Major Bowel Issues

I give my kids, including the baby PB8. It's a probiotic that contains 8 different strains of probitoics. It keeps them regular AND boosts their immune systems. My 7 year old can swallow it, but the others, I just open the capsule and dump 1/2-1 into their mouths and then they wash it down with water. Some of my friends mix it into food. It's so much safer than fiber or some massive amount of magnesium that will loosen bowels. We also give a liquid calcium.magnesium supplement, so that they get both in the right amounts.

We don't do soy, as soy is a phytoesterogen, which stimualtes estrogen receptors on cells. I don't need my kids having extra estrogen with an environment where there are getting more than enough without most of us even knowing.

I agree with taking him off soy. I get major constipation issues from both dairy & soy products because of a protein intolerance. I have found out that 50% of those with an intolerance to dairy will also have an intolerance to soy.

Many of the other suggestions sound good too.....the probiotics especially.

Has he ever been on antibiotics? If so you might want to research & consider a good probiotic.

My sons have had good success with digestive enzymes. We especially like "No-Fenol" from Houson Nutraceuticals. If I'm not mistaken they make most of their enzymes in a chewable form (as well as capsules).

I agree with another mom's opinion on soy (we avoid it).

I'm not a medical professional - this is just my "mom" opinion. :)

Good luck to your little guy!

My daughter is 4.5 and has been having pooping issues since she was an infant, as soon as I started solids.
In her case, she can "go", but it seems the poop she produces is fatter than her anus, and she was tearing skin ever time she went.
The dr. recommended Mirolax, and over the counter medicine, when she was about 1. You just add it to a drink and it helps soften the poop, and makes it easier to go. It really, really works for her. Apparently some people don't absorb water into their intestines well, making their poop really hard and large.
Check with your Dr. and see if it is safe for your child.

Hi H. - I feel for your little guy and you do sound like you are doing all the right things. I had to mention to you that I have several customers who are grateful for Juice Plus soft chews for their children who suffered from chronic constipation and had them on medications. After a short time on Juice Plus (it's concentrated produce/natural nutrition in a chewable form, also capsules for adults) their children were regular and didn't need the medication anymore. I highly recommend you give it a try if your son can chew gummies. If you'd like to talk with these customers let me know and I could coordinate a call for you to talk with them so you can hear from them. Juice Plus is not like anything else out there. It's got more research than anything else proving it gets into the blood and improves many markers of health. Juice Plus kids are healthier kids because the are getting a lot of fruit and vegetables (17+) in their bodies every single day. There's a great children's health study childrenshealthstudy.com. Feel free to call me if you have any questions and want to give it a try. I could get it free for you as well. ###-###-####. Hope he feels better soon!

You might want to review this thread mainly regarding the anal fissure (tears)....
http://www.mamapedia.com/questions/5365638286901575681

My daughter used to cry when she would have a bowel movement even if it was soft.

Try glycerine suppositories.
That's what my pediatrician told me to use for my daughter. They worked like a miracle. I had tried all the other things and he said that the more I put in her, the more there was to come out. Sometimes you have to deal with things from the other end. I started by only using half a baby suppository at a time and you have to hold them in by keeping their little cheeks pinched together for a few minutes or they'll just melt and come right out. But, it sofens up the blockage and makes it easier to eliminate what's in there. The suppositories also lubricate making it easier to go. I only had to use them a few times until she got cleaned out and things worked normally for her after that.
Also, with the suppositories, he won't be able to hold it in. And it won't hurt.
They really do work. You can purchase them at any drug store. They aren't expensive. They're soft so they don't hurt.
Your baby will be feeling better in no time.
My daughter self weaned and when I changed her to formula she became constipated. My doctor told me about the suppositories. He's a pretty holistic type of guy too, but that was the first thing he said. And it really worked.
Try them.

Best wishes!

Pears are very fiberous. I used Kern's Pear Nectar for my son. It was one of the ways he continued to be able to go without pain. This worked for about 2 years. He later had to do Miralax, but I didn't do that for long. He was mostly afraid to take time to stop playing to go and he would get backed up. I had to do Dulcolax suppositories which you have to insert in their bum, and he really hated that and children's enemas because he would get soooo impacted. He has not learned to take the time and go to the bathroom so that he doesn't have to endure all the yucky stuff. I hope the pear juice helps. I also made a really good pear bread, it worked on the whole family. :)

What do his bms look like? Small little pellets? big and hard? A lot of things can influence your digestive system. My daughter would hold her bms for days. It would get to the point where the bm was so hard and large she could barely pass it. She was holding her bowels because at one point, she had one that hurt.In her little mind she started associating poop with pain, so she'd hold it. It went on forever, like over a year, before I finally found a pediatrician to listen to me. We started her on 1/2 cap full of Miralax in a cup of juice once a day and half of an chocolate Ex-Lax every three days. It took awhile, but it finally started to work. We had to break the association of pooping=pain.
Avoid things like bananas and carbohydrates. Those things can plug you up. Talk to your doctor about Miralax. It puts water into the stool so that it's softer and easier to pass. I don't know if Milk of Magnesia does the same thing or not. It took us about 6 months on the Miralax to get the pooping issue resolved. My daughter still gets backed up and she'll ask for her special juice. If it's really bad she'll ask for her special chocolate.
Good luck to you! It's so hard when they're this little. They can't fully explain what's wrong.

i also tried everything you mentioned & the suppositories for my son but benefiber is the only one that did the trick

We had this problem with one of my 4 kids. Everytime she had to poop, it was like giving birth. Of course she tried to avoid pooping because of the pain. The doctor put her on Miralax (I am not 100% sure of the spelling). It was non-addictive. Over a bit of time it (maybe 2 months) worked. She is now 10 and does not remember going through this. For her parents, it is impossible to forget. Good luck.

