Constipated 6mo.old

Iron in the cereal is constipating, but essential for baby. To compensate, give him fruits that begin with the letter "P" pears, peaches, prunes. These are great for helping him loosen up. Pear juice is much better than apple juice for this too.

Be careful that if you are giving him the rice cereal and bananas that you are giving him something else with fiber. Both of those have a tendency to constipate. You are probablly fine if you just give him more of the pears or something of the sort.

My mother in law has done daycare for 20 years and starts her children on sippy cups at 6 months with their meals. She gives them just a little water and gives them sips in between bites. Eventually they catch on and they get used to drinking.

It is too much food for a young baby. He is only 6 months old. Keep in mind breastmilk is still his main source of food. Starting with solids at that age is to get him used to eating but do it slowly and one kind of fruit or veggie at a time, switching every two or three days. Two books I would recommend for guidance are "The New Contented Little Baby book" by Gina Ford and "Top 100 Baby Purees: 100 Quick and Easy Meals for a Healthy and Happy Baby" by Annabel Karmel.
Also, I would stop giving him rice cereal, banana, and apple. I gave rice cereal to my daughter and she also got constipated. Oatmeal is fine.
To help him with constipation give him apple juice or prune juice to drink and feed him prune pure. Once he is regular, continue giving him prune puree at least once a day. "Prunes are rich in iron and potassium. They are high in fiber and contain modest amounts of vitamin A, vitamin B3 and vitamin B6."
It might take a little while to get him used to the flavor of the juice. If he doesn't take it in a bottle try giving the juice in a cup without a lid. It could be messy but at least you know he is drinking some of the juice.
Hope it helps,
B.

Hi D.- I had the same questions for my 7 mo. old son's doctor just last month. He told me two servings of cereal was enough, back off bananas, and try prune juice or prunes. What has worked the best for us mixing his cereal (barley or rice) with apple prune juice for one meal a day until things have worked themselves out. So far we've only had to go a max of two days. Backing off the bananas didn't do anything, but I know they do cause problems for some kids.
J.

Back off on the bananas and rice cereal (both are binding). That's what constipated my son at that age. I added oat cereal to his diet so that he was getting fiber and stoppped feeding him rice cereal. It was really the only thing that was effective for him. Every baby is different, but maybe it will help your son, too. Gradually try the different suggestions you've been given by the other moms. If you don't find something that works, check with your ped. It might be good to check with your ped. anyway, but mine said to try pear juice and prunes-which I already had. It sounds like you are doing what you should as far as breastfeeding. That should be helpful in keeping him regular, too. Maybe you could try offering b-milk after he eats, too? Or at times separate from meal times. My boy drinks milk sort of like a snack before his naps and he drinks 24-32 ounces a day, but he doesn't really drink much at meals (water is offered).-I also read the response about too many orange foods. It's true! My son loves the orange veggies and has yellowish skin. My ped said it was fine, but I should make sure the greens are balanced in his diet, too. I hadn't heard of this until my ped mentioned it at his last appointment.

Once you start on food and a child enjoys the feeling of being full, backing off is hard.

For constipation I would suggest eliminating the rice cereal to start. It is made from ground uncooked rice which is harder to digest.

Introduce acidophilus (it comes in powder which you can simply put into a bottle with some water or apply directly to his tongue with your finger) to aid in digestion as well as an essential fatty acid like Flax Oil or Cod Liver Oil (flax has less flavor and is just as good). Put a teaspoon of an EFA in his cereal just before you serve it to him.

EFA's are the one thing that occurs naturally in breast milk that you cannot reproduce without a diet rich in raw nuts, avocados, or fish (or other oily foods...). You will have to supplement it until he really starts chewing.

I read that Barley baby cereal is the better cereal choice for babies with constipation.

D. take him off banana, that is what you give children when they have watery stooles and you might want to start giving him some green veg. like peas. green beans if you give him all orange veg. he will start to turn orange from to much carroteen my daughter did it started on her nose then her ears.

Stop the cereal. My Dr didn't even have me feed it to my kids she said it was filler with low risk of allergies to start feeding little ones early on and we waited until 6 mos so we started right off on fruits and veggies. My daughter also had problems with constipation and we were told to give her any juice that started with a "P" we used pear juice; as little as 3 oz can be affective. Good luck!

yes - backing off is a good idea. sometimes we get in such a hurry that their little bodies arent yet ready for it. any time you are faced with a problem like this, take what you've done and back off. maybe its too much too soon.

bananas, rice etc are very constipating. maybe give some more pears, peaches, etc. they need the iron in the cereal, but there is more than just rice cereal. i always bought rice, oatmeal and mixed and my son ate all of them equally well.

around about 7 months you can start him on a sippy cup. see if he will drink pumped breastmilk out of it, (my son wasnt fooled) or just juice mixed with water. as with food, one flavor at a time in case there is a reaction. any citrus juices gave my son a huge rash, but juice will help keep things moving. its all about balance and finding out what you can feed him... and what you cant...

above all, dont be in a hurry! nutritionally, (although doctors will tell you otherwise) they dont need much more than breastmilk for the first YEAR! so dont be concerned if he doesnt eat much solids... as long as he is still nursing, he is getting all the nutrition he needs.. (are you still on a prenatal type vitamin??)

good that you are breastfeeding!! i encourage you to find a local le leche league www.llli.org to support you and encourage you to continue. i am still breastfeeding my 18 month old son and i wouldnt trade the connection and love for anything! so congratulations!! and keep it up! dont get discouraged! if you do - thats what the le leche league can help you with!!

