Constipation no matter what i feed her!

[etwahl]

the last several weeks i've tried only feeding carrots, peas, peaches, and pears, but she still gets constipated. after five days of not pooping last week, i stopped the solids, and within 24 hours she had a poop, and a couple more within another 24.

she used to poop around 5 times a day. i guess it freaks me out when she doesn't poop for such a long period. i've never gone 7 days with straight solids and no pooping. weirdly, in the beginning when i was feeding her carrots, she used to go every day with them. now she doesn't. i know it's normal for some babies to not poop frequently, but she didn't seem like the kind to not go for a while, especially with those foods. plus she's VERY gassy (and it's VERY smelly).

should i be concerned? should i continue to stop the solids periodically for a few days to get her to poop?

Tammy,
Mom to Lauren Genevieve
03/12/2003
www.evantammy.com

[Momof3Labs]

Sounds very normal! Is it hard, dry poop (that's constipation) or normal, softer but formed poop (that's not constipation, just less frequent pooping)?

Colin did this when he first went on to solids, and now he poops 2-4 times a day - boy, I miss those less frequent times!!

[stillplayswithbarbies]

What if you stopped the solids altogether and waited for her digestive system to mature more? If she only poops when you stop solids for a few days, maybe she isn't ready for them yet?

...Karen
Jacob Nathaniel Feb 91
Logan Elizabeth Mar 03

[heidi_timms]

Prune baby food and prune juice in her cereal loosened DD right up. It took a few days to kick in. Also, I started another thread about this a week or so ago and several mentioned aloe juice to loosen things up.

~Heidi
Mom to Kailey Ashlin
4/27/03

[peanut4us]

Gonna sound weird... But Sara has always had poopy issues, UNTIL, we gave her sweet potatoes. We actually had "blowout" this last weekend. It was the first time that has happened since she was about 2 months old! Give it a try.

[cinrein]

I just wanted to share that since we started solids, there is no pooping schedule with Anna. Sometimes it's once a day, 3 times a day, every other day, or she'll go 4 days and then have just a tiny one. She also gets very gassy when we introduce a new food and it smells to high heaven. :o Anna's poops are like peanut butter conistency (sorry if TMI), so I know she's not constipated. Remember, it's not the length of time between poops that tell you the baby is constipated, but rather the consistency of the poop. I've read and heard here that it's normal for babies to be VERY irregular. If her poops are not hard, then I would keep giving her the solids. If they are hard, I would ask her ped about it.

Cindy and Anna 2/11/03

[etwahl]

okay, i'm feeling better now! her poops are peanut buttery when they come, and we just had a big one today - i think butternut squash made it happen ;)

so i guess i won't worry then, since the consistency is fine. i think i just got so nervous because she used to be such a frequent pooper and it was so messy that it almost always escaped the diaper. now it's just thick and yucky.

and oh yes, she has the stinkiest gas (i call her my little farter) and it could clear a room imo. UGH!!!

Tammy,
Mom to Lauren Genevieve
03/12/2003
www.evantammy.com

[Tondi G]

I would just add some prune or prune juice to her day if she hasn't had a BM in a few days.... most likely she'll go before the day is done!!!! Good Luck

Solids are certainly SMELLY!!!! It gets worse too... wait till she's 2 and eating EVERYTHING not just good wholesome fruits and vegis...YIKES! My DS can clear a room! PHEW!

~Tondi
Mommy to Mason(2) and #2 edd 6/6/04

[etwahl]

i remember reading something before she was born that you're not supposed to make it seem like changing their diaper is smelly and disgusting (something about self esteem?) but how can you help it? i could do that no problem when she was just on breastmilk, but those poops are like toxic waste. every time i have to change that diaper, i want to throw up ;) haha!

ps: how do you prepare prunes for them to eat?

Tammy,
Mom to Lauren Genevieve
03/12/2003
www.evantammy.com

[Momof3Labs]

We do lots of PEWWWWWW! with tickles and giggles when we are changing a particularly vile diaper. Colin thinks that it is hilarious when we say that, and make a funny face to go with it! I think that as long as you make it fun, you can play off of the stinkiness without a problem.

[Momof3Labs]

Hey Tondi - congratulations!!!

