2 1/2 Year Old Has Ibs?,

Are you seeing a regular pediatrician or a Pediatric Gastrenterologist? Tested for celiac and other food allergies? Try probiotics to set up goog bacteria. He may be allergic to things other than dairy. Most people think Lactose free is dairy free - my son is allergic to Casein (the protien in milk) it is in almost all processed foods even hot dogs frozen chicken and soy cheeses. Just because something says dairy free does not mean casein free. I don't know where you live but there is an excellent Dr, in Baton Rouge that deals with these and other things. Her name is Dr. Stephanie Cave.

Hey, I have a 6 yr old son, that went throught some of the same things about 2 yrs ago. We too thought he had IBS, so we took him to his peditrician. She told us that a lot of sugary drinks, etc can cause this problem too. We took him off of all juices and tea and everything else. We started him off with just water for a wk, and then we worked in gatorade, which has sugar too, but we did half and half, and no soft drinks. It really helped him out a lot. And his stools got a lot better. We know can allow him small amounts of sugary drinks like capri suns and things but we still have to limit them so that we don't run into this problem again! Good luck!

I agree with a previous poster- I would start with allergy testing, for sure.

I didn't get a chance to look at your location, but I would also find a well-respected Pediatric Gastroenterologist and get a referral. If you're in the Huntsville, AL area, I can recommend a TERRIFIC one!

You need to make sure there aren't other things going on with your little boy.

Above all, TRUST YOUR INSTINCTS!!!! Sometimes we as mother bears can overreact, but many times, we are spot on, because we know our kids! After all, we're the ones with them the most!

Good luck and God bless!

I am sorry about your son. I had horrible ibs and know how awful it can be. I went on the diet and drugs. The drugs didn't help at all and the diet did but wasn't very yummy or easy. So I started seeing a gonstead chiropractor and now very rarely get ibs. When I do get it I know I need to be adjusted again. Trust me it will help and is alot more natural and healthy than other things. Please try it at least! And yes, 2 1/2 yr olds can be adjusted...I have taken my 2 1/2 yr old son.

I will agree with Susan, check to see if his symptoms go along with those of Celiac Disease, my SIL has it. It's where the gluten in wheat, barley and rye attacks the villi in your intestines and interferes with the absorption of nutrients. Before she was diagnosed she was down to 80lbs, they did all kinds of tests on her for 2 or 3 years before they figured out what her problem was. She had diarhea and vomiting, esp. after having a meal with lots of pasta or bread. You may do a little testing of your own (breads an cereals that are gluten free are the hardest to find you'll have to check with health food stores) before spending who knows how much to have the dr check him out and him having to go thru some uncomfortable tests.

Have you ever looked up the symptoms of celiac(it's an auto immune disorder)..If he has any of those symptoms I would look into having him tested for that..

Go to a pediatric gastrologist. Also, I would have allergy testing done for foods. Tell them you want to blood sample testing not the skin pricks. It can be more expensive but is worth it. Don't give up. Trust your instincts. You are your babies best doctor. Get another opinion or change doctors if he balks on your request. ibs has tured into blanket diagnosis for any digestive disorder they can't figure out. Good luck and don't give up!

I myself have IBS and you were given some great advice. I wouldn't do the colace either. He goes enough. His bottom will hurt from continually going. I was also screened for celiac disease and I think that is a great step! In my experience, most people aren't affected by IBS until puberty or later. Mine started in college. Good luck!

You might try eliminating MSG (monosodium glutemate) from his diet. My husband is sensitive to this and it gives him diarrhea. That would be my first try. Unfortunately it is in most processed/convenience foods and some labeling is misleading (it has various names). It's in most soup-based and chicken-flavored items. Watch out for the "packaged" seasonings. I would cook entirely from scratch and see if this helps. Then I would move onto artificial colors and/or flavors and then to the artificial preservatives (such as BHT etc). My 2 boys are sensitive to artificial colors/flavors/preservative (not sure which one).

My 2 1/2 year old has had similar issues.
He had perfect stools until a year ago when he was given mega ferocious doses of antibiotics. Ever since then his digestive tract has been a wreck. The docs have zero answers. We parasite tested and it came back negative.

An elimination diet is the only thing that seems to help...also...he now only drinks water. No juices or milks.
Probiotics are key.

For more info on elimination diets and healthy help for ibs check out Dr. Mercola's website www.mercola.com.
Jon Baron (sp?) has a website that is a fabulous resource, as well.

Hope this helps!

