Hi everyone, I am in desperate need of some serious advice.

My daughter is 20 months old and has been super constipated since she was about 9 months old because she holds in her stool as long as she can until its unbearable and has to push it out. She cries and strains and is in so much pain. I have tried to fix the problem with her diet but she is a super picky eater and pretty much refuses everything I give her that would help alleviate her problems. I am still breastfeeding and nurse her on demand quite frequently and that doesn't help. Before she started on solid foods she had no problems at all with having a bm and did so a couple times a day. At about 9 months old when she starting to eat a lot more solid foods is when all this started.

I'm not on a raw food diet, but I am an almost vegan (I do eat some dairy on rare occasions but my daughter gets none at all) so I know its not a dairy issue causing this in her. I've gone tried gluten free and soy free diets and that doesn't seem to make a difference either. She will not eat vegetables (unless they are totally hidden or pureed in other foods) but loves melon and pureed fruit so I give her tons of that. She also loves bread, pasta and crackers and eats a good amount of that too. We only eat whole wheat breads and pastas and try to stay away from processed and refined foods.

I really don't know where to turn and what to do. I've been seeing a Naturopath, Osteopath and Pediatrician and so far nothing is working.

As a last resort I have started giving her Mineral Oil for the last 3 months now with a soluble fibre supplement, and although it has softened her stool considerably, she is still able to hold it in and is only going once or twice a week and is still screaming and straining. Before this her stool was rock hard and she was bleeding every time she had a BM and her bum was super red and raw. It was just awful so at least I'm not dealing with that anymore, but I hate giving her the Mineral Oil and I feel totally out of options.

I know that I can cure this naturally and with her diet so I'm hoping that you guys can point me in the right direction.

Thanks so much!

Just a suggestion, but whatever her hydration level now.....double it. And make sure she is getting fresh juice. Try pureed raisins or prunes as well. Gently massage her tummy in a circular motion to stimulate her bowels. These are just some extra options - if you haven't tried them already. I hope for a positive result!

-David Z. Mason

WWW.RawFoodFarm.com

Thanks for your reply David. I've tried given her prune juice but she is not a big fan of it and I do have a hard time getting her to drink anything other than breastmilk in large quantities, although she does drink water with her meals and sips on almond/soy milk through-out the day. At this age its not like I can explain to her that is she starts guzzling fluids it will help her situation. The tummy massage worked awesome when she was a baby but now that she is getting older she pushes my hand away and doesn't like it as much.

Another idea.. since she likes melon you might try adding some blended rind (short of the outermost skin?). It is loaded with soft (and nutritious) fiber.

Also does she like coconut? It might have some of the properties of mineral oil and is high in fiber.

hope this helps,
loeve

she might like the actual prune but not the juice. she also may accept the juice if it`s watered down. i`d cut down on the breads and pastas if possible until things turn around. what about grapes? she`s freaking out because she associates the bm`s with pain so she`s scared to go. if you haven`t already i`d google fresh fruits that help with constipation...just my 2 cents
patty

i just mono'd plums for five days
and concluded it was the most thorough cleanse of my life
i visited the bathroom in a major way 4-5 times a day!!!

the first 3 days were organic homegrown
the last 2 were conventional store bought

i could barely eat the latter
no taste at all
nor did they produce as profund of a moving result

i hope you can find her some really great plums
or other high fiber fruit

if she doesn't enjoy them right off
you could try to puree them and freeze into popsicles

good luck
im sure its as painful watching for you
as it is for her

I found this article. It seems to be the same issue your little girl is having. [www.pediatricadvice.net]

I think you should be really careful about mineral oil. It coats the intestines and blocks nutrient absorption.

I would cut out all soy, dairy and processed grains for at least two weeks. After that I would give her sprouted breads. They are easier to digest in our experience, family of five here. I would give her all fresh fruits for a couple days. I would have her taste a lot of different juicy fruits and then give her the one she likes most out of those for a few meals at a time, trying to simplify her diet with fresh fruit that taste good to her for a few days. I would give her soak water from dates and raisins. I would add lots of different fresh fruits and vegetables gradually and see how she does on them. I would make green smoothies everyday. I would wait at least two weeks before reintroducing dairy, soy or processed grains, if I decided to. I would reintroduce all foods one at a time to see how they affect her. Since you are breastfeeding, I would keep my diet close to the same as hers while reintroducing.

My daughter was really sick and it was scary. Cleaning up her diet completely turned her health around. Keep educating yourself on a healthy diet. Also keep talking to her about healthy foods and how they help her grow and run and be strong. She is old enough to be excited about those things. My daughter is picky too but there are a million things she will eat. I don't sweat the things she won't eat.

