5 year old boy with chronic constipation

A couple of weeks ago, a grandmother came in to see me about her grandson. She said that her grandson, who is five years old, is having a bowel movement only once a week. I asked my usual questions regarding medications and the like which she told me the boy was on no medications. I thought to myself that this is getting interesting. She went on to tell me that the boys parents do not supervise what he eats. The boy eats mostly cheese. BINGO!! She went on to tell me that this boy will eat only the cheese off of a frozen pizza and throw the rest of it away. Before I tell you what I suggested to this distraught grandma, I must say this: SOMEONE HAS TO BE THE PARENT!!!. My suggestion to this grandma was to do a vitamin c flush. It is non toxic and works in only a few hours. Okay, now that I have got that off my chest, lets talk about ways of combating constipation.

Constipation is usually cause by one of a few things. It can be caused by an improper diet. It can be caused by poor digestion. It can be caused medication. I will briefly go over each of these and then talk about how you can reduce the episodes of constipation.

An improper diet can be anything that your body has a hard time digesting. As per the example above, cheese is very constipating. So are breads, milk, bananas and red meats. There is no way to help your body deal with these foods, so it is best to avoid eating these foods as much as possible. Poor digestion affects almost everyone as they age. I know because my digestion has become more problematic after I turned 40. I now need to use digestive enzymes to help my body deal with some of the foods I eat, like proteins. Many people suffer from a condition called hypoacidity or low stomach acid. This is the major cause of acid reflux not excessive stomach acid. Medications are another item that can cause constipation. I talked to people almost everyday that have medication induced constipation. The medications that are mostly to blame for constipation are blood pressure and pain drugs. If you need to take any of these types of drugs then you most likely are going to have chronic constipation.

There are many remedies for constipation. The best remedy is to stop whatever you are doing that is causing the constipation in the first place. However if your digestion is poor or you are on medications, then you need to have some form of natural therapy. If you have low stomach acid, then a digestive enzyme that increases the acidity of your stomach may help. I personally use papaya tablets from American Health. Papaya tablets contain an enzyme called papain which helps to digest proteins fats and carbohydrates . There are many other enzymes including pancreatin, bromelain and betaine HCI. Each one is useful so you have to find out which is right for you. Medication induce constipation is an entirely different problem. In many instances, the medication slows down or stops the natural involuntary process where the muscles surrounding the intestines squeeze thereby moving the food and waste products along the intestinal track. The only way to help this condition is to take laxatives or other products that can restart the muscle movement along the intestinal track. Some people drink mineral oil, others use OTC remedies like Exlax. Some herbal remedies include Senna, Aloe and Cascara Sagrada. Each remedy has its place and you need to determine which one is right for you.

Thanks for spending a part of you day here with me,

James