Constipation in children in the first year of life is a fairly common problem. In 90-95% of cases, stool disorders are inherently functional (i.e., the motor, absorption, secretory and excretory functions of the colon are disturbed without pronounced structural changes in the intestinal wall). More rarely, constipation is associated with any congenital and hereditary diseases, pathologies of various internal organs and systems.
If constipation occurs in a month-old baby, what should parents do? How can mom and dad help older children? In such situations, you should not prescribe treatment yourself. Contact your pediatrician immediately. The specialist will determine the exact cause of the stool disorder and prescribe the appropriate treatment.
What is constipation and what are the causes of its occurrence?
Under this term, specialists understand difficult, rare or systematically defective bowel movements. Constipation is usually divided into acute and chronic. With the first variety of stool disorders, there is a lack of defecation in the child for several days. Then the intestines work back to normal. For chronic constipation, a periodic violation of bowel movements is characteristic.
How to eliminate constipation in a month-old baby, what to do if this problem occurs in an older baby in the first year of life - issues that interest many parents. First of all, you should try to understand the reason for the violation of the stool. Constipation in young children is very often due to:
- underfeeding;
- conversion to artificial feeding;
- excessive protein intake;
- lack of dietary fiber in the diet;
- insufficient fluid intake.
How to recognize constipation: bowel frequency and feces
When examining a child with a stool disorder, the pediatrician asks parents several important questions. The specialist is interested in:
- how often bowel movements occur;
- what form does feces have.
For example, a doctor examined a baby. The information received from the parents allowed the pediatrician to confirm constipation in a month-old baby. What should mom and dad do so that in the future, without the help of a specialist, one can understand about the occurrence of this problem in crumbs?
It should be remembered that bowel movement in babies in the first months of life is an involuntary process. It mainly occurs after feeding. In newborns, the frequency of bowel movements can be up to 6 times a day. As you grow older, this value decreases. By 4-6 months (that is, at a time when children begin to eat not only mother’s milk, but also complementary foods), the intestine is emptied no more than 2 times a day.
The violation of bowel movements is also indicated by the form of feces. With constipation, it can be:
- sausage and lumpy at the same time;
- nut-shaped (feces are presented as separate hard and difficult-going lumps).
Features of nutrition of infants and mothers
If constipation occurs in a month-old baby, what should mom do? One of the recommendations is not to refuse natural feeding (if there are no indications for this). Breast milk contains a huge amount of beneficial substances, which are characterized by prebiotic effects.
Another tip is to adjust your mother’s daily menu. The fact is that the properties of breast milk depend on what products a woman consumes. That is why it is recommended:
- normalize drinking regimen;
- abandon drinks and dishes that reduce the motor function of the colon (these include jelly, cocoa, strong tea, mucous soups, rice porridge);
- Cross out foods that increase gas production (cabbage, legumes, brown bread) from the diet.
Nutrition for breast-fed children
If you refuse to breast-feed, constipation may occur in a 2-month-old baby. What to do, the pediatrician will tell. The specialist will recommend feeding your baby with specialized adapted milk formulas. They prevent stool problems.
There are many different mixtures (e.g. Nutrilon Comfort 1, Semper Bifidus 1). They can be used on an ongoing basis as the only mixture, because the composition of these products includes all the substances and microelements necessary for the growth and development of children.
Feeding Against Defecation Disorders
About six months later, parents begin to enter the usual food on the menu of their child - a variety of mashed potatoes, cereals. Some foods can cause stool problems. If constipation occurs in a 6-month-old baby, what to do, with the help of what products you can rid the baby of this problem? Pediatricians, answering similar questions from parents, recommend including crumbs in the diet:
- fruit purees that stimulate intestinal motility (for example, from apple, plum, prune);
- vegetable purees (from cauliflower, carrots);
- barley, millet porridge.
Do not forget also that from the moment of feeding, the baby's body begins to require fluid. If the baby does not lack in it, then he will not have constipation. To prevent the occurrence of problems with the stool, you can give boiled water, fruit drinks made from berries, weakly concentrated decoctions of dried apricots and plums, teas with chamomile, fennel, dill water.
Cleansing Enema - Ambulance
If, for example, a doctor confirms constipation in a 3-month-old baby, what will the specialist do after this? He can prescribe a mechanical bowel movement using a cleansing enema. It is made a pear-shaped balloon, the volume of which is determined depending on the age of the baby:
- balloon No. 2 (50 ml) - suitable for 2–3 months old children;
- balloon No. 3 and No. 4 (75 and 100 ml) - can be used at the age of 6 months.
Boiled water is poured into a suitable container. When calculating the volume of fluid, the age of the child is taken into account:
- from 25 to 30 ml are administered to newborns;
- babies aged 1-3 months - from 50 to 60 ml;
- in 3-12 months - from 100 to 150 ml.
How is mechanical bowel movement performed? For example, a doctor prescribed a cleansing enema, diagnosing constipation in a 4-month-old baby. What to do next, many parents do not know. To set a cleansing enema, the baby is placed on the left side or back, after placing an oilcloth under the body. Boiled water is collected in a rubber bottle. Its temperature should not be more than 25 degrees. The tip of the balloon is treated with petroleum jelly for easier insertion.
If the baby lies on its side, then his buttocks are simply spread apart. If he is located on his back, then they raise his legs up. Air is released from the pear, and after that its tip begins to be carefully inserted into the anus to a depth of 3-5 cm. First, it is advanced strictly forward, and then down and forward. After that, the pear is slowly squeezed, thereby releasing water into the rectum.
"Dufalac" - an effective drug (syrup)
If a 5-month-old baby has constipation, what to do, what medicines can be given is a frequently asked question. In the treatment of bowel movements, drug therapy can be used. A popular drug is Dufalac, which is available in syrup form and dispensed without a prescription. The tool has a mild laxative effect, does not adversely affect the body of a small child.
The components of the drug unchanged reach the colon and are split. Eventually:
- pH decreases;
- osmotic pressure rises;
- the volume of intestinal contents increases.
All this leads to stimulation of intestinal motility, normalization of stool consistency.
Glycerin suppository against constipation
It is no secret that glycerin suppositories have a good laxative effect. They have an irritating effect on the mucous membrane of the rectum, reflexively stimulate peristalsis, and contribute to the softening of feces. If, for example, constipation occurs in a 7-month-old baby, what to do with glycerin suppositories, is it worth buying them for a baby? The answer to this question can give a pediatrician. This remedy is prescribed by a doctor if necessary.
Glycerin suppositories are used until normal intestinal motility is restored. They cannot be used for a long period of time. With prolonged use, the rectum is irritated, the physiological process of defecation is weakened.
Thus, treating constipation is a rather difficult problem. In its solution in complex cases, an integrated approach should be used - diet therapy, drug therapy and the use of enemas. However, parents should not take any measures to eliminate constipation without first consulting a pediatrician, because their actions can harm the child.