How to give an enema to a baby yourself at home

Symptoms and causes of constipation

Normally, newborns have a bowel movement almost every few hours. With age, the frequency decreases, and when the child reaches one year, it reaches 2-3 times. The consistency of the stool is mushy, not too thick, but not watery either. The color is close to yellow. If a newborn is constipated, changes occur in all of these indicators. First of all, you should pay attention to the frequency of bowel movements and the hardness of the stool. With constipation, a newborn may experience pain in the intestinal area, which is expressed in constant anxiety and whims. These symptoms indicate that you need to act immediately to eliminate the risk of complications.

Treatment is most effective only when the cause of the problem is identified.

What can cause constipation? First of all, it is necessary to distinguish between functional and organic types. In the first case, the cause is an imperfection in the structure of the intestines or improper selection of nutrition. In the second, things are much more complicated, because the reason lies in the lack or complete absence of nerve endings in the intestinal tissues. Under this condition, reflex emptying does not occur and a large amount of feces accumulates in the body.

Babies who are constipated often have a hard tummy and are fussy and whiny.

Cleansing enema for children volume of water

The word “enema” often makes people laugh, and many parents, when planning to perform this procedure on their child, do not take it seriously.
An enema is a seemingly simple procedure, but if done incorrectly, it can lead to serious complications. Before performing an enema for children, parents need to carefully familiarize themselves with the manipulation technique and follow all the rules, from beginning to end. Especially often, parents are afraid to give an enema to an infant and do not know how to give it to a newborn.

What is an enema and what can it be?

What exactly is an enema? An enema is a medical procedure that involves injecting a liquid (water or medication) into the rectum.

I distinguish several types of enemas, depending on their purpose:

1. Cleansing. Indicated for constipation, bloating, food poisoning, and for emptying the intestines of stool and gases. Performed using chilled boiled water.

It is very important that the water is exactly 24 - 26 ° C (room temperature). If you use hot water, you can cause a burn to the intestinal mucosa.

Also, hot water dilates blood vessels and is well absorbed into the bloodstream, and the rectum is very well supplied with blood. Entering the bloodstream, water will pull with it all the toxins accumulated in the stool. “Fecal intoxication” may occur.

The most terrible condition that can develop with this complication is cerebral edema.

Therefore, before performing an enema, always consult a doctor, or even better, entrust the procedure to specialists.

• Laxative. Vaseline oil or glycerin is injected into the rectum with an enema. You can dilute them with a small amount of saline solution. This enema for an infant is indicated for constipation, especially when the baby has a dense consistency of stool. The oil solution softens the stool and helps the intestines empty.
• Hypertensive. The enema bulb is filled with a hypertonic solution (2.5%, 5% or 10%) of table salt. This type of enema cleanses the intestines very well during prolonged constipation and is most often performed in a hospital setting by medical workers. The salty solution draws out the intestinal contents well.

If you decide to prepare a hypertonic solution at home using water and salt, you must mix the solution thoroughly! Undissolved salt crystals can cause damage to your baby's intestinal lining. It is also necessary to observe the temperature regime of the solution.

• Siphon. Such an enema is performed only in a hospital setting and is a purely medical procedure. A large volume of solution causes high intestinal lavage. Indicated for poisoning or fecal “blockages”.
• Medicinal enema. This is a method of administering a drug. Performed as prescribed by a doctor.

What volume of cleansing enema does a child need?

In addition to the temperature regime, you need to know how much solution can be administered to the baby. When administering a cleansing enema, the amount of fluid administered directly depends on the age of the child. The younger the baby, the less solution is needed to empty the intestines. There are standards for the volumes permissible for performing an enema on a child.

Up to two months	30 ml
2 – 4 months	60 ml
6 -9 months	70 – 100 ml
9 – 12 months	120 – 170 ml
1 – 2 years	200 – 250 ml
25 years	300 ml
6 – 10 years	400 – 500 ml

Contraindications

• It is not recommended to use a cleansing enema on your own, without indications. It is better to consult your doctor once again;
• It is absolutely contraindicated to perform cleansing enemas in the presence of acute inflammatory bowel diseases, rectal prolapse, or intestinal bleeding.

