How To Relieve Infant Constipation?

Infant constipation is a most common problem that is seen in most of the infants. Infants feel very much difficulty in passing the stools, even if the stools are normal for your infant.

The difficulty in passing the stools is thought to represent a delay in maturation of intestinal motility.

Cause behind infant constipation:

Constipation in a breast feeding baby: Constipation in a breast fed baby is a very rare condition.

Every infant can easily digest the breast milk. Babies who are breastfed have various types of helpful bacteria in their intestine.

These bacteria can easily break the proteins in the milk. With this, your baby’s stools are soft, thus making bowel movements easier.

Breastfeeding leads to increase in the hormone levels, called as motiline. These hormones aids in increasing the bowel.

Composition of breast milk can also be changed with the growth of your baby. So, it can meet the necessities of your baby during all the times.

Constipation in a bottle fed baby: Bottle fed babies are more likely to suffer from constipation. Digesting the formula milk is very difficult for your baby.

Bottle fed babies typically have fewer bowel movements when compared to a breastfed baby. The stool is very thick and it will be in a more different and greenish color.

Relieving infant constipation in babies:

For babies younger than 4 months: Try to give one to two ounces of diluted fruit juice like prune, apple-prune or grape twice in a day.

For babies of 4 months to 12+ months: Give your baby the foods which are high in fiber such as: peas, apricots, peaches, spinach, plums, prunes, and pears.

In older infants who just begin solid foods, you can avoid the foods like bananas, cereals, and applesauce as they can aggravate constipation.

When your baby has constipation, it is better to give prunes, barley, apricots, oatmeal cereals, plums, peaches and various vegetables.

Juices greatly help you when you notice constipation in your infant. Feed with juices like prune and apple. Use in moderate quantities.

Other things you can do to treat infant constipation include:

  • Gently massage your baby’s tummy. Begin at the belly button and then massage outwards in circles in a clockwise direction. Take some cream or oil on your fingers. [Baby massage]
  • Rotate your infant’s legs in a cyclic motion. This cause the stomach muscles to move.
  • Feed with cool or boiled water.
  • Give your baby a soothing bath. Bathing makes your baby to relax thus making the stools to pass easily. Whenever you wash your baby’s bottom, use petroleum jelly or any cream around the outside of the anus.

Taking proper care can greatly help your child to relieve constipation, otherwise they suffer with stomach pain or upset stomach.

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