Re: Constipation ON fish oils?

[Guest guest]

I wished I had information to give you but I'm only replying that my son goes

through the same.issue. Some parents in this group have mentioned that their

kids experience diarrhea when taking fish oil but not my son.

From: <whitmore_dh@...>

Subject: [ ] Constipation ON fish oils?

Date: Saturday, November 22, 2008, 6:20 AM

Hi all,

I took Abby off her oils for 10 days prior to her speech eval and her

constipation went away during this time. As soon as I started her back

on the oils, it cam e back...any information on this?

Thanks!

in OH

[Guest guest]

,

It was told to me by a nutritionist (and I know that some here disagree) that

fish oils can cause constipation is some children. She said that it suggested

an issue of malabsorption of fats.....I did notice that when I've increased the

fish oil dosage, his speech regresses and he becomes far more constipated.

Since my son had achieved amazing gains with the fish oils, she and I were very

opposed to taking him off them. Consequently, I began the vitamin E protocol,

and included lipase (digestive enzyme) and and taurine.

I have since stopped using vitamin E, and taurine.....and have changed the

digestive enzyme as well. I also cleaned up his diet and looked for allergies.

So.....with that siad, I'm not ENTIRELY sure that malabsorption of fats was our

entire issue, but I'm convinced it's played a role or been a strong factor in

the case of my son's constipation. Our situation seems to be multifaceted. If

your child is responding to fish oils in a positive way, I'd not necessarily

recommend removing the fish oils, for there are other solutions.

[Guest guest]

My DAN also suggested that I use Natural Calm Magesium that you can get at Whole

Foods to help with constipation.  For my child who is around 73 lbs (if memory

serves me correctly), she suggested 1-3 tsp once in the am and once in the

pm.  If that doesn't work, then add Vitamin C - 500mg am, midday, and pm- (ie:

in addition to - not instead of.)  HTH

 

Blessings to You,

 

********************************************************************************\

***********************************************************************

Peace I leave with you, my peace I give unto you:  not as the world giveth give

I unto you.  Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid. 

14:27

 

[Guest guest]

Isn't it that the fat is malabsorbed to get the bad stuff out and

sometimes it gets stuck along the path:

liver = poor articulation

pancreas = high glucose reading

heart = fatigue/low tone poor circulation

gut = everything

Lipase and taurine would push it out of the pancreas.

[Guest guest]

can you find one article on the internet that supports what

this one nutritionist said? It's not what Tanner's pediatric

gastroenterologist discussed with me as we talked about everything -

I trust him over your nutritionist's opinion unless she backed

that belief on some sort of research?

Also if you mixed fish oils with taurine etc. who knows what that

creates? We as a group used to " just " use fish oils and today

parents seem chemist-like so it's all a bit unknown and gasoliney.

In themselves fish oils are not widely known to cause constipation

(known to prevent -help it even!)

But I'm open...so again any research to support this lone theory?