We had the same trouble. What worked was limiting dairy, and adding flax seed oil to his food. That and avocados worked. I think roughage is not always the answer- ours seemed to need more oily food. It has gotten so much better now that he is 18 months. I hope this helps.

I can't believe your doc hasn't said to use Miralax. Our twins were born very early and had gut troubles we went to a ped gastro doc (this was 7 yrs ago) and she told us to use this. Back then it was with prescription only, now it's over the counter.

It's non-habit forming and doesn't cause gas/ bloating like the others. It doesn't work like others by making your gut do the work which then it causes the gut to become lazy and dependent on the meds. It works by drawing the fluid into the intestines as the poop makes it's way out therefore making it softer. It's a powder, you can put it in any drink and you absolutely can't taste it. I still use it sometimes if my kids get a little constipated and after all these years their little bodies aren't "addicted" to it.

Flad seed OIL. (Took 4/day to start regulating my kiddo - eventually weaned off and no need now.) Glycerin suppositories. Apricot nectar. Oranges & OJ. Start a diet journal - write down everything Munchkin eats. Sometimes you will recognize that certain foods *bind* and others *loose.*

Our little one (2 1/2) has had constiaption issues since she was about 6mos old - we have even been seeing a pediatric gastro specialist because of it...I definately recommend the miralax if you arent already using it - it was and continues to be a life saver. You might also want to look into Senna Syrup - which is an over the counter pediatric laxitive syrup...there was usually a result within 12 hours....we have also just started her on a pediatric probiotic - again over the counter - but just a little something (natural) to help keep her regulated. Hang in there - but trust your gut...if you dont think your doctor is helping you or hearing you - move on and find someone who will....good luck!!

Hello!
My little Julia had that problem. The time she tried going poops for 3 hours we all cried. Doctor didn't think anything was wrong and said she would grow out of it. Fine, she would, but at the time, I wanted the problem to get fixed. We changed her to Lactaid (she had the opposite affect). It started to get better. I went to a hollistic pediatric healthcare (http://www.beewellkidz.com/). She gave me some drops (also helped). Then, my mother remembered that her mother, when any of her 14 children got sick from the tummy, she gave them oatmeal water. It was the oatmeal, then she put sugar and cinnamon for taste, but, drained it, and just gave them the water. Slowly we started adding a little bit of milk to it, but mostly water.

It could have been any of these three things, but, I am so glad I tried them because I wasn't going to go through what we did on that night of 3 hours of pushing. I ordered an extra bottle of the drops I got from the hollistic healthcare, but, I never ended up using them. Julia was one...she's now almost four and she's well.

Good luck!

how bout more fruit?

Yes, he may be holding it in because it hurts. I'm amazed that he's going 3 times/day. My grandson also had constipation issues and he sometimes went days without pooping. We considered that we'd had some success when he was able to go every day or two even tho it was still painful.

There can be more than one reason for constipation. How long and how consistently have you been on this routine? Are you giving him vegetables and fiber everyday as well as increasing his fluid intake every day and also giving him prunes and prune juice, oatmeal and flax seed meal everyday. If not include several different things every day. If it's been more than a few weeks call the doctor and see if it is time for further evaluation. He could have a physical problem in his digestive tract that is causing this even tho he has the right food combinations for a softer bm.

You didn't mention dairy products. If you haven't already eliminated them do so now. And I'd stop the soy. It's one of those foods that have a higher percentage than others to cause allergies.

I would also not let him strain for an hour. This is damaging his body. If he's not able to go in a few minutes help him to pass it or redirect his attention until the urge passes. Straining causes tears in his anus and eventually hemorrhoids. Those are painful even with a normal bowel movement.

Are you putting him on the toilet? I've not seen a one year old in diapers work so hard for so long time to have a bowel movement. If you're wanting him to use the toilet this is too early for that.

My younger brothers all had constipation issues. My mother lubricated her finger and helped them to pass the feces. Be sure to have a short fingernail. Use a glove if you want. You can also use a suppository.

In my experience a bit of milk of magnesia in prune juice brought on a partially liquid bowel movement within an hour or so. If you are doing that and it's not working then I'd be even more concerned about the possibility of an undiagnosed medial cause and would return to the pediatrician..

Have you had his thyroid levels checked? I had a friend whose little boy had struggled for years and finally they got his thyroid checked and found out he had an underactive thyroid which was causing his problems. Just a thought. Good luck in helping your little man.