14 Month Old Throwing up - What Best to Give Her

If she has dry heaves, her stomach needs to heal so you need to just keep her hydrated and not worry about food right now. Think about things that have fluid in them, like popsicles and jello. The sugar is actually good for her right now, my mom always says (like when she is ready to try a few bites of food, after she can keep down a few bites of crackers, my mom always suggests a bit of jelly on toast or crackers for the sugar her body needs-- I guess it's a blood sugar thing? Not sure) My son was really sick with a stomach bug once and we took him to the doctor because it was going on for days-- at first he said don't worry about the BRAT diet and just try and get him to keep ANYTHING down, but it got worse so I took him back-- the doctor we saw the second time said you can't just feed them "anything" because certain foods like dairy and fatty foods will make it worse until the tummy heals for a couple of days... so once she is able to keep down fluids for nearly a whole day, you can start trying foods like toast, crackers, bananas, plain pasta, bananas, dry cereal, watermelon...

By the way, whatever you are giving her to drink, try feeding it to her on a spoon in little sips, or use one of those little cups that come with medicine so she is only take a sip at a time

I think you've gotten good advice about the throwing up, but I just wanted to make sure that your pediatrician has given the all clear for mucinex for a 14 month old. I'm all for medicating when they're sick, but I'm pretty sure that mucinex isn't okay until they're around 6 years old.

If she's got post-nasal drip causing a cough, you can try benadryl. It's safe and will dry her out enough that it should help prevent the coughing.

Good luck! Hope she feels better soon.

If she has not thrown up in over an hour, you can give her Pedialyte. It's probably best for little ones. I was told by my pediatrician, for my older kids, I could give Gatorade, etc. There's also Smart Water which has electrolytes in it without all the sugar. The key to this kind of virus is to not rush things. Believe me, I have dealt with a lot of barf in my days with my three kids. They would throw up 3-4 times and I would be so paranoid about getting fluids into them that I would give them water, only to take a step back and they'd start barfing again. They need to give their tummy a rest after they get to the point that they are dry heaving. Wait an hour. If they've thrown up everything in their tummies and haven't thrown up in an hour, it's probably safe to give them fluids. Start small. A couple sips. Gradually increase the amount until they can safely keep several ounces down. Once they've kept water/pedialyte, etc. down for over 4 hours or so, and she feels like eating (she asks for food or seems interested in it) give her something from the BRAT diet as mentioned before.
Good luck!

I would suggest some kind of fluid with electrolytes in it - pedialite or maybe even coconut water if she likes it. Kids are fine without food for a little while, but not fluids.

If you have access to a good natural pharmacy or health food store, I would recommend getting her some homeopathic for nausea. You can either read the labels or ask the staff - there are a few different kinds for different specific symptoms - like grumbling stomach or whatnot. This seems to have helped a lot for my daughter the few time she got sick with nausea.

Also, keep her on a bland diet for a few days - plain toast, rice, applesauce, banana.

When my LO goes through this, when he is ready to eat in his own time, he likes to start eating again with the following:

1. plenty of water
2. Unsalted rice cakes.
3. Unsalted organic whole wheat pretzels
4. Banana
5. Apple sauce
6. small chicken pieces from a chicken soup
7. small pasta pieces cooked with a bit of olive oil.
8. Lots of bread

I really wouldn't worry do any food right now. Try tiny sips of liquids, pedialyte is your best bet. I always used unflavored and added it to Gatorade because my kids didn't like the taste. My doc always recommended ice pops, jello water in small sips, flat soda, or coca cola syrup, lolli pops will also make her thirsty and the extra sugar will not hurt if she is weak. If she is hungry try pretzels. Some crackers have milk in them and can make more stomach upset so read the labels before trying crackers. You can do broth from soup but make sure it does not have a high fat content that can also work in the reverse. Once the vomiting stops and she is feeling better then do the brat diet for a day or so to allow her stomach to heal. I know you want her to eat but drinking and keeping her hydrated is more important then eating.

Have you called the pediatrician? If she's throwing-up chances are it's viral and will run its course, but I'd at least call (since she's so young) to let them know, have them put a note in her medical record and have you come in if they think it's something more serious than a stomach bug.

With all the hype of H1N1 earlier this year, we have taken no chances with viruses when they've hit our house. At the very least you can call, speak with a nurse and have some peace of mind.

Usually, for a stomach virus, they will recommend the BRAT diet as mentioned below and to avoid dairy products. Our pediatrician was NOT big on doing pedialyte unless it got really severe. But, hydration of any kind is important.

Good luck. Hope she's better soon.