# Baby food ideas for constipated baby...



## MarcyC (Jul 4, 2005)

My baby boy has been constipated since birth. I EP for him and don't make enough for all his needs so he does get some formula. He'll take bottles so giving him juice isn't a problem.

Well, for the first few mos. the pediatrician thought he'd "grow out of it."

At his 6 mo. appt, they told me to avoid apples (pectin can cause constipation) and bananas (ped. said they can cause constipation as well). Okay. We didn't completely cut out apples and bananas, but we really cut back.

At his 9 mo. appt., ped. asked me if he's drinking juice. Yes, he was eating about 4 oz. a day, diluted with water. Ped. said don't dilute and go up to 8 oz. a day (4 in the am, 4 in the afternoon). Okay...so I've been giving him 4 oz. of prune juice mid-morning (10 ish) and 4 oz. of white grape juice around 3:30 or so in the afternoon.

We do jarred baby food (I have four kids and I homeschool, I try to spend as little time in the kitchen as possible). He's been having peaches/pears for breakfast, spinach (earth's best) for lunch, and the lentil dinner for dinner.

Well, it's not helping. Yesterday it was so bad that he actually broke blood vessels trying to poop and he started bleeding.

I've had enough!!! I AM GOING TO START MAKING HIS BABY FOOD!!!

I thought of buying high fiber/low starch veggies/fruits. My mom told me that fiber causes constipation. I thought fiber helped keep you regular.

All I can come up with is broccoli, spinach, beans (but not lima because they are starchy), strawberries, blueberries, grapes, raisins, prunes, oatmeal.

What are some other foods that would be good for him. And what should I give him the way of protein? He sleeps better with some protein in him towards the end of the day. Right now we give him vanilla custard (w/ egg). Will cottage cheese or yogurt help or hurt the constipation? What about that new Fiber One Yogurt (although it's probably high in sugar which I'm also trying to avoid)?

I just need some ideas of what to feed him.


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## Neth Naneth (Aug 11, 2006)

Not sure about what all you have introduced and such but fiber definitely aids to regularity. Too much fiber in a diet isn't good and it can cause you to have diarrhea. Here are my two cents on the matter.

I don't know if you can give a baby flax seed but it definitely will help. You can find whole wheat spaghetti with flax in it, it should have a affect on regularity and softening things up. My son eats it but he is nearly two so I would look into giving it to younger babies before you do.

Second water is super important. Sometimes that is the main reason that little ones are getting constipated, their is not enough water in their diets. You might up the intake of water that your little one has if you think that this might help.

There is also high fiber granolas and cereals that can help. Again though I am not sure what would be best for a baby. My son at eighteen months was eating homemade granola and it would make it so every time I changed his diaper he had peed and pooped.

I really hope that this helps. Good luck. I'll be sending some good vibes







: for your little one.


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## kjbrown92 (Dec 13, 2007)

If he's been constipated since birth, there's an issue. Did you ever try a different formula? He could have a milk and/or soy intolerance (or some other food). Can you try for 2 weeks and see if one of the foods is causing the issue? It's really not normal.


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## lily7 (Aug 24, 2006)

Fiber with not enough fluid will cause constipation.
It looks to me that you are giving all kinds of foods to your little one. So maybe you should start over with one food at a time and see what is better and what is worse for his constipation.
Since as pp said it is from the birth, maybe the formula is a culprit.
My LO was constipated since about 5 mo. old. We followed some of his ped. recommandations, but nothing worked. What worked for us were brocolli, peas aand blueberries. And he is not that regular either. What I read somewhere is that water may help. So with amount of solids you give him, maybe he needs more fluids.


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## mommathea (Apr 7, 2008)

Quote:


Originally Posted by *MarcyC* 
Well, it's not helping. Yesterday it was so bad that he actually broke blood vessels trying to poop and he started bleeding.

I've had enough!!! I AM GOING TO START MAKING HIS BABY FOOD!!!

I thought of buying high fiber/low starch veggies/fruits. My mom told me that fiber causes constipation. I thought fiber helped keep you regular.

All I can come up with is broccoli, spinach, beans (but not lima because they are starchy), strawberries, blueberries, grapes, raisins, prunes, oatmea

Since you are already giving him jar'ed food, I have always had great success with jared proons for constipation.
Other than that I make all my other baby food.
You can do squash(this always seemed to give my babies mushier poo.

