constipated baby!

My 8 MO is constipated and I cannot imagine why, and therefore can't
decide what to do about it. She is mostly still breastfed! Her
"solids" consist only of jarred pureed fruits and veggies (only about
4 to 6 oz daily) and rice cereal (total of about 4 oz daily) and a few
saltines and Kix here and there. She also drinks a few ounces of water
about twice a day. She breastfeeds 5 times a day.

But she is truly constipated. About a week ago, I began noticing that
she hadn't pooped for a couple of days (she had been pooping mush
about once a day since starting "solids" at 6 mos), and in the past
few days she's been pooping these little hard stools one at a time,
and screeching while doing so. This happens about 5X a day. I do not
recall having made any interesting changes to her diet a week ago.

So far, all I've done is introduce a cup of prune juice mixed with
apple juice once per day (about 3 oz, probably). I prefer that my kids
drink water, with just a bit of juice a day, so I didn't even intro
juice to my 2 older kids until they were about a year old, by which
time they were well used to water in a cup. But do you think adding
more prune and apple juice would help her? What else can I do? Anyone
know which baby foods are typically the constipating ones?

Oh, I did also try those glycerine suppositories, but all they did was
prompt her to immediately poop out one of her little hard stools; it
didn't help any *more* to come out, so I think I'll stop that for now.

Thanks!!

Nevermind wrote:

My 8 MO is constipated and I cannot imagine why, and therefore can't
decide what to do about it. She is mostly still breastfed! Her
"solids" consist only of jarred pureed fruits and veggies (only about
4 to 6 oz daily) and rice cereal (total of about 4 oz daily) and a few
saltines and Kix here and there. She also drinks a few ounces of water
about twice a day. She breastfeeds 5 times a day.


Cut out the rice cereal- it's constipating for a lot of ababies. You can
get barley or oatmeal instead. Also try mixed baby prunes or even prune
juice into the cereal. Apricots also work if she doesn't like the
prunes.


Marion Baumgarten

excess iron can cause it = see if ther is something that is overload in
iron???
"Nevermind" wrote in message
om...
My 8 MO is constipated and I cannot imagine why, and therefore can't
decide what to do about it. She is mostly still breastfed! Her
"solids" consist only of jarred pureed fruits and veggies (only about
4 to 6 oz daily) and rice cereal (total of about 4 oz daily) and a few
saltines and Kix here and there. She also drinks a few ounces of water
about twice a day. She breastfeeds 5 times a day.

But she is truly constipated. About a week ago, I began noticing that
she hadn't pooped for a couple of days (she had been pooping mush
about once a day since starting "solids" at 6 mos), and in the past
few days she's been pooping these little hard stools one at a time,
and screeching while doing so. This happens about 5X a day. I do not
recall having made any interesting changes to her diet a week ago.

So far, all I've done is introduce a cup of prune juice mixed with
apple juice once per day (about 3 oz, probably). I prefer that my kids
drink water, with just a bit of juice a day, so I didn't even intro
juice to my 2 older kids until they were about a year old, by which
time they were well used to water in a cup. But do you think adding
more prune and apple juice would help her? What else can I do? Anyone
know which baby foods are typically the constipating ones?

Oh, I did also try those glycerine suppositories, but all they did was
prompt her to immediately poop out one of her little hard stools; it
didn't help any *more* to come out, so I think I'll stop that for now.

Thanks!!

Nevermind wrote:

My 8 MO is constipated and I cannot imagine why, and therefore can't
decide what to do about it. She is mostly still breastfed! Her
"solids" consist only of jarred pureed fruits and veggies (only about
4 to 6 oz daily) and rice cereal (total of about 4 oz daily) and a few
saltines and Kix here and there. She also drinks a few ounces of water
about twice a day. She breastfeeds 5 times a day.

Apple juice and rice cereal can both be constipating. When DD
started on solids, her bowel movements changed and I think
she didn't like the feel so started witholding. We used Oatmeal
mixed with prune juice. Plus some watered down prune juice to
drink. Bananas can also be constipating.

