Tips for Overcoming Constipation in Babies and Children Safely

Constipation is one of the common digestive disorders and often occurs in infants and children. Even so, Friends of Hermina still have to be aware of this condition, because constipation often has a serious impact on children, especially if the little one is less than three years old. Therefore, it is very important for you to know how to deal with constipation in infants and children. So, how to solve it? Check out the following review.

Causes of Constipation

1. The transition from breast milk to solid food

When entering 6 months, babies can be introduced to complementary foods (MPASI). The process of transitioning the texture from breast milk to solid food makes the baby's digestive system have to adapt from previously consuming liquids to solid foods. So, it is natural that your little one will be more likely to experience mild constipation problems. In addition, the provision of MPASI which is low in fiber and the processing process is carried out more than twice can also be a factor that causes your little one to get constipated easily.

2. Formula feeding

Keep in mind, babies who are exclusively breastfed are very rare to experience constipation problems. This is because breast milk has balanced nutrition, so it can still produce soft stools even though he hasn't had a bowel movement for several days. In contrast, babies who are fed formula (sufor) are more likely to experience constipation. The reason is that the nutritional composition in formula is different from that in breast milk, making it difficult for the digestive system to digest. Not only that, this difference in composition also causes your little one's stool to become harder and harder to expel.

3. Lack of fluids
The next cause of constipation in infants and children is due to lack of fluids (dehydration). Conditions like this should not be allowed to drag on because it will make your baby's stool dry and hard so that it is difficult to expel and can cause pain during defecation and even bleed during defecation. There are several factors that make your little one dehydrated due to lack of fluid intake, such as teething, mouth sores, colds, throat infections, and ear infections. If you find these factors, you should immediately consult a pediatrician to get the right treatment. Lack of fluids is the main factor causing constipation in children so parents need to ensure adequate fluid intake for children every day.

4. Certain medical conditions
Causes of constipation in infants can also be caused by certain medical conditions, such as hypothyroidism, food allergies, celiac disease, to food poisoning. Meanwhile, in rarer cases, constipation in infants can also be caused by Hirschsprung's disease. Hirschsprung's disease itself is a peristaltic disorder / bowel movement caused by the absence of ganglion cells in the intestine from birth. As a result, the process of excreting feces is disrupted so that feces are trapped and pile up in the large intestine. Usually, this disease has given signs and symptoms since the first week after birth.

Constipation Signs & Symptoms
The first way that Friends of Hermina can do to find out whether your little one is constipated or not is to observe the bowel cycle (BAB). By observing her defecation cycle, Sahabat Hermina immediately detects as early as possible if an unusual condition occurs. However, it should also be noted that bowel habits in infants are influenced by various things, such as eating and drinking patterns, activities, and how quickly the baby's body digests the incoming food and drink.

The signs and symptoms that indicate babies and children are constipated are:

1. Stool that is passed is small and hard
2. Stool consistency like clay
3. Baby pushes too long or cries when defecating
4. There are red streaks in the stool
5. Lack of appetite
6. Hard stomach

While in more severe cases, signs and symptoms of constipation in infants include:

• Fever
• Vomit
• Lose weight
• There is a lump in the anus

If you find signs or symptoms as mentioned above, you should immediately check your little one to the doctor to get the right treatment. Because if left too long will cause other more serious problems in the digestive tract.

Tips for Overcoming Constipation in Babies and Children

There is no need to rush to give medicine. Hermina's friends can try the following ways to deal with constipation:

1. Pay Attention to Mother's Diet
How to deal with constipation is not only done by the Little One, but also the Mother. Yes, if your baby is still exclusively breastfed, check the food that you are consuming. The reason is, the food you eat every day can affect the quality of breast milk which in turn can trigger constipation in babies. As long as your baby is constipated, it's a good idea to limit or even avoid certain foods, such as cow's milk and its derivatives, coffee, soda, and alcohol. If needed, you can also consult a pediatrician to find out what foods can affect breast milk for your little one.

2. Sufficient Fluid Intake for Your Little One
In general, babies do not need additional fluids because their own food intake is breast milk which is in liquid form. However, for babies who have constipation problems, make sure the mother meets her fluid needs so that the digestive process can run more optimally. If your little one is not yet 6 months old, you can give more exclusive breast milk to help meet his fluid needs. This can be done by giving breast milk more often than usual. Meanwhile, if she is over 6 months old, you can add fluid intake from several other sources, such as soup, water, and fruit or vegetables that contain a lot of water and have been mashed.

3. Doing a Gentle Massage on the Child's Stomach
One way to deal with constipation in children is by massage. In babies, if he seems to have difficulty passing bowel movements, then you can help his bowel movements by doing a gentle massage on his stomach. Do a circular massage from the lower right abdomen to the lower left, past the top of the stomach. This movement corresponds to the anatomy of the large intestine.

4. Teach Children to Regularly BAB
To overcome constipation in children, you can do it by teaching him to regularly defecate. For example, every morning. That way, the sensation or desire to defecate will occur at the appointed time. This habit will make it easier for children to defecate and avoid the fear of defecating in the school toilet. Constipation is common, especially in babies who start eating solid foods. Mothers can start trying some of the ways above to deal with baby constipation. However, if constipation still doesn't subside for more than 4 days, bleeds during bowel movements, or your little one doesn't want to eat, immediately consult a doctor at RSU Hermina Pandanaran.