Constipation in Children

What is constipation?

Constipation is when a child has very hard stools, and has fewer bowel movements than he or she normally does. It is a very common GI (gastrointestinal) problem.

Signs that a child has constipation include:

• Having fewer bowel movements than normal. Constipation is often defined as having fewer than 3 bowel movements a week. The number of bowel movements may be different for each child. But a change in what is normal for your child may mean there is a problem.
• Passing stool that is hard and sometimes large
• Having bowel movements that are difficult or painful to push out