Lactalose for 1 year old?

[kay1981]

My son (1 year old!) isn't so much constipated and poos every day (usually), but struggles to do a poo and even ends being sick as a result of too much pushing. Can I give him lactalose to help soften the poo as therefore make it easier for him?

Has anyone else tried it or anything similar?

Thanks

What does it say on the bottle?
I would be cautious and double check the age recomendation on it.

Go to gp.

Sorry, to add, i just dhopped up prunes in juice and added half a tea spoon to his brecky every morning, mixed it in. It worked well.

would be better without meds if you can manage
lots of fluid to soften and fruit veg, prunes, prune juice, fresh orange juice etc

Lactulose is suitable for one year old - check bottle for doses.
Is he getting enough fluids , dates are always a great option to help constipation - nice and sweet esp if stewed with apples or the like.

my dr prescribed it for my dd when she was 9mo, now he has changed her to movicol though good luck!

Yes both my ds 10 months and dd 2.5yo have had this.
I give dd wheatabix for bfast with greek yogurt and fruit(whatever you have to hand) I have given ds & dd lactalose with no ill effects.
I have now upped the soft fruit intake and also give them moderate treats that has also helped.
Neither one seem to strain as much anymore.

Its awful when you see tyhem straining so much.

Yes thanks arbs, it is awful. He has weetabix for breakfast and has a good fluid intake, though not much fruit tbh, not a fruit lover!! I do try my best though.

Thanks everyone - i mite try a spoon a see how we get on.

xx

It takes a few days to start working. It works by pulling more water into the bowel and thereby softening the stool. Is is not absorbed by the body at all and passes straight through.

Hi sorry to butt in, my friend is a dietitian and she says that if a baby or young child is already constipated and having things like weetabix yu should reduce the amount they have as they might be getting too much fibre for thier systems to handle at this age.

Thanks wildwoman, I appreciate what you're saying but he was straining before I gave him weetabix, so i tended not to connect the two. It's worth a thought though and I will try it.

Also lilredwg, if it works by pulling more water into the bowel, does he need more drinks during the day and is there a risk of dehydration?

Thanks guys
x

Constpation in your kids is awful, I felt completely helpless when dd2 hadit for a while. I hope it gets easier for your ds soon.

DS1 was prone to constipation and my golden rules were (and I'm very aware this sounds a bit preachy):

No junk drinks of any sort. Milk, water or diluted pure fruit juice.

Absolutlely no white bread or processed food (biscuits,baked beans fine, but none of that smiley face, nugget, pizza crap).

Pasta (white OK) ALWAYS served with veg or a home-made tomato sauce.

Snack times always started with sliced fruit, biscuit if he's still hungry. If he turns his nose up at fruit, then it's nothing.

On a w/e, however, where we tend to have pretty junky snacks, it still leaves poor DS with a rock hard poo on Sunday, but he seems to pop it out with no bother .

Constipation in kids is too little fluid, too much junk.

Yeah thinking you guys mite be rite about the fluid intake, I will try to give him more drinks and see if that helps.

You don't have to use cooled boiled water now do you? For a 1 year old I mean? Tap water is ok?

Aww cheers guys
xx

tap water absolutely fine from, I think, 6 months? Let's face it, they're probably picking up all sorts from the floor at that age!

You can prune juice concentrate from health shops and dilute it 50%. You can also cook and puree prunes and mix a small amount in with his porridge/weetabix. This is what I did as an emergency measure with DS1 until I got his diet sorted out.

Lactulose was given to DD1 from 6mths old. She was taking 2.5mls twice a day. However I would agree that diet is the best way to manage constipation if possible. Lots of fluid and cutting out any greasy foods at all. Fruit and veg obviously and I also make sure DD1 has a drink of pure juice every day.

Don't know if this was mentioned, but not too many bananas as they tend to make you more constipated