And if your child is constipated -advice I do stand by -old but

proven!

~~~~~~~~~~~

Constipation for some reason is not unusual -so here's an archive on

that

from 2004. Since around 9 years old -actually check the archives

since Dr.

-no more constipation. That's without medication too. We used

to use

the following dietary changes -but Tanner no longer even drinks POM

juice

everyday as he did for years -and still fine!

When my son Tanner was first diagnosed with apraxia 8 years ago -

constipation was one of the many issues considered by another apraxia

group as [OFF TOPIC] Since it wasn't talked about -I too thought

that the constipation was a separate issue from the apraxia...it

appears that's not the case. We know that apraxia (like autism) is

multifaceted -and even though it appears constipation is another

possible symptom- we don't know for sure the reason. Motor planning

could be part of the equation (the trouble in doing something on

command) Below are two archives on constipation that may help newer

parents and professionals in this group understand what we've been

seeing for years.

It's actually shocking how many children in this group are late to

potty train -and then develop constipation once they do potty train.

Below is a long archive on this. I can give hope in adding that my

son Tanner who had suffered from this horrible condition for years

has been regular just about ever since we saw Dr. ...and we only

had to see him once and then once for follow up - and that was years

ago now at this point. I still highly recommend him. Today Tanner

just drinks Pom Wonderful each day (in addition to his fish oils and

vitamin E of course)

Here's the archive:

Tina I'm sure you read this before -but as you know my son Tanner

regressed on high fiber so careful with that. Below is the archive

I've posted many times before on this.

Lawrence MD (pediatric gastroenterologist MD)

5325 Greenwood Ave

West Palm Beach Florida

561 840 1960

" Dr. said....due to what I reported with Tanner's regression

with too much fiber not to use high fiber either. He said it is

possible that the fiber is cutting short the fatty acids in the gut. "

If you go the higher fiber route -perhaps try giving the high fiber

a different time of day then the fish oils. Didn't say on my last

update that of course Tanner's still on the 4 ProEFA and 2 ProEPA

every day.

Today all we use to prevent constipation is the Pom Wonderful juice

every day -just a small amount too. http://www.pomwonderful.com/

Last Christmas we flew to NY and didn't give him any Pom juice while

we were there and he got constipated. That was the only time we

needed to use the Cherry Milk of Magnesia in the recent past

http://www.bayercare.com/htm/philmom.htm

But before the POM -there was a road to normal -and this archive has

that history. Note...you can try the alternative approaches posted

here as most of us do -but as you'll read below like me you may be

horrified to learn that some of them may be more harmful then worth

it. If you are looking for a traditional MD who is open to

alternatives if they work and are benign as a first try prior to

medication I'd highly say it is worth flying to see Dr. who we

only had to see twice -but who helped us immensely even at the first

visit. Thank you once again Dr. ! We are happy not to see you

again! (and I mean that in the nicest way of course!)

From: " kiddietalk " <kiddietalk@...>

Date: Mon Apr 26, 2004 10:52 pm

Subject: Re: constipation - what kind of nectar?

Hi Tricia -sorry I missed your call and not sure if it's too late to

call you now.

We mainly use pear nectar and fruit cups, and papaya nectar and Dole

Fruit 'n Gels®, Reduced Sugar, Papaya in Peach Gel

Problem is even though they are still in our stores here in Florida -

I don't see them on the Dole website which means they may be

discontinued and soon to be missing from store shelves? (NO!)

http://www.dole.com/foodservice/products/pack.fruitngel.jsp

I had asked Tanner's doctor, Dr. why more MDs don't recommend

nutritional

interventions to the constipation and he said " And how long did I

just spend with you? " Yes it took a few hours! Anyway -you guys can

know all I do in a few minutes -(the time it takes to write a

prescription)

and just in case you are interested -

I have Dr. contact information below. I highly recommend him.

Lawrence MD (pediatric gastroenterologist MD)

5325 Greenwood Ave

West Palm Beach Florida

561 840 1960

Here are a few archives with more information on this.

From: " kiddietalk " <kiddietalk@...>

Date: Sat Feb 7, 2004 7:19 pm

Subject: Re: high fiber regression/constipation

Hi Joanne,

I first thought of aloe too, and then found the senna tea to work

for Tanner, but when I posted it here was told how bad senna is for

children and especially with long term use. (thank you!!)

The advice I heard here was confirmed by Tanner's pediatric

gastroenterologist Dr. from West Palm Beach Florida.

Dr. who told me that senna, and harsh stimulants like it

(which include aloe) are harsh on the body, and that they may work

for a bit, but you will gradually need more and more for it to

work.

Dr. advised me that the gentlest laxative is the Milk

of Magnesia because it just draws moisture to the bowels and works

the most like mother nature. Tanner likes the cherry flavored Milk

of Magnesia. MOM is " stimulant free "

" ' Milk of Magnesia has provided effective, stimulant-free