What is needed to perform a cleansing enema?

1. First of all, you need to prepare the place for the procedure.
2. On a flat surface (changing table or crib), you need to lay an oilcloth and put a clean diaper or sheet on top of it.
3. To perform an enema for a child under 4-5 years old, use a syringe.
   A syringe is a pear-shaped rubber canister with a rubber or plastic tip. There are different volumes of “pears” - from 30 ml, for the smallest children, to 360 ml. You can buy a syringe at any pharmacy; its cost is on average 100 rubles.

   For children over 4 years old, an Esmarch mug is required to perform an enema. This is a rubber cylinder with a volume of 2 liters, from which comes a silicone tube with a removable plastic tip. The cost of such a system in pharmacies is 200 - 500 rubles.

4. Before performing an enema, you should prepare an enema solution, petroleum jelly or baby cream. For children older than one year, it is necessary to prepare a potty in advance.

Enema technique

Most often, parents need to give their baby a cleansing enema. Against the background of digestive disorders, children experience delayed stool, gas, bloating, and colic.

How to perform a cleansing enema on a baby?

1. First of all, before giving an enema to a baby, you need to prepare everything you need so as not to be distracted during the procedure.
2. Before performing an enema, you should wash your hands.
3. The syringe is boiled for about 30 minutes. Then we wait until it cools down.
4. We squeeze the can to release the air, then slowly unclench it and draw in the required amount of solution.
5. The tip of the bulb is lubricated with Vaseline, vegetable oil or baby cream to reduce the risk of intestinal trauma.
6. The baby lies on his back, his legs are pressed against each other and raised slightly upward. Children older than one year can be placed on their left side, pressing their knees to their stomach.
7. We spread the buttocks with our fingers and carefully insert the tip into the rectum to a depth of 2 - 4 cm.
8. Slowly squeezing the bulb, we introduce liquid into the intestine.
9. Carefully remove the tip and squeeze the buttocks for a few minutes.
10. After defecation, we wash the baby, and thoroughly wash and dry the syringe.

Performing a cleansing enema for children over 4 years of age

1. To perform the procedure, we use Esmarch's mug.
2. The solution is poured into a rubber container. The volume depends on the age of the child. We also make sure to observe the temperature regime.
3. We release a small amount of the contents of the pear to displace the air from the tube.
4. The balloon should be fixed 1 meter above the level of the lying child to ensure a downward flow of fluid.
5. We connect the tip to the system, lubricate it with Vaseline or vegetable oil. Plastic tips can be disposable. Then we take it out of the sterile packaging and throw it away after the procedure. If the tip is reusable, it must be boiled before use.
6. The child lies on his left side with his knees tucked to his stomach.
7. The tip is carefully inserted into the rectum 2 cm towards the abdomen, and then 2 - 4 cm posteriorly, towards the tailbone.
8. The clamp on the tube opens and the solution enters the intestines.
9. The tip is removed, and the child must lie down for another 10 minutes until the unbearable desire to defecate.
10. Then the child is seated on the potty or toilet to have a bowel movement.

Source: https://mirvitaminov.com/info/ochistitelnaja-klizma-detjam-obem-vody/

How to help your baby

What to do if your newborn is constipated? First of all, you need to find out the possible cause of this phenomenon. Elimination of the provoking factor allows the situation to return to normal even without the use of additional means.

How to help a newborn with constipation? You can ease the baby’s suffering through constant contact with family, especially the mother. You can stimulate emptying and relieve discomfort and pain with the help of massage. Its essence lies in smooth stroking movements with the palm of the hand along the child’s belly in a downward direction. Circular massaging pressure is especially effective.

Give your newborn more fluids to soften the stool and prevent dehydration.

If the problem cannot be solved by such approaches, you need to resort to more serious measures and contact a pediatrician who will prescribe adequate treatment.

Types of enemas

At home, it is possible to give the baby enemas:

Nutrition

Perhaps the most important role in this matter is played by the baby’s nutrition. Remember: you cannot suddenly change the diet of a newborn. When switching from breastfeeding to artificial feeding, you need to gradually replace one product with another.

