red sugar versus polyethylene glycol 3350 in pediatric functional constipation: a randomized and active-controlled trial

Functional constipation is a prevalent problem in children. this study was designed to compare the efficacy and safety of molasses with polyethylene glycol (peg) in childhood constipation. this randomized single-center trial was conducted in amir al-momenin hospital, semnan, iran. 110 constipated children aged from 2 to 8 years were randomly assigned to 2 g kg^-1 peg or 2 ccs/kg molasses. children were treated for 1 month, and frequency of defecation, frequency of encopresis, abdominal pain, appetite, fecaloma, and pain at defecation were compared. the safety of both treatments was also studied. after 1 month of treatment, both drugs had an equal effect on the frequency of defecation and the frequency of encopresis per week (p <0.05). both drugs were effective in relieving defecation pain to some extent. molasses had a better effect on appetite status (p <0.05). molasses caused a lower rate of side effects; diarrhea (p <0.01), nausea (p <0.05), and vomit. our study showed that red sugar was as effective as peg 3350 for treating childhood functional constipation