What Is Good for Children's Constipation?

Constipation is just as uncomfortable for children as it is for adults. Although an adult may be tempted to use laxatives to help move his bowels more easily, more natural methods are recommended for children. The Nemours Foundation's health information service for kids and their parents, called KidsHealth, stresses a natural approach to treating children's bowel habits that includes diet and exercise. Parents should take their child to be examined if non-medicated ways of relieving constipation don't work well enough.

Diet

Adjust your child's diet and pattern of eating to help relieve constipation. Push the liquids, especially water that softens stools and keeps them moving through the digestive tract. Offer fresh fruits and vegetables with meals and as snacks. Pack sandwiches made on whole-wheat bread for school lunches and serve other whole grains at mealtimes, such as brown rice and whole-grain pasta. Have your child eat at roughly the same time every day to get his bowels on a schedule that becomes routine. Limit sugar- and fat-laden snacks and beverages; these items can make constipation worse if consumed regularly.

Exercise

Sign up your child for a sport--or if this is not possible, make sure she has other options for daily exercise at home. Daily exercise keeps the bowels moving regularly and helps keep constipation at bay. Running around the yard with friends, jumping rope or riding a scooter are all kid-friendly ways of being active that can be good for treating constipation.

Time

Sometimes a child becomes constipated because he doesn't want to take the time to use the bathroom. He may be involved in an activity, be afraid to ask where the bathroom is at a friend's house or have an aversion to public bathrooms. Getting the child used to using unfamiliar bathrooms and giving him uninterrupted time to sit and "try" may help ease constipation. Schedule a time for younger children to use the bathroom so it doesn't interrupt play time. Once your child realizes he's not missing out on any fun, it may be easier for him to go without pain and straining.