Constipation in Two Year Old

Hi B.,

I had the same problem too. I also changed my daughter to soy milk, used Beneiber and prune juice. It just didn't help enough. But a friend of mine who is a diet health professional, told me I should give her a serving of this high fiber juice. The brand name is called "Bolthouse Farms" and the one we were told to use is "Blue Goodness". It has 8g of soluble fiber which is 6 more grams than the benefiber powder!! We give it to her every morning and it has changed everything. She goes at least every other day and she doesn't force, scream and cry anymore!! We haven't used a suppository since we started the soy milk and Bolthouse juice daily. What's even better is you can get in the regular supermarket!!! It is in the fruit and veggie area of the supermarket.

Hope this helps you, good luck!!

B., You've received some great responses. BTW, prune juice is not very helpful because most is filtered. Try making prune puree. Buy the dry prunes, pour hot water over them, let them soak for a few minutes until soft, then blend. The puree keeps great in the fridge for days. I add them to my daughter's yogurt and it helps a lot with her constipation. Good luck.

I have had similar problems with my child who is now 4. She may be making the problem worse by holding it in because it may be painful to go. I got the same advice from my pediatrician which I did not follow mostly because they give the same advice to every patient with this issue and it is merely a bandaid and does not address the source of the problem. I have been at the health food store for natural remedies. Magnesium, vitamin C, aloe vera juice. While eating fruit is great it may be too much sugar which can worsen the problem. One thing I would definitely suggest is getting her on some probiotics weather it be a powder or Kombuchu drink to make sure she has plenty of beneficial bacteria in her gut and I would not give her Soy!Check out this website it has great information. Good Luck!!! www.westonaprice.org/

The best thing I have found for my son when he gets constipated is green veggies. Peas or broccoli. After a good solid helping of it, the next day comes a big one! Strawberries seem to work for him too. Or we used an enema once before also, that was almost instant. Good luck!

I am in the same exact boat as you. My son is 26 months old and has been having constipation issues since 12 months. He doesn't drink/like milk or yogurt - so not an issue. But we have been seeing a GI Dr for the last 18 months. He started on Miralax. Didn't work so well and gave him bad gas pains. The Little Tummies Laxative evreyday did the trick for a while. He is now on ExLax chocolate squares everyday. He has gone days without pooping and screams in severe pain. We have to do enemas sometimes. I truly understand what you are going through. He is a very poor eater - little fruits and no veggies which doesn't help. We go back to the GI Dr next week. Sorry I don't have any advice, but just wanted you to know you are not alone.

I am experiencing the same thing with my 2 yr. old daughter, I was told to try Aloe Vera Juice it's at almost any food and health store & GNC it's a little expensive but it has given relief to many children I have been told, at this point I am willing to try anything, it a stool softner. I am getting some today and will post again to let you know how it works. Just wanted to let you know that you aren't the only one who has to go through this and I fell your pain. It deeply hurts me to watch my baby girl have such a hard time tring to use the bathroom no one should have to see their little ones go through that.. I didn't know if you have heard of the aloe vera juice so I thought I would post this so if you haven't so that you would have another options out there to try..

I know that my sister gave her daughter prunes everyday. Not all children likes prunes, but my neice did. My second son had a problem with that when younger and I gave him apple juice and fruits because bananas did not constipate him.

My son had the same problem when i started him on formula. I started him on miralax at 2 and just kept adjusting the dose until i found one that worked. and it was great. He is now 4 and we only need to give it to him once a week or every other week. It's ok if they don't go everyday if they aren't in pain. Everyone has a different "cycle". But if she is still in pain maybe you need to play with the dose. You can ask your dr if it's ok

I actually needed to start my 6month old on it too since he wasn't going either. he's still on it everyday (now 10months) because when i stopped so did he.

good luck. i know it seems like all your conversations revolve around this now. It's a hard thing to see your baby in pain.

You poor thing. I'm going through the same thing with my 13 month old daughter and it is so difficult. So far, the things that have worked best for my daughter are (1) adding 1.5 teaspoons of corn syrup to every 5 ounce cup of milk she has (and she has about 4 cups of milk a day). Yes -- I don't like pumping my daughter full of sugar but I am happier with corn syrup than mirolax and it is helping. I've been using light corn syrup but I was recently told dark corn syrup is more effective. (2) Giving her dried apricots -- I soak them in boiling water for about 15 minutes so they are a bit easier to chew.

Also, I wrote to the mamasource list a few weeks ago with a similar question and I got over 50 great replies -- so you might want to check the archive. Good luck! If you find out anything that really works, please let me know.

It's good you are looking at this at this age. My daughter is 5 and we had the same issues and didn't really start to address it until this year. We went to a gastroentrologist and he said to give her 1/2 cap of Miralax every morning in 4 oz of liquid. If she doesn't poop by afternoon give her more. That coupled with a high fiber diet have done the trick. If we skip a Miralax or a yogurt smoothie or high fiber sandwich for two days it shows. Good luck.

apples, bananas, and strawberries are all binding foods.
prune juice, you may want to add water if she hates the taste. raisins, and plenty of green vegetables. she may never go every day (my daughter doesn't) but she will go when she needs to go.
the whole thing is to make sure her 'produce' isn't hard and pebbly.

Hi B.,
Poor baby!! My daughter is about 19 months and we have given her coconut water which really helps her have a good poop. It's not really in season right now, but perhaps you can try the store brands. Blueberries and pears helped her too. I find that juice doesn't help, but the real fruit does. Broccoli and peas help too. Best of luck! Caron

I can't speak to the use of Mirolax or whether she will outgrow it but if she likes fruit, try dried apricots, prunes, dates or dried figs. They are high in fiber and sweet. My daughter cries for them. Also, there's a yogurt like drink called Kefir that is now packaged for kids and we call it "bug juice" and my daughter loves it. It has probiotics in it (more cultures than yogurt) and is supposed to help with digestion. Lifeway makes it in three flavors. It is a little expensive but since my daughter won't eat yogurt and didn't like milk till she was 19 months old, I was happy for her to have something.

Hope this helps.

Though they are binding, bananas are a GREAT source of fiber. My two 2 1/2 year old boys (also only breastfed until 15 months) eat at least one banana each every day. I personally stay away from too much fruit. It's a lot of sugar for their little bodies and can cause temporary constipation that ultimately leads to diarrhea.

Try to sneak veggies into her diet. My personal favorite is "Green Eggs"-- scrambled eggs with chopped spinach mixed in. I just heard on the news this morning that there is a new cookbook out that's all about "sneaking" veggies into your kids' food. My boys are good eaters but I'll probably check it out for more ideas.

We're also big on steel cut oats (also called Irish Oatmeal). I make a big batch in the crock pot once a week and they love it. To prepare a quick and really healthy breakfast I mash up a banana, add a scoop of oatmeal, a little extra milk and heat in the microwave. A great way to get fiber as well as a lot of vitamins and protein.

Good luck to you and your girl!

Have you tried the canned mandarin oranges? Those work for my son... he also loves baked beans and raisins which both have a lot of fiber. Does your daughter eat yogurt... there are a lot of beneficial probiotics in yogurt that can help regulate digestion.

Hope you find a solution.