Children of all ages are prone to irregular bowel movements, and from birth. However, getting rid of constipation often depends on finding out the exact cause. But some measures help to prevent this unpleasant phenomenon for the baby and mother, and if it occurs, they give a good result.
Instructions
Step 1
Among all the variety of causes of constipation in children, the most common are alimentary factors, namely, underfeeding, an increased content of protein (casein) or fat in food, and an insufficient amount of fiber. In breastfed babies, bowel function is affected by the diet of a nursing mother. An equally common cause is disorders of the nervous system, as well as some diseases - rickets, vitamin deficiency, congenital anomalies in the development of the intestines and cracks in the anus. From the moment the baby is potty trained or during periods of getting used to the children's team in the kindergarten or school, psychological problems - embarrassment or fear - can become the cause of irregular emptying.
Step 2
Eat your diet to relieve constipation in a breastfed baby. Despite the high need for protein food, limit its intake if it adversely affects the health of the baby. Also limit animal fats, exclude white bread and pastries, sugar, strong tea and coffee, rice, pasta, warm drinks. These foods reduce bowel tone and strengthen your baby's bowel movements. Be sure to take B vitamins and magnesium. Their deficiency in mother's milk may well be the cause of constipation in a child.
Step 3
Give your baby a daily circular massage of the abdomen, without touching the area of the right hypochondrium (liver) and several times a day apply a warm diaper to the intestinal area (below the navel). Place the baby on his stomach 10-15 minutes before each feed. With the introduction of complementary foods, give your own juices and applesauce daily, and eventually vegetable puree. If your baby is prone to constipation, do not include rice porridge and fresh, white bread in the diet.
Step 4
To eliminate constipation in children who are bottle-fed, nutritional correction is necessary - changing the mixture, early introduction of juices, vegetable and fruit purees (1 month earlier), sufficient consumption of boiled water, massage, warm diaper, laying on the stomach. Give your child vitamin B1 as directed by your doctor.
Step 5
From the moment a child is potty trained, it is important to develop a conditioned reflex to defecate, planting him at the same time. And it's better to do it in the morning. Then, in kindergarten or school, the baby will not feel the need to go to the toilet and the associated embarrassment or fear.
Step 6
If the treatment of constipation in a child with the help of nutritional correction does not bring a positive result, it is worth contacting a pediatrician. Possibly decreased intestinal tone is associated with a lack of vitamins B, D and magnesium, as well as developed diseases. Accordingly, success in restoring normal gastrointestinal function will depend on eliminating the cause.
