Constipation

Constipation is common in childhood, particularly when children are being potty trained at around 2 to 3 years old.

Tummy pain is common with constipation. If you are worried about this please look at the abdominal pain page.

What are the symptoms of constipation in children?

These can be tricky to spot. Your child may be constipated if:

• They don't poo at least 3 times a week
• Their poo is often large, hard and difficult to push out
• Their poo looks like 'rabbit droppings' or little pellets
• If your child is potty trained, soiled pants can be another sign of constipation. This is because runny poo (diarrhoea) may leak out around the hard, constipated poo. This is called overflow soiling

If your child is constipated, they may find it painful to poo. This can create a cycle: the more it hurts, the more they hold on to poo. The more constipated they get, the more it hurts and so on. Even if pooing isn't painful, once your child is really constipated they may try to avoid going to the toilet altogether.

Why do children get constipated?

Your child may be constipated because they:

• Aren't eating enough high-fibre foods like fruit and veg
• Aren't drinking enough
• Are having problems with potty (or toilet) training
• Are worried or anxious about something, such as moving house, starting nursery or the arrival of a new baby

For further information and support see ERIC's guide to children's bowel problems.

How to prevent your child from getting constipated?

Make sure your child has plenty to drink. Offer breastfed babies who aren’t eating solids yet plenty of breastfeeds. Formula fed babies can have extra drinks of water between their formula feeds. See more advice on drinks for babies and toddlers.

Give your child a variety of foods including plenty of fruit and vegetables, which are a good source of fibre. See what to feed young children.

Encourage your child to be physically active. For more information, read the physical activity guidelines for children aged under 5 years.

Get your child into a routine of regularly sitting on the potty or toilet after meals or before bed (for 5 minutes). Praise them whether or not they poo. This is particularly important for boys who may forget about pooing once they are weeing standing up. Reward schemes appropriate for age are important; as is consistency and patience.

Make sure your child can rest their feet flat on the floor or on a step when they're using the potty or toilet to get them in a good position for pooing. Take a look at this leaflet for a picture of how to sit to get the poo in the loo!

Ask if they feel worried about using the potty or toilet. Some children don't want to poo in certain situations, such as at nursery or school.

Stay positive and reassuring, so that your child doesn't see going to the toilet as a stressful situation. You want your child to see pooing as a normal part of life, not something to be ashamed of.

What to do if you think your child has constipation

Firstly, try to stay calm. Getting constipated and soiling their clothes isn't something your child is doing on purpose, so there's no reason to get cross with them. Staying positive and relaxed is the best attitude to help your child and praising positive steps is important.

If your child is potty training, they may be feeling anxious or stressed about using the toilet. This can cause them to hold in their poo and lead to constipation. Give your child plenty of time to use the toilet while they are still learning. Encourage them when they do use the toilet. Some parents find a reward chart works. If you think your child is having difficulty with toilet training, you can also chat to your health visitor.

If your child remains constipated despite the advice above, speak to their GP who can decide if they need medicines. The treatment for constipation depends on your child’s age. The longer your child is constipated, the longer it can take to get back to normal. Make sure you get help early.

If your child develops new or more severe tummy ache please see our page .

Laxatives are often recommended for children, alongside diet and lifestyle changes.

It may take several months for the treatments to work. Keep trying until they do. Remember that laxative treatment may make your child's overflow soiling worse for a time before it gets better so consider the impact, for example on school trips.

Once your child's constipation has improved, it's important to stop it coming back. Your GP may advise that your child keeps taking laxatives for a while to make sure their poo stays soft enough to push out regularly. The medicines are safe and don’t cause a lazy bowel.

More information and support:

Contact the ERIC helpline on 0808 1699 949 (free to call from mobile and landline), Monday to Thursday 10am to 2pm.

ERIC's guide to children's bowel problems.

​​​​​Contact your local community pharmacist. All community pharmacies across England are required to be Healthy Living Pharmacies. This means that they are able to offer advice about a range of healthy living matters which includes eating a healthy diet. They can also provide information leaflets and give parents, carers, and young people more information about other organisations that might be able to also help with healthy eating.

Visit our page on Healthy Eating.