14 Month Old W/acid Reflux, Constipation-need Some Relief

I,too, am with a wonderful wellness company and my company has non-toxic products designed to work in those areas. We have some enzymes and probiotics. They work better hid in food - any food, but can be put in a bottle.
K.

My heart really goes out to your sister-in-law and poor little niece! If your niece is drinking milk, maybe you could try soy milk. I know that alot of meds cause constipation and maybe it is a milk or lactose allergy. I have also heard many great things about massage for babies and toddlers. There are also several regular foods that are good for loosening stools, such as pears, apples/applesauce, prunes (baby food). These are just a few ideas that don't need a trip to the doctors. Good luck!

You've had some great responses- I too, have a son, now almost 3 with severe constipation and had severe reflux. He was on medication until around a year and still has episdoes of reflux. Blood in the stools is almost always a sign of milk intolerance, or lactose intolerance, which can also extend to soy. Lactose and lactic acid are in almost everything so if it is a severe intolerance you have to read every lable.

We have been to four doctors, we too, go to Children's North Shore and have begun to see Dr. Hardy. I think the only answer is to get the baby to a specialist immediately and they will start eliminating suspects- the pediatricians mostly know NOTHING about how to treat severe reflux and constipation. CHildren's, Tufts and Mass General are good ones to make an appnt with asap- the fact that she has ear infections is definitely a clue for food intolerance or allergy, Children's has a wonderful ENT department, and they may suggest tubes or adnoid removal to help. Good luck! Its a long, hard road.

My daughter had acid reflux and 2 meds for that until she was 2 (now she's on 1 med for it). I STRONGLY recommend that your SIL see a new doctor. My daughter also had a severe milk and soy allergy but the blood showed up in the stool at a month old, I never saw it in vomit and think if she is bleeding that much in her stomach I would get another opinion and right away. As a mom, I understand the hesitancy in switching when you feel your doctor is a good one other than one issue, and if that is the case, I recommend that she see another pediatritian in a different office. She doesn't need to tell her primary pedi choice of her other visit unless she wants to. That way, she looses no rapport with her original pediatritian if she wants to remain with them, but obtains if nothing else, some peace of mind. Good luck to her.

Have her try bringing her to a chiropractor. You wont believe how much they can help! :)

absolutely a food sensitivity!! get her off the dairy, soy, wheat and sugar, one or all of these may be the culprit! acid reflux is a symptom of something, it is a sign that she is way too acidic for some reason, almost always it is from the foods we eat. food sensitivity all the way...if she needs confirmation she should go to a naturopathic doctor, pediatricians rarely know anything about this. good luck!

If your ped is "blowing her off", your niece need a new doctor. These questions should be directed to a doctor who will listen to your sister in law and take her seriously. I hope they find some answers! I will note that many people strongly recommend chiropractic treatment for the symptoms you describe - it's something else to look into.

Has she been to a specialist yet? My daughter has a wonderful ear, nose and throat specialist who is at Children's Hospital in Boston. Since many ear infections can cause hearing loss, I would start there. I'm not sure where she lives, but he sees patients at Newton Wellesley and also at the Children's Hospital satellite in Bedford, right off 128, as well as at Children's in Boston. His name is Dr. Mark Volk.

My daughter has special needs and has been seeing him since she was an infant. She also has gastric reflux and had many ear infections. She was also having chronic sinus infections where she would end up hospitalized with pneumonia.

Dr. Volk is a very knowledgeable man and is wonderful. He may not be able to help take care of everything, but he is dedicated to his patients and will certainly be able to assist in getting this little baby help to feel better.

As I said, my daughter has been seeing him since she was an infant. He has worked at New England Medical Center, Mass. Eye an Ear, and now Children's. I have followed him everywhere. He has moved jobs over the years searching for the right situation that allows him to give the type of care he feels his patients deserve as well as a situation that affords him the opportunity for continued research. It is rare that you find a doctor with such love and dedication to his patients.

Has she been tested for a dairy allergy? My 23 month old suffered like this for months and we didn't find out until he was a little over 1 year that he had a dairy allergy. Her ped should not be blowing this off neither should her gi doctor its time for your sister to find some new docs for her daughter. I would also suggest she get a referal to an allergist.

Hi - There may be something else other than reflux - BUT has your sister-in-law asked them if the dosage of her acid reflux medicine has been adjusted properly for her daughter's weight? As babies grow they outgrow the dosage - I had wished they told me this when my daughter was young. If the constipation is not being controlled with Glycolax/Miralax (over the counter) and or something similar than I also think the gi doctor needs to adjust things. We see a great pedi gi doctor in the Boston area - Dr. Russell at Mass. General - also he's at North Shore Children's Hospital in Salem. He never "blows us off" with our concerns. (My 2 daughters have reflux)

atleast for the constipation have you tried prune juice and karo syrup. my daughter was constipated for her entire first year until she started regular food. i substituted 1oz water with 1oz of prune juice in her morning bottle every day. that kept her regular. if i found that she was binding up a bit i'd do it again in a second bottle. and keep at it until she was regular again.

the karo syrup is 1 tbsp to 3oz of liquid.

keep in mind the prune juice will soften the stool, and the karo syrup will lube it to come out.

i'm assuming she's probably on juice now - so you can buy gerber apple/prune juice - i could get my daughter to drink that (it had to be icy cold - from the fridge over ice cubes).

or just buy apple juice and prune juice and mix it on your own.

also grapes and raisins are good for constipation.

my daughter is 2 1/2 now and i still use these tricks when she's constipated. or hard stools.

