Question
I recently observed an infant experiencing difficulties in defecation, with hard, lump-like stools resembling sheep dung eggs in size. Is infant constipation common, and how should it be handled?
Answer
If your baby is breastfed, constipation may be due to insufficient breast milk, often accompanied by symptoms such as no weight gain and crying after meals. In this case, increasing the intake of breast milk usually can quickly alleviate constipation. For formula-fed infants, constipation is more common, so attention should be paid to the mixing method and proportion of the formula, and an appropriate amount of water should be given between feedings. For infants over 4-5 months old, consider adding appropriate complementary foods, such as chopping vegetables like spinach, cabbage, green vegetables, and mustard greens and cooking them with rice porridge to make various delicious porridge dishes for the baby to eat.