Constipation in children is a very common clinical symptom during childhood, which constantly affects their quality of life and also brings psychological burden to parents. Many parents lack a correct understanding of this disease. So, what exactly is constipation in children? What are some good solutions? Let's take a look together.
Causes of Childhood Constipation
Childhood constipation is a common condition with many causes, which can be summarized into two categories: functional constipation, which can be cured through regulation; One type is caused by congenital intestinal malformations and other diseases, which cannot be cured by general treatment.
Childhood constipation refers to various reasons that cause children to have difficulty defecating, feel incomplete defecation, have dry stools, and have a reduced frequency of defecation (48-72 hours without defecation). Clinical manifestations include: 1. Dry stool, reduced frequency of bowel movements, hardness, difficulty in defecation, and anal pain. Systemic symptoms such as loss of appetite. innutrition.
2. Abdominal pain and bloating.
3. Formation of hemorrhoids, anal fissures, rectal prolapse, etc.
Causes of constipation in children:
1. Imbalance of gut microbiota:
1. Dietary factors: Food contains a large amount of protein, while carbohydrates are insufficient, resulting in secondary changes in gut microbiota, less fermentation process of intestinal contents, and easy alkaline and dry stool. This situation is often caused by parents not paying attention to their children's scientific diet, or by their children being picky and selective about food.
2. Application of antibiotics: Prolonged use of antibiotics after human infection not only kills infected bacteria, but also normal bacteria in the body, leading to the proliferation of antibiotic insensitive bacteria and the imbalance of the microbiota.
3. Psychological reasons: such as endocrine disorders, gastrointestinal dysfunction, and gut microbiota imbalance caused by exam eve, parental reprimands, campus bullying, etc.
4. Environmental factors: Unhealthy lifestyle habits (such as staying up late), sleep disorders, and some diseases can lead to dysbiosis of the microbiota.
2、 Abnormal intestinal function: 1. Irregular lifestyle or parents' failure to cultivate correct bowel habits for their babies can lead to the formation of conditioned reflexes for defecation, which in turn can cause constipation in babies.
2. Some congenital intestinal diseases, such as congenital megacolon, anal fissure, anal stenosis, etc., can also cause constipation in babies.
3. Long term use of enemas such as glycerin and long-term constipation in babies can cause constipation due to weak and dysfunctional intestinal wall muscles.
4. In addition, dysfunction of the sympathetic nervous system, weakness or paralysis of the abdominal muscles can often cause constipation in babies.
3、 Spleen and stomach weakness: This is the most common cause of constipation in babies, mainly manifested as food accumulation, loss of appetite, and excessive internal heat. This situation is because parents have not figured out that although internal heat is the cause of constipation in babies, internal heat is caused by the baby's spleen and stomach yin deficiency, qi deficiency, and other factors. If the problem of weak spleen and stomach is not solved, constipation in babies will naturally recur.
4、 Chemical factors: Palm oil, which is often added to regular formula milk powder, is also a common cause of dry stools in infants who are fed in combination or artificially. During the process of intestinal digestion, the components in palm oil combine with calcium in food to form a harder texture of calcium soap, leading to dry stools, constipation, and even difficulty in defecation. Therefore, formula milk powder without added palm oil should be chosen to avoid feeding incentives that may cause dry stools in babies.
The solution to constipation in children
Dietary regulation is very important. Younger babies can drink more water, fruit juice, vegetable juice, etc., while older babies can eat more vegetables, fruits, and whole grains. To cultivate good living habits in children and increase their exercise appropriately.
1. Can help children with abdominal massage, which can accelerate intestinal peristalsis, promote bowel movements, and aid digestion.
2. Edible dietary fiber improves the intestinal environment, promotes intestinal peristalsis, and thus improves constipation. It is also important to develop good eating and living habits in daily life.
3. Pay attention to replenishing sufficient water every day.
4. Develop good habits of eating and sleeping on time. Establish a regular human biological clock. This is beneficial for the normal function of gastric juice and helps with the digestion of food.
Doing these things well can help children reduce the harm of constipation and maintain their gastrointestinal health, which is necessary for their body.