Toddler Diarrhea? - Olathe,KS

Updated on August 24, 2008
C.B. asks from Oskaloosa, KS
27 answers

my son is 23 months old and has had VERY loose, watery stools for months now. they range from almost completely liquid, to having some slimy gross un-digested food in them. (sorry so graphic, it's a poop question!) it kinda snuck up on me - he hasn't had any other symptoms or acted like he was sick or in any pain. now that my sitter mentioned it to me, i can only remember one good solid one in at least a couple months. it never occurred to me that it might be an issue, because of him not having any other symptoms - i just put it off to "it must be something he ate", if i thought about it at all. but now i'm curious. i have a coworker whose 3 year old went through this for probably six months or so, and they took him to the dr. more than once, and ran lots of tests, and the doctors told her there was nothing wrong with him. she told me to google "toddler diarrhea" because apparently it's fairly common, and goes away on its own eventually. i did google it and it sounds like exactly what's going on. but has anyone else heard of this? i have made a dr. appointment for monday, but i just have a feeling that it's not going to do any good and i'm going to waste my money. i have heard that changing diets (we've already changed him to the BRAT diet which didn't help) does nothing, and can just dehydrate and make them sick because of lack of nutrients. help? thanks in advance!

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W.J.

answers from Springfield on

How much juice is he drinking. My son did that and we took him and it was the juice. I thought I was being a good Mom and only giving him juice and milk. Ooops!

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A.S.

answers from St. Louis on

I was going through something similar with my 19 month old. I noticed that if I only give him juice every couple of days that it makes a huge difference.

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K.G.

answers from Wichita on

My 2 1/2 yo son has the same thing and has for probably most of his life. He maybe has 2 or 3 solid poops a week if that. We tried removing allergy causing foods (dairy, fruit) for a week or two but it didn't make a difference so I'm guessing it's just a thing. If he still has it going on at his 3 year the doctor said she'd test him for a few things (celiac being on of them.

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G.N.

answers from St. Louis on

My son has been having very loose stools, but having a runny nose as well, Im thinking he is teething, he had been chewing on his shirt and drooling alot. I know teething and diarrhea go together. If he doesnt have a temp, I wouldnt worry about it, just make sure he is drinking lots of fluids. Get him the pedilyte pops and drink. NO juice. The brat diet should work. Bananas should work, sometimes it binds and sometimes it makes kids have diarrhea.

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M.N.

answers from Kansas City on

Try adding fiber to his food or milk 1 time a day start with 1/4 teaspoon then up to 1/2 teaspoon it helps with both diarrhea and constipation. be careful which one you get some have artifical sweetners in them that you don't want to expose your kids to. Also my grandbabies dr recomended and enzime to help them digest the food better but I can't remember what the name of it is sry. good luck with it. My grand daughter has had a problem with diarrhea since she was born especially when we put her on whole milk (she's very sensitive to dairy products). We started using the fiber for her twin brother who has very hard stools and found it helped her too.

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K.D.

answers from St. Louis on

My son went through the exact thing. I thought how as I going to potty train him. I also had him to the Dr and they did do some test, but Thanks God, everything was normal.. My Dr just said, alot of kids go through this, that the food does not digest. He did outgrow it. I would still keep you appointment with the Dr, just to make sure that everything is OK. Good Luck!

1 mom found this helpful
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L.K.

answers from Kansas City on

Carrie, My 16 month old has had this exact thing. He had loose stools for 3 months. I kept taking him to the dr. and they just kept telling me must have another virus. Well finally the 4th month I took him back and said we've got to do something. This dr. informed me that some kids there colons absorb to much water which can cause the loose stools. She has me giving him 1-3 tsp of Miralax in his milk in the morning. She told me to give it to him for 1 month and then try taking him off of it to see if his body goes back to normal. The miralax has worked I had to play with the dosage. I started off with 1 tsp and it didn't do a thing so we are now taking 2 tsp every morning. His stools are much better. In fact this past week I forgot to do the Miralax and his stools still stayed pretty good. So I'd definately give that a try because your right the dr. probably won't do anything. Now my dr. did say if it conintued after the Miralax that they would then run some test.

Good Luck!

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K.M.

answers from St. Louis on

My son is 3 years and 2 months old. He has had this ongoing for about 2 years. We have had many, many tests done and everything has come back normal. The doctor has always chalked it up to "toddler diarrhea" until his 3 year check up when he had lost weight. So she ran a bunch of tests that day and everything came back fine so she decided to wait another 3 months and see how it was going then. We have tried changing his diet, adding new things, avoiding some foods, nothing helps. So I am thinking that it is just the "toddler diarrhea" and he will outgrow it. Good luck.

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E.Y.

answers from Topeka on

See I thought my pediatrician was just lying to me to make me happy! LOL! I never thought to Google toddler diarrhea. My son has it. Be aware of your appointment on Monday.... you're probably going to be sent home with some vials and have to do stool samples. UGH! With my son I think I had to fill up about 6 vials.... that was so gross! Have you tried eliminating foods from your child's diet? I did that too thinking it was a food allergy, but it didn't work. At least we're not alone! How sad is it when you get excited becuse your kid gets a hard poop? LOL! I don't know what else to say. I hope for your sake it isn't toddler diarrhea and you can find a cause. If it is toddler diarrhea at least you know your baby will grow out of it. Good luck!

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N.H.

answers from Wichita on

try yogert that may help his digestion

1 mom found this helpful
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L.H.

answers from St. Louis on

The first thing that pops into my head when you mentioned he did have a good solid one before would be to feed him like you normally would, maybe changing a thing or two to see what works and what doesn't but write it down so if he has a good bm you can look back and see what it was that caused it. It would also probably be helpful the next time you go to the doctor to bring a chart of what he's been eating and he might be able to pin it down for you. Just an idea if it turns out to be his diet. Hope it works out for you. Good luck : D

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S.B.

answers from St. Louis on

We just went through this with my son. My doctor told us to give him yogurt, with live and active cultures, 3-4 times a day and it worked within a day. It might be worth a try! Good Luck!