[lfp2n]

We've been having a lot of constipation problems also, so she gets a cube of prune every morning and a teaspoon of bran mixed into about a tblspoon or less of oat cereal (I've cut back on cereal as I think its the cause of the constipation). I also add a little prune juice to the mix if things are getting bad. I made the prunes by boiling some dried prunes (I couldn't find fresh) in water and then pureeing them with some water and freezing them in ice cube trays, she loves them which isn't surprising as they are very sweet.
My ped suggested milk of magnesia as a last resort if she gets completely stopped up but luckily the prunes and bran have got things moving so far. I wondered if anyone out there knew whether if you make Superporrige a la the Super Baby Food book its any more roughagey than regular Oat cereal from Earths Best

Lucy and Olivia (3/27/03)

[McQ]

What a timely post. I was just wondering tonight if DS is constipated. He ususally poops 1-2 times a day and hasn't gone since yesterday morning. Which wouldn't concern me except tonight when we were out strolling he turned bright red a few times and kept trying to lift his bottom. I thought for sure it was a poop but I turned around and came home then changed him and it was nothing. I'm going to try prunes tomorrow.

Allison
~ mommy to Declan 3.24.03

[heidi_timms]

Gerber sells prune baby food as well. We feed entirely organic, but I can't seem to find organic prune baby food. Also, Earth's Best makes several baby foods with plums like plum/apple. It took a few days for the prunes to kick in, but when it kicked in, DD pooped all day long! I think that she was saving it up:)
~Heidi
Mom to Kailey Ashlin
4/27/03

[MartiesMom2B]

Tammy:

What is about butternut squash? Martie didn't poop for almost 2 weeks when I started feeding her twice a day, but she hasn't stopped since, and I'm hoping for it to slow down. We didn't give solids after our move because everything was so hectic, so she pooped HUGE poops everyday. I started her back up on Weds. and she's still pooping.

Oh I almost threw up twice after changing a sweet potato diaper. Once while changing it, and then again at her next feeding of sweet potato when I caught a whiff of it. Pee-yu!

Sonia
Proud Mommy to Martie 4/6/03

[McQ]

Come over here. Squash & sweet potatoes are Declan's favorites! That and pears.

I gave him prunes yesterday and again this morning. And he pooped within a couple hours after each feeding (TMI alert) and they were his usual camouflage looking poops. Not the blowout I expected :)

Allison
~ mommy to Declan 3.24.03

[etwahl]

i think it's funny, because lauren's body seems to get accustomed to certain foods. carrots made her poop when she first started eating them. same with butternut squash. but after a few days, the effect seems ot have worn off :( she's a funny kid!!!

Tammy,
Mom to Lauren Genevieve
03/12/2003
www.evantammy.com

[cinrein]

The Super Baby Foods book says you can buy dried fruit, chop it into small pieces, then rehydrate it so that it's soft enough for a baby to chew. I don't see why you can't puree it rather than chop it and use organic dried fruit.

I haven't tried this myself, so I'm not sure how it goes. She says dried fruit is easier to chop if it's cold, so put it in the freezer for about an hour. She also says to soak the fruit in cold water before putting in the the processer to help prevent sticking. To rehydrate, either soak overnight in water in the refrigerator, or pour boiling water (1.5 cups boiling water per cup of dried fruit) over and let sit until rehydrated. You can also plump them in the microwave by just covering the fruit with water and microwaving on high until the water begins to boil--then let stand 5-10 minutes. She said once dried fruit has been rehydrated, it spoils quickly so eat immediately.

Cindy and Anna 2/11/03

[starrynight]

True constipation is very hard or pellet like poops or if Lauren was screaming and crying in obvious pain when she went. Otherwise it's just the solids firming things up a bit and making her go less often. And yes the solid food ones are the worst! Just wait until you change toddler diapers when it's nothing but solids now those are yuck ;). I guess I have just learned to breath with my mouth when I change a diaper and get it over with as fast as possible.

Daria had serious constipation issues from day one, we finally figured out she has a milk allergy and is now fine. So that's how I know the difference. Also blueberries, bananas, rice cereal and some docs say carrots bind a kid up but peaches, sweet potatoes, oatmeal keep things going. Carrots always helped Daria go but they are on the constipating food list the doc gave me so go figure, also pineapple always worked once she was old enough to eat it but again that one's on the list too. I guess every kids tummy is different. Doc told me some kids go 7 times a day and some kids go 1 time is 7 days, as long as the baby is going and isn't in pain they are fine :). Hope my very long winded post helped some! ;)