13 Month Old with a Lot of Gas

Hi M.,

I'm a vegetarian and love soy, but in larger amounts it can cause bloating. And remember it's a legume so it can cause gas also. I don't know if this will help, but I hope so. K.

If she seems reluctant to eat when you offer her BRAT diet, I would stop and instead give her whatever she feels like eating. Her body is the best guide. As for soy milk, even though it may be better than cow milk in some cases, I would stop for now and see if that makes a differece. Until she is better, don't worry too much about feeding her. If she doesn't want to eat, don't feed her. Her body will bounce back after this illness. Continue with antibiotics and ear drops, unless she has issues with those too.

A homeopathic doctor told me that soy is one of the most gas causing substances. Taking her off the soy and adding very strong doses of probiotics that have more than one strain might help. Kirkman labs online has one of the best probiotics. Or, go to whole foods and ask them which is the strongest probiotic for your daughter's age.

Mylicon!!! It is the baby Mylanta gas. What you are looking for is the ingredient simithicon. I don't know how to spell it but that medicine reduces the size of gas bubbles therefore making them less painful and easy to pass. I have never given my son soymilk because it destroyed my stomach... was your daughter already accustomed to it before? The diet you are talking about is going to make her poop more solid so maybe the pain is from constipation. Even applesauce - high in fiber but it helps form poop - not make it runny. I'd throw an avocado into that diet for a smooth exit! Good luck - she'll be better soon!

Hi M.,
I saw your reference to the BRAT diet and thought I would respond. I read recently that it is no longer recommended by doctors due to its lack of protein and other much-needed nutrients. Visit http://www.babycenter.com/0_stomach-flu-gastroenteritis_#... for more information (the reference is on the second page of the article). Best of luck to you!

M.,

My son is 2.5 and what you are describing is a lot like what my son does when he eats soy. He's highly allergic to it. His belly extends, he gets really gassy, gets green mucousy poop, sometimes diarrhea too depending on how much he gets. It will also set his eczema off and/or give him hives (depending on how much of it he's eaten). He's intolerant to dairy also (much of the same symptoms minus the hives). If he eats either dairy or soy, he'll scream for days and not sleep at all because his belly is so sore.

It could also be a reaction to the antibiotics. I'd definitely call your doctor.

My son has had issues with dairy and soy from birth. His reaction is much stronger and more noticable when he eats stuff directly as opposed to when he was getting it via breastmilk but even when he was nursing, before I figured out the problem, any time I'd eat a bunch of dairy or soy there would be hell to pay.

T.

probiotics. better yet see naturopath.
Good Luck
V

My son had the same thing a month ago. It's awful and horrible and lasts way too long. All I can suggest is lots of TLC (holding him on the couch late at night watching noggin or sprout) and rice milk seemed to really help with the diarrhea. Maybe some gas drops might help as well such as Little Tummys brand and ibuprophen also seemed to help with the pain. Good luck and I hope your little one gets better soon.

Try not giving her the soy. My daughter had horrible tummy problems when I tried her on soy.

Hi,
Rubbing the tummy in clockwise motion helps them move stuff through.

Also if she lies face down and then scoootches her knees up under her (with her behind facing up) this lets gravity help. Very effective. No side effects and cheap! You can rub her back a bit to keep her comfortable and relaxed.

No fun, right? It is so hard to see your child suffer!
You're a good mommy. Don't worry, this too shall pass.....(so to speak....)

Blessings,
Deb

She might be allergic to soy. I am, and even a tiny bit of soy in anything gives me unbelievable stomach pain and gas. Poor baby, if this is happening to her on top of all the other issues. Rice milk, almond milk, goat's milk are other alternatives. Hope this helps!

Tell her Doctor, try infant gas drops, gently massage her tummy in circular motions, bicycle the legs.

Her tummy will take time to fully recover. AND she has an ear infection on top of all that and throwing up. So naturally, she is in pain, cannot sleep, and the only way for a baby to communicate is screaming. Its not easy for her...

Again, tell the Doctor... bloated-ness/bulging can be due to gas or other things...
so check with the Doctor to make extra sure.

Make sure she is NOT getting dehydrated... ask your Doctor about Pedialyte. When they are ill like this, they cannot take in huge amounts of liquids/water or they will throw-up... so you have to administer a few drops at a time... or have her take sips. Not gulps.

