Blood in 8 Year Old Daughters Stool?

My daughter has had blood in/on her stool or the toilet paper before. When to be concerned is when the stool is black because that means there is internal bleeding going on. Bright red blood usually means a tear or irritation in/on the rectum. Constipation was the culprit for my daughter but she never had mucous. I have read that mucous can be a sign of a bowel obstruction along with severe abdominal pain, nausea, and vommitting. I think it is good to take her to the doctor to get it checked out but it sounds like constipation in which can be easy to resolve. Keep us posted!

Hi K.,
Yes, bright red blood means this usually comes from the rectum but great to get it checked. My son who is four experiences this pretty often and has since he was an infant. Usually the source is a fissure or a small tear in the anus that re-opens with certain BMs. His ped just gave me fiber supplements and said it is very important that he is no constipated. He often tries not to go the bathroom because it can be painful.
Good luck!

K.,

Not sure if this is the same thing. I am 37 but when I was ten years old I had the same thing happen to me. We had it checked and come to find out I had pollyps (sp?). They would come and go, come and go but would cause a little bit of blood in the stool and on the tissue. I remember taking medicine for a while to help but it was really nothing major. Fiber is important and keeping the stools soft, of course.

Pollyps are hereditary in my family and we just have to keep an eye on them. I believe I stopped getting them after a while because my diet consisted of more fruits and veggies. In my 20's I started walking on a regular basis, started taking dance and just keeping healthy. I don't think I have had one in years.

I am sure all will be fine, hopefully it is nothing more than that.

D.

Hi K.!
My daughter had this problem. Miralax solved it. Don't worry or put her through awful testing. Constipation isn't the end of the world, just use Miralax like our doctor told us. :o) Good luck! (PS> People might suggest diet changes, but some of us are just inclined toward constipation no matter what we eat!)

I'm glad you're getting it checked out... my son had the blood and mucus when he was a tiny baby. It was from a milk allergy. I was only breastfeeding so I had to avoid dairy while I was nursing him. He is 16 years old and I just had him tested and he's still very allergic to milk...

i probably is from internal bleeding. does her abdomen hurt? if so make her rest and do not get her out of bed except to go to her app appointment and go to the potty. take a sample of poo for her nurse.

I am glad you are taking her to the doctor. As the others suggested it does sound more like a small tear from constipation. Constipation is really all about diet and body movement, in my experience. With fiber it is much better (in terms of the body's ability to process it) to get it from food rather than in supplement form. If you don't already, you might try including high fiber foods in every meal. These would include things like fruits & veggies, whole grains, and legumes. Think things like pears, brown rice, beans, and wholesome fibrous veggies (e.g. asparagus rather than lettuce). Experiment with a variety and rotate through different foods to get the best effect. A bit more of these whole foods and less processed foods (cheese, white flour foods, meats etc), may help. Also, lots of water is important, as is getting the body movement through exercise or just running around playing outside, dance, etc. The other thing to consider is that sometimes constipation happens if one is not getting enough calories. If perhaps your daughter is going through a growth spurt or for some reason not eating a lot, that could be significantly adding to constipation problems. Hope all is better soon!