I just heard back from my son's nurse practitioner's office that his test for celiac disease is negative and the next step is to look at lactose intollerance. He's had diarrea for a very long time. We've tried pro biotics and had almost no success.
Has anyone had success with taking their toddler off dairy? He is currently getting a ton of his nutrition from dairy, so I'd really need help with changing his diet. Happy to hear any ideas.
Thanks
We've been eliminating dairy -replacing cow's milk with soy milk and using soy cheese. He hasn't been drinking any juice for months, but he has been eating a lot of apple, so we've taken him off that too. We back slid on the dairy this week-end a bit b/c we were out at a friend's house and didn't have an ice-cream substitute and didn't want to put him through not having icecream when all the other kids were. Seems like his bm was worse today, so maybe it is the dairy. My mom said 50 years ago she stopped breast feeding my sister b/c she had diarrhea ...I am still breast feeding him. His NP said dairy intolerance "might" extend to human milk, but not necessarily so to try eliminating cow's milk first. Thanks for your thoughts everyone! By the way, he's an extremely healthy, big boy and never seems uncomfortable or in pain. Seems to be getting lots of nutrition despite the diarrhea.
Ther is such a thing as toddler diarrhea, btw. I remember looking it up when one of my kids had diarrhea for what seemed like eons. It's very common in 2 year olds, so it may just pass.
I work with a ton of kids with digestive issues and food allergies - there's a lot you can do nutritionally to repair the digestive tract and make food less likely to cause this. Most autoimmune reactions are more easily solved by repairing the immune system rather than eliminating everything, which is a hassle anyway but especially for a young child who doesn't understand why he can't have X or Y. You can also increase his absorption so he gets a lot of his nutritional needs met - the constant diarrhea prevents absorption, of course, because so much just flows out of him, and there's also the concern about dehydration. You can substitute a lot of other milk-type products (coconut, almond, and so on) for cow's milk but kids won't always go along with it. And of course you have to "police" this when you are in a restaurant, at Grandma's, or they are in preschool. The work being done on epigenetics to repair these problems is pretty astounding and has been featured in endless TV shows and articles, with scores of published papers showing its safety.
Well, mine has never been on dairy, so there was no taking him off process. But a toddler can get lots of nutrition without diary.
For milk, we go with rice milk. You could also try coconut (sweeter) or soy. We use it in cooking (mashed potatoes, etc), and on cereal, in addition to in a cup to drink.
You can buy soy yogurt. Sorbet instead of ice cream for a treat.
The only thing that is really out is cheese. There is non-dairy cheese out there, but my child doesn't like it (I tried it, and I can't blame him). So, instead of a cheese stick snack, go for a complete switch to something like apple slices.
I have issues with dairy. I get bloated.
FYI- Just because it is not celiac, does not mean that it can not be a sensitivity.
Have you tired going a week or two with out gluten to see if anything changes? Sometime tests are not very helpful. I know a few who were tested, told gluten were not thier issue and it turns out it was not
My child had severe issues for a couple of years. We finally removed all fruit products that contain sorbitol (apples, red grapes, purple grapes, cherries, pears, and anything containing any of those including apple juice and any juices containing any of those ingredients, and sugar-free gum and candies). Once we did that (a doctor suggested it), the problem cleared up quickly. She still can't tolerate those foods. Peach puree (natural) was a good substitute for apple sauce and 100% white grape juice (made from green grapes which do not contain sorbitol) was a good substitute for apple juice. A GI dr told us that some toddlers just cannot handle the sorbitol. It's a naturally occurring sugar alcohol and is used in sugar-free foods and in some toothpastes and shampoos.
My first thought is - what else is he eating? Have you eliminated other food additives, preservatives, dyes, splenda, aspertame, artificial stuff? All of those can cause stomach problems along with milk, wheat, etc. You just have to play detective and see what's bothering him. In the meantime, keep his diet as close to "real" food as possible. Good luck.
My son went through this. We took him off dairy (not easy, as he loves milk) for a period of time, and nothing changed. He still had the diarrhea. The ped told us that this in not entirely uncommon for toddlers. In fact, they call it "toddler diarrhea." She said as they get used to the many different foods we offer them, sometimes their bodies are slow in getting used to processing them. Eventually this passed, and he's been nothing but a happy and healthy kid. He's now 4 years old and doing great!
Just keep trying to give him lots of healthy options - fruits, veggies, peanut butter, eggs, pasta, etc. He may have a lactose issue, but he also may just be adjusting.
See a gastroenterologist to get the entire array of tests, including Crohn's or ulcerative colitis.
Not saying that it's necessarily gluten but there is something called non-celiac gluten sensitivity. Probably the most useful thing would be to do some sort of elimination diet so you can discover the source of his problems. I react to things that aren't common to test for.
You say he eats a lot of dairy, but is he also drinking a lot or any juice? My son used to get diarrhea from almost any type of juice if it was not cut significantly with water. We finally figured out that he would get horrible diarrhea from juice boxes, because we noticed a trend that it seemed to happen after parties, bbq's or being out and about. At home I always mixed juice w/ water. Some fruits have a chemical in it that causes a laxative effect. It could be something very simple. Meanwhile maybe try cutting back on the dairy as well. Good Luck!
There are 2 different tests for celiac and most dr's offices do the one that produces negatives more often (the cheaper one). My son was getting a test for celiac in a diabetes study and when he tested positive our dr. said to wait and see. He tested positive again and when I showed her the test that was being used in the diabetes study she told me that if she had known that was the test she would have sent us to a GI specialist right away. You could always ask for a referral to see a GI specialist at Children's. We see Dr. Wahbeh, he is really good and had high praises from our Pediatrician.
Depending on what test your NP used he may still have celiac dz. You need a genetic test to really show whether or not he has it. 23 and me I believe tests for that as well as other disorders and is only $99 (no I don't work for them but tested my family and the results were helpful)
Alternatively you could eliminate all gluten and see if that helps. Eliminating dairy is also a good idea though I would eliminate one at a time of course. If you really have the time or desire I would recommend you google elimination diet or talk to a dietician about eliminating most foods from his diet then slowly introduce them back, keeping a food diary along the way. He could also be allergic to eggs.
Poor little guy - hope you can figure it out.
Take care,
-J
