I have a 4 week old baby, he is constipated. What do I do? Should I give him some water? Please help!?

Question

I started out breast feeding him, but he was so small at birth that my Ped. wanted us to give him formula to make sure he was getting enough food. We then started formula and it has made him constipated and he usually gets one stool a day. What do I do to help him?

Answer 1

If he is having one stool a day and his belly isn't hard and he's not screaming, don't worry about it. However, if it has been several days since he went poo, try mixing 1 - 2 TBSP of Apple Juice (100% pure apple juice) in with one of the formula feedings. This should help losen things up.

Answer 2

are you using formula with Iron? Talk to your Ped. if so the iron may be too much for him. If he is screaming you can give him a bottle with water only for awhile.If that still doesn't help you can add a tsp. of light Karo syrup. ( I had to do this once when my son was small. I did check with the ped. nurse first and she said it was fine, but this is your child so you may want to check also) Fruit juices aren't good for a baby as young as yours( ex. apple juice too much sugar) As your baby gets older his bowel movements may change some. It is ok for him not to go everyday. But if he is screaming, tummy hard then try the above. My son couldn't handle the iron formula. Good luck


I just read over some of the other comments. Please do not feel bad about giving your baby formula. You have done nothing wrong. It is your and your doctors choice. I nursed my son until he was 4months. He winged himself off way before I was ready. I nursed my daughter until she was just over 2yrs old because she has sever food allergies. Please DO NOT give your baby suppositories unless your doctor is involved! I totally understand that you maybe nervous and worried about your baby but he will be fine. We have all been there. Just keep as calm as you can because your son can sense when you are upset. Good luck. You can email me if you want. I am not an expert just a mom who has been there. My kids are 14 and 12 (next week)

Answer 3

My daughter would go almost a whole week without a bowel movement. At about a month their bowels change and they no longer go as often as they did when they were younger. Formula does block them up a little bit. I did have to go to Gentlease Enfamil to help with that. Does your son seem uncomfortable? When was his last bowel movement? If it is longer than 3 days then you should contact your doctor (but mine didn't do much but tell me to put in one teaspoon of corn syrup to a 2-3 oz of water (ask your doctor first before you do this.) Massage helped my child a lot ...it was amazing. Rub your little boy's tummy in a counter clock motion (the way the intestines move.) I also took my daughter's legs and moved them like she was riding a bicycle.

It sounds like your little one was a preemie...so was mine. For some reason, her digestive system was a little off because of it and would have such horrible constipation, there wasn't much more than I could do. When we would go as long as a week without a bm, she would just scream and scream and there was hardly anything I could do to console her.

There also was an adjustment for my daughter to formula that took about a week or two for her stomach to get used to it. All my friends who have had their babies on formula also had this one to two week time of constipation. Good luck. My daughter was weighing enough so I was able to go back to breastfeeding and now she's almost exclusively breastfed (I tell you this because I was worried that formula feeding would ruin my chance to breastfed my daughter.) Good luck, e-mail me if you need to talk.

Oh, and don't feel bad about having to give your little one formula. Yes breastmilk is the best thing for your loved one, but if they are not gaining weight or thriving, you need to do what is best for the both of you.

Answer 4

One stool a day is fine. He's not constipated. Breastfed babies can go several days without a BM since they don;t have the impurities to dispose of. Formula fed babies usually go once or twice a day. Do not give this baby juice as a previous person suggested. It would upset his stomach, he's not anywhere near ready for juice.

Answer 5

I was told it is not good to give such a young baby any kind of juice or anything sweet,Lie him on his back and hold his feet and move his legs as he would if he were riding a bike and then bend his knees to his stomach,or a warm bath and rub the bottom of his back.

Answer 6

Cooled boiled water with a little bit of brown sugar works, also maybe you need to try a different formula until you find one that agrees with your son, I had to do that with my daughter. Good luck : - )

Answer 7

He is NOT constipated ; it is nORMAL for him to stop pooping for up to 4 days !!! I FREAKED out too because my baby was pooping every day then suddenly every 2nd or 3rd day .... it is NORMAL ......... but sometimes I give him Similac Advanced Plus Iron as it causes him so much gas that the docs said it caused "reflux" .... so I use one 8 oz bottle as a laxative on the third day if he hasn't pooped ...

Answer 8

every couple of changes bring he's knees up towards his chest to help him poop. you woudn't like to poop laying down would you?! you could also put some vaseline on the tip of a rectal thermometer and insert about 3/4" into his anus. don't give him water. if anything put one tablespoon of brown sugar to every 4 ounces of formula. or get some glycerin suppositories and cut in half.

Answer 9

Try some prune juice make sure you dilute it with water. Give the baby 2-3 oz of prune juice with 2-3 oz of water mixed. Trust me prune juice works. My son was always constipated, doc told me to give him apple juice or prune juice diluted with water. It worked, took about 10- 15 mins, but he finally pooped.


Hope this helps.

Answer 10

You can also try a different brand of formula.. Most babies are constipated on forumla...