Many researches showed that the majority of
constipation cases that happen to children dues to children’s incomplete
digestive systems (functional constipation). Constipation makes children lose
appetite, have abdominal pains, puke or crying, and in the long run, it can
lead to malnutrition and slow developments.
Children constipation is a symptom of a
popular digestive disorder with the particularity of an increase of normal
defecations followed by heaviness and pain caused by hard or big poo. Newborns
who have 2 defecations a day; children who are breastfed and have 3 times a
week (once over 2 days); older children who have a defecation over 3 days are
considered to have constipation. You must distinguish children who have
constipation from children who eat little: children who eat little have
defecation each 3-4 days but they have soft poo and slow weight gain.
Constipation
makes children lose appetite.
Factors
·
Eating: children eat less than they’re supposed
to, eat little fiber, eat vegetable broth but don’t eat vegetables, drink milk
which is too thick, drink milk from people who have constipations.
·
Psychology: it often happens to kindergarten
children. That’s due to the fact that children are afraid of asking teacher’s
permission to go to the restroom or afraid of dirty restroom, and in the long
run, their colons will get bigger, which means the poo have to stay remained in
the colon for days before it’s strong enough to stimulate the colon to have
defecations. Their poo is often as big as adult’s, hard and dry.
·
Medicines: When children are sick, they have to
use sulfa drugs that can imbalance colon’s microorganic system, cough drugs
that contains codein or iron pills…
·
Body diseases: children who are weedy and have
malnutrition, which dues to lose appetite often eat little food and have less
poo. Therefore, they have defecation once over few days.
·
Surgical diseases, digestive diseases: birth
defects like the increase in size of colon, bowel exiguity, anal narrowness and
anal crackle.
Drinking
more water can improve the constipation.
Treatments
Though it must be based on the reasons of
diseases to have sensible treatments, regimen is the most important treatment
that should be done first:
·
Drink lots of water
·
Eat green vegetables and ripe fruits: Choose
vegetables that are laxative, such as: sweet potato leaves, Ceylon spinach,
sweet potatoes, papaya, banana, orange and grapefruit. You should help your
children to get used to eating lots of vegetable and ripe fruit when they are
little.
·
Choosing milk that doesn’t cause constipation: The
milk should have fiber supplement. You can also combine the milk with diluted
porridge or smashed sweet potato.
·
Children shouldn’t eat fruits that are tart,
such as: guava, Japanese persimmon, confections, soft drinks and coffee…
·
Constipation treatments for mothers: If mothers
who do breastfeeding have constipation, it’s necessary that the disease be
treated timely. One of the way to do treat constipation is to adjust regimens
of mothers.
·
Increase the amount of actions in abdominal
muscles and anal muscles: To older children, they can run, play sports, do
exercises…. Rub the abdomen on the colon area from right to left for 3-4 times.
The action should be done in the middle of 2 meals. It’s recommended for
children who are under 1 year old.
Exercise
can help children prevent constipation.
·
Defecation: Make children be used to a
defecation schedule: the defecation should be done in a stable time of a day.
·
Some diseases that should be got rid of first:
rickets, malnutrition and anemia.
·
Supporting products: laxative, vitamin C and
probiotics. According to pediatrists, adding healthy bacteria to balance the
intestinal bacteria system plays an important part in preventing popular
digestive in children like: constipation, diarrhea, heaviness….