S., I don't agree with the chiropractor suggestion; however, the other previous suggestions were great. Another thing to try/discuss with physician is increased fiber intake. I give my 3 year old yogurt and will add Fiber One or Benefiber powder to my family's dinner to assist with fiber intake. Veggies are also a good idea (if you can get them to eat them). I chop up broccoli or add peas in the mac and cheese. WATER, WATER, WATER I can't emphasize it enough. No suger drinks (soda, etc), push the water intake. Colace is a stool softner. He isn't constipated. His stools need to be firmer, not softer, but hey, I'm not a doctor. Maybe check with your family doc or another pediatrician. Best of luck.
B.

I would get a 2nd opinion from a peadiatrician or Pediactric gastrologist. There is a condition known as toddler diarreha, but it sounds like it could be a food allergy or something more serious. I am one of those people who always questons my Dr and gets a second opinion if my gut feeling is telling me to. Trust your gut and do what you feel you need to.

I had a similar problem with my daughter when she was about 1.5 years old. We had the fun of doing all of the "poop expiriments" to find out if it was a bacterial problem or something else. All of the tests came out normal. This lasted for about a year. Finally, she had an ear infection and took antibiotics. The antibiotics cleared up the poop problem. Even though nothing showed on the test, it must have been bacterial. She is 6 now and has not had any more problems. Good luck! Trust your instincts.

You are not alone. My daughter has just turned 2 and she has the same problem. I have her on a completely dairy free diet and that works somewhat but we still have the water like stools sometimes 3 times a day 3-4 times a week. In addition we have only gained 3lbs in the past year. So we are seeing a pediatric GI docter and right now they haven't found anything but we are going in for more bloodwork on Monday. I wish I had some good advice for you but I really don't know anything different myself. However, you may want to reduce the amount of juices your son gets. The GI told me that all those acids other than juice that are in the juices are not good and should be limited to 4oz or less a day.

This sounds like my neice when she was 2 1/2, she had always had loose stools and a sore bottom. Her doctor took her off wheat, dairy, soy, and egss. They were thinking she had celiacs. She just saw a pediatric gastointologist and he took more blood to do tests but he said some little kids just have IBS and outgrow it around age 3. I would take your son to see a specialist to get tested for celiacs.

I have a 20 month old daughter who has also had loose stools all her life. I wouldn't classify the stool as diarrhea, yet they are in no way solid. My niece is 2 1/2 and has very solid stool. I spoke with my pediatrician about the inconsistencies between the girls bowel movements, because I was alarmed due to the difference. He asked about their diets. My daughter eats fresh and canned fruit 3-4 times daily, whereas my niece refuses to eat most everything except bread and grits. He said that fruit causes my daughters loose stools, and that, in fact, loose stool is indicative of a diet rich in fiber and vitamin C.
My daughter and I are also lactose intolerant, so she went from breastmilk to soymilk.

Yogurt can still cause problems if he's lactose-intolerant. I know, because I am, and it did! I can't have any dairy. (Don't want it, either, now that I know how they treat the dairy cows <shudder>.)

What about food allergies? Have you tried eliminating various other foods, like soy, eggs, wheat/gluten, citrus, tomatoes...?

Was he exposed to antibiotics early on, or in utero? Perhaps his intestinal flora were disrupted? If so, it might not completely solve the problem, but acidophilus and other beneficial flora might be a great help.

Good luck!

L.

I would suggest talking to your doctor about allergy testing to check for celiac disease or a milk allergy. It is not necessarily an allergy, but it could be. Also, if you are not happy with the answers the doctor is giving you, don't hesitate to get a second opinion. Or go to the specialist in that field to ask his opinion.

there are more symptoms of ibs than diarrhea... get him tested for food allergies. if he does have a milk allergy, you do not need to give him yogurt or probiotics. i wouldnt give colace either, its a laxative and may further aggravate the situation. get him to an allergy doctor or a pediatric gi doc. he needs normal stools to ensure adequate absorption of nutrients.

Go to the healthfood store and get some probiotics for young children and some flaxseed oil. Give each to him daily, according to the directions. You can put the flaxseed oil in a fruit smoothie and he won't even taste it. The probiotic will help as well. You may not notice a marked difference for a month or so, but it will be well worth it!

Also, did they test him for parasites? I would insist on it.

Hello S.,

I sympathize with your situation. My youngest daughter had a similar problem and we were advised on different methods to solve it, everything failed. When she was eight years, she underwent a lower GI. The end results was that her large intestine was kinked in several places. There was nothing that could have been done, at that time, 1985. The doctors said she would learn to control her BMs as she got older, which she did.

She was allergy to diary products, since birth, which initially, the doctors thought that was the cause, but a lower GI revealed a totally different prognosis. She is happily married, has a one year son, and has been a vegan, since she was nine years old. She leads a very happy life as a wife, mother, and a veterinarian surgical techican.

I wish you well with your situation and pray that your son is properly diagnose.

Take care,
R.