Probiotics vs Miralax

Hi Shaun,
My son had terrible constipation when he was younger. I also was hesitant to give him Miralax for so long. When I expressed my concerns to my Pediatrician, she told me it was safe to use. If I remember right, she also told me that people with Down's Syndrome often have the constipation issues and are put on Miralax indefinitely. My son is now 6, and we still give it to him. We miss days here and there because he is much better, but he is still on it. Good Luck!!

Wow. your story is exactly like mine with my daughter. She is 7 now and still sometimes has accidents. it is finaly getting better though. i didnt want to do the miralax either and held off for a long time and am paying the price now. her doctor also didnt want to send her to a specialist but i finaly insisted! she now sees a nefrologist reguarly. we were doing the miralax for about 2 years and now she is finaly off of it everyday but she still sometimes needs it. if she gets really bad we do an enama. sometimes she will come to me even and ask for one. when that happens we start miralax again for 2 weeks. the doctor says the wetting comes from the constipation b/c she is weak down there and cant feel the sensation. as you know. nothing worked but the miralax. she dosnt wet much at all anymore but i am afraid the constipation will always b there. bananas are a nono as they constipate her BIG TIME so watch her diet for things like that. the begining of this year she missed a lot of school due to the constipation. she would get plugged up and have to do a miralax flush then have the runs and not beable to go to school because she is so weak down there if she has the runs she can't feel it and has poop accidents. she still has to wear pull-ups at nite. i know what you are going through. i am still there also. if you have any questions or just need support you can contact me at ____@____.com. i know i could have used someone going through the same thing at times! also the probiotics and fiber didn't work, i tried her on a high fiber diet and nothing worked but the miralax.

Before I'd let my child be recommended for constant medication, I'd seek a second opinion from a pediatric expert.

For example, my blood test found that I was low on Magnesium. Taking a lot of magnesium can cause diarhea. But for me, it caused me to be normal! Wonderfully normal.

Try to find out what is causing things instead of treating symptoms. Don't stay with one doctor on any issue who isn't interested in finding out the problem.

I just bought Culturelle kids for my 8 year old who has the tendency to hold himself because he says it hurts to bad and after two days of one dose a day he has had two bowel movements that were painless, so I'm hoping that we finally found the trick for him. We too, had been told to give miralax but after reading online about it, was scared to give to our son. This new thing is a probiotic with fiber and is equivalent to 5 prunes a day, is odor less and tasteless. I just mix it in his juice in the morning with breakfast. Hope this is helpful, good luck!

I don't know anything about the probiotics end of things, but I do my ped said some kids need to be on miralax all the time. My daughter is 2 and has hard bowls too....its been horrible, but using it works. Sounds like a whole capful is a lot (we only sprinkle it in my daughters drink)....but I'm not sure.

Does she have a lot of yogurts? Maybe the probiotic kinds you could try?

According to my ped, most of her constipation could be from all the dairy she has, and she loves bananas (which causes it as well).

Sorry I couldn't be more help -- we're just in the same boat, somewhat.

Probiotics will help regulate the gi tract as will a good yogurt. She must need more fiber in her diet. Is she on an iron pill or eating iron fortified foods? Some times too much iron causes constipation. I would also at flax seed meal to baked goods and go to the local health food store get the capsule kind in the refrigerated section give her a half of capsule every day for the next 3 weeks to really give it a chance to work. Good luck.
J.

if you are looking for a probiotic i would suggest buying one that is made at the pharmaceutical-grade food level. That does not mean you need a prescription for it. I hope you find something that works!

I've used Culturelle for Kids that I got at Target and sprinkled it into my son's formula but I used it to prevent diarrhea after antibiotics. It worked wonders for that but it's kind of the opposite problem to yours. I've heard that it works well to regulate the GI in either way though and is good for consitipation so I'd definitely give it a go. Since probiotics are natural, I'd feel better about giving them to my kid. Best of luck,