Hi, my son is 6 months old and since we switched his formula over to regular Infamil from Nutramigen and started solids he has had very hard, painful stools. The doctor said to use Karo syrup but it wasn't working. When we took him in for his 6 month checkup he prescribed Miralax. He told me to give hime 1/2 teaspoon to 1 teaspoon once a day..well how long should I give it to him??? I don't want him to become dependent on it. He's been taking it for almost 4 days and it really hasn't softened his stools much. Could it be that the Infamil isn't right for him or that it has too much iron?? I depend on WIC and they don't allow formula without Iron. Any advice would help, THANKS!!
Well, I am going to try the two weeks on and then see if it goes back to being hard when I stop it. We go back to the doctor on the 29th. Gavin is allergic to soy so that is out of the picture. I've also tried the dark karo and it didn't work either. The Miralax is working great. It just scares me, that he's on a prescription laxative. Thanks everyone for your advice!!!
Hi A., I have used
Miralax before and if my memory serves me correctly; its only till he starts having normal bowel movements. I would call the dr back. They do have suppositories for babies to help relieve constipation. And WIC should have an alternative formula. My son had to be on soy milk when he was on WIC.
It is very important for infants to get the iron in formula. They need it. It is better to give them the iron and treat the constipation if it is caused by it. Their bowel habits will change as their diets change.
Try Soy products for your little one. The Dark Karo syrup worked for us but my oldest son could not tolerate milk based products! Soy made a huge difference and we were all alot happier in our house! Was it the Dark Karo you were using? There are some other things you can do if you want to e-mail me. Good luck!
My daughter is much older than your son, but the doctor prescribed Miralax for her today. She told me to give it to my daughter for 2 weeks to pass everything through her system. She said that lots of kids have to be on it for awhile, but she said to test it out for 2 weeks. We will see, and we did try the Karo syrup and it didnt work at all. I also would recommend giving your son the prunes baby food. My daughter had lots of issues with constipation at that age, and the prunes really helped. Good Luck, it will get better :)
I do not know the answer to the question - but my nephew - that is now 25 had this problem as a baby - toddler -
Anyway it caused the muscles to not work correct thus he would have accidents - ( he was already 9) My sister took him took him to a doctor finally - they told her it was because he was constipated as a small child. He had to take laxatives and some prescription for some time. I am not sure of all of the details.
He did get better and does not have that problem now, but I remember when he was a kid and how it would affect him.
So I guess I added my two cents because it is something that you do not want to let just go on.
B.
A.,
my doctor told me two weeks on and two weeks off. I guess for as long as you need it. Could you call your doctor and ask for one of the nurses? They are very helpful where I take my kids...real lifesavers!!
If your doctor believes he is getting too much iron, get a note from him stating what formula would be appropriate. WIC will accomodate that change with a doctor's note. I used to work at WalMart, and saw several women on WIC come through there with different formulas based on their child's needs. The vouchers will have the name and kind of formula printed on them with the kind your doctor recommends.
Keep the iron formula but you might want to try soy to see if he responds better. It tends to make the stools spongy. Also up use of juice/water. I find Prune or prune/apple works for us. We are at 14 months and still working daily on managing our daughters constipation. She is "regular-ish" typically having a BM every 1 or 2 days, which is atypical of most posts listed here. Our problem is in size, her stools can be too large to pass without pain. I have never seen a child produce so much! We have to monitor what she eats at every meal so we get the right combination of fluid/softeners/fruit. It is difficult to manage when we are busy but if we slip up it gets difficult quickly. We got off track early and now we are in for a long haul (her issues started in around 6 months) This is not an overnight problem. Her painful BMs have caused periodic small rips. We now work to manage her daily via Miralax and Juices and water intake and diet in order to maintain her without injury. Please get on a regular schedule of supplying juice/ good fluids early and keeping a close eye. We also tried the Dark Karo syrup (light syrup is the wrong product) but had mixed success. The earlier you get on a schedule to manage the problem the better. Miralax has worked for us, we even use the generic from Wal-mart which is about 1/2 cost. Some of the moms I have run into with similar issues have used it daily (1 tsp once a day or even twice a day depending on the case by case basis) for long periods. One mom had to use it for almost 4 years lowering the use until her daughters problem finally ended. I really hope we won't be doing this that long but I haven't been able to totally go with a diet only solution yet. I still need the softener. Good luck!
I've been there done that and still doing it :) My son has been on Miralax for almost a year and a half. If you dont agree with your child's doctor you can always go to a Peds GI specialist. That's what we are doing and I trust his opinion. He says that they cannot become dependent on it. But yeah, seek another opinion if you are concerned. I have WIC also so I know what you're going through.