I would go through everything that she eats, food, supplements and vitamins, and see how much iron she is eating. Iron is infamous for being constpating.

The reason why they emphasis iron for infants is that dairy products (formula) cause bleeding of the intestines. So if you are not emphasizing dairy in her diet, you shouldn't need mutch iron.

On the other hand, my son had similar issues and I was never able to pinpoint a cause. I did the prune juice thing.

I just read the other day that mineral oil is a petroleum product.

I would put the emphasis on feeding her fresh, raw, whole, vegan foods - not juice or blender but whole foods with lots of raw food fiber to assist peristalsis [www.merriam-webster.com]

Here's a link to an interesting article: [en.wikipedia.org]
Cooking food causes a major change in food fiber. Take a look at a carrot for example. When cooked you can mash a carrot easily between the tongs of a fork but in its raw form you will bend the fork before you get it to go through the tongs. The raw food fiber gives the peristalsis something it can "grab" to move it through the intestines but the cooked fiber is just mush and will not "grab" well.

A word of caution here. If she is not used to getting whole raw food fiber in her diet it may cause her discomfort so make changes slowly to let her adjust. Also check with your Doctor to get advise and help before making any changes in her diet or lifestyle.

Loeve,

I will try to blend the rind of melon and have her take it but she is so picky about what she drinks. I make and drink fruit smoothies all the time and she won't touch them! She has never had coconut, but I will definitely give that a try.

de wey,

That is exactly her problem, the association of pain with having a bm. Its such a vicious cycle! I'll try watering down the prune juice to see if that helps. I've tried grapes and she won't eat them, but I'll try again!

fruitgirl,

Thanks for the tips. Jada won't eat plums straight up so I will try to puree them and freeze them into popsicles. Great idea!

Joanne81,

That article is exactly my daughter Jada, except she is still in diapers so the part about having her sit on the toiler isn't an option. I know all about the downsides of Mineral Oil and that's why I have just recently started giving it to her. Everyone around me kept telling me to give it to her but I didn't want to give her a petroleum product. It figures that now she is taking it, its the only thing that works!

pakd4fun

I was thinking that I may have to put her on another food elimination diet again so I think I'll probably go this route. I'm really not up on the raw food diets, so can you explain to me what Green Smoothies are and how to make them? I asked my Naturopath about them a while ago and she said Jada was too little for them. Also, what is sprouted bread? We currently eat Country Harvest 12 Grain bread. [www.countryharvest.com]. Would this be considered that? Its made with 100% whole grains. Can I make sprouted bread in a bread maker myself?

Lillianswan,

She gets very little iron fortified foods. That was one of the things my Naturopath said to me a while back so I've made sure not to give her anything with too much iron added.

EZ rider,

It sounds so easy and I know it is for myself, but she is the pickest eater and doesn't like to eat raw fruits or veggies in their whole form. But I'll keep offering.

Thanks everyone for your advice, I really appreciate it. I'll keep you posted!

Melanie

veggie_mom Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> Loeve,
>
> I will try to blend the rind of melon and have her
> take it but she is so picky about what she drinks.
> I make and drink fruit smoothies all the time and
> she won't touch them! She has never had coconut,
> but I will definitely give that a try.
>

Plain blended rind of melon would be unappealing to me as well.. it would be too thick for a toddler I suppose.. but purees are cooked aren't they? I was trying to think of a whole food with raw fiber made paletable to her.

Green smoothies are blended drinks made with greens and most often with fruits for flavor. They include the fiber and so are thicker then juice. Sometimes they are so thick they are eaten with a spoon.

So blended whole fruits and veggies (eaten with a spoon) might be accepted since she likes purees.. and will have the benefit of whole raw fiber. Just a thought..

btw, to blend whole fruits and veggies to a pureed consistency takes a powerful blender.

I didn't know that puree is considered to be cooked fruits/veggies. In my mind its just blended fruits/veggies and yes I have a very powerful blender and food processor. Its really hit or miss with her with what she will eat on a particular day. With regards to the blended rind, do I blend all of it, even the really hard bottom skin or just the layer immediately under the actual flesh?

With regards to the green smoothies, which greens do I use and how much? Are the ones that are better for this type of thing?



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 08/27/2008 02:20PM by veggie_mom.