relief of constipation for over 125 years. Unlike some other

laxatives, doctor recommended ' Milk of Magnesia does not

contain the harsh stimulants that can cause pain and cramping. When

taken at a lower dose, ' can also be used for fast-acting

relief of acid indigestion, sour stomach, and heartburn. Available

in Mint, Cherry, and Original formulas. "

http://www.bayercare.com/htm/philmom.htm

And what you need to read about aloe:

FDA Rules that Aloe & Cascara Are Not Safe as Stimulant Laxatives

Date

November 20, 2002

Details

The FDA issued a final ruling on Nov 5, 2002, stating that the

stimulant laxative ingredients aloe (including extract and flower

extract) and cascara sagrada (including all fluidextracts, bark and

casanthranol) in over-the-counter drug products are not generally

recognized as safe and effective or are misbranded. The FDA pointed

out that there is inadequate data on the toxicity of aloe and

cascara sagrada. These products have not been shown to be safe and

effective for their intended use. These ingredients should be

eliminated from general use within 180 days

http://www.mskcc.org/mskcc/html/12015.cfm

" herbal teas containing senna, aloe, buckthorn, and other plant-

derived laxatives that, when consumed in excessive amounts, can

cause diarrhea, vomiting, nausea, stomach cramps, chronic

constipation, fainting, and perhaps death. "

http://www.pueblo.gsa.gov/cic_text/health/teatime/597_tea.html

And again -an archive about what the traditional gastroenterologist

Dr. " prescribed " for Tanner which is working (just wish he

didn't have to drink nectar every day!):

" This also may have to do with some signaling problem or motor

planning aspect. Not sure -but who cares when anyone just about

anywhere can pick up pear nectar or Dole papaya fruit and gel

bowls! This works -and we love Dr. !!

> Today I took Tanner to see pediatric gastroenterologist Lawrence

> MD from Palm Beach Florida for Tanner's problem with

> constipation which we have been trying to help him with now for

the

> past 5 years or more with various MDs (Tanner is now 7) Up till

now

> nobody has wanted to put Tanner on medications -and since we've

> moved we haven't taken Tanner to see his NJ/NY MDs. I highly

> recommend Dr. if you are in Florida in that he took over an

> hour with us -was excellent with Tanner (very funny) and was very

> open to discussing off the wall theories on constipation in

apraxic

> children -a best kept secret even though it's known for autism.

Dr.

> has many patients with special needs -some with severe CP

> whose parents have to blend fruits for their constipation that

they

> can put through their feeding tube.

>

> Here is a brief summery from the prescription he gave me:

>

> Diet: Nectars (fruit juices) Papaya, pear, apricot (if he can

> stand it -can mix with others but try plain nectar first)

> * prune juice -can be mixed with orange juice (since most kids

don't

> like it)

>

> exotic fruits- figs, dates, apricot, papaya (papaya underlined

> twice) (if he can stand it -like the nectars -these work wonders

he

> said)

>

> limit -banana, apple, rice, dairy

>

> Milk of Magnesia 2-3 tablespoons with glass of water any time he

> skips 1 day. Works 4-8 hours.

>

> Behavior Modification -10 minutes daily -no distractions. Use

> calendar stickers -every week reward for amount of BMs

> 2/ week something small

> 3-4 medium

> 5-7 large reward

>

> Dr. said that there is a chance that the problem could be

> motor planning -but he can't fix that -his goal is to get Tanner

on

> a schedule for a long period of time so that he starts going

> automatically. He doesn't want me to use the Nature's Tea due to

> the senna in it -said it can cause dependence in long term use,

and

> said that due to what I reported with Tanner's regression with too

> much fiber not to use high fiber either. He said it is possible

> that the fiber is cutting short the fatty acids in the gut. "

From: " kiddietalk " <kiddietalk@...>

Date: Wed Dec 3, 2003 9:37 pm

Subject: Re: constipation/ new info on Probiotic -

Hi -lots more on this in the archives. Dr. is a

traditional pediatric gastroenterologist MD too -go figure!

Lawrence MD

5325 Greenwood Ave

West Palm Beach Florida

561 840 1960

Tanner is picky about which nectar he'll drink or it's " ewww " he

loves the pear nectar from a company from Belgium called Looza which

I'm dreading our local stores stop stocking and have already spoken

personally to about 4 store managers to beg them to keep carrying

it, and a papaya nectar from s " all natural " that looks like

someone bottles it in their garage and drives it to the store

themselves -not sure if it's distributed anywhere else:

s Tropical Plantation

6550 Okeechobee Blvd

West Palm Beach, FL 33411-2798

United States

Mr. Henry s

President

Tel: 561-683-4701

Fax: 561-683-4993

Hey just looked up Looza online and apparently it's owned by

Tropicana which is not far from me either!

http://www.copyshark.com/samples/TropWSamples2.html

I send Tanner to school with these little cans of Libby pear nectar

and a dole fruit and gel with papaya (that he actually likes but is

now getting sick of)

We give him some nectar for breakfast, some for lunch -at least

twice a day. Speaking of bananas which he used to love -I stopped

buying them all the time like I did before -we've cut down his rice

and milk -and that's about it. If he misses a day we give him 3

