Constipation in children and infants is a common problem, often causing discomfort and distress. It is characterized by irregular (three or fewer) bowel movements in a week, or painful bowel movements.
Their poo may be like lots of hard marbles, or surprisingly large lumps of poo. Sometimes children have difficulty, pushing hard to poo, but nothing comes out. In young children a large hard poo can cause a blockage and sometimes when they are straining some watery poo can leak around it and come out, resulting in pooing their pants.
NHS Information
https://www.nhs.uk/conditions/baby/health/constipation-in-children
Causes of Constipation in Children and Babies
In infants, constipation may occur when changing over from breast milk to formula or solid foods.
In older children, dietary changes, and also dehydration, and toilet training challenges can contribute to irregular bowel movements. Things like worrying about going to the toilet, changes in daily routine, or even stress can cause such problem, or make them worse.
Certain medical conditions can also lead to chronic constipation.
Treating Constipation in Children & Babies
There are different treatments depending on the child’s age and the cause. For infants, offering small amounts of water or fruit juice (such as prune or pear juice) can help soften stools. A gentle tummy massage and bicycle leg movements may also encourage bowel movements. If the baby has started eating solids, it can be helpful to introduce high-fibre foods like pureed prunes, pears, and peas.
For older children, increasing dietary fibre intake with fruits, vegetables, whole grains, and legumes, along with adequate water intake, will help to make bowel movements more normal and regular. Encouraging physical activity and establishing a regular toilet routine can also be helpful.
Take your Baby or Child to see a Doctor
If you think your baby or child is constipated then take them to a doctor who may wish to examine them. Don’t leave it, especially if they are in pain, or blood in the poo, or vomiting or weight loss.
Also see a doctor if there are signs of watery poo in the pants, which can surprise parents when they think their child is constipated.
The doctor may recommend or prescribe a treatment.
Some children seem to get constipation more so than others so their parents should give extra thought to their diet and planning to include more fibre. There is lots of dietary advice on this on the above NHS link website.