Persistent Diarrhea in My 4 1/2 Year Old

First off, I'm not a doctor so this is just advice (I see so many people on here offering advice as if they are experts, I am not as are not most people responding and anything you learn here should be discussed with your doctor.)
So this is just a suggestion to look into if it continues.
Is he eating bread, cookies or anything that contains flour or grains before it happens?
My experience is with a friend whose son started to have severe bouts of diarhea. Some days he didn't have it at all, other times it continued for weeks. They kept going back and forth to the doctor and they would never find anything wrong. It got so bad and went on for so long with no answers.
Finally, he was diagnosed with Celiac disease. Once they eliminated gluten containing foods from his diet, he was fine but they have to be diligent.
This is a write up on Celiac here
http://www.kidshealth.org/teen/diseases_conditions/digest...
That is a worse case scenario possibility. Another thing could just be a food allergy. Food allergies of any kind can cause GI upset.
Start keeping a log of EVERYTHING he consumes in a day. (even drinks) and start comparing what he's had with when it happens. Slowly eliminate one of those things that he has daily for a few days and see if it stops or slows down his diarrhea.
There's a nice write up here on food allergies
http://www.askdrsears.com/html/4/T041800.asp#T041803

I'm so sorry to hear about your little dilema. I would definetely try to really see if it may be another type of food intolerance (wheat, soy?) I know that kids can have allergies or intolerances to all types of things. If it persists another week...I would definetely seek the opinion of another doctor...it can't hurt.

It might help if you make a list of what he's eating at home and at preschool, then see what he's consumed compared to when he's pooping. We are vegetarians so we eat a lot of fruit and vegggies and yes they can be gassy and farty. It's just the bodies way of removing the gas. We do not do dairy and that does make a difference for us. Good luck.

I recommend having him allergy tested. They can do it by blood to see if he is allergic to milk protein, eggs, (& I think wheat, soy etc--- though I'm not sure)-- just ask your doctor & tell him you want it.

My boys were vomiting at night & I couldn't exlain it-- though I had a gut feeling it was tied to milk. They also drank milk in the day and had no issues--- but something was telling me. When I brought it up to the DR, she dismissed it as nothing and certainly not a milk protein allergy, because they handled milk fine in the day. When we got the allergy results back--- sure enough they are allergic to milk. Not just lactose intolerant but actually allergic. Since we eliminate milk-- the vomiting stopped.

Good luck

Hi M.! I'm really baffled that your pediatrician would say not to be too concerned. Not to give medical advice, but it would seem to me that your son is experiencing a gastrointestinal problem. Yes, it could amount to nothing however I would think that your pediatrician would refer you to a pediatric gastroenterologist. Excuse my spelling. That way this specialist can test his poop and monitor what is going on. As an adult if you were experiencing these issues you would be a mess! It's important for me to stay regular and when I have the gas and don't go at my usual time, I'm very discomforted. Shame on your pediatrician for not referring him for testing. Your child is experiencing discomfort and he should not have to go through this. Tell, not ask your pediatrician that you want him referred to a pediatric gastroenterologist. Trust me, you will have piece of mind and your child will feel better too. I work in the health field and we always receive stool samples. It's common and shame on the pediatrician for not requesting one!! GOOD LUCK AND KEEP ME POSTED!
T.
mother of 2 as well!!

That is odd. Have you purchased anything new in the home? Using a different cleaning solutions? Painted?

Thankfully his appetite and drinking liquids is fine so he wont dehydrate.

Good luck.

Hi M., I have become very aware of the need for fiber in our diets. Having 35grams a day is about the recommended dose. Our bodies should be excremating about 3 times a day, once for each meal. Make sure your son eats enough fiber and drinks enough water. The fiber attaches to the bowels and attracts water to soften the bowels. It makes it extremely easy to go. Maybe he is not having a full bowel movement and thereby needs to go again. My granddaughter loves fruit and water, and hasn't had any problems at all. I drink Fiberwise, a natural fiber drink and now have no problems or pain.

Our guts - our whole bodies can become toxic and fail to work well for a number of reasons. Good luck working it out. If he is happy and not in pain, no need to get worried. Never the less check into what he's eating when this happens and when it doesn't. Long term it pays to know these things! More roughage might be a good thing either way.