Foods to Avoid When Children Are Constipated

Medical Video: Constipation in Children: Understanding and Treating This Common Problem

Toddler children often experience constipation or constipation. This causes the child to feel uncomfortable and may reduce children's appetite. Constipation occurs when the child defecates less than three times a week, and also stools the child hard, dry, and bigger.

Constipation in children is usually caused by food intake of children who lack fiber, lack of fluids, drink too much milk and rarely drink water, and can also be caused by lack of physical activity or habits of children who often resist defecation because children are afraid of defecation.

Constipation that is not immediately treated can make it worse. Therefore, if your child is constipated, you should give care, starting with the food intake.

Foods that should be given to constipated children

The main cause of constipation is usually lack of fiber. So that consumption of fibrous foods is highly recommended in children with constipation. The following are foods that should be given to children when constipated.

Fiber foods

Fibrous foods can help your child when constipated because fiber is not digested by the body and can also absorb water to facilitate bowel movements to get rid of leftover food. Fiber foods can be found in vegetables, fruits, nuts, and other fibrous carbohydrates, such as wheat. Some examples are:

Vegetables: green vegetables, such as broccoli, spinach and turnip greens, yams, potatoes.
Fruits: apples, pears, kiwi, apricots, mangoes, berries (strawberry, raspberry, blueberry, blackberry).
Nuts: green beans, kidney beans, almonds, walnuts.
High fibrous carbohydrates: whole wheat bread, brown rice, black rice, oatmeal, quinoa.

Being constipated or not constipated, you should meet your child's fiber needs to facilitate digestion. The American Dietetic Association recommends fiber intake per day of 20-35 grams, from water soluble and water insoluble types.

Many drink

Drinking, especially drinking lots of water can help cure constipation in your child. Water is needed to facilitate the digestion and movement of your child's intestines. Water is also needed to make feces more volume and soft, making it easier to remove. Encourage children to drink water at least 8-10 glasses a day. Water can also make a child's body healthier.

You can also give your child fruit juice, besides containing water also containing fiber. However, limit the consumption of juice as much as ½ or ¾ cup only per day so that your child is protected from cavities or disruption of appetite.

In addition to helping to defecate, you should also encourage your child to do more activities, such as walking. This can help blood flow smoothly to all organs in the child's body. If the child is afraid to defecate so he holds it back, it is best to teach him to use the toilet slowly until he is ready and able to use it himself, do not force the child. Accompany, help, and teach children to use the toilet patiently, scolding children can actually make children more afraid.

Foods that should be avoided in children with constipation

If the child needs fiber to release bowel movements, the foods that should be avoided when constipation are those that contain little fiber or which do not contain fiber at all, such as:

Chips, biscuits, wafers and other snacks
Food fast food which contains lots of fat
Processed foods, such as sausages, meatballs, pizza, and others
Meat

Foods that contain lots of oil and fat, such as french fries, fried chicken, donuts, and others like those in restaurants fast food tends to make your child's digestion move more slowly, so that it can cause constipation. It is better to give children food that is cooked by steaming or boiling when the child is constipated.

It is also best not to provide foods that have binding effects, such as bananas, cooked carrots, milk and dairy products, such as cheese, yogurt and ice cream. High fat content and lower fiber in milk and milk products make bowel movements in your child not smooth. However, you can still give milk to your child, but it should be limited to just 2 cups per day.

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