Dd 16 :help me improve her health a bit, constipated a lot she keeps getting veruca, on the going cough etc

[LuckbeaLady2]

About 9 months ago she had quite an in depth blood test which did not show anything.
I'm looked and her iron was 2 above low range eg if cut off was 30 she was 32. So since then, sparodically she has been given fluid vit with iron.

Snap shot diet would be salad of watercress /rocket /chicken /lots of salads, stir fry with brocoli, lots of peppers, tomatoes garlic...

Occasional steak, pork eggs.

Yoghurt with fruit and nuts for breakfast on most days or porridge (, sachets) and sparodically home made juice of celery carrot beetroot.

Snapshot.
We don't eat lots of fish at all we do eat crisps and chock

But it's OK.

Why is she getting veruca, we think she had whopping cough and is still residual cough... Much better and not an issue but still coughing...

We've asked for new tests re her on going constipation issues. This came on suddenly last July. And we've got a scan booked re constipation.

Any ideas?

Iron supplements are notorious for causing constipation.
If iron is in the normal range & she's not anemic I'd avoid iron supplements & check that the multi vitamin doesn't contain iron.
Vitamin C helps the body absorb iron so things like oranges, orange juice.
Increase the red meat she eats - good quality meat eg steak, beef minced rather than processed sausages, burgers etc & then increase fibre eg whole grain bread, high fibre breakfast cereals etc.

I wouldn't worry about vurucae if there's only 1 or 2 at a time. They are stubborn to get rid of. If she's got loads eg a dozen on each foot then you need to see a doctor as it could indicate an immune disorder

Is she consuming enough fibre and drinking enough water?

I was suffering with awful constipation, going a week between bowel movements, horrible bloating and spending hours in the night on the loo with unbearable stomach cramps. Increasing fibre intake just made it worse. I started taking a multivitamin with probiotics and drinking 2.5 litres of water per day and it sorted me right out and I haven't had an issue since. It was a last ditch attempt before going to the gp for treatment and I recommend it to everyone now as it genuinely changed my life.

As a bonus I started giving my toddlers a multivitamin at the same time and none of us have been ill in the 3 months since.

Did the blood tests check her thyroid function?
Over 10 years ago my teenage daughter was diagnosed with under active thyroid, I have I too and for me it causes constipation.

A large proportion of teens are iron deficient from time to time, girls even more so. Get some spatone and have her drink it when she menstruates and any other times she thinks it might be needed.

Her diet looks pretty low in whole grains which are great for energy and full of fibre. Brown rice, quinoa, spelt, barley. Can you have her incorporate those into her salads?

Make sure she drinks plenty of water for the constipation too.

@MonkeyToez thanks what probitics please.

@Wishiwas24again no I don't think so but thank you for raising this could be a issue

Re grains etc apparently fibre can act like cement in a bowel like this so we have tried to steer clear eg on movicol sites where parents are constantly having to use it, they advise steering clear of weetabjx, brown bread and so on.

With respect, what is the actual AIBU here?

Verrucas are viral and highly unlikely related to anything else you're talking about.

Is she drinking enough? Dehydration causes constipation.

Should definitely NOT be avoiding fibre.

High fibre only ever an issue if you don't get enough fluids to go with it.

When my gp was advising me ( after I’d tried increasing fibre ) she suggested that I shouldn’t be too concerned about loads of fibre but I guess it depends what the constipation is related to , in my case my thyroid issues

Not suggesting that she is, but if she's vaping she will find it harder to shake a cough.

How much movicol are you giving and how often? Maybe it’s not enough.

💯

For the constipation have you tried prune juice. It's an acquired taste but it works wonders. It never fails for me. A glass of it before eating breakfast or last thing at night. If you don't like the taste just think of it as a type of medicine.

Exercise works for my chronic constipation

It's on going, we've done loads of movicol, 8 sachet to clear, 3 and 4 on going etc it's been a year. We don't use it every week but I don't understand why this suddenly becomes a issue last year and it's never ending.

I've given her prunes and watery fruit on the yogurt etc but nothing clears it.

Might be worth getting her thyroid checked , I’ve only been diagnosed recently ( obviously I’m a lot older ) but I’ve been constipated for months and none of the usual stuff helped , I eat tonnes of beetroot because I enjoy it but that doesn’t help and whilst Laxido helps it’s not a long term solution, think mine is improving with increased thyroid drugs but I realise I could be sending in the wrong direction completely, hope you get some help soon

I take the Boots A-Z multivitamin + live friendly bacteria

A 2.2L water bottle is great for keeping up with water intake too, I used to forget to drink but I only have to fill it up once a day and it goes everywhere around the house with me until I finish it.

You probably need to be giving her a daily maintenance dose of Movicol. My daughter has 2 sachets a day to keep it at bay

What does SHE think about it all?

What are her exercise and water levels like?

It sounds like she has a healthy diet. Bouts of low iron are very common and not concerning in women of menstruating age. Verrucas are stubborn once you have them!

Is she drinking plenty of fluid? Does she drink much caffeine as that is dehydrating.

@YOYOK no not really the odd cup of tea that's all.
She probably does need to move more
! And up her water.

@MonkeyToez I've got her some tablet probitics thanks for that tip

Yes my daughter was told it was immune dysfunction due to recurring tonsillitis. Her stubborn verruca just would not go for years! The podiatrist gave her strong salicylic acid and aggravated it with needles. Basically the immune could not see the wart virus lurking but the needling did provoke a response and it went plus the sal.acid burnt it away. Iron tablets will give dd worse constipation so best to treat with diet & I think iron requires vitamin c for absorption. Avoid tea as tannins destroy iron. My dd also had constipation & we gave her figs, apples, dates , prunes, psyllium husk and lots of water. Good luck op

Look at her diet & lifestyle. She probably needs to exercise more & drink lots of water. Nothing you’re describing is particularly unusual though.