I don’t think I’ve blogged about this before but the thing is, Fighter has mad constipation problems. -_-

He never used to!  When he was fully breastfed he pooped twice a day, and even when he started formula he had no issues and pooped daily.

What happened was I switched him to level 3 formula meant for toddlers.  Maybe the formula is more ‘kau’ or ‘heaty’ or something because from then on he had major issues fhl.

Every time he needed to poop, he’d strain and cry.  He’d clutch some piece of furniture and say pitifully, “Mommy, go away.”  Because who needs to be watched while doing a mega poop right.

We resorted to lactulose (a synthetic sugar used to help in constipation) but he’d cry even more when taking it.  It’s sweet so not like it’s super torturous but I think he just thinks its medicine therefore it is evil wtf.  When lactulose is spat out, thrown up or just plan doesn’t work, I resort to a laxative suppository.  This one never fails but I hate using it!

I mean, who likes violating their own child like this wtf.  And Fighter is so terrified of this that he refuses to let me apply diaper cream on his butt anymore because he’s so scared I’ll stick another laxative into him. 🙁

Trust me, I’ve tried everything else I can think of before turning to medication.  The trouble is, Fighter doesn’t really like fruits. -_- No pears, no plums, no peaches, definitely no apples or oranges. As a baby he liked bananas but also grew bored of them.  The only fruit he really likes is mango and while mango is full of fiber, it’s also considered ‘heaty’ and doesn’t really seem to help.

The only veggie he really likes is spinach.  And potato leaves and broccoli.  But spinach while very healthy is also full of iron which can contribute to constipation.

I tried putting a dash of Ribena in his water bottle to make him drink more.  Giving him ice water.  Giving him Milo and juice.  All to make water more appetizing.  What works the most is pure persistence though – lugging around his water bottle and offering it to him every half hour at least.  I try to make it a game – I make him take at least five sips and count 1 to 5.

So now his constipation is at bay, but just barely.  Sometimes it still comes back so I’m always on the lookout for a solution.

The clearest answer is PRUNES! Fighter quite liked prunes for a while which worked fantastic for me.  But then he also got bored of them and the most eat like half a piece only. -_- So I decided to hide prunes in the what he likes… biscuits and cookies and cake and muffins.   Opted for Sunsweet prunes which are the most popular brand in Malaysia.   Prunes are not only good for constipation; recent studies show that they are a god source of iron and antioxidants, are good for preventing osteoporosis, as well as controlling blood sugar levels and more. Sunsweet prunes & prune juice are made out of 100% natural fruit with no added sugar. And Sunsweet prunes are produced using a technology which removes prune pits without ruining the fruit, hence their prunes are fuller and juicier. So this is a recipe for… Banana Prune Muffins Ingredients:  

• 1/2 cup white sugar

• 1/4 cup butter

•  1 egg

• 1 cup mashed banana

• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract

• 1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour

• 1 teaspoon baking powder

•  1/2 teaspoon baking soda

• 1/4 teaspoon salt

• 1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon

• 1 cup chopped pitted prunes

1. Preheat oven to 175 degrees C (or 350 degrees F). Grease a muffin pan, or use paper liners.
2. In a large bowl, combine sugar, butter and eggs. Beat until smooth. Blend in banana and vanilla. Mix together flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt and cinnamon, then stir into egg mixture until just moistened. Mix in the prunes. Spoon into muffin cups.
3. Bake in the preheated oven for 20 to 25 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the center of a muffin comes out clean.

 I got the recipe off here. It calls for vegetable oil  but I prefer butter so I swapped it.  

I got my sous chef to help out too hahahaha.  It’s been increasingly hard to bake with the both of them always clamoring for attention when they’re awake, but now that Fighter is older and has a bigger attention span, he seems interested in helping me bake!

Got all my ingredients together.

Fighter be like, “Don’t forget the prunes Mommy!” Sunsweet is the most obvious brand for prunes hehe.  They come seedless but whole so I chopped them into quarters before using them.

Baking is an awesome activity to do with toddlers I think.

I prepared all the ingredients beforehand and got Fighter to pour them into the mixing bowl.  It’s great practice for his fine motor skills (which he honestly quite sucks at hahahaha).  He did well though, didn’t spill anything!  Although he was slightly obsessed with the cinammon powder and kept wanting to put it in first wtf.

When he’s older, I’d get him to measure out the ingredients and practice counting and math that way too. ^^

And then halfway this food thief wanted to sample the ingredients hahaha. Luckily he didn’t try to eat the raw egg or else salmonella wtf.

Asked him to show me what was in his mouth – the prunes hahaha.

After mixing everything, he helped me line the muffin pan with paper liners.

And I scooped muffin mix into the cups.

Macam yes ahahahah.

Then we popped the muffins in the oven and waited! Actually after ten seconds Fighter decided there’s better things in life than wait for an oven to ping and wandered away wtf.

Muffins are done!

I always ask him to use utensils instead of his hands to eat but this is really taking it to the next level. -_- He loves muffins so this is right up his alley!  He dropped crumbs everywhere but happy to say he ate it all up. 😀 I guess the moral of the story is, don’t give up when it comes to kids’ diets and nutrition.  Glad I found a way to finally get some fiber and natural laxative into Fighter and, on top of that, we have a fun and educational mommy-son activity to do together. 

This post is in collaboration with Sunsweet.