Toddlers are, by nature, a finicky bunch. Their moods and whims can change on a dime.
Even one thing as fundamental as going to the toilet can get difficult. Whereas some toddlers go to the toilet each day like clockwork, different children can go two, three, or much more days with out having any bowel actions.
Seeing an empty bathroom day after day would possibly fill dad and mom with panic, however constipation in toddlers is not normally an indication of any critical illness. Most frequently it is brought on by an issue that is straightforward to resolve, like weight loss plan or ignoring the urge to go.
So how are you aware if rare rest room visits are regular to your baby, or for those who actually have a constipated toddler? Learn on to search out out when toddler constipation is an issue, and the best way to deal with it.
Is My Toddler Constipated?
The common toddler (if there may be such a factor) makes a bowel motion as soon as a day. Often, a toddler who has a bowel motion fewer than thrice per week (or much less usually than they sometimes do), and whose stools are exhausting and troublesome to cross, is constipated. Additionally, in response to the American Academy of Pediatrics, any baby with stools which are massive, exhausting, dry, and accompanied by painful bowel actions, soiling between bowel actions, or blood on the surface of the stool might have constipation.
Do not be nervous in case your baby has a bout of constipation — it is completely regular as soon as in awhile. But when your toddler’s constipation lasts for 2 weeks or extra it is referred to as continual constipation, and it’s best to see your pediatrician.
Your physician might ask you to maintain monitor of your kid’s bowel actions — how usually they happen, how large and exhausting they’re, and if there may be any blood in your toddler’s stool. You also needs to search for different signs that may happen together with constipation, resembling:
- Stomachache
- Bloating
- Nausea
- Lack of urge for food
- Normal crankiness
- Crying or screaming throughout bowel actions
- Avoiding the bathroom (indicators that your baby is doing this embody clenching the buttocks, crossing the legs, turning purple, sweating, or crying)
- Smears or bits of liquid stool within the diaper or underwear (soiling)
What Causes Toddler Constipation?
A wide range of issues could cause constipation in toddlers, from weight loss plan to medicine. Listed here are a number of of the most typical causes:
Food plan. The wrongdoer in lots of instances of toddler constipation is a weight loss plan that is too heavy in processed meals, dairy, and sweets, and too mild in fiber (like complete grains, fruits, and greens). Not getting sufficient fluid can even result in constipation, as a result of it makes the stools tougher. Any change in weight loss plan — resembling when your toddler transitions from breast milk or system to cow’s milk or begins consuming new meals — can even have an effect on the stools.
Holding it in. The common 2-year-old is way extra enthusiastic about enjoying with toys than going to the toilet. Some kids are embarrassed or afraid to make use of the bathroom, particularly when it is a public restroom. Toddlers who insurgent in opposition to the bathroom coaching course of generally categorical their energy battle in a refusal to go.
Concern of discomfort. Constipated toddlers who’ve had painful bowel actions up to now generally keep away from utilizing the toilet out of concern that it’s going to harm once more. Not utilizing the toilet can flip into an uncomfortable cycle. Stool begins to construct up within the decrease a part of the bowel, getting larger and tougher till it is much more troublesome and painful to cross.
Change in routine. Happening trip and being away from their regular bathroom could make some toddlers unwilling to go to the toilet.
Lack of bodily exercise.Train helps with the motion of meals via the digestive course of.
Sickness. Adjustments in urge for food on account of a abdomen bug or different sickness can have an effect on your kid’s weight loss plan, resulting in constipation.
Treatment. Some medicines or dietary supplements can result in a constipated toddler, together with high-dose iron dietary supplements or narcotic ache medicine. The low-dose iron in child system doesn’t trigger constipation.
Bodily situations. In uncommon instances, an anatomical drawback with the intestines, anus, or rectum could cause continual constipation. Cerebral palsy and different nervous system problems can even have an effect on a toddler’s means to go to the toilet.
Therapies for Toddler Constipation
When toddler constipation is an issue, you may strive one in every of these treatments:
Food plan. To melt the stools and make them simpler to cross, improve the quantity of non-dairy fluid and fiber your baby will get every day. Excessive-fiber meals embody fruits and fruit juices that comprise sorbitol (prune, mango, pear), greens (broccoli, peas), beans, and whole-grain breads and cereals. Restrict meals that may improve constipation, resembling fatty meals which are low in fiber. Restrict milk to 16 ounces per day.
Train. Be certain your toddler will get out to play for at the very least 30 to 60 minutes a day. Shifting the physique retains the bowels transferring, too.
Enhance bowel habits. Encourage your baby to make use of the toilet at common instances in the course of the day, particularly after meals and every time they really feel the urge to go. Let your toddler sit for at the very least 10 minutes at a time. Put a small stool underneath your kid’s toes — the leverage will assist them push. Reward your toddler for utilizing the bathroom with a particular story or a sticker so it turns into a constructive expertise.
Drugs. Your well being care supplier might suggest medicine to deal with your toddler’s constipation, particularly if it is continual. You may additionally want to debate stopping or altering a medicine your baby is taking, if that’s inflicting the constipation.