This is funny, I just posted one of these and if you can find it under C. S then read those responses as well. Most people told me to back off the rice and the bananas and try to incorporate prunes/prune and pear juice if possible and to try oatmeal instead of the rice cereal. My daughter won't take the juice either but I will keep trying. I am on 2x a day with food still as she has a small appetite but skip the bananas and hopefully that will help. I am in the trial and error period as well so good luck.

I would switch from Rice to Oatmeal cereal. Also avoid bananas and applesauce/juice. Stick with fruits that start with P, especially Pears. I take a whole can and puree it with my hand wand and it makes a great pear sauce.
Good luck,
J.
Mom to almost 5.

I always fed my babies their meal first and then nursed. Have you tried feeding him organic prune baby food? This will get things going. Don't forget to pick up some massage oil for your baby so you can give him a good baby massage after or before he eats. Massage aids in digestion and absorption of essential nutrients.

Our daughter had the same problem at about the same age. Our doctor recommended giving her oatmeal instead of rice. He also recommended fruits that start with P--prunes, pears, peaches. Our daughter wouldn't drink prune juice so I started mixing her cereal with prune juice instead of water or breast milk. It only took a day or two before she was "cleaned out".

The cereal has lots of iron and can be constipating. DROP IT! It can actually make it harder for the child to get iron from your breastmilk and they really don't need it. If you want to give them cereal, make it home made either with brown rice or oatmeal but the stuff you buy from the store is garbage. It is TOTALLY normal for the little ones to not want a lot of solids at this age. Your breastmilk changes as they grow so it gets heavier even as they nurse less so they are satisfied with the milk. Food at this age is for tasting and learning about. And trust me when I say that having gone through this myself, trying to push the solids just made it more stressful for me. Keep pushing the breastmilk and if he wants more in the way of solids, believe me he'll let you know but at this age, he's not going to each much in the way of solids. And, just to mention, they don't really NEED the solids before a year and do not worry, he won't be picky. I have heard of breastfed kids who didn't eat any solids at all before a year and have no problems at all with food. But if it is causing problems with digestion, he probably isn't ready for it anyway because that is a sign that his body isn't handling it.

Oh, and just wanted to mention, my daughter is still nursing and even now, she doesn't eat a ton of food though she has periods where she'll eat more than not but that's perfectly normal and her weight has been great! Also, keep in mind that babies will start to slim down at this age as they begin to get more active. Good luck and GREAT JOB for making it with the breastfeeding this far!

I would stop giving him bananas and start introducing some baby food prunes. My twin girls had the same problem and I found that bananas made it worse. The prunes will really help. I would start with about 1/2 of the container a day (the Gerber 1st food prunes).

The cereals and bananas can be constipating. I would just take away the cereal and start giving prunes. I used to make my own by boiling them in water and then blending them in the blender. You could even add it to the cereal if you want. I'm sure boy will love the prunes though. My kids just loved them. You're going to experience constipation when you're transitioning so definitely be sure to include lots of fiber and liquids, even if it is more breast milk.
Good Luck.
We're still using Miralax after five years on my six-year-old. So I know ALL about it!

D. - I want to congratulate you on nursing while working full time. It is a huge commitment (I know) that often goes unappreciated! But your son appreciates it!!! Even if he can't tell you. :) Keep up with the BF while your son is getting the constipation worked out, because your milk will help to soften his stools.

If you go the route of backing off on the cereal, try reintroducing it in a few weeks mixed with some breastmilk. Also you might offer him breastmilk in his cup to get him to like drinking from a cup - once he likes the cup, you can offer other liquids.

Also check with your dr., but I don't think a breastfed baby needs cereal that is supplemented with iron.

Try babies magic tea for your constipated baby. Also drink this tea by yourself and pass its effects through your breast milk.

Are you giving him rice 3x a day? There's a lot of iron in baby cereals, so perhaps that's constipating him? Also, I just posted this above, but babies go through VERY distinct bowel changes, esp with the introduction of food. How much carrots/squash/yams are you giving him? Squash worked with our first to get him going; carrots work with our second. If we give him one full plastic container of Gerber baby carrots, we have a big carroty BM within 12 hours! Also, you haven't said how often he's going, or if he's in pain--he could just be the kind of kid that (now) goes every 2-3 days. When my son didn't go for 14 days this winter, all the docs we called said, "It's completely normal for a baby to go days without a BM...call us after it's been 8 days or more or when he seems uncomfortable." I was shocked; going without a BM for 8 days seems awful, but we heard it consistently.

Both of my daughters had problems with that at some point. Some things that worked for us: Juice (like others recommended), sitting in a warm bath (you can put some baking soda in the water as well), or just using a rectal thermometer. With the thermometer, insert it and let it sit there for a little while while your son tries to push it out. Sometimes that pushing can get the bowel movement started. Suppositories work as well, but try the thermometer first.

Good Luck!

Hi D.-
Another constipated child- a theme lately- other than Leigh's today.
About me 47 yo med. prof, wellness coach and mom of almost 7yo twin girls.
You're eating several binders- well your child is.
Squash, carrots, bananas, and cereal- tend to be in the starch category.
It's hard because most of the baby foods are just that. And yes- half a person's weight in water is a rule of thumb- so you have to get fluids in your child.
Apple juice will bind too.
One of my twins had constipation issues too- but more because she didn't like going.
You can add prune juice- that is a helper.
We also used a product we called "fairy dust"- a dissolvable fiber to help her soften and want to go. If you want more info on that- email me.
Not sure I gave much advice, but try some foods like greens, and melons and berries if you can make some of your own mashes and see if that helps.

B. J
____@____.com

Hi D.,

It sounds like you already have a lot of good advice. I completely agree with giving the fruits that start with P and changing from rice to oatmeal to decrease constipation. One other thing I found is that whenever I eat pineapple, my nursing baby poops easily (no straining) within 12-24 hours. Good luck!