5 Month Old suddenly constipated?

Qprmeath

She is on lactose free food, SMA, for about the last two months as her poos up to that point were very messy. She has been on solids for a couple of weeks mainly stewed strawberry, pears and some other fruit as wel as some banana. Now also on carrot and pumpkin puree. She is not in terrible distress but is constantly needy and often spends ages trying to poo which generally amounts to nothing. Very hard to get her to settle for long even at night. Got Prune juice this morning to see will that have any effect. Anyone recognise these symptons or have any answers? The last normal food she was on was Aptamil hungry baby.

Das Kitty

This happens when they start solids. Prunes are the way to go. You can boil them for a few minutes in a small amount of water then blend.

Try giving her water with her food too.

cynder

HI, my lady was constipated from 1year and 4 months till she turned 3, she would only go once every 3-4 days, she would scream the place down, i would put her on the loo and she would cry "its alright its only poos" poor pet, that was just her clock. Every person is different some go every day, some every other day, some go 3-4 times a day.

Best bet is to ask the g.p, some kids are put on laxatives but then they can get hooked on them too.

Prune juice is supposed to be good if the baby will take it.

cbyrd

Going onto solids can have that effect on little tummy's, the best advice i was given was one spoon of sugar to one ounce of cooled boiled water and it usually sorts the problem in a few hours. 4 ozs was usually plenty

It's not something your giving everyday so for the amount of sugar it's just to get things moving and it won't cause any harm (or diabetes as my husband worried) it's easier and cheaper than laxatives and it was my GP that recommended it as a first.
When i gave it to mine it usually works in about 3 - 5 hours..

Lynfo

Bananas can cause constipation, lay off them for a little while, keep going with the other fruit and see will that make a difference.

cbyrd

bananas.. damn them!! they still constipate my eldest and she's nearly 12

CK2010

try the natural alternatives first (sugar and water, prune juice) but if they're not working as quick as they should then you may need to go to GP for laxatives. dont be worried about using these as there are different kinds and some are purely to soften the stools wheras others actually alter the way the digestive system works so you will be prescribed the most suitable and your doctor will take into account dependency etc.

it is best to overcome the problem as quickly as possible because with alot of kids constipation will start a catch twenty two problem- baby gets constipated and it hurts them so next time they need to pass they'll hold it out of fear hence causing more constipation.

this generally works itself out after the transition to solids though.

my girl had alot of stomach/digestive problems even though shes a mothers dream when it comes to diet- broccoli and carrots are her favourite snack! dunno where she gets it from!! :)
she'd drink tonnes of prune juice and nothing would work- now she has serious problems with her system so obviously it may not be applicable to your child- but when we first went to GPs and stuff they wouldnt believe that we were feeding her the right things (we're young parents so i assume they thought the worst, i dont know) and they kept giving us diet sheets and things without prescribing anything, even when lactulose wouldnt work, so id recommend you write down all the meals, snacks you give so they can rule out dietary problems from the start. although id say they'd take older parents more seriously anyway, just a suggestion so you're not messed around like we were.

crazy cat lady

Like the other posters have said, cut out the banana. It can cause constipation and wind!

Also, your baby will need more fluids when on solids so try and introduce cooled boiled water to her diet at meal times

annetted

cool boiled water is great.
a boiled egg is also good.
bananas are a torture on the tummy so best avoid them.
speak to your gp - coz the pain of constipation on a little one is awful.
good luck