If a child is fed breast milk, special attention should be paid to the diet of the nursing mother, because everything she eats will certainly enter the child’s body in the form of nutrients. Therefore, at the initial stage, following a diet is a prerequisite. You should temporarily exclude from your diet or at least limit the consumption of all those foods that contribute to constipation. First of all, the following:

• rice;
• white flour products;
• tea and coffee;
• hard cheese;
• walnuts;
• whole cow's milk;
• bananas;
• fat meat;
• cocoa.

These foods and drinks contain substances that inhibit intestinal motility, which is one of the causes of constipation. In addition, you should limit the intake of medications, because this also affects the composition of breast milk, and therefore the health of the child.

For constipation, special attention should be paid to both the baby’s nutrition and the mother’s nutrition if the child is breastfed

A woman is recommended to include the following foods in her diet:

• prunes;
• dried apricots;
• buckwheat;
• pumpkin;
• boiled beets;
• fermented milk products;
• natural yogurt;
• chicken fillet;
• dill;
• parsley;
• oatmeal;
• vegetable soups.

Children who have switched to complementary feeding should be given more fruit purees to replenish the fiber content to normalize intestinal motility.

When does a baby need an enema?

Constipation in newborns is not a rare phenomenon, and constantly resorting to bowel cleansing is not recommended due to the risk of disrupting the microflora, which has just begun its formation. Therefore, the reasons for the mandatory use of an enema are considered to be:

• food poisoning, which can be caused by a poorly selected formula or improper diet of the mother if the baby is breastfed;
• requirements for the administration of medications through the intestines to a newborn. This is usually associated with identified pathology of the gastrointestinal tract;
• prolonged constipation that does not disappear on its own after 4-5 days. Especially if such a manifestation is accompanied by the release of ichor.

In other situations, it is recommended to wait; perhaps the baby’s bowel movements will return to normal.

We invite you to listen to Komarovsky’s opinion about enemas for babies in the video.

Treatment with medications

When the situation becomes threatening to the child’s health, and simple methods do not help, it is necessary to resort to drug therapy. Suppositories for constipation for newborns are recognized as the most effective quick-acting remedy. They contain oils and glycerin, which are gentle and do not prevent damage to the intestinal mucosa. As an alternative, you can do oil enemas. Some parents resort to the old way of inducing bowel movement - inserting a piece of baby soap into the baby's anus. However, at such an early age this method is contraindicated! Soap causes intestinal irritation, unpleasant pain and burning sensation.

When choosing a medicine for constipation for newborns, you should definitely consult a pediatrician. Taking into account the condition of the baby and the presence of other symptoms, the doctor may prescribe one or another drug. There are very few children's laxatives for newborns on the medicine market. Therefore, proven drugs for adults are often used, but in much smaller doses.

Among modern medicines it is worth highlighting the following:

1. Dufalak,
2. Espumisan,
3. Lactuvit,
4. Lizalak,
5. Romphalac.

These medications help treat constipation and excessive gas. Most of the effective products are based on lactulose. This substance allows you to gently eliminate indigestion and restore intestinal microflora. Medicines in syrup form are given separately or mixed with milk. When artificial feeding, you can find a dry formula that already contains lactulose. However, it should be noted that this drug, like any other, has certain side effects and contraindications.

How to give an enema to an infant?

The child should be laid on his back, his legs raised, and the air released from the rubber balloon. Carefully insert the enema tip lubricated with Vaseline into the anus, release the contents of the bulb and also carefully remove the tip by squeezing the buttocks. After this, hold the buttocks for a while to prevent the water from quickly flowing out.

Why do an enema at home?

Typically, a small child requires an enema in the following cases:

• food poisoning;
• prolonged absence of stool, constipation;
• administration of drugs.

How to determine the amount of liquid required for an enema?

If you need to give an enema to an infant or young child, you must adhere to the following standards:

• from 1 to 6 months – 30-60 ml.;
• from 6 to 12 months – 120 ml.;
• from 12 to 24 months – 200 ml.;
• from 24 to 36 months – 250 ml.

Enema compositions for newborns

Consult with a specialist before giving an enema to a newborn, especially do not try to add anything to the water intended for filling a baby enema yourself.

