Why is my child doing this?

Most children who soil their pants are severely constipated. They may ignore the urge to go to the toilet and "hold on" to avoid the pain of passing stools.

This leads to faecal impaction when a large, solid stool becomes stuck in their rectum (back passage) and begins to stretch and weaken the surrounding muscle walls. Watery stools then leak out from around this blockage.

At first, you may just notice streaks in your child's underwear and assume they aren't wiping properly, but it usually gets worse and can lead to entire bowel movements in their underwear.

Children who don't get enough fibre and fluids in their diet may be at risk of becoming constipated. However, a poor diet alone is rarely the cause of childhood constipation.

Constipationmay also be related to a lack of toilet training or toilet training at too early an age. Constantly intervening when your child is using the toilet may make them feel anxious about it and reluctant to go, which onlymakes the problemworse.

For more information, read about the causes of constipation .

Medically Reviewed by a doctor on 21 Dec 2018

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