"Purées can be made in a blender, or with special implements such as a potato masher, or by forcing the food through a strainer, or simply by crushing the food in a pot. Purées generally must be cooked, either before or after grinding, in order to improve flavour and texture, remove toxic substances, and/or reduce their water content." [en.wikipedia.org]

Purees don't have to be cooked but usually are (canned purees are always cooked). Around here when we say puree we almost always mean uncooked as in Fruitgirl's post.

Blended rind for a toddler might be just a taste of the inner rind to start.. it will thicken and dilute the sweetness of whatever is served.

That's great that you already have a powerful blender.

Someone else on the green smoothy question?.. sorry, for a toddler I just don't know.

hope this helps,
loeve



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 08/27/2008 03:28PM by loeve.

This was happening to a friend's child. All good suggestions provided already, but I wanted to mention her parents took her to an alternative healer/therapist because at 5 years old it was still happening. The parents discovereed the child was in a lot of fear and this was the link to her constipation. She wasn't "letting go" and had a lot of anxiety and fear because her Dad traveled a lot. Once they were made aware of this, they worked with her and knew what to target in addition to diet, etc. After that her bowels moved easily and she never had it again. I think it took about 6 months?

So it could be emotionally/behaviorally based.

Just something to consider.

Edit: Okay, I know you can't take your a toddler to a therapist. But I think the person they consulted with was was a naturopath also. Just wanted to mention this as she could be in fear of something? Or there is something else going on maybe? Babies are pretty sensitive and aware beings.



Edited 2 time(s). Last edit at 08/27/2008 03:34PM by rawangel.

Thanks loeve!

rawangel, I am pretty sure that there is nothing emotionally causing Jada to hold in her bm's, other then the fact that she is associating pain with it from all the painful awful experiences she's had. Our lives are very uneventful with regards to anything out of the ordinary going on. I'm a SAHM and my husband works a regular "9-5" job locally. Jada has never been through anything traumatic at all. But thanks for sharing that with me because I can totally see how something like that could contribute to constipation.

a lot of good suggestions here.

my first instinct would be to cut out all grains, any processed whole grains. my son is 2 1/2, and occasionally has brown rice, but that's it, and when he has gotten wheat or other more processed grains, his normally very easy bowel movements become a little worse. now, granted, this kid has never been constipated in a serious way, nor has he ever felt like holding in his @#$%&. same goes for processed dairy. i'm not vegan, and this board is, but processed dairy really does affect the body in very harsh ways, and i don't allow my son any (though like the wheat, others are always trying to help him out...)

when you cut out the wheat and pasta and breads (sprouted is a great choice), it also changes the tastes. more foods taste better and are more appealing. and by cutting out the more filling foods, appetite often increases along with a stronger taste for variety.

nuts help a lot around here. all the magnesium and other minerals keep stools soft.

date rolls are a great go-to for fiber and sweetness. that's the standard dessert for our family. and on the occasions when he's had four or five of those, man, the next day it's hang out on the potty day.

those are physical solutions, as for the emotional/psychological side of it, it will take time. i'll send out prayers for you both on that!

peace-

Thanks Mama Cass, I really appreciate your advice and your prayers! Would you mind sharing your date roll recipe with me? I would love to try it.

Also what is so bad about eating processed grains? And what constitutes a processed grain. Is whole wheat flour a processed grain. I've always known to stay away from white flour products, but if its whole grain/whole wheat I thought that was good. Jada loves bread products (especially whole wheat pasta and whole wheat crackers) and I literally don't know what I'll feed her if I take them out. She won't eat brown rice and won't eat quinoa. She loves oatmeal but is that considered a processed grain?



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 08/27/2008 06:16PM by veggie_mom.

date rolls-

medjool dates are preferred b/c of their rich caramel flavor- but all dates work- i use my juicer or my food processer- so whatever you like.

1 cup dates diced fine until mushy
pack together into rolls or balls, then roll in coconut
refridgerate and serve

i also do 1 cup dates and 1 cup almonds processed together until 'smooth', re: mushy/sticky, and packed into a cake pan, sliced and served chilled

whole wheat flour is a highly processed grain. if you mill your own whole wheat flour it is only minorly processed. most people used the milled stuff- but b/c of grains' enzyme inhibitors, grains are poorly digested by most of the population. whole grains have the germ intact, and the fats/oils in the germs go rancid, so processed grains have chemicals added to prevent them going bad, plus other chemicals to hide the taste of the chemicals added to prevent going bad. and chemicals to cover the taste of the slightly bad fats. even whole grains, unless fresh and organic, are coated to prevent going bad. think covering tomatoes and cucumbers in was to keep them from rotting too fast, but in greater amounts and more technical. also, all grains have opiates naturally occuring that are intended to make them less palatable to those who would eat them. these opiates work to slow the bowels down. check out the ingredients in some breads- they add indigestible fiber (cotton seed)- to make them less constipating, but the natural behavior of an unsprouted grain is to slow the bowels down considerably.

