Breastfed Baby with Pooping Issues

My daughter was solely breastfed only also when we started her on baby food and cereal and had the same issues. Her pediatrician had us give her 1 oz. prune juice diluted w/ 1 oz water. I've also been told that you can use karo syrup mixed in a bottle (or cup). Every once in awhile when inroducing a new food, the poop problem comes up again and I just give her some juice.

Hope this helps.

Carrots, Bananas, rice (cereal & regular) as well as applesauce are all constipating. Try to spread it out so he's not getting too much of any of those, and as long as he doesn't seem uncomfortable, I wouldn't worry about it for another few weeks.

I have a nine month old who is breastfed and eats baby food. I have always had an "issue" with her poop or lack of it. She went through the same thing when she started to eat foods. It should get more frequent. My daughter now poops every other day now. But it took a couple of weeks. Just keep giving him foods that are high in fiber. Carrots and butternut squash always helped my little girl. Hope this helps.

I would consider giving him prunes or apple and prunes to eat as well. Although his stool may not be hard, he may still be having trouble passing it. I would not recommend taking away the food. Just bear with him. My son had similar problems, and he grew out of them. It just takes time for their systems to adjust to different foods and textures. Wait until you introduce meat - that is really fun. :) Good luck.

When my daughter was around 8m she started getting constipated really bad. She was 100% breastfed before we started on solids like your little one. Foods to look out for are bananas (that was our main problem), rice (we had to switch to oatmeal only for several weeks), applesauce and apple juice. Little tummy's are easy to upset, just keep an eye on what might be upsetting him (whether or not it's a known constipator) and try to avoid those foods until his digestive track is a little more mature.

Have you tried apple, prune, or pear juice or food. When my daughter was 2 month her doctor suggested 1 tablespoon prune juice or brown sugar with 4 oz of cooled boiled water. She used to go 3 or 4 days not going then have a blowout! She is breastfeed too.

Talk to your doc. If you have introduced bannanas and rice, they can be constipating. Try oatmeal and mangos or avocados instead. There is a rare condition in which baby's have difficulty pooping because they don't have as many of the nerves in the very end of their colon near the anus. I am not diangnosing your baby, just suggesting there may be a medical problem that is just now declaring itself as you change your baby's diet. Your doctor will know what to do.

Keep doing what you are doing!! My daughter was the same way.
Eating is a learning process for both baby and mommy. I read that we think baby's bm's should be like our own and that's not really how it is.
My daughter only went once a week for awhile too and we actually spent our 8th anniversary in tears worried about her. Guess what, she filled her pants that evening!!
The bm will change in color and consistancy throughout their eating process.
One thing you might try ( talk to your doctor for age )
or read 'Super Baby Food' by Ruth Yaron. Gerber makes a prunes with apples 2nd foods. I mix that with cereal sometimes. Super baby food is about making your own baby food, but if you aren't into that, there are tons of other tricks and tips in there. One of the most helpful sections that I use alot is the guide on at what age they are ready for certain foods.
Since you have already introduced the cup, make sure he drinks about a 1/2 oz of water after every meal.
Good luck!
T. S
T. S

I think you should definitely put a call into your doctor, just to be sure.
When I started feeding my daughter solids, it was cereal, and I had been solely breastfeeding her also (she was 4 mo.) She was a bit constipated so I started feeding her the solids,every other day. I didn't notice her being constipated w/ squash, etc. (at 6 mo) Maybe try mixing it w/ a little baby prune food-- my daughter loved prunes!

I breastfed her until she was 1 yr old! I give my self an award for that, especially since my boobs will never be perky again lol (Oh, the sacrifices we make for our kids lol)

I hope this helps!

Rocchelle
www.athomecareermom.org

Sounds like you are doing everything right. The only thing I could think of is upping his fluid intake a bit, maybe offering the breast right before you give him some veggies so he gets enough fluid, or maybe a bit of watered down apple juice while he is getting his solid....whatever you feel comfortable with. And definitely talk to the doc.

My son is solely breastfed and did the same exact thing when he began solids. I finally figured out that maybe his juice/water intake wasn't as much as he needed to help out with the solids that he was eating. When he started drinking a little more (I think the doctor said 4 ozs was the max) his stools became much more easier to pass. Hope this helps and good luck!

a little more juice should help him. Or you could just breastfeed more often.

I'd say keep doing what you're doing. I also breastfed and the pediatrician told me that when they're having a growth spurt they can go up to a week with out pooping because they're actually using all of it and there is not enough waste to pass every day. As long as he's not straining and it's not hard, I wouldn't worry. He should still be having wet (peepee) diapers, though...if not, that can be a problem. Good luck!

