CHRISTINE (& other new members)

[Guest guest]

Hi ,

You sure must be busy - and it sounds like you are a wonderful mom

being such an active advocate for your children.

I hope that you find some help here for your daughter's constipation.

Thoughts for you & all the newer members:

Research studies have shown that some 30-50% of children treated with

long term laxatives still have constipation/bowel issues in the long

term (up to 12 years later). I mention this because, I feel, it

indicates that we really need to try to get to the underlying cause of

the constipation - not just treat the symptom with laxatives. (A

mainstream pediatrician or GI doc may have already written it off as

being " in their head, " or " functional fecal retention, " or that

they'll " outgrow " it – but, at least for me, this is not an acceptable

diagnosis).

Of course, we need to keep their bowels moving while we figure out

what's going on & I hope the members and info here will be helpful to

you in that regard.

It may be beneficial to consult with a natural practitioner -

naturopath, chiropractor, DAN! doctor (typically an MD who takes a

bio-med/natural approach; DAN! docs do typically see autistic

children, but they are very well-versed in gut issues).

For alternatives to Miralax, try looking into magnesium

supplementation. It seems to be the most common place that people here

start. Magnesium citrate seems to be the most common form of

magnesium that people here are using. Some here like the Natural Calm

product and some use other mag citrate powders (e.g., from Kirkman

labs). Some parents use OxyMag (although I think this is more used

when things get really backed up - others can elaborate on that, I

haven't tried that one). Some use Milk of Magnesia ( " MOM " ). There

are a lot of magnesium options - you can probably find info on many of

them in previous posts.

Aloe vera juice is another product that seems to be commonly used

here. Some brands taste a little stronger than others. I use Lily of

the Valley Aloe Vera Juice and while it's taste is noticeable, I don't

find it too disagreeable. My son (3 yrs. old) doesn't seem to mind it

being put in his diluted juice. 's Aloe Vera juice is

apparently pretty flavorless and I think has been used by people at

this group. I think I've read here, or maybe at another board, that

the brand sold at WalMart doesn't taste too badly.

Check the files section to see some documents about Miralax (PEG3350)

and what alternatives to Miralax are working for some people.

A document that might help you decide on a Miralax alternative is the

JPGN_Childhood_Constipation_Review (in the files section). It gives

an overview of many of the various laxative options (including Miralax

(PEG3350)) that have been in pediatric use over the years - and will

give you an idea of what dosage of magnesium (and other alternatives)

can be used.

Personally, I found the JPGN article to be helpful for a couple of

reasons:

- gives background on constipation in children

(note - among other conditions, celiac, is mentioned in the list of

underlying causes in infants/toddlers - so is cow's milk allergy) [oh,

I hear my friends at the group collectively " sigh " – but I'm beginning

to believe that food intolerances may be playing a bigger role in

constipation than anyone is giving credit right now...….]

- it lists the dosage of each type of laxative that has been commonly

used and personally, after reading this, I felt better about using the

higher than recommended dose of MOM for my son (3 yrs old)

- lists some pros/cons for each laxative

- explains some of the complimentary therapies ( " behavioral " and

" biofeedback " ) – although I should mention that I have seen abstracts

of studies which found that at least some of these adjunct therapies

are not associated with increased success rates – which, to me,

further emphasizes the need to really figure out the underlying cause

of the constipation…

(http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/8813983?ordinalpos=1 & itool=EntrezSystem2.PEn\

trez.Pubmed.Pubmed_ResultsPanel.Pubmed_RVAbstractPlusDrugs1

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/11433088?ordinalpos=1 & itool=EntrezSystem2.PEn\

trez.Pubmed.Pubmed_ResultsPanel.Pubmed_RVAbstractPlusDrugs1

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/9797593?ordinalpos=1 & itool=EntrezSystem2.PEnt\

rez.Pubmed.Pubmed_ResultsPanel.Pubmed_RVAbstractPlusDrugs1

Mind you, this JPGN article does not cast a negative light on Miralax,

but that does not mean Miralax is an o.k. option either (IMHO and I

think the opinion of many at this group). The fact that you have

sought out this group is probably a good indicator that you are not

feeling comfortable with using Miralax. Several of the studies on

" safety " and efficacy of Miralax in children were funded by the

original makers of Miralax (Braintree Labs). The number of children

involved were generally small (typically less than 100 - with half

being given PEG3350 and the other half given another laxative; so

generally 50 (or fewer) kids using Miralax per study...none of these

kids were

autistic or had any other notable health problems). The conclusions

of those studies were generally that PEG3350 was equally effective as

the laxative to which it was being compared (i.e., NOT that it was

more effective or safer). The benefit touted in some of the studies

was " compliance " because the kids tolerated daily PEG3350 better than,

for example, daily MOM.

One last thing, for celiac/gluten intolerance [oh, dear group, you

know I can't leave this one alone right now…] – even if a scope showed

negative for celiac, a person can still be a responder to the gluten

free (and casein free) diet. I hope to gather & post some articles

here soon that explain how under-diagnosed gluten-sensitivity is. One

reason proposed in one study was that pathologists/GI docs are

possibly missing the earlier stages of disease when using the

biopsies/scopes. Also, the serum IgA tests may give " false negatives "

because some people do not produce very high IgA to begin with.

Enterolab does a stool test for IgA antibodies (celiac/gluten

intolerance, dairy intolerance, etc.) which they say has found

positives when blood tests failed to do so and they claim it is

because the IgA is being produced/secreted in the intestines and

therefore will be more prevalent in the stool than the serum. The

anti-gliadin IgG test may also indicate a gluten sensitivity when the

IgA test was (perhaps falsely) negative.

The truest test, of course, is to see what the response is to a gluten

free diet. (Of course, there are some who do not appear to respond to

GF, but studies have shown that this might be due to additional food

intolerances (e.g., dairy) and/or intestinal non-friendly bacterial

overgrowth.)

HTH and I hope other members will add comments/suggestions.

Best,

p.s. - Other supplements, such as probiotics, cod liver oil, flax

oil/meal, etc. are further considerations (esp., IMHO, the

probiotics). But, this message is too long already & the information

overload can be overwhelming, so I won't go on about that here! Once

you've taken in some info, read some of the files, and maybe read some

of the previous posts, don't hesitate to ask questions to the group as

often as you need to - or vent/ask for support - that's important too!

Chances are more than one of us has " been there/done that " & can

support you! HANG IN THERE!!!! You can get through this!!!!

>

>

> In a message dated 2/10/2008 8:55:35 PM Eastern Standard Time,

> littlelief@... writes:

>

> but I have to say that

> your daughter's symptoms of chronic constipation, reflux, and now the

> gall bladder all are symptoms of celiac/gluten intolerance. Has she

> been tested?

>

>

> Yes, She had an endoscopy. No celiac..........

> ~

>

>

>

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