oatmeal can be raw, or cold-pressed, which is very minimally processed. but wheat and corn especially are usually mass produced and very highly processed to make them palatable to the general public.

it takes a while, but serving veggies instead of pasta and crackers (or flaxseed and veggie crackers, which would serve her bowels much better), eventually gets more nutrients and fiber into a meal.

it takes a little while, but kids will not starve themselves, and if only whole, unprocessed foods are offered, they will eventually eat them. oatmeal can be made into a whole bunch of diverse things, like soaked and then dehydrated oatmeal bars (with dried fruit and nuts). (i fed this to 40 non-raw, non-veggie eaters and they begged for it daily)

soak oatmeal overnight with a touch of lemon or grapefruit juice. 4 cups
strain for 1 hour or as long as desired
add raisins, almonds, walnuts, and cinnamon (a handful of each, or to taste), and 2 tablespoons agave nectar (if desired, honey can also be used)

spread on lightly greased (olive oil is my preference, but any oil works) cookie sheets, thin if you want chunky granola, thick if you want chewy bars
dehydrate at 'warm' with the oven door open for 4-8 hours, or until firm but chewy, or at 250 until crispy.

this is a fiber-rich, slightly sweet, and treat-like food that can be very good for digestion.

peace-

veggie_mom Wrote:

> It sounds so easy and I know it is for myself, but
> she is the pickest eater and doesn't like to eat
> raw fruits or veggies in their whole form. But
> I'll keep offering.

i hear ya melanie. my kids are pretty picky too and they are 9 and 12. the best piece of advice i can give is to keep offering variety. maybe at 2 you can still get her out of it. picky eaters are so hard! i was raised on a farm and learned from the getgo to love all fresh fruits and vegees but hubby was waaaayyyyy picky (he`s getting better) and the biggest mistake i made was not offering alot of variety cuz i was the only one eating it and i felt i was wasting money. bad mistake. my kids now will at least try a bite of stuff but they usually reject it and i hate that.
patty

Thanks Mama Cass for the recipes, I will totally be trying those. And thanks for all the info about grains...I guess I have a lot to learn. I consider myself to be very educated about the benefits & specifics of a vegan diet, but I sure don't know a whole heck of a lot about the benefits of a raw food diet, and especially the specifics on "living" foods. I am starting to realize that I really need to incorporate more raw foods into my family's diet. I love a good research project so its time to start researching all about Raw Food Diets! So if I wanted to make my own sprouted bread, how would I go about doing that?

Patty, I feel the same way about making Jada new things to try...she constantly refuses and it seems like such a waste of both my time and the food. But I don't want to look back a few years from now and regret not making a much bigger effort to get her eating on the right track.

A girl from another natural health board suggested I try this product. What do you all think of this?

[web2.herbdoc.com]

I really appreciate everyone's advice and thank you so much for taking the time to help. Lately I've been feeling so overwhelmed and out of options. I even cry over this issue from time to time. My poor baby is suffering so much but I am determined now more then ever to deal with this once and for all.

Great posts mama cass. Thanks for the info! You two are sooo cute in the pics!!!!

Sprouted grains don't have flour. We eat Ezekial bread in the frozen section at the super market. I have found that gluten free rice crackers digest really well too. Grains were a HUGE part of our diet when my daughter was so sick. We were vegetarians and our diet was based on pasta, bread, cereal, etc. Now when we eat processed grains it feels like I am dragging my feet through knee high water the next day. Now we are eating in a way we never knew existed. We are all super hero healthy also.

Green smoothies are greens and fruits blended together. There are an infinite number of combinations. Our fav is banana and spinach. We don't add anything but water. I know it may not sound appealing but it is really quite fantastic. I was feeding my son them at 18 months.

I hope things are better soon.

How about getting her to stop holding it in somehow?

I know this isn't a kid..but I actually had this problem with my Beagle. Hunting is more fun than going to the bathroom. He'd hold it in and the next morning he'd cry while going and pass a good amount of blood with it from the stool being so hard/fat it would tear his anus. Now he likes to go because he gets a treat afterwards.

Maybe your daughter just needs a reward for motivation to go instead of sucking it in and holding it. She could've just gotten into that habit because she knows it's going to hurt. You must know her "signs" of holding it in and having to go? Watch for those and make her stop whatever it is she's doing until she goes.



