Food Causing Constipation?

My daughter had the same problem. First of all, I took her off of the rice cereal and gave her oatmeal. I mixed a small amount of the prune baby food in her oatmeal. My doctor also told me to give her veggies like peas which woud help her. If you have started fruit, peaches and pears will also help. As for the Karo syrup, my pediatrician advised us against it. He says that Karo syrup might have some sort of honey in it which has been linked to botulism.

Good luck!

We had trouble with our son having constipation once he started on rice cereal too. If I had it in the house, I would give him a couple of spoonfuls of pureed prunes, but he only needed a couple. Don't give too much or you'll be really sorry. The thing that worked best for us though, was when I saw my son straining to poop, I gave him a little counter pressure on his tummy so that he had a little something else to push against. I just did this by lightly pressing on his abdomen and he pooped every time! It might sound strange, but it worked for us.

Use the pureed prunes in moderation. Maybe 1/3 of the container per day for 3 days. For prune juice, I still buy the little 4 oz Gerber juices for my preschooler because that's all it takes. When she was a baby I'd give her about 2 oz a day for 2 or 3 days. Things really got moving after that. Sometimes serving it warm helps her drink it if she refuses it at first.

Hi M., try switching to the oatmeal cereal. I remember our pedi saying to switch from rice to oatmeal after a couple weeks and he advised us on the possibilities of constipation since the new solids themselves would be creating "changes" in her bowel. We also needed to use prune juice once or twice - once it kicks in, IT KICKS IN!! :-) I also heard if you gently stick the tip of a thermometer in her "bottom" and hold it for a few seconds, this will induce a movement as well. Being dehydrated can cause issues like this, too - give her enough fluids to help ease it out.

Good luck!!!

-Char

Karo syrup is the trick! Don't use too much though or else it can cause diarrhea, just a little squirt in the bottle works great! .

I'll second the thermometer tip. Worked every time...& go easy on the prunes!!!

D.

Hi M.,
I was always told when feeding ceral to put 1/2 teaspoon of the clear kyro syrup. This prevents bowl movements issues. Be sure to use the clear. The brown kyro is not recommended.

Thanks,
S.

Hi M.,
I have a little one the same age with the same issues and the plain prunes works well for him. I have tried the mixed varieties with not so much luck. My 2 year old has always struggled and his Dr. prescribed engineered prunes that can be mixed with juices and given daily if necessary, it is called Glycolax.

Good Luck!
E.

Some veggies can be more constipating than others. It's good to have a fruit with the veggies to help "push" things along. They do have an apple/plum and apple/prune variety in the gerber foods and also just a pureed prunes that should help.

The same thing happened with my baby, and I just continued to give him pureed prunes and prune juice everyday. His constipation was on and off until his 1st birthday when I switched from formula to whole milk, and then the constipation got much worse. Another parent told me that when their baby went from whole milk to soy milk, she became a much happier baby. So I switched my baby to soy milk, which helped tremendously with the constipation. I'm wondering if I had given him a soy-based formula would it have helped... maybe it was the milk in the regular formula that was constipating him. If your baby's on formula, you may want to ask your doctor if you should switch to a soy-based formula?