Baby Not Pooping: When Should You Worry?

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If your baby is not pooping as easily as you she should, you may be one of many parents who are anxious about watching their newborn suffering from constipation. This can leave you feeling helpless, but unfortunately, you just have to let nature take its course. However, there are a few things that can help your baby go through it or avoid experiencing difficulty in passing stools in the future.
Baby Not Pooping---When Should You Worry?
Babies move their bowels in different patterns – there is no such thing as a normal schedule or number of bowel movements for all babies. This means that what is normal for other babies may not be the same as your baby's bowel habits. Some babies pass stools after feeding while others may move their bowels the next day. Different factors may affect the frequency of her bowel movements, such as the kind of food and drinks she takes, the amount of activity she does, and the rate she digests food and eliminates it. You will be able to tell what is the normal pattern of your baby as time passes and you get more practice as a parent.
You can tell if your baby is constipated if she passes stools less frequently than usual and is uncomfortable when she tries to move her bowels. She may have difficulty passing dry, hard stools when she is constipated. However, having watery stools is sometimes a sign of constipation when the fluid in the upper portion of the intestine slips past the hard stools blocking the large intestine.
How Often Should a Breastfed Baby Poop?
A newborn baby usually passes out stools after every feeding during its first few weeks. The frequency and type of bowel movements may indicate if she is getting sufficient feedings.
A few days after her birth (meconium phase), your baby passes o...

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...s old, try giving prune juice diluted in water. Other natural laxatives include flax oil, which contains omega-3 fatty acids. Add a teaspoon of flax oil to just one bottle of milk once daily. Use one tablespoon daily for toddlers.
Watch a video for more: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=22026spXT28
Summary
Every baby has different patterns of bowel movements but parents often worry about their baby not pooping. A baby may be constipated if she strains while passing hard and dry stools, which may be relieved with a few helpful tips.

Works Cited

http://www.babycenter.com/0_constipation_79.bc http://www.babycenter.com/404_how-many-times-a-day-does-a-breastfed-baby-normally-poop_8832.bc http://www.babycenter.com/404_what-are-normal-bowel-movements-for-formula-fed-babies_1334497.bc
http://www.parenting.com/article/my-baby-goes-a-long-time-without-pooping--what-do-i-do

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