You are her "nurse" now... and all night long, when a baby is ill like this. It will pass... when her system is fully recovered. I remember being up all night with my kids, even for just a simple fever. I'd wake up every 2 hours just to take their temperature, and check their noses and breathing.

Do NOT give anything like Pepto Bismol... it is dangerous for children. It contains a form of aspirin, which can cause "Reyes" disease in children.

take care,
Susan

You should try giving her Tum-Ease for babies. They sell it at Wholefoods I know for sure because that's where I buy it. It's great and my son loves the taste. You should also get her on a probiotic. You can buy them over the counter or from the doctor. Antibiotics wipe out all the good bacteria as well which can also cause stomach problems.

http://health.howstuffworks.com/peppermint-herbal-remedie...
"When treating a baby with tummy cramps, you can give a teaspoon of peppermint tea if the baby will take it, or put a cloth soaked in warm peppermint tea on the infant's belly."

Do not apply to her face.

Massage her feet. Reflexology is the art of applying light pressure to points on the feet that reflex the energy where needed. The arch of the foot reflexes the abdomen and the heels reflex the lower digestive system. There are several easy to follow books available at any major book store.

Manipulating her legs as if riding a bicycle often gets gas moving.

A chiropractic adjustment will address both problems. She is not too young. Regular chiropractic adjustments go a long way in keeping us healthy.

Why is she on ABX after a VIRUS? I'd try PB8. It's a PROBIOTIC and you can open the capsule and dump 1/2-1 in her mouth or mix it with food. The gas might go away imemdiately. Bananas can be really hard on digestion, as well as apples, so I'd be really careful with this diet...and soy can be the worst culprit of them all, since most anglosaxon backgrounds have a hard time processing it AND it is a phyto-estrogen, meaning it's having an estrogenic effect on her body. You might want to try Rice Dream....rather than soy. Who the heck is your pediatrician?

Her "good" digestic tract bacteria may be depleted. Yogurt has those kinds of good bacteria, and now they even have the special yogurt that has even more of the probiotics.

Are all the foods that she is eating now things she was eating prior to getting sick. Because if not this maybe causing her some of the problems. Try using the childrens gas drops. Or giving her something with mint. This is always soothing. Like a candy cane. Try rubbing her stomach & back. If you lay her across your lap you can rubber her stomach easier. It also could be that the antibotics are not agreeing with her & causing some of the problems.

You might want to try cutting out the soy and wheat toast, especially if she's not used to having it in large quantites. Doctors/nutritionists/allergists usually recommend cutting out those items if your child seems to be having stomach problems. I realize it's complicated with the virus, but in general you might want to watch the a lot of soy in particular for long term use. (google soy and phytoestrogens, check it out.) Anyway, try eliminating the bread and soy and see if that helps. You could replace it with rice crackers and just give her water for her fluid. Hope she feels better soon!

sounds like you need to get her some baby jarrow-dophilus ..you can get it at Wholefoods..put a little in her milk or drink..also hylands colic tablets actually help with gas..u might want to get her some of those. Also if u go to Wholefoods ask the people that work in the vitamin dept they're very helpful

I would stop the Soy milk. I know that with the antibiotics and ear infections any dairy helps form mucous. I am not sure how the soy relates but it really is not part of the brat diet. My child has had so many ear infections I understand your pain! The Mylicon drops are wonderful as well but I would stop the milk.

Hi M.. I would agree that soymilk is not going to help with the gas situation, it's very hard on the tummy. Try enriched ricemilk. I wouldn't worry about the lack of protein in the BRAT diet, you're not keeping her on it long-term, it's just until she feels better. I would also recommend the baby jarro-dophilus, you can mix it with the ricemilk or in her food, it is great! Good luck, hope she feels better soon!

I am sorry to hear that she and you are going through this. They have infant Gas X and other gas drops. Can you drop some in her mouth, or food/ water.

Hope you both feel better real soon!

Between the antibiotics and tummy virus, she needs some probiotics in her system. In addition to the BRAT diet, give her a small amount of yogurt, or mix some acidophilus into her apple sauce. You could always try mylicon, too, to give some relief. Good Luck.