Your doctor may suggest that you use one of the following solutions:

• soda water (a teaspoon of soda per 200 grams of boiled water);
• soap solution (put a bar of soap in water and shake);
• saline solution (0.5 teaspoon of salt per 200 grams of water);
• chamomile decoction (a tablespoon per glass of water);
• oil solution (a tablespoon of vegetable oil per liter of water).

An enema for a child is made from boiled water at a temperature of about 30⁰. At lower water temperatures, cramps may occur, and at temperatures above 30⁰, water can be absorbed into the intestines.

How often can you do an enema?

Sometimes a baby enema may not give results the first time, in which case it can be repeated after six hours. However, you should not abuse this method without special reasons. Innate reflexes may become lazy and it will be difficult for the child to defecate on his own.

How to give an enema to a newborn?

Before the procedure, it is advisable to calm the baby down and convince him that it will not hurt.

Proceed as soon as he relaxes:

1. Boil the syringe for 25 minutes. Then remove it from the boiling water and remove the hot water so as not to burn the little patient. Everything that is introduced into the child must be sterile.
2. Bring the medicinal solution to 28-30 °C.
3. Wash your hands, lay an oilcloth on the table so that one of its edges goes down into a bowl or large basin. Lay a diaper on top of the oilcloth. Put everything you need nearby.
4. Squeeze out the air from the syringe. Pour liquid into it.
5. Lubricate the tip with Vaseline.
6. Place the child on his left side if he is over 8 months old. For comfort, it is better to place a one-month-old baby on his back, raising and bending his legs.
7. Squeeze the air out of the syringe until a solution appears.
8. Spread the baby’s buttocks and slowly insert the tip 2 cm, and then apply the solution.
9. Holding the baby's buttocks, remove the tip and hold it slightly so that the solution does not leak out.
10. After successful emptying, wash the baby.

If you give your baby an enema on time and correctly, you can relieve him of painful stool. The procedure should not physically or psychologically traumatize the child. It is applicable if probiotics, suppositories, tummy massage, etc. have not helped. You should not grab a pear without trying gentler methods of providing first aid to a baby suffering from constipation. The procedure may not be necessary. And if there is a need for it, then it must be done correctly and as carefully as possible so as not to harm the baby.

How often can you do it

An enema for babies with constipation is performed in severe cases. It washes away the beneficial intestinal flora that begins to form. Peristalsis is disrupted, and the baby gets used to going to the toilet using the artificial method.

What to do before an enema for constipation:

• when a mother is breastfeeding her baby, she should consume more foods with fiber, eat fresh and dried fruits, and add fermented milk products;
• the mother needs to calm down and not worry (the child senses the mother’s mood);
• when artificially feeding, the baby will need to choose a suitable mixture and complementary foods;
• when breastfeeding, apply it to the nipple more often to calm and warm the baby;
• give some water to drink between meals, children's herbal tea is recommended.

If colic in the abdomen causes constipation, you must use a gas outlet tube and use the drugs “Espumizan” and “Infacol”.

Microenema "Mikrolaks" is an excellent alternative to an enema. The drug makes it easy to use at home thanks to its Vaseline base. Clyster is used from the first days of a child’s life. The baby tolerates the method more easily and does not feel discomfort during the procedure. The product acts at the intestinal level, the substances do not pass into the blood and do not have a negative effect on the health of the baby.

For mom and dad, the option is simple and does not require any skills. Soft, comfortable tube to use:

1. Open the tube.
2. Place on baby's left side.
3. Insert the long end into the anus.
4. Squeeze the contents inside.

The effect of the drug occurs within 5-10 minutes. The baby will have a bowel movement within 60 minutes.

If after 30 minutes the feces have not come out, place the child on his tummy and wait for the result.

Proper techniques to facilitate bowel movements can help avoid the need for an enema.

In severe situations, an enema should be given once every three days.

How much and when to bet:

• for chronic constipation, a one-time use is required after consulting a pediatrician (the procedure is repeated after 6 hours);
• in the absence of stool from 3 to 5 days;
• the baby is restless, cries, presses his legs to his stomach and tries to defecate;
• The baby refuses breastfeeding or artificial formula.

With the above options, an enema will be the right decision for the child.