Thanks for your comment on our blog. I hope the information was helpful. Two of our 5 children were pretty constipated. There are several different types of constipation believe it or not. If your child has dry and round, rabbit type poop (like my first child did), it most likely is a dryness issue. Even if your baby is breast-fed, he may need additional moisture intake. Something as simple as giving your child a warm bottle of water with a few drops of liquid minerals (aka liquid electrolytes with minerals) after each meal or before each breastfeeding, or when your child asks for a drink. Electrolytes are essential to those that tend to run more dry. If you think of your body like a sponge…it is easy for that sponge to absorb more moisture and stuff when it is wet, versus a dry, hard sponge. Liquid electrolytes “wet your sponge” so to speak and encourage your body to use the water it consumes, whether that is in breast milk or food. Minerals in general are heavy in nature and therefore help to move things down and out in the body. Most health food stores carry a liquid version of both minerals and electrolytes. You will want to taste the medicated water before giving it to your child. It needs to taste slightly sea-waterish, but not overwhelming (or else they won’t drink it:). Supplementing with a quality Cod-Liver oil is also a good thing. My children like the Carlston’s chewable flavored Cod-Liver oil. It is the only way I can get them to take it.

If your child’s BM are not hard or ‘dry’ when they come out, but are still “sluggish” in passing, it most likely indicates a food stagnation issue. There are some simple spices you can add to your child’s meals that will help the digestive system be more effective in elimination. Start by adding these spices to their meals (or even a little bit in water if your baby is not into solid food yet): Turmeric, ginger, cumin (in small quantities) and coriander. All of these spices will help stimulate the child’s digestive system in to better harmony. Avoid pasteurized dairy products, especially cow dairy products, as these will further clog up the child’s digestion. You can look at http://www.realmilk.org for local sources of unpasteurized cow and goat dairy products.

From one mom to another, hang in there. I’ve been there too. It helps to keep a positive outlook about it. As a young child I too was extremely constipated. We grew up poor, so I didn’t have the proper nutrition, nor did I like eating the veggies that were put in front of me. Children are very intuitive and resilient. I’ve learned that as long as I stay positive and don’t feel too concerned or overwhelmed about their health issues, they don’t pick up any negative, worried “vibes” and get through things a lot easier then I ever thought they would. Of course, it took me a while to learn that!

Cheers

Thanks.

Keep up the good work!