With the formula, I would try to switch brands. even try a low Iron formula. Sometimes to much Iron can cause constipation.
Also I would not be giving him undiluted juice. It just isn't needed. Watered down atleast 50% is good. The fruit sugars without the fiber isn't good for him. And water is the best thing you can give him to keep him running.
And with the fiber, give it to him. Just make sure it is foods that are easily digestable. Soulable fiber with increased liquid intake can help alot.


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## tanyalynn (Jun 5, 2005)

To me it sounds more like a gut issue. Some foods show up as constipating in some kids, or maybe just a gut flora issue, and probiotics (or a higher dose or a different kind) may help.

For temporary relief, prunes and prune juice are supposed to help--I've only had to deal with constipation a couple times because our food intolerances cause extra squishy/extra frequent poop.

Some people have had better regularity with more fat, something like coconut oil, but that would need to be balanced in with everything else. Maybe coconut milk yogurt, sorta hits a few possibilities.

Good luck!


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## Pumpkin_Pie (Oct 10, 2006)

Have you tried eliminating things from your diet? You say you are EP'ing for him, I think that might help tremendously if you could find the offending food.

Also, my son never fails to poop after giving him a big ripe mushy organic pear. I just cut hunks off for him to feed himself by about 9 months. If you want to use a spoon, just peel and core a super ripe pear and mash it with a fork.

Good luck mama.









ETA: Not sure why everyone keeps saying to change his "formula" I didn't read that this babe is receiving anything other than mamas milk. Definitely don't quit EP'ing and switch to formula!


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## Ruthla (Jun 2, 2004)

Fiber affects everybody differently. Some find that fiber (with plenty of water) releives constipation, others find that it makes it worse. Fiber without enough water will definitely make things worse.

I'd try upping the fat in his diet, as that can help lubricate the stools.

What kind of formula is he on? My guess would be that something in his diet isn't agreeing with him, and he's been on the formula the longest. Has he been on the formula since birth, or was he exclusively breastfed for any length of time? If so, what were his stools like during that time?

Also, how much formula does he get now and how much milk can you pump daily? Is it at all practical to cut out the formula and up the solids? That might be a reasonable way to test if the formula is causing him problems, as a 9mo may be hesitant to drink an elemental formula if he's used to the taste of a milk-based formula.

Is he eating any meats? The protein and fat from meats or broths can help replace the nutrition in formula- there are even homemade formula recipes with bone broth as its base.

PumpkinPie- her first sentence states that she's EPing, but not enough and she needs to supplement with formula.


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## abi&ben'smom (Oct 28, 2007)

Just wanted to second the pears/pear juice. We've had constipation issues here also; good luck!


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## Pumpkin_Pie (Oct 10, 2006)

Quote:


Originally Posted by *Ruthla* 
PumpkinPie- her first sentence states that she's EPing, but not enough and she needs to supplement with formula.









I just realized that. Sorry about that!


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## MarcyC (Jul 4, 2005)

Thanks everyone! I have him on the Earth's Best or Baby's Only organic formula. He'll take either one. I kind of like Earth's Best, but Baby's Only is so much less expensive so it just depends on our "Whole Foods" budget that month.









Since he's now 10 months, I've thought about cutting out formula all together and just giving him things like meats and avocado for the fat, and offering breastmilk or water in a sippy cup. I mean, he is almost a year...

A friend of mine suggested not changing anything, but adding probiotics and I know someone here suggested probiotics as well.

He is NOT on probiotics right now. When I did a google search for probiotic supplements I was completely overwhelmed. What kind/type/brand do you buy for a baby and how much do you give.

It would be great if we could keep things as they are and just add a supplement.

This is so confusing!!! The pediatrician keeps writing it off, but I'm wondering if I should take him to an internal medicine doctor. What if he's got some kind of obstruction that is making things difficult for him? He was 5 weeks early and by all accounts, was a healthy baby, but what if *something* was wrong that no one caught, kwim?

Well, off to pump...all this stress is killing my milk supply. I just had to buy more domperidone so I can up my dosage.


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## kjbrown92 (Dec 13, 2007)

More questions: does he not latch well, or why do you express vs. directly breastfeed? I mean, if he were to directly breastfeed, then he'd maybe up his intake (and your production).

