Let's Talk Poop and GI Alleriges

You asked if most 3 year olds have mushy poops, not liquid just loose. My 3 year old has firm poops, if he has a loose one something's wrong.

My suggestions are to ask for a referral to a Registered Dietician who can work with you to develop a plan to figure out what foods bother/upset your son's GI tract, and to learn to like to cook for your son's health and well-being. Respectfully speaking, he didn't ask for the problems, you know? :)

Both too loose poops, and too hard poops are not "normal". It may not just be food allergies (whether from IgE, IgG, or IgA reactions - mid-way down this post are ways to test for food sensitivities: http://itsnotmental.blogspot.com/2011/08/brain-health-cut... ), but it could also be a problem with Yeast overgrowth and/or needing probiotics.

Some medications, such as antibiotics can really do a number on our gut, and from there, cause inflammation, and even a progression of immune reactions due to the inflamed gut.

I had issues like your son and got more and more allergic and inflamed and had hives... started reacting to more and more foods... even ended up in the ER with an severe IgG reaction. Some doctors do not call that a "true allergy" yet the ER doctors had to treat it the same as an IgE anaphylactic allergic reaction. Anyway, a lot of my problems probably stemmed from systemic yeast.

Actually, it was my children who we figured out first - they had food issues. One now is close to having her Master's degree in dietetics. And I agree with GrammaRocks - learn how to make your family food according to your child's needs. I hated to cook, but it isn't such a big deal. It starts with lots of fresh, wholesome fruits, vegetables, and meats from quality sources.

I cannot eat gluten or dairy or eggs and was addicted to sugar and refined carbs... and I actually used to be a picky eater but now I eat MORE variety than I ever ate before! Even my husband who does not eat this way when he eats out (which is often), feels better than before.

I've had food allergies for most of my adult life. I'm now 70 and many allergies seem to have gone away. Yay! It takes time to figure out which specific foods cause difficulties. Have you been able to find any foods to which his poop isn't too soft? If so stick with just those foods and then add one food at a time waiting in between to see if there is a reaction.

A milk allergy is difficult because so many foods contain milk. Some people are able to tolerate small amounts of dairy products but others aren't. My first thought is that tapioca pudding has milk in it. Eggs are also in many prepared foods. Do you read labels?

It sounds like you're still breast feeding. Might you feel less stress if you wean him and rely on milk substitutes such as rice or nut milks? That way you wouldn't have to alter your diet.

I don't know what you mean when you say GI allergies. They test for some foods tho testing isn't always accurate. You have to try out the food to confirm the test.

I have a soy allergy and have not found it difficult. I eat mostly whole foods and avoid processed foods. When I do want a cookie or some such food, I read the label. I can tolerate soy bean oil. Frequently we are not allergic to the oil when we are to the food its self.

Since you hate to cook you don't have to do much cooking. Raw foods are good for us. Much of the time I cook simply. I'll steam vegetables and pan broil meats using minimum seasonings. Try eating just a few basic foods for a few days and see if his bms firm up. Avoid all dairy products and eggs as well as nuts and soy since he tested allergic to those. I add nuts because that is also a common allergen.

Consulting with a dietician could be of great help. Your health insurance may pay of one if prescribed by his doctor.

My oldest daughter is allergic to corn. It is in EVERYTHING. If you are Latin, it is in twice as much of your foods.

After years of this problem and a lot of research, corn is one of the most difficult foods to digest. We know this by what happens 3 days after we eat kernel corn.

My advice is to do a lot of label reading. I find it difficult to find foods free of corn, but it is possible. If you find that an item can't be found without corn, make it yourself, freeze it, and save that food for him. Otherwise, you can try to find a product that has corn at the bottom of it's ingredient list. Once you find an item that works, write down the brand so you don't have to read labels every time you are at the market.

Best wishes.

Have you noticed that the incidence of "food allergies" has increased greatly, as our food quality has declined? Food allergies aren't true allergies (such as a medication allergy) - they are the result of missing ingredients/nutrients that make it harder (or impossible) to digest a specific food. You can go through the torture of eliminating certain trigger foods until you find the culprit, and then spend your life avoiding it (including kids staying home from parties and not going to restaurants). You've seen it yourself, that eliminating gluten for months didn't make much difference.

OR you can restore your body's natural state of health by providing the necessary nutrients in the proper balance and with high quality, tested ingredients. I work with many people whose kids tested positive for peanut, egg, soy allergies, who got rid of them. I work with a woman whose child had 60 food allergies - SIXTY! There was almost nothing he could eat, and as a result he was diagnosed with a learning disability. With the right nutrition and the right support/advice, and by being incredibly consistent, he is now allergy free and no longer, according to the school, has a learning disability.

If you'd like to try a different route, there is help available.

C., this is NOT normal. This is often characteristic of gut dysbiosis. You can test for GI food allergies using a blood test. I would also recommend a stool and urine test to check for peptides as well as yeast and bacteria. However, VERY few western doctors will do these types of tests. You might have more success getting these tests done with a DAN (defeat autism now) doctor. Most (if not all) of them run these tests on their autistic patients as most children with autism struggle with these issues. Please do not get me wrong. I am no saying your child has autism, but rather that a doctor who is used to dealing with GI issues (such as a DAN doctor) would be more equipped to know what to do rather than your pediatrician.

Hi C.,

No it is not normal to constantly have mushy poop. I just watched a video the other day (it was free on the web, but now you have to pay. You can see it for $2.99 for three days). It is about Genetically Modified foods, and how it could be affecting U.S. health. They talked a lot about every illness, including allergies and stomach issues. They talk about kids and stmach issues, and how taking out the GMO's, made them better. Interesting that Soy is one of the bigger issues, so it is good that your child can't have soy, most of the U.S. corn is GMO too. See if you can see the film (websites below, and trailer from youtube). I am gluten free and have been soy free too. I would go to wholefoods to see what options you have. Trader Joes also has some good gluten free options (although after the film I am trying understand the use of corn in the gluten free options). There is also Almond Milk and Coconut Milk (Sprouts has yogurt options with these as bases). I have been making shakes for my kids with some coconut water, a slice of pineapple, watermelon, a ripe banana, frozen blueberries (organic from Trader Joes), and I throw in a handful of spinach. The fruit is so overwhelming that they do not even know there is spinach in there. Sometimes I also put in raw coconut, for the coconut flavor. I think the spinach may have calcium.

I have found a trailer on YouTube for you. To see the whole film, go to http://geneticroulettemovie.com/. Here is the trailer. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Vv96D_ZURzs.

Good luck