So I know I've asked about this before. And I've got a call into the pediatrician since I'm concerned. But while I'm waiting for a call back... ;-) I gotta ask the mommas!
My 10 month old has had hard poops for about 4 weeks. He poops every day, they're just hard, and he often cries and it seems painful to him. We've been giving him pureed pears/peaches - oatmeal with apricots and pear, He probably drinks 2-4 ounces a day of a water/pear juice/prune juice mixture. Nothing seems to help. Another mom (on another one of my questions) suggested easing up on the finger foods. I feel like just because he's older and has just mastered his self-feeding (yay!) that he should be eating more finger foods. He's been having buttered toast fingers almost every day, lots of those organic puff things, chunks of strawberries, pears, etc. What are other ideas to help his hard pooos? (he is still BFing as well) Should I ease up on the finger foods? Go back to mostly just a simple pureed-food diet?
LOL at Jo W. Oh yes, I always squish them! (not with bare fingers, ewww) They are solid, for sure. They squish, they're not rock hard. I guess if it was one of my stools, I would just call it normal. But I guess I was under the impression they were supposed to be softer...
No, I don't think you need to backtrack on the foods...just compensate if they are constipating him. White grape or pear juice worked best for my son. Are his buttered toast fingers whole grain?
Check with your pediatrician. Ours recommended Miralax (which makes the poop softer, but does not cause them to poop, is not habit-forming, and is safe for little ones). Both of our daughters had Miralax on a daily basis from the time they started eating dairy until about 3 years old, when their systems seemed better able to produce "normal" poop without help.
I would let him have at least one of the prepared Prune juice/apple juice that come in a small bottle already to be served. I would put a nipple on it and let the kids drink it straight from the bottle it comes in. Don't add water to his juice, he needs it full strength.
He needs more juice and fluids. He may be getting way too much fiber too. That is always something that can cause me to have a medical issue that needs a doc's help. It's sad to have to go to the doc for help with constipation as an adult.
Banana and whole wheat cherrios daily, you should never have the problem. Try water instead of juice, this is highly recommended. Offer fruits instead of juices.
I would ease up on all of the fruit juices except prune, and water that down a lot. The food you are giving him is fine but I think he's not drinking enough. Nurse more. Babies this age don't need anything but breastmilk (or formula). Fruit juices are notorious constipators, so ease up until after 12 months.
A lot of the finger foods are fortified with iron. Too much iron can cause constipation. Try eliminating those for a few days and see how he does, and still give him the pureed fruits and juices. If you feed him the oatmeal cereal, that could be fortified, too.
We experienced a similar thing after giving our little guy a lot of those rice puffs...
Trying to figure out how to not be gross answering this. Have you ever squished them, between the sides of the diaper, lets not be too gross. Are they really hard or are they solid? I think sometimes we forget that for months are babies have been producing soft serve. Normal folks don't produce soft serve because we eat real food. Solid stools are normal when you eat solid food, hard little rabbit pellets are not.
Before you flip a nut make sure he isn't just have a normal poop.
:) I had four, I am not new to poop squishing....and evaluating.
HI--
Constipation for my oldest was due to eating solids foods too early (before getting teeth) and food allergies. Other symptoms of food allergies are puffy or dark circles under the eyes, constant post-nasal drip, a tickly persistent cough, any type of rash including eczema, frequent ear infections, tonsils that are enlarged with no sign of illness. If he has any of those symptoms I would suggest having him tested for food allergies. If not, probiotics could help (they make them specially for babies) and a food enzyme to help him digest (they chewable papaya ones or chewable ones for kids--you can get them at Vitamin Cottage). The enzyme amylase, that digests starches, doesn't fully develop until around the age of one so often times any type of grain will cause constipation. You could try taking grains totally out of his diet and sticking to fruits and vegetables to see if that fixes the problem. Don't worry about iron--since he's still breast feeding he's getting plenty--he doesn't need the enriched cereal. Oh, and strawberries shouldn't be given until at least age one--really any type of berry should be held off until then.
Hope that helps--
J.
My daughter had this problem since birth and still does (she is 5). I give her probiotics everyday which helps to keep things moving. You may ask the Dr is he can have a stool softener, I am sure they have it for babies. When she was that age I would put some Vaseline on her bum so it wouldn’t hurt as much when she would go.
Go over the foods that you are eating too, with breastfeeding something you ate could cause it too.
Maybe an organic baby yogurt with probiotics like Stoney Brook Farms? Probiotics help with regulation. Also apples and apple juice have a lot of fiber. Whole grain toast if he is eating toast fingers. Up the fluids, too. That's what I would try.
Hope this helps.
Updated
Maybe an organic baby yogurt with probiotics like Stoney Brook Farms? Probiotics help with regulation. Also apples and apple juice have a lot of fiber. Whole grain toast if he is eating toast fingers. Up the fluids, too. That's what I would try.
Hope this helps.