Personally I would take out milk and soy, in his diet and yours, which would mean taking him off the formula and either pumping more or replacing it with appropriate fats. My DD weaned herself quite abruptly at 10 months, and was fine with just food. Never dropped off in weight or anything. Just make sure he's getting enough whole nutritious food with a balance of fruits, vegetables, proteins and fats.

I don't think it's normal to be constantly constipated. It doesn't sound like an obstruction, though I'm kind of surprised that the doctors don't want to rule out other things.

And if you notice, on the BRAT diet that they recommend when you have diarrhea, it's bananas, rice, apples, and toast. So I would avoid those 4 things, since they are all binders.


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## MarcyC (Jul 4, 2005)

Oh...his latch is horrible!! He's tongue-tied and lip-tied and I've seen numerous LC's, and ENT's...no one will clip for me (I've been trying since he was 4-5 mos. when this got officially diagnosed). Nursing has been extremely difficult so I finally decided to EP for him.

I went to GNC today and the guy recommended yogurt for the probiotics. Problem is, if I take him off of milk and soy - what are my options for yogurt? Do they sell goat's milk yogurt or coconut yogurt?

This is so hard and I feel so bad for my little guy!


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## DashsMama (Dec 1, 2001)

You might need to approach this from 2 directions (pun intended), diet to keep the new poop soft and glycerine suppositories to help ease the passage of the old poop and get everything cleared out.

The best fruits to relieve constipation start with P (pears, peaches, plums). Let him have as much as he'll eat. Fresh is better than jarred, as the fruit is more concentrated. Encourage lots of drinking: water, juice, whatever. As others have said, fiber is binding without sufficient liquid.

You can add the probiotics to your expressed breastmilk. I've given my children Jarrow's powdered probiotics this way with success.

Long term constipation can stretch the bowels and cause longterm problems. I don't know why your Ped is so nonchalant about it. Here is a link to Dr. Sears' discussion of constipation with lots of good info and tips. Good luck!


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## Ruthla (Jun 2, 2004)

Quote:


Originally Posted by *MarcyC* 
I went to GNC today and the guy recommended yogurt for the probiotics. Problem is, if I take him off of milk and soy - what are my options for yogurt? Do they sell goat's milk yogurt or coconut yogurt?

Yes, there are. I know of two brands of goat milk yogurt: Redwood Hill Farms (they thicken the yogurt with starch to make it the same s poonable consistency as cow's milk yogurt) and Yo-Goat (which has nothing added except flavorings and sweeteners, except for the plain flavor, and is a thinner drinkable consistency.) AT least, these are what are available in NY. I'd ask at your local store to see what they have available.

I've never seen ready-made coconut milk yogurt, though I have seen recipes for it.

If you're not sure how your little guy responds to goat's milk, you might do better with a powdered probiotic rather than a yogurt. Also, don't forget that fermented veggies (such as pickles and sourkraut) contain natural probiotics as well (as long as it's naturally fermented and not pasturized- look in the dairy case, not the grocery aisle, and read the ingredients. If it has vinegar, it's probably not naturally fermented. If it's veggies, spices and salt, then it's naturally fermented.) If he can't chew pickles or saurkraut yet, you can just give him the liquid they're fermented in.


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## MarcyC (Jul 4, 2005)

Just wanted to update...
I talked to the pediatrician and he recommended this new Gerber baby food with added DHA (fish oil). Well, at first he said I could go with the organic baby food with added DHA supplement and acidophilus supplements, but since the nearest Whole Foods is 25 miles away and gas is over $4 a gallon I asked him what my options were. So he said to feed him this new Gerber food with the DHA. For breakfast he's been having their pear/blueberry/oatmeal. For lunch dinner he's been having their veggies. They make a green mix (with spinach) and an orange mix (has squash).

Since he sleeps better at bedtime with some protein so the ped. recommended yo baby yogurt with cereal and he said if I could find it, yo baby makes some with added DHA (I found it!!).

Well, all that fish oil is working. He had a great big BM yesterday all on his own and today he had one, not quite as big and he needed a LITTLE help to get it all out (q-tip and vaseline), but he got most of it out all by himself. Sorry if that's TMI...

So...I don't know if it's the yogurt or the DHA or what. I've also been pumping a bit more so he's getting 6-8 oz. a day rather than 3-6 and he's even been doing some 'at-the-breast' nursing.









Things seem to be going in the right direction (excuse the pun!).


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