What to do if your child has severe constipation

Many parents are very distressed because their children have the habit of frequent constipation, which brings great problems to their children's growth and development. What should they do if their children have severe constipation? Parents should pay attention that the cause of children's constipation should be clarified first, and then the child's eating habits should be improved, and the child should be trained to have regular bowel movements every day, or the child should be given daily massage treatment. If the condition is too serious, topical medications can also be used.

1. What to do if your baby is severely constipated

1. Massage

Place your palm flat on the baby's navel with your palm facing down, and gently push and rub in a clockwise direction. This can not only speed up the baby's intestinal peristalsis and promote defecation, but also help digestion.

2. Glycerol suppository method

Wash your hands, then open the wrapping paper of the conical glycerin suppository, slowly insert it into the baby's anus, and then gently press the anus. Try to wait as long as possible to allow the glycerin suppository to fully melt before defecation.

3. Soap bar method

Wash your hands and cut the soap into a conical soap bar about 3 cm long and as thick as a pencil. First moisten the soap bar with a little water and then slowly insert it into the baby's anus. Also try to let the soap bar stay in the anus for a while to fully stimulate the peristalsis.

2. Lifestyle adjustment for baby constipation

1. Eat more fruits and vegetables

Traditional Chinese medicine believes that the reason why babies are constipated is that their constitution is dry and hot. Therefore, children with constipation can eat more melon fruits, such as watermelon, cantaloupe, Hami melon, etc., to eliminate the heat in their bodies. If your child doesn’t like the taste of this type of fruit, you can sprinkle some condensed milk, yogurt or ice cream on the fruit so that the rich sweet milk flavor can cover the melon flavor. In addition, parents should often cook some mung bean and coix seed porridge for their children, which can also help relieve fever and promote bowel movements.

2. Exercise appropriately

Usually, parents should encourage their children to participate in more sports. Because exercise can increase intestinal motility and promote defecation. Parents can also gently massage their children's abdomen in a clockwise direction with their navel as the center before they go to bed. This will not only promote their children's intestinal peristalsis, but also help them fall asleep. In addition, gently pressing the following two acupoints one hour after the child eats can also promote bowel movements.

Zusanli Point: This point is located 3 inches below the lower edge of the patella and 1 inch on the outer side of the tibia. You can press continuously for 1 to 2 minutes.

Zhigou Point: This point is located 3 inches above the transverse line on the back of the wrist, between the ulna and radius. Can be pressed continuously for 1-2 minutes

3. Develop good bowel habits

Not having a bowel movement on time is one of the reasons why many babies suffer from constipation. For children aged 3 to 7, their abdominal and pelvic muscles are still in the development stage, and the defecation reflex function is not yet mature. They don't know yet that they should go to the toilet when they feel the urge to defecate, and often need their parents to remind them. Therefore, parents can set one hour after breakfast as the fixed bowel movement time for their children. At the beginning, parents can accompany their children during bowel movements for about 10 minutes each time, and gradually help their children develop the habit of going to the toilet on time. Before going to the toilet, you can give your child a glass of juice or warm honey water to moisten the intestines.

4. Eat small meals frequently and choose high-quality snacks carefully

Although children have a small stomach capacity and cannot eat too much food at a time, they are energetic and active, so they need to be supplemented with food almost every 3 to 4 hours. Therefore, children's diet should adhere to small and frequent meals. Parents can divide their children's daily nutritional needs into three main meals and two side meals.

As for side dishes, you can choose some nutritious foods, such as white fungus, almonds, honey, etc. These foods not only contain high-quality protein and lipids, but also have the effect of softening stools and lubricating the intestines. They are the best source of energy for children. Parents can boil white fungus until it is soft, then chop it into pieces to make a sweet soup for their children; they can also grind almonds, add some oats and raisins, and mix it with water for their children to drink; or they can pour honey on fruits or cakes for their children to eat.

5. Cleverly supplement fiber

If your child usually hates eating vegetables and fruits, it will also cause constipation in your baby. You can let them eat more foods such as black fungus, king oyster mushroom, seaweed, kelp, dried fruits, etc. to increase their fiber intake and promote bowel movements.

Mothers will be extremely anxious when their children suffer from severe constipation. Children's bodies are very delicate, so it is best not to use medication. If you want to relieve your child's severe constipation, you can follow the methods described in this article to actively regulate your child. In fact, as long as the appropriate measures are taken, children's constipation can be relieved quickly.