Home Remedies

Many parents wonder if their child is having issues with constipation. If your child is under the age of one, the guidelines are going to be different. But if your child is one or older then the following things may be able to help you distinguish whether or not your child has constipation and if so what you can do about it from home. If you notice that your child is going multiple days between bowel movements like up to three or four days or more, if he’s having an extra hard time when he’s going like he’s straining really hard to get it out, if it’s just really hard, maybe small pebble-like stools, really dry, those are all signs of constipation. It’s also a concern, obviously, if you see blood in the stool or mucus-like particles, those are all reasons to talk to the doctor. If your child truly is having issues with constipation then there are a few things you can try from home before running to the doctor. You might just have to increase his water intake and his fiber intake. There are a lot of high fiber foods that you can introduce into your child’s diet that may help him become more regular. There are things like peas, broccoli, beans, apricots, prunes, raisins, those are just a few. Also whole grain breads are good and pastas, rice, cereals, those things will help. Cut things out of your child’s diet that lead to constipation, bananas, rice sometimes can be constipating, a lot of milk product. Do keep in mind that for children between the ages of one and two they should be drinking whole milk, just limit it to about 32 ounces a day, no more than that. Increase your child’s water intake. If these basics aren’t helping then it’s time to involve the pediatrician. Sometimes medications are necessary to get your child’s bowels moving again. Many parents are hesitant about using these medications. They’re only used when the doctor feels like it’s warranted based on what’s been tried and what isn’t working and there are also dangers to letting your child becomes chronically constipated because it can lead to future complications. If you have more questions about constipation as it relates to your child be sure to talk to your doctor. If you’d like to see more tips like this each week be sure to “Like” our Facebook page at Facebook.com/IntermountainMoms, subscribe to our posts, and recommend us to your friends and family too.

Comments

albert009 says:

March 16, 2015 at 3:19 pm

Humm… What about months old?

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