Lactitol Monohydrate

Adults: Lactitol can be mixed with hot or cold drinks, puddings and similar foods. The dose will need adjusting to get one bowel movement a day in constipated patients, and two bowel movements a day in patients with portal systemic encephalopathy. In constipation In adults, the starting daily dose should be 20 g, taken as a single dose with the morning or evening meal. After a few days, a daily dose of 10 g may be enough. In children, the mean dose is 0.25 g/kg body weight daily. For 1 to 6 years it is 2.5 to 5 gm, for 6 to 12 years it is 5 to 10 gm, and for 12 to 16 years it is 10 to 20 gm. The effect of lactitol mostly appears within a few hours of taking it. In some cases, though, the first laxative response may be delayed until the second or third day of use. So patients should be advised to keep up an adequate daily fluid intake. In portal systemic encephalopathy The dose should be adjusted to the severity of the patient's disease and how they respond. The recommended starting dose is 0.5 to 0.7 gm/kg body weight daily, divided into three doses taken with meals.