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A Natural Constipation Remedy: Prunes for Baby

My children tend towards constipation in their first year of life...whether formula fed, like my son, or breast fed, like my daughter, the results seem to be the same.

Keep in mind, that infrequent pooping does not a constipated baby make.  According to my doctor, and everything else that I have read on the subject (amazing how fascinating bowels are once you become parent!), a baby is only considered truly constipated if they have hard, often marble-like, stools which cause discomfort.  You actually aren't supposed to freak out if your baby only poops once a week, as long as they are having normal stools and aren't having excess gas or any discomfort.  Don't believe me? the experts at WebMD concur.

Because prunes and plums are a food with low risk of allergic reactions and aren't particularly acidic, prunes are a good go to remedy for your baby once he or she starts solids.

I recommend buying your prunes in a see-through bag instead of in an opaque container so that you can see and squish the prunes through the bag to make sure that they aren't too dried out.  Look at the package carefully and make sure that there is no added sugar and (particularly if you have a family history of food allergies) that they are processed in a nut-free facility.

Keep in mind, dried prunes are not the same as dried plums. They look and taste quite different.

Pooping Prunes

1 12-15oz bag of good quality dried pitted prunes (organic is best)

Pour prunes into a small saucepan, and add just enough filtered water to cover them.  Cook them over medium-low heat until prunes plump up and soften considerably--about 10-15 minutes.

Puree them in an electric food processor or blender (if you choose this option for a young baby, I recommend pushing it through a fine sieve after you are through pureeing to remove any bits of skin that may be chokable) OR 2. Puree prunes using the finest setting of a hand food mill (this will give you the smoothest prunes) You may want to add more water to make processing them easier.

To store:  Freeze in a small container or ice cube trays. Pureed prunes will be thick and gloppy and will not freeze into completely solid cubes--you will probably have to store them in the ice cube tray in your freezer.

When introducing prunes to your baby, do so very slowly. More than a teaspoon or two (or 1 cube) may cause stomach cramping.

Making Your Own Baby Food Is Not Rocket Science--Gathering Your Tools

As I previously mentioned, I have recently started feeding my daughter solid foods. As I did for her brother, I am making all of her food (save for her baby cereal) from scratch.  While all of the peeling, chopping and pureeing takes time I am fully convinced that the results are worth it! Homemade baby food not only tastes better (have you ever tasted some of those jarred vegetables?!) and is generally more nutrient dense, but also introduces your baby to fruits and veggies as they were meant to taste--generally resulting in fewer rejected foods and less picky eaters.

To help other parents see how simple it can be, I am trying to gather all of my tips as I go along.

First and foremost, you need to gather your tools:

1. Basket steamer--one of those folding ones is great for fitting in different sized pots--for steaming fruit and vegetables

2. Food processor or blender--for pureeing large batches quickly (I think the food processor far surpasses the blender in ease of use and quality or purees)

3. Fine mesh strainer--for straining large batches of fruit/veggies that you have pureed in your Food processor or blender

4. Full-sized food mill--if you want to strain and puree simultaneously--takes a lot of elbow grease ;)

5. Travel-sized food mill for making single portions on the go

6. Potato masher--for later, when your baby is eating chunkier foods

7. I oz Ice Cube Trays and small freezable containers--for freezing portions of pureed food

8. Plastic Wrap for covering ice cube trays when you freeze cubes--to prevent other flavors from your freezer from infusing your cubes

8. Freezer friendly zip-top bags--for storing food cubes

9. Permanent marker--for labeling date and contents of bags in freezer (cubes of similar colors can look the same and different foods have different freezer shelf lives)