tablespoons of the strawberry Milk of Magnesia like Dr.

suggested, and it works -but that's not often he misses now.

Speaking of missing -you must have missed my answer to you!

" From: " kiddietalk " <kiddietalk@...>

Date: Sun Nov 16, 2003 2:15 am

Subject: Re: constipation

Wow thanks for this comprehensive lesson about the gut!

I just wanted to add that in a nutshell -out of our couple of hour

appointment with pediatric gastroenterologist Lawrence MD from

Palm Beach Florida, we covered much of what you talked about.

I just want to clarify that Dr. did not recommend juice, and

that I can tell you that for Tanner juice did not work. Dr.

recommended the nectars -specifically papaya, pear, apricot etc....

We use a mixture of pear, papaya and mango nectar -heavy on the

pear. Here is a bit about each:

" Fresh papaya is probably the finest healing food in the world. It

is anti-inflammatory, detoxifying, has enzymes which can decompose

toxic matter, and help digest foods eaten so as to get more

nutrients out of them for feeding the cells of the body. It is

literally the finest anti aging food known and can even help prevent

wrinkles...

Pear nectar flushes the liver gallbladder, removes gout and other

acid accumulation and prevents constipation. Two 6 oz glasses a day

between meals is the appropriate amount for most individuals. "

http://www.timeforhealth.com/foods.html ... "

There was much more on that one, and here is from another archived

message:

" Many of our kids (sorry all the potty training stage people to break

this to you) that potty trained as a group a bit later (around 4)

due to the muscle control weakness from the low tone(it's not in

their control) then have constipation problems for the same reason -

constipation.

Based on how well and quick this worked -I'm guessing that there may

be some psychological fear aspects that are at play in our kids

too. They have a painful experience (you know what I mean if you

know what I mean) and then they are afraid to go so they hold it in.

This also may have to do with some signaling problem or motor

planning aspect. Not sure -but who cares when anyone just about

anywhere can pick up pear nectar or Dole papaya fruit and gel

bowls! This works -and we love Dr. !!

From: " kiddietalk " <kiddietalk@...>

Date: Sun Dec 14, 2003 11:32 am

Subject: Re: constipation

Hi !

Tanner is tired of the gels too. But I was told by Dr. that

we need to keep him on a daily regimen of going every day for at

least a few months to have the best possible chance of getting him

regular. Like Tanner -your children are old enough to have this

explained to them. So like it or not -Tanner is forced to drink the

nectars and eat the gel -and not just once a day either. He needs

nectar at least two to three times a day for it to work -and it's

working (so worth it).

Dr. told me " at some point you will get lax about it -and

he'll get constipated again -and once he does -it will start all

over. I'm just warning you because I see it happen. " I know why he

said this -most parents don't listen. Don't have to warn me twice -

there is no way in heck I want to be standing with a phone in my

hand wondering if I should call 911 while my son is crying and

screaming in extreme pain sitting on the toilet after I've tried all

I could think of to get it out and Glenn wasn't home. You don't

know until you know.

How do we keep him from getting bored? When you go to a restaurant -

ask them to make a fancy fruit mix drink for your child and put all

the fancy umbrellas and fruits in it like it's a mixed drink -they

don't use nectars -but they typically make them very sweet for the

kids. Then when you get home -buy a bunch of different nectars and

fruit juices and mix saying you will try to make the same thing for

them. This is what we did and it worked. Now I typically just give

Tanner the pear and papaya nectar mixed -heavy on the pear since he

likes the taste of that more (and it also works) Again -if Tanner

misses a day -he gets 3 tablespoons of Strawberry Flavored Milk of

Magnesia -like other kids he hated the mint -he loves the

strawberry -and I also saw they have chocolate -but didn't try it

since I know Tanner likes the one we have. Dr. told me " Don't

travel without the Milk of Magnesia, don't forget to bring it with

you if you are going on vacation " and we won't! Not every store

carries the Strawberry -the only flavor I know for sure Tanner likes.

For those of you that don't have pear or papaya nectar by you -I'd

call and see if you can order it online. I just checked net grocer

http://www.netgrocer.com and they carry pear and papaya nectar, but

not the brand we use -Looza. Tanner loves the Looza nectars -but we

also use the Kerns and Goya when we travel which they have. They

have the Dole fruit gels (I'd call and ask if they have papaya -

didn't see it but maybe they can get it? They also have the Milk of

Magnesia in chocolate and french vanilla -two flavors we haven't

tried - and they even had papaya babyfood! Hmm -I haven't tried

that one either -glad I looked for you guys!) Perhaps for variety?

Tanner too doesn't like fresh or dried papaya.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Also Tanner no longer ever gets constipated and he takes 4 ProEFA and

2 ProEPA plus his Threelac probiotic every day. He no longer has to

drink Pom wonderful everyday as he did a few years ago -but he still

likes it.

=====