can suggest sugar water or honey water. My daughter, now 22yrs old had the same problem when little. We took her off the formula with iron which helped a great deal. She was just one of those kids who could not handle it. She is perfectly healthy and the pediatrition said it would not hurt her not to have the iron. The honey water worked the best for us. If I remember correctly it was 1 tsp honey to 8 oz of warm water. I just used honey that I bought at the store. She grew out of it in about 3 or 4 months. I used to very gently massage her belly and abdomen too. I even just layed my warm hand on her abdomen and the warmth of my hand helped relax her. She would get so bad she would pull her knees up so tight and just cry. Good luck Oh, I read some of the other responses and the karo syrup worked too. But definitely try the dr first in case there is something truly wrong.

Congratulations C.!! IF you are exclusively breast feeding then not having a BM for a few days is normal once his body has adjusted. I urge you to find your local La Leche League and seek guidance and support from fellow breastfeeding mom's. Your little guy needs no water, tea and definitely no karo he's only 8 weeks!!

Start doing nightly massages, it'll be a wonderful time for you (or daddy) before bedtime. There are baby massage books out there. Bicycling will also help him but don't be surprised if he goes a week or more without a BM. Your milk has very little waste. As long as he's still having wet diapers don't fret!

Hope you have a happy new year!!

I have a 12 week old daughter who recently had the same problem. First of all, if you are breastfeeding then it is normal for him to several days in between bowel movements. My doctor told me to take 1 teaspoon of prune juice mixed with 2 teaspoons of water a couple times of days. And also try the thermometer trick I know others have suggested. I would still suggest to alteast call your doctor to see if they are concerned. Just a word of advise, when he does finally go, watch out! Good luck.

MY son was about the same age when he went 10 days without pooping! The dr. said since he was breast fed that he would not poop every day since there is less waste in breast milk. However, I thought him to be a little uncomfortable. They suggested a small bottle, maybe 2 oz of juice/water mix. Or a small bottle, 2-3 oz of water mixed with brown sugar. The sugar is supposed to loosen the bowels a little. I don't remember the mixture, but you could google it. He would only go like every 3-4 days until he started table food. Now it is every day to every other day.

My friend had a son who was very colicy and would take warm wash clothes and rest on his belly for comfort. That may work too.

Are you sure it is constipation? Breastfed babies are notorious for saving up 'the big poo' and unleashing it once or twice a week. It is not uncommon at all for a breastfed baby to completely fill a diaper only once or twice a week.

Take a look at the BMs he is leaving in his diapers. If they look normal (like mustardy or grainy) then all is well and you should avoid giving him junk that will just fill and disturb his belly. However, if the BMs are like dry little pellets or logs, then he likely is constipated. You can give a little bit of prune juice (dilute it with water) to get things moving again.

Will he take a bottle? If so, put a little molasses in the bottle with the breast milk or formula. You might have to adjust the amount after seeing the effects. I had to do this for my daughter when she took soy formula, because it constipated her terribly. But the molasses solved the problem.

As a few others have mentioned, it is completely normal for a breastfed baby to not have a bowel movement for several days. I think our pediatrician said that anything up to a week and a half to two weeks is alright as long as it is still mustardy or liquidy. If it is hard and solid, then it is likely constipation. Some of the problem that he is having now could be due to the things you have been trying. They may be irritating his little tummy. I would suggest stopping everything and checking his stool the next time he has one for consistency. In the meantime, you can try having a plain Hershey bar. This is one of the things my lactation consultant suggests. The chocolate can be helpful sometimes (and yummy too, lol).

Try a few ounces of apple juice

Please under NO circumstances use karo syrup. It can give your little one botulism. A lot of people (especially grandma's) swear by it. I was told by a ped. to NEVER EVER use it for children under the age of 1. You can try a warm bath and a tummy massage. I'm sure there are internet sights that have the proper strokes for infant massage. I know that you have to do them in a certain direction, or it can make it worse. Taking his legs and bending them against his belly may help too. The gentle pressure always seemed to help my daughter. She was a gassy little girl! She would also go for a week with out pooping. Again, her doctor said that was totally normal. Our doctor won't call it "constipation" unless the bowels are hard. When he poops, if it's a normal consistency, I wouldn't worry too much. His system is still getting used to working, so anything that disrupts that could cause problems. The antibiotics could definitely be the culprit. If I were you, I'd give his pediatrician a call and see what he/she says. If they have a phone nurse, he/she should be able to help you or give you some suggestions. Good luck! :D

hello. i had this same exact problem with my newborn. i was so worried and called the MD office and they told me as long as she was passing gass not to worry, it's normal for a baby not to have a BM for up to 7 days! i called back after 4 days and said that i couldn't stand how much pain she seemed to be in. They told me to stimulate the rectal area (poop hole)with my finger. just a gentle massage, don't penetrate or anything. and if that didn't work to stick a thermometer up there just as if you were taking her temp (use a little vasoline). well....both of those didn't work so they suggest i go and get a suppository. It's just called glycerine suppository. They do not make them for babies, it's made for toddlers so they told me to just give half the dose. That worked for me within minutes. we havn't had a problem since!
Good Luck

When my son was this age, he started only going once a week. I tried giving him apple juice every day, but no change. I think the apple juice was more for me so I felt like I had tried something. lol To this day, he is 6, he hates apple juice. For the gassiness, you might try simethicone drops. it seems to me like you have to give them somewhat regularly to have them to work. You can't give them once and expect miracles. That and a warm pack on his tummy should help with the gas.
good luck,
R.

Add one half tspn of Corn Syrup to a bottle. Give it a little time. My son had this problem. If you need a tad bit more at another feeding, try again. It works.

A warm bath and a gentle tummy massage, might help. Also bicycle motions with his legs against his tummy, might work too. A tablespoon of Dark Karo in my daughter's drink helped me.

Good luck.

Hi C.,

congrats on your little one! And on breastfeeding! It is not unusual for breastfed babies to go a long time without pooping.

Try the warm bath, flexing his legs, and massage techniques mentioned. Also the "just insert the thermometer" trick worked for my guys. You can "just insert the suppository" instead, if you are worried about possibly breaking the thermometer.

Someone said "honey water"--NO, NO, NO!!!! not for kids under 1 year of age! Botulism risk.

Good luck!

K. Z.

Hello, the old old recipe for no poopoo is put 1/4 to 1/2 teaspoons of karo in about 2 ounces of warm but not hot water and in no time they get relief. Good luck hope this helps.

Poor baby. Sounds like you need to call the pediatrician before you try anything else. If it is bad enough there are things they can do help, but I don't think you want to self treat this. Call the doctor.