Constipation in kids.
I remember when it happened the first time for Kai while I was breastfeeding happened only once but it was alarming for me as first time mum. My regular boy all sudden without bowel movements for 3 days. As he was Calc Carb baby he was quite comfortable with that no pains or any signs of discomfort. As we started to use his constitutional remedy it didn’t return.
Constipation in the breastfed babies is rare but sometimes happens. We have to look at constipation not by looking at how many stools baby had but from the perspective if the stools are hard and painful or difficult to pass.
It happens more often when babies are starting to eat solids. Some food like wheat, bananas which are not ripe( are starchy) can slow digestion in babies and cause constipation.
Constipation can be painful and make kids are very miserable but there are a few things we can do help them.
Massage tummy gentle, if the baby looks like straining when passing stool.
Give baby prune juice. Use organic prunes pour boiling water and soak it overnight and give it to your baby.
Make sure baby is hydrated, especially during summer, some babies are more thirsty than others.
If the baby is constipated cut out the solids let their digestive system recover a bit.
Use some soothing balm like calendula ointment around the anus for babies which pass large stools to avoid tearing.
Try to not use any food from aluminium cans or food cooked on aluminium pots as some children are sensitive to aluminium which cause constipation.
Homeopathic remedies for constipation:
Alumina: Alumina is a great remedy for constipation for children, infants, bottlefeed babies and elderly people. The characteristic of this remedy is that there is nor urge to pass the stool for days. Also, the stool is sticky and needs kilometres of toilet paper.
Craving of Alumina child: rice, dry food, potatoes and it is worse for all scratch food.
Children may have a reaction to meals being cooked in Aluminum pots.
Characteristics of stool: hard, dry and knotty and inflamed sore and inflamed.
Bryonia: Tongue white coated. The child wants to be alone and it is irritable and wants to be as still as possible. Wants to rest in a dark room, with fresh air and it thirsty for big amounts of cold water. Characteristics of stool: large, hard, dry, dark as if burnt, stool difficult to pass due to diminished intestinal secretions and poor muscles tone.
Calcarea Carbonica- Interesting thing about this remedy as mentioned in the beginning that kids who need Calc Carb feel comfortable being constipated. Children who need this remedy are chubby with a great appetite who smell sour they sweat, vomit and stool. They don’t have a stool for days and then they have a massive hard stool. They crave eggs, carbohydrates, ice cream and salt and ice drinks. They may dislike milk and milk products or be allergic to it which may lead to constipation.
Nux Vomica- another great remedy for constipation. There is the constant ineffectual urge to pass stool with a feeling of being finished. The cause of constipation can be overindulging in the food, medicinal drugs or prolonged stress. In the case of adults hooked on laxatives, it is a great remedy to break the habit. A child may feel need to loosen the pants around the waist. Along with constipation, there may be symptoms like nausea and vomiting better after vomiting, heartburn, bloating, gas and headache. Nux Vomica acts the best when mind and body are at rest so take it before going to sleep.
If you need a repetitive dose of this remedy you are relieving systems not curing the cause and you will benefit from constitutional prescribing.
Sepia is similar to Nux Vomica in ineffectual urging stool is soft and require great effort from child to expel. The child may complain of feeling like there is a ball in the rectum. Milk products aggravate these children causing constipation and nasal congestion.
Silicea- children have “bashful stool” that start out and come back. This is due to the insufficient power of the rectum and spasmodic condition of the sphincter muscle that surrounds and contract the anus. There is soreness of the anus. The child is chilly averse to cold but craves cold food and drinks and dislike warm foods. The child may want to eat ingestible food like dirt or chalk.
Sulphur - difficult to pass stool due to fissure, as well as ineffectual urging with burning in the anus, where constipation alternate with diarrhoea.
Stool characteristic: hard, dark and dry, a tendency to hemorrhoids.
Homeopathy is wonderful to aid constipation if your child or you suffer from chronic constipation book for constitutional consultation to find the right remedy.
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Disclaimer: This blog and the information provided is for informational purposes only.