Edited 2 time(s). Last edit at 08/28/2008 02:31AM by LikeItOrNot.

> Patty, I feel the same way about making Jada new
> things to try...she constantly refuses and it
> seems like such a waste of both my time and the
> food. But I don't want to look back a few years
> from now and regret not making a much bigger
> effort to get her eating on the right track.

Being all constipated and "toxic" (crap is toxic and supposed to come out, sitting in the colon just releases the toxins back in the system) can be part of her pickiness. Some adults have that problem with "raw foods" and them not tasting good..but most on here will say that their tastes have changed since going raw. I say go for the fruit and don't push the greens so much. A lot of kids don't like greens for whatever reason. I know someone on another forum was doing green smoothies though but resorted to food coloring because just the *green* color was enough to make their kid make a face. lol Get a blender and get her into fruit smoothies and you can "hide" a few leaves of greens in it. Fruit overpowers the taste. Only melons you said? Most kids love straberries, blueberries..what about a strawberries and bannana smoothie? Watermellon and strawberry..etc.

> A girl from another natural health board suggested
> I try this product. What do you all think of
> this?
>
> [web2.herbdoc.com]
> mmerce&osMod=product_info&Itemid=42&products_id=15
> &osCsid=d4fb627e5e176c536df5cb29b9a3f80

Looks good. Dr Schultz has been around for years and is one of the popular brand names.
Barefoot Herbalist might also know stuff to use. He's always using things on kids and babies.. [barefootherbalistmh.com] He's popular on Curezone.com (a whole nother holistic type forum..not a raw food forum)

Flax seeds are great for an effortless BM. The high fiber of flax seed cleans the intestines and improves the ease & volume of bowel elimination. You can ground some flax seeds using a coffee grinder and add that to your baby's diet. I add freshly grounded flax seeds to my green smoothies.

pakd4fun,

Flourless bread! Hmmm, I'll have to check it out. I've seen Ezekiel bread at the store but man is it ever expensive. I'm going to have to try and make my own.

LikeItOrNot,

I've tried and continue to try and get Jada to not hold in her bm. Yes there are signs when she has to go and as soon as I notice I try to encourage her to go and distract her from holding it in. It does help a bit, but maybe I need to start a real reward system with her. I just don't want to create a situation where she is only going #2 because she is going to get something afterwards and then once I stop that she will start holding it in again. But maybe I'm giving her too much credit and she is too little to play that game of only doing something for a reward.

I'm sure that her constipation issues are directly related to how fussy she is with her eating. When she first started solid foods she loved everything and ate lots of fruits, veggies, beans, grains, etc. Once she started getting really constipated around 9-10 months is when her intense fussy eating began. I've noticed especially on days when she has to go she doesn't want to eat anything, probably because she is all bunged up and very uncomfortable. I'm going to try and get to her to drink fruit smoothies first and then I'll add some greens. Thanks for the link about the Barefoot Herbalist, I'll check him out.

Roxeli,

We eat lots of ground flax seeds here and I use them all the time in my smoothies and for baking. I'll try to up her intake of them and see if that helps.

veggie_mom Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> Thanks loeve!
>
> rawangel, I am pretty sure that there is nothing
> emotionally causing Jada to hold in her bm's,
> other then the fact that she is associating pain
> with it from all the painful awful experiences
> she's had. Our lives are very uneventful with
> regards to anything out of the ordinary going on.
> I'm a SAHM and my husband works a regular "9-5"
> job locally. Jada has never been through anything
> traumatic at all. But thanks for sharing that
> with me because I can totally see how something
> like that could contribute to constipation.

I understand veggie mom. I believe most illnesses begin with an emotional core. It may not be on the same level as an older child or adult. But we pick up stuff in the womb as evidenced by people having regressive therapy to heal themselves of their birth process. For example, if a child's mom or anyone around them is experiencing anything during her pregnancy, the child in the womb picks that up. Including joy and happiness too. I'm not suggesting it has to be a traumatic event or even negative. But there must be a reason she's not @#$%& and I'm sure you'll figure it out, whether it's physical or otherwise. I could be wrong, but just thought I'd bring it up as it's been studied. Louise Hay's work comes to mind. Anyway, I understand your beliefs and of course you know your child!

Bottomline, I hope you both find relief and peace. :-)

Blessings.
RawAngel

Thanks RawAngel. The theory makes perfect sense and maybe there is something more that I'm not aware of. I hope to get her back on track before her 2nd birthday in December.

Blessings to you too!

Melanie