Someone over one m.k.bf had luck adding some flax seed oil
to thier child's food, I think. Here it is:

http://tinyurl.com/ll8j

Sounds like it worked great for her baby.

Mary

"Nevermind" wrote in message
om...
My 8 MO is constipated and I cannot imagine why, and therefore can't
decide what to do about it. She is mostly still breastfed! Her
"solids" consist only of jarred pureed fruits and veggies (only about
4 to 6 oz daily) and rice cereal (total of about 4 oz daily) and a few
saltines and Kix here and there.

This is actually a *lot* of solids, IMO--it's well over a cup. And it takes
a lot less than a half a cup of rice cereal to constipate some babies.
Personally, I'd do as Marion suggests and cut the rice cereal altogether in
favor of cereals with a bit more fiber (oatmeal, barley) or none at all for
a few weeks. And try to get a bit more water into her. Be sure to avoid
apples and bananas in her diet as well, as they are also constipating.
--
Be well, Barbara
(Julian [6], Aurora [4], and Vernon's [17mo] mom)
See us at http://photos.yahoo.com/guavaln

This week's special at the English Language Butcher Shop:
"...we patiently sat by his door, waiting for it to open so he could tell us
all about who he had met" -- from _Uncle Andy's_ by James Warhola

All opinions expressed in this post are well-reasoned and insightful.
Needless to say, they are not those of my Internet Service Provider, its
other subscribers or lackeys. Anyone who says otherwise is itchin' for a
fight. -- with apologies to Michael Feldman

In ,
Mary W. wrote:

*
*
*Nevermind wrote:
*
* My 8 MO is constipated and I cannot imagine why, and therefore can't
* decide what to do about it. She is mostly still breastfed! Her
* "solids" consist only of jarred pureed fruits and veggies (only about
* 4 to 6 oz daily) and rice cereal (total of about 4 oz daily) and a few
* saltines and Kix here and there. She also drinks a few ounces of water
* about twice a day. She breastfeeds 5 times a day.
*
*Apple juice and rice cereal can both be constipating. When DD
*started on solids, her bowel movements changed and I think
*she didn't like the feel so started witholding. We used Oatmeal
*mixed with prune juice. Plus some watered down prune juice to
*drink. Bananas can also be constipating.
*
*Someone over one m.k.bf had luck adding some flax seed oil
*to thier child's food, I think. Here it is:
*
*http://tinyurl.com/ll8j
*
*Sounds like it worked great for her baby.

No, like it says in the article you quote me in, I added ground flax seed,
aka flax meal, NOT flax oil. It did work - although it seems that the
effect is less pronounced now and I'm probably going to bring my ped into
the loop, because she's still having some constipation although it's much
less than it was.

--
hillary israeli vmd http://www.hillary.net
"uber vaccae in quattuor partes divisum est."
not-so-newly minted veterinarian-at-large

Hillary Israeli wrote:

In ,
Mary W. wrote:

*
*
*Nevermind wrote:
*
* My 8 MO is constipated and I cannot imagine why, and therefore can't
* decide what to do about it. She is mostly still breastfed! Her
* "solids" consist only of jarred pureed fruits and veggies (only about
* 4 to 6 oz daily) and rice cereal (total of about 4 oz daily) and a few
* saltines and Kix here and there. She also drinks a few ounces of water
* about twice a day. She breastfeeds 5 times a day.
*
*Apple juice and rice cereal can both be constipating. When DD
*started on solids, her bowel movements changed and I think
*she didn't like the feel so started witholding. We used Oatmeal
*mixed with prune juice. Plus some watered down prune juice to
*drink. Bananas can also be constipating.
*
*Someone over one m.k.bf had luck adding some flax seed oil
*to thier child's food, I think. Here it is:
*
*http://tinyurl.com/ll8j
*
*Sounds like it worked great for her baby.

No, like it says in the article you quote me in, I added ground flax seed,
aka flax meal, NOT flax oil.

Oops, don't know where I got that.

It did work - although it seems that the
effect is less pronounced now and I'm probably going to bring my ped into
the loop, because she's still having some constipation although it's much
less than it was.

Poor babe. Hope you figure it out.

Mary