Get a new doctor. As parents, we need to have a support team with our doctor's in cases like these. This poor baby sounds like she is overmedicated. Don't ever feel like you have to settle for your doctor or their opinions. Get a new doctor, set up an appointment with a nutritionist and re-evaluate the child's diet.

My son was diagnosed with a milk protein allergy which causes him to have acid reflux. He also has a soy protein allergy. He was the same way as your niece. So we switched him to Nurtramigen and he is doing much better with out meds.

Hi K.,

You can read, "Is This Your Child?" by Dr. Doris Rapp. It pretty much shows the different problems caused by foods that are not tolerated by people. In this case, children. I think a specialty clinic was begun by her and is in New York state. I think she may have passed away by now.
I think the naturopath suggested by Mickie-Ann sounds like a good option too. My final recommendation would be to recommend "The Paleo Diet" by Loren Cordain.

Good luck,
: ) Maureen

Hi K., I don't know where you live, but if you are on the North Shore as I am, there is definitely an answer for your niece's issues. Your sister-in-law should call Dr. Ellen Blomerth at ###-###-####. She is located at the junction of Rt. I and Lowell Street in Peabody, and the office is called Blomerth Chiropractic. Dr. Ellen is the recent past president of the MA Chiropractic Association. She is one of the only Chiropractors on the east coast who uses the gentle method in Chiropractic Medicine. One of her specialties is infants, children and women. She has helped many babies with both constipation and acid reflux issues. I hope she is lives in this area and can take advantage of Dr. Ellen's expertise. Best Wishes.
E. Taft ____@____.com

Hi K.: I had horrible acid reflux too! I finally asked my son's naturopathic MD to help fix me too! She diagnosed me with food sensitivities to wheat, dairy and tree nuts. I was skeptical but within ONE WEEK I was off of pretty much all acid reflux medicine. I was taking Prilosec, Pepcid, Tums and drinking Apple Cider Vinegar with Baking Soda! If you would like her name, it is Dr. Miela Gruber in West Hartford at Forest Family Medicine and she is amazing. Good luck with your niece - not a good situation.

Hi K.,

I'm sorry to hear about your niece. My thought is a food allery or sensitivity to something. My son suffers from food allergies and I did not find this out until we brought him to a specialist. I strongly suggest to go to a GI doctor and bipass the pediatrican. The pediatrician we had said my son had ezcema even though I mentioned maybe he had a milk allergy. He was very red and didn't like to eat. He never really cried to eat when he was an infant and he was always on a different kind of reflux medicine. So I then went to a GI dr and took my son off the milk based formula and his redness went away within days. I just wish I found out sooner about his allergy. My son now is underweight and hates to eat. He also has oral motor issues too. So it is important to find out if she has any allergies or food sensitivites. Pediatricians don't always look deeper into trying to find out the real reasons why the child is not well and tends to treat all kids the same. Good luck and I hope this helps.

I agree with a lot of the posts in that it seems like a food sensitivity or allergy. My daughter had many of these symptoms and at 2-3 months I cut all milk from my diet since I'm nursing - and she (and I) was finally able to rest! I was skeptical, but so surprised to see the difference. What I wanted to add was if she decides to eliminate something like all milk, do research. I was shocked to see how almost everything I ate had some sort of milk in it. I googled - go dairy free and found a list of ingredients that were different forms of milk. A lot of people kind of try to do this and think it doesn't work when something they regularly eat has whey or casein in it (other forms of milk). It's a pain, but so worth it. It's very possible to grow out of this too. My DD at 15 months now can eat yogurt, but still seems sensitive to other milk things. I also agree with the points about the Dr. Many don't take this seriously and think throwing medicine at it or sucking it up is the way to go. I know it's hard because your sister-in-law is probably exhausted and it's feels wrong to fight with the Dr. when your like that. But encourage her to push the issue - Mom's instincts are usually right!
I hope she feels better! And your a great sister-in-law/aunt to take the time to post this and help her figure it out!

ou tof pure instinct...my guess is get that baby off MILK and dairy.. did they go through all the formulas? If not get a bew Dr that should have been tried before adding any meds to her regimen.. Anyways She needs an opion by an allegist... get the allergies under control and them meds can stop :) keepus updated :)

First of all, she should get a new pediatrician, immediately. It sounds like the poor little thing has some severe food allergies, which they can test for after the age of 9 months. I have a reflux baby right now, and once we had her on prilosec and changed her formula, she was a new baby. I beleive my baby is allergic to soy, because once we put her on soy free formula, she was so much better. My daughter was also constipated, and we used the medication Lactulose, which is a prescription, and it worked wonders. I have also heard of giving them apricot nectar, and of course, prune juice if you can get them to drink it. The poor baby, she sounds miserable. If there is one thing I have learned from having kids, its that you have to be very firm and direct with a pediatrician. It is OK to tell them, this is not working! You know that expression, the squeaky wheel gets the grease? That is so true with doctors, you just have to keep bugging them until they listen to you. She needs in the very least, an allergy test!

The medications for the reflux can be causing the constipation. If the meds aren't working well- maybe she should try going off them to ease the constipation.
Both of these conditions can be managed with diet. She should be eating fruits to manage the hard stools, prunes, apricots, plums, peaches, pears, berries etc. A big bowl of sliced peaches in the morning and a bowl of pears in the afternoon should greatly improve the hard BMs.
As far as the reflux goes- it's usually cleared up by 14 months- there may be some underlying issues that are making this worse. I highly recommend seeing a different doctor to get another opinion. NO child should have to suffer with this. She shouldn't have to be on so many meds.
If your sister-in-law is open to this- I would take my child to a holistic practitioner with issues like these. They sound more nutrition related than medical.
Good luck,
S.