1 mom found this helpful
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J.A.

answers from St. Louis on

As long as your son continues to gain weight, and isn't dehygrated, it probably isn't a problem. I would suggest however, if he does start to lose or stop gaining weight it could be a food sensitivity. I have Celiac disease, which causes diarrhea. Basically I cannot eat anything with wheat gluten, but with children there are usually other symptoms, and a striking lack of weight gain. Just keep an eye on his weight, and make sure he gets enough fluids.

Also, by the way, the tests for celiac are pretty inconclusive, the real test is to eliminate wheat from the diet and seeing if the symptoms subside. It can take a few weeks for the symptoms to get better.

1 mom found this helpful
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V.W.

answers from St. Louis on

Carrie, let me tell you of "grandma's recipe'. You can use it for diarrhea, Vomiting,or upset stomache. Whatever is wrong it will take care of it. You mix orange juice, salt, baking soda and sugar for taste. Have patient drink as much as they can, even if it is sips at a time. This is a multi-purpose remedy for all of the above. Good luck and I'll pray for your success.P.S. If you try this and it works,please check out this website(www.yourtotalblessing.com).You won't be sorry or tricked in anyway. V.

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H.O.

answers from St. Louis on

What types of food is he eating alot of? Could be a food intolerance. We have dealt with the same kind of nasty diapers off & on with our 1 yr. old son for quite some time. Finally found a good pediatric GI specialist (because dr.s always say "oh, it'll clear up"!) & learned he has an intolerance to gluten. Started feeding him gluten free & he was healthier than ever! May not be the case with your son but worth exploring. Some food intolerances if left untreated can cause permanent irreversible damage over the years & may not produce any other symptoms other than bowel issues or skin rashes or sensitivity. Bottom line, you're his mother & if you feel something is wrong & your pediatrician doesn't agree, ask for a referral to a good GI dr.

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B.K.

answers from Wichita on

It wouldn't be a waste of money to take hime to the Dr. and give you peace of mind. I have seen parasites cause diahrea, so you should get it ruled out. Barb K. Childcare Provider

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S.H.

answers from St. Louis on

when you mentioned that you tried changing his diet, did you completely remove dairy products for 1 week or longer? It's an idea.
another food item to consider removing (if the dairy is not the culprit) would be processed sugar & food dyes.
& what about pumping yogurt? It also aids in treating diarrhea.
a final thought would be: food allergy testing. Sometimes the allergen is really obscure, such as my niece who's allergic to walnuts but not any other nut!

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J.L.

answers from Kansas City on

could be a milk allergy

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R.G.

answers from Kansas City on

Carrie-

Is he cutting teeth? He seems to be at an age when they get alot of new teeth. Teething always changed my kids stool. One they didn't really wanted to chew, cause there teeth hurt. Two for what ever reason stool also became alot softer.

Hope that is what it is.

Anj

D.H.

answers from Kansas City on

Diarrhea in a child that long is not normal. It sounds as though he could have some sort of food allergy. If you doctor cannot give you an exact diagnosis, go and see a specialist. Good luck and God Bless.

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K.S.

answers from Kansas City on

My son has had this since newborn and he is now 10 years old. I was recently advised to have him checked for celiac sprue. Good Luck!

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T.Z.

answers from Topeka on

The slimy stools sound like they could have mucus in them, which a sign of an allergy. I would look into that.

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C.M.

answers from Kansas City on

My first thought would be that he is possibly having an allergic reaction to something that he eats on a regular basis. Diarrhea can be a sign that he might be lactose in tolerant. You might ask your doctor if he can be tested for specific food allergies. You said that you have tried changing his food but maybe you are changing to many things at once or not the right things. Try making a log of what he eats to see if there is anything that commonly makes it worse. Also, when my nephew had, really bad diarrhea once, his doctor said to give him Kool-aide diluted by about half instead of Pedialyte. It is much cheaper and basically does the same thing. His illness was due to a virus at the time but it has always worked wonders for our kids whenever they are sick. It might not help in your situation but its always good to remember for future reference. Good luck figuring it out.

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D.F.

answers from St. Louis on

my youngest child had the same thing. after running through her diet and alot of worrying, someone said something to me about vitamins. Apparently some children will get the runs from to much vitamins. so i cut her down to every other day and within a week it stopped. if your giving then to your little one you might try the same thing. good luck.
D. F

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K.P.

answers from Wichita on

I've suggested this to others before, but try Primadophilis Jr. It's in any health food store. Capsules can be opened and mixed in with food. It's a pro-biotic pill that restores the good bacteria to the intestinal tract that may have been depleted for any number of reasons. It may not work, but it won't hurt him , either.

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J.J.

answers from St. Louis on

You may want to have your doctor check to see if he has Celiac, a wheat allergy. They can do a blood test to check, as long as you haven't stopped giving him the wheat.

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R.M.

answers from Topeka on

I would ask the doctor if he could have an allergy to something that could be causing this. As a stop gap measure...try feeding him banana and see if that helps...it ALWAYS helped solidify my girls runny stools, unless they were sick and there was something else going on. You could also try yogurt...to readjust the bacteria in his digestive tract. This isnt something to ignore...it can lead to dehydration and other problems. This wouldnt be happening for no reason...you just have to be a detective to find out what it is. Could I suggest that you talk to your pharmacist?? I work at a pharmacy and our pharmacists are a real fount of information!!!
Good luck!!!
R. Ann

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