having trouble pooping!

[Mom to Brandon and 2 cats]

Now that DS is getting 2 solid meals a day (1/8 c. rice cereal at lunch, 1/2 to 1 small jar baby food at dinner), he's having trouble pooping. They're still somewhat soft (compared to adult poops, LOL!), but he's really straining and sometimes cries.

I'm thinking maybe I need to back off the solids for awhile. Which should I cut back on, the baby food, or the cereal?

TIA!

--Jennifer

[stillplayswithbarbies]

How old is your baby? I am facing this same thing and I am sure it is the rice cereal causing it.

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

[Mom to Brandon and 2 cats]

Brandon is 6 months...I'm thinking that it's the 2nd meal - we didn't have any problems with just rice cereal by itself...but he loves the taste of "real" food so much, I hate to take it away from him. Maybe nursing him more would loosen things up?

[stillplayswithbarbies]

more liquids should help I would think.

We started solids at 7.5 months and just added a second meal at 9.5 months. I assumed it was the cereal, since that was new. But maybe it's just the volume of food.

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

[houseof3boys]

Ryan is straining too and I notice it with Barley cereal. We don't do rice since so many people had problems with constipation so we started with barley. Oatmeal keeps him much more regular so that is what we have been using for about a month now. You can also give prunes in the morning to help with the constipation. I just bought little cans of prune juice today so I haven't tried it but a friend said that helped her little one tremendously and she only used a little juice mixed in the cereal with EBM.

Water is also a good thing. Don't cut back on the solids though since it takes a while for their system to get used to it.

[jd11365]

I agree with Debbi about prunes... Gave Kayla some prunes when on vacation this week and worked like a charm. We too had become "backed up" at the second meal as of late so I'm right there with ya. I think they could be great in the baby-safe feeder too! (Luh-ove the baby-safe feeder BTW...saw Debbi's son Ryan use it with ice and had to have one...it's fantastic!) Juice is supposed to help too, but Kayla doesn't really like it...she's a water girl.

Good luck!

Jamie
Mommy to Kayla
5-1-03

[Momof3Labs]

Keep in mind that if his poops are soft, he isn't constipated. His poops are just changing because his diet is changing! Some foods, like bananas and rice cereal, are constipating, so I never mix them. If you feed rice cereal, feed prunes, peaches or pears (something that softens) to help keep things moving.

But a change in frequency and consistency isn't a problem - it's when you are chasing little, hard rabbit turds around the changing table that you have a problem!

[KMommie]

Gee, I've always wondered what was the "true" definition of constipation for babies. When Kiki was refusing to take any formula and was taking only sweet potatoes and water, her poops were soft, not hard, but I've been calling it constipation, since she was straining and crying out each time she had to poop, and they seemed so "disappointing" when I'd check her diaper. I had read about the rabbit turds definition before :), but since Kiki was having so much trouble, I just assumed... :P Anyway, if she wasn't constipated, as it sounds now, I'm sure she was on her way to being constipated! And those diaper changes were no fun!

What helps Kiki (and she's not a big solids eater as it is) when she gets that way, is I really push the water. I offer it to her in a variety of ways...sippy cup, in a regular cup, cup with a straw---with ice cubes... anything to make it appealing to her, to at least give it a try. This seems to help a lot, and she prefers water to juice now. It's also a handy thing to do when we're out at a restaurant, we just get her a glass of ice water and a straw, and she's happy. When MIL somehow managed to get Kiki to eat a whole JAR of pears (SO not the norm, for Kiki), she was extremely regular!! :P

Good Luck!

Jeannie
mommy to Kiki 4/18/03

[apfb]

Sometimes a baby strains, grunts, grimaces while pooping because they're not used to the new consistency of their more solid waste. The BF babies are especially surprised by the change.

It sounds like you are doing great with the solids. Keep on introducing him to solids. A few sips of water can help train him to use a cup and to keep poop softer.

A few foods to help keep the poop soft:
stone fruits such as peaches, plums
papaya
green beans
sweet potato
butternut squash
leafy greens such as spinach


1st time mom to Maya the Mighty b. 3/2003