Water is important! It may be that your baby still wasn't getting enough while breastfeeding, and now that you're adding solids it's even more important. This is the first thing to look at with anyone's constipation. And are you getting enough water yourself? If not, that may be reflected in your milk.

all of these new foods are probably causing gas. my 8 month old son is going through the same thing. i recomend white grape juice. it'll help with constipation issues and cause less gas. i've used white grape juice for all four of my kids. my son is now pretty regular, every day to everyother day. about 4 oz should do it.
hope this helps
C.

He can definitely enjoy food at this age. That is waaaaay to long to go without pooping. His poor tummy. If he is having to strain and cries, he needs something to ease him in going. Just give him water to drink with food. The rules have changed and babies don't really need juice because You can also put a spoon of Karo syrup in his bottle to help him go regularly.

Hi Jill,
You don't want to take him through too many changes so I suggest to keep on the foods and increase his liquids a little (water or watered down apple juice) that sometimes helps ease the BMs. This is typical of anyone when changes are made in eating habits.

My daughter had the same issue when we started her on solid food. Her pediatrician recommended a few little spoon fulls of baby prunes with one of her meals. These were a little harsh for her already sensitive system, but may work well for your child. Ultimately we went with my granny's suggestion of a drizzle of white Karo corn syrup in her evening bottle. This is what they used when my mom was a baby. It worked great! She is now nearly 3 and we still use the Karo if she hasn't gone for several days. I hope you find something that will work well.

J.

One quick idea. Does he get water available throughout the day from his sippy? This extra fluid may help with the movement issue. It may sound extreme, but perhaps a check from a pediatric GI doctor would be good too. The pain your child experiences may cause him to withhold going and may explain the long breaks between one movement and the next. But, the pain and it not being a constipated stool seems curious. Regarding pediatric gastrointestinal doctor, Children's Hospital in Birmingham has excellent doctors. A referral from your local pediatrician may be necessary. Good luck to you and your little one with this issue.

My doctor suggested for me to feed my baby some of the "p" fruits that help babies go. I started mine on prunes and peaches and pears. This solved the problem right away. Their tummies just have to adjust. I would give her fruit in the morning and the other veggies and fruits late in the day.

I didn't give juice that early because too much can cause diaper rash because of all the natural sugars and acids. TRust me. THe P fruits work!

Try giving him warm apple juice. I add an ounce of water to 2 ounces adult juice. It works wonders. Peaches also seem to help. I tried prune juice but it gave baby terrible gas. Good luck.

My littlest did the same thing. It is nothing to worry, but I totally understand you concern. You should keep doing what your doing and I agree with the other poster about nursing him before and after. His little body is just adjusting to knew things.

Hope that helps,
A.

Boy, do I know how you feel! My little girl did the exact same thing. I used suppositories to help her out, but dont expect them to stay in :} I would break off a tiny bit & have to hold it in myself or she'd shoot it across the room. But it really helped her, and relieved the pressure. Before too long, she was able to cope with em. Just get some gloves, and in the Depends section, they typically carry large disposable pads. The best things I ever found, I could drop one anywhere in public, and not worry about germs! Good luck!

If you think he's constipated (if he's grunting and screaming, he probably is), give him an ounce of pear juice with an ounce of water. That always helped my kids. My SIL went straight to suppositories without trying anything else, and that's SO much worse. If pear juice doesn't work (or you don't want to give it to him yet,) or just for something different to switch up the juice with, give him a jar of prunes. That definitely always worked with my kids. Hopefully, he'll be okay with doing one of those every 2-3 days, but if he needs it more often, even every day, it's safe. BTW, when babies that small get constipated (especially ones breastfeeding and eating size 1 foods), their poop won't necessarily be hard.

HTH! Good Luck!
K.
SAHM of 4 (6,5,3, & 11mths)

go to you doctor something isn't right either something you are eating or something is wrong be safe check with you babies doctor

My daughter did this, when I called the Dr. he recommended 4oz straight apple juice, not watered down like ususal then wait a few hours and another 4oz if she still hadn't gone. We also gave her prunes, luckily she liked them-1/4 of a jar is enough to start.

i give my daughter apple juice. half water,3rd or half apple juice and it does the trick...we had trouble with semalic formule. but if he'll eat solid food dont stop now. i had trouble finally getting mine to eat solid. good luck

sounds like everything is normal. Mine would drink less when solids were introduced. Just make sure he's getting enough fluids. Maybe nurse him a bit before he eats, then finish it off with more breast milk. That's great he's drinking from a cup! They usually play with it more at first than drink from it...As long as his stool isn't hard or dry I wouldn't worry.