Treatment will depend on your child’s symptoms, age, and general health. It will also depend on how severe the condition is.
Treatment may include diet and lifestyle changes, such as:
Diet changes
Often making changes in your child’s diet will help constipation. Help your child to eat more fiber by:
- Adding more fruits and vegetables
- Adding more whole-grain cereals and breads. Check the nutrition labels on food packages for foods that have more fiber.
| Foods | Moderate fiber | High fiber |
| Bread | Whole-wheat bread, granola bread, wheat bran muffins, whole-grain waffles, popcorn | |
| Cereal | Bran cereals, shredded wheat, oatmeal, granola, oat bran | 100% bran cereal |
| Vegetables | Beets, broccoli, Brussels sprouts, cabbage, carrots, corn, green beans, green peas, acorn and butternut squash, spinach, potato with skin, avocado | |
| Fruits | Apples with peel, dates, papayas, mangoes, nectarines, oranges, pears, kiwis, strawberries, applesauce, raspberries, blackberries, raisins | Cooked prunes, dried figs |
| Meat substitutes | Peanut butter, nuts | Baked beans, black-eyed peas, garbanzo beans, lima beans, pinto beans, kidney beans, chili with beans, trail mix |
Other diet changes that may help include:
- Having your child drink more fluids, especially water
- Limiting fast foods and junk foods that are often high in fats. Offer more well-balanced meals and snacks instead.
- Limiting drinks with caffeine, such as soda and tea
- Limiting whole milk as directed by your child’s healthcare provider
It’s also a good idea to have your child eat meals on a regular schedule. Eating a meal will often cause a bowel movement within 30 to 60 minutes. Serve breakfast early. This will give your child time to have a bowel movement at home before rushing off to school.
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