Re: [ozmidwifery] constipated baby

[Melissah & Scott @ Spilt Art]

None taken :)   I totally agree with everything you have said. It is very inportant to find the cause and treat that rather than just jump strieght in and treat the sypmtom. Im all for holistic treatment first then contimuing it throughout any other treatment you may have to employ. There is so much more to it than the physical isnt there. Melissah www.Splitart.com ----- Original Message ----- From: Melinda Whyman To: [EMAIL PROTECTED] Sent: Monday, March 29, 2004 4:37 PM Subject: Re: [ozmidwifery] constipated baby Hi Melissah   No criticism intended :-)   I completely agree with your comment about finding the best way for each child....this is why I suggested the homoeopathic path - as its a fabulous discipline which aims to do just that - get to the core of each individual case - taking all symptoms into account incl. such things as allergies etc.   I agree with you - Eli did have a difficult start due to his allergies and yes this would most certainly be playing a part in his present state of health. However the allergies are also a part of the "big" picture.....it really is very hard to know what really is the causative factor in a lot of these digestive based problems...a kind of chicken and egg scenario...which is why it is so often much easier as a practitioner(and parent!) to step back and look at the health of the child/adult in a holistic fashion.   My comments about those more carthartic means of getting kids to poo - are very much stemming from my own professional training and clinical experience. I don't proclaim to have the answers for every sick baby/child I cross paths with - I only wish I did - it would make the world a much happier place for a LOT of parents :)   Even in light of this need to take an individual approach - I would still very much caution against using anything laxative-wise with babies and small children. Even though they are herbal based the potential of their active constitutents should not be underestimated.   Melinda Whyman   NATURAL PARENTING MELBOURNE www.naturalparenting.com.au/npm/ ~Parenting Naturally - Respecting our children and our Earth~ Phone: +61 3 9756 0464 ----- Original Message ----- From: Melissah & Scott @ Spilt Art To: [EMAIL PROTECTED] Sent: Monday, March 29, 2004 3:59 PM Subject: Re: [ozmidwifery] constipated baby Surley when all these things have been tried and failed to bring a result one should look into other options though? I have tried everything to help Eli before resorting to a more "medical" way of fixing his problem.   In my personal experience, Eli has had allergies to food which gave him a bad start and caused these troubles with his bowels, now that the allergies are undercontrol (and have been for some time) I thought the rest would fix its self with a gentle natural push. But the problem is kind of "left over" from his earlier problems. I realise this isnt the case with all childern/babies, as every case is individual. www.Splitart.com ----- Original Message ----- From: Melinda Whyman To: [EMAIL PROTECTED] Sent: Monday, March 29, 2004 2:36 PM Subject: Re: [ozmidwifery] constipated baby Interested to know if any of you have tried Classical Homoeopathy for the treatment of these constipated little ones.   Being trained in this discipline I am very much of the belief that we need to take a holistic view of these things and whilst its the bowel that seems to presenting the difficulty - IMO - the imbalance is usually stemming from a deeper, more constitutional level.....which explains why some babies will be constipated and others won't - even if they are both fully breastfed or on the exact same diet etc.   I would be VERY cautious about using any of the cathartic style treatments (whether they are "natural" or not) because over time these things can "train" the bowel to expect this push.....and can cause an even more chronic problem. It is much kinder and often more effective to encourage the child's body to do it themselves....which is where holistic treatments such as Homoeopathy or even Traditional Chinese Medicine can often offer great benefits.   Good luck everyone!   Melinda Whyman   NATURAL PARENTING MELBOURNE www.naturalparenting.com.au/npm/ ~Parenting Naturally - Respecting our children and our Earth~ Phone: +61 3 9756 0464 ----- Original Message ----- From: Sally Westbury To: [EMAIL PROTECTED] Sent: Monday, March 29, 2004 1:40 PM Subject: RE: [ozmidwifery] constipated baby I spoke with a lactation consultant about constipated babies just last week. She suggested that the baby may be getting too much fore milk and not enough hind milk. So to lengthen times between changing breasts.   Sally Westbury   -----Original Message----- From: [EMAIL PROTECTED] [mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] On Behalf Of Melissah & Scott @ Spilt Art Sent: Monday, 29 March 2004 8:45 AM To: [EMAIL PROTECTED] Subject: Re: [ozmidwifery] constipated baby   I looked into using Senokot for my boy. I have been using herb-a-lax to help him go. Senokot doesnt mark that it has egg, dairy and nuts in it on the label. I was suspected it might have dairy as some are chocolate flavoured, so I contacted the manufacturer and found out it has 3 highly allergic ingredients in it! My son has allergies to all these foods so I think I might stick with the herb-a-lax. Melissah www.Splitart.com ----- Original Message ----- From: Andrea Quanchi To: [EMAIL PROTECTED] Sent: Sunday, March 21, 2004 8:19 AM Subject: Re: [ozmidwifery] constipated baby   NOTE: I am not talking about BF babies but little people on diet who have no other underlying problems. Constipation is something that the paed surgeon I freelance for sees quite rgularly and we have often discussed his treatment for. He explains that the problem is that the wall of the large intestine looses its elasticity over time with peristent stretching caused by non daily evacuation. The way to CURE it is to ensure daily evacuation to allow recovery over a similar length of time. He uses senekot granules which can be put in milk or eaten as granules which I find works best. How much is given depends on the child as you need to give enough to ensure daily BA then reduce or maintain as tolerated keeping the child going every day. I am talking about increasing the amount it says on the can until the result is achieved. Yes the child will experience some abdo pin in the first few days associated with peristaltic effort to move the concrete but once they are going every day this will stop. Reassurance and support are needed +++ as the child has learnt to fear passing BA because it hurts so much and therefore resists the bodies normal urge to go and re education is needed by all concerned. These children often have poor appetites because the feel crap and have learnt that eating makes their tummies hurt and not that most of us need to go after eating. its amasing to see their appetitie improve once the problem is cured. Some kids need to stay on low doses for months to allow their gut to recover but once this has occured the senekot is not addictive and can slowly be withdrawn. As normal check with a specialist that their is no underlying problems if concerned. I am happy to give out this guys name if anyone wants to know. Andrea Quanchi On Thursday, March 18, 2004, at 09:15 AM, Judy Giesaitis wrote: thanks Nicole, I have encouraged the mum to go to her Paed for a review, for all of your suggested reasons,  I havn't heard back from her as yet re a result,  Judy Giesaitis -----Original Message----- From: Nicole Christensen [mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] Sent: Thursday, 18 March 2004 12:00 AM To: [EMAIL PROTECTED] Subject: Re: [ozmidwifery] constipated baby