Tylenol Causes Constipation?

[Play Care]

I have (yet another ) infant in my program. She's been here one month, part time and has yet to poop while here. She's also pretty fussy (why do I always get the fussy ones?!)
Mom claims teeth and liberally gives Tylenol
She asked me yesterday if baby had pooped. When I said no she said the doctor told her Tylenol can cause constipation so that's why she was asking.

I have never heard of that. I can't imagine normal Tylenol usage would be an issue. :confused:

[daycarediva]

How old is the baby? I've never heard of such a thing with tylenol. Just motrin and aleve, (copy and pasted below are google search results for NSAIDS that cause constipation)

Here are the constipation-causing champions: 1. NSAIDS: Ibuprofen, Motrin, Aleve, naproxen, and others in this class are the winners. They are often used on a daily basis and when they are, they can really stop you up.

[laundrymom]

I have heard this but why is baby taking so much Med?

[Play Care]

I have heard this but why is baby taking so much Med?

She is fussy, and first time parents...
According to mom the baby doesn't have regular BM's. She only recently had one at her grandma's house (Grandma watches her on the days on can't) Add the Tylenol on top of that...
I also feel like she has a ton of bottles. At 7 months it seems like she's taking 4 oz every 2 hours. I just started adding some actual food to her day (breakfast and lunch) so hopefully that will help.

[Ariana]

Are they giving dairy at all? Just thinking out loud about constipation culprits. Dairy can be a bad one at first. Also types of formula can cause it. Is the baby breastfed? My own two breatfed babies didn’t poop every day. Apparently up to two weeks without a BM can be normal.

I would ask mom how much medication she is giving baby and give her some advice on not using it so much. Ibuprofin can cause all sorts of gut issues in infants like bleeding ulcers and black poop with just a couple of doses.

[hwichlaz]

I know that vicodin and norco can cause constipation, and they are both tylenol based. Hmmmm

7 months old, that doesn't sound like a lot of bottles.

Is she formula fed? I'd try to get her to take 6 ounces every 4 hours instead.

[HappyEverAfter]

I have an easily constipated, often fussy 4.5mth old DCB that's been with me since he was 2 moths old. Early on it was discovered he had a dairy and soy allergy and was put on a special formula. That helped a little with constipation but really this kid just has a delicate system it seems. For gas relating to constipation we give him Gripe Water or in extreme episodes, gas drops like Mylecon. For teething we occasionally give him Tylenol and it does not seem to bother him. He can have up to 2.5ml but we usually halve that and try giving just 1.25ml to start with. That usually is all he needs to take the edge off the teething pain. Recently he was super constipated and had not pooped in almost a week and the doctor recommended we give him 2oz of apple juice at morning and at night. That didn't help much, though I think it could have if we had started it sooner but his mother was reluctant to let him have juice. Eventually, as the week wore on the doctor advised giving him prunes. 12 hrs later he had a massive blowout and then immediately relaxed and was a happy baby. If you're feeding baby foods, perhaps try prunes. And Apple juice might be worth trying too. When my DCB is only mildly backed up, the juice seems to help him. As for the teething, have you tried a mesh feeder? You can put frozen cubes of baby fruit in there and they can gum it. The cold numbs the mouth and the food tastes good so they usually like those. Munchkin brand makes some.
As for amount of feedings, my DCB eats 5oz special, non dairy, non soy formula every 3 hours during the day with me. At dinner at home they're introducing baby foods and also giving 3-5oz formula with it. For 7mths, she might need to be eating more at a feeding than 4ox and going a little longer between feedings than 2 hrs.

[Play Care]

FWIW, mom says she does poop, just not often. Doc has said that a poop every few days provided there is no fussiness is fine. I have not seen her poop to know what's up.
She is formula fed. She pooped last night and this morning according to mom. Since adding some food to her meals here, she has seemed more content though.

[jenboo]

I have a 6v month old who does 4oz bottles every 2 hrs on the dot.

Starting solids can definitly cause constipation. Its often advised to give an oz oe two of water with solid meals to help.

[Mom2Two]

Yes, I would look at increasing liquids first of all, add in a few halved pinto/black beans as well for fiber, also whole grain pasta. I would avoid banana and cheese as well.

"Wet" fiber is the best, like the beans and pasta and also apple sauce, whole grain baby cereal etc. Dry fiber like dry cereal would need quite a bit of extra water otherwise it could contribute to the constipation.

[Play Care]

I'm uncomfortable treating anything unless I actually know that it's an issue, KWIM?
I haven't seen her BM's. They could be perfectly fine.
My issue was mom claiming she might be constipated due to Tylenol. I can't imagine that an occasional dose would cause constipation. Especially since Tylenol is acetaminophen, not ibuprofen.
Also, I looked at her file and she's closer to 8 months....apparently they hadn't mentioned feeding solids because they didn't want to give me more to do :confused: Today she's had breakfast and lunch and has been noticeably happier. No Tylenol needed

[AmyKidsCo]

Is she on formula or breastmilk? Breastmilk is so well absorbed that BF babies often don't poop every day or even every other day. As long as she's not straining when she poops and her poo is soft and normal she's probably not constipated.

If she's on formula that could be the issue. Maybe mom will let you give her 1 bottle of 50/50 apple juice/water? That did the trick for a little guy I had many years ago. On the other hand, even if she's on formula but isn't straining and her poo is normal she just might be one of those kids who doesn't poop a lot.

[nannyde]

Tylenol is very toxic to the kidneys. They shouldn't be giving her that without consulting the doctor.

[Play Care]

Tylenol is very toxic to the kidneys. They shouldn't be giving her that without consulting the doctor.

Right!
I honestly don't believe she's constipated, I am just in shock that mom keeps dosing her (from what I can gather) because she thinks she's "teething."
I did send her an email stating unequivocally that I do not/will not give her Tylenol and that if she becomes too fussy I would have to call for pick up. I printed it out and put it in her file.
If mom is giving her more than she should, I want some evidence that I am not giving her any.