Child Vomiting And Diarrhea
What could cause my child to vomit?
We mentioned earlier that vomiting can be caused by - or what looks like spit-up, or reflux, or milk allergies, but in general the most common cause of vomiting is viruses as well. Vomiting is your body's way of ejecting irritants and invaders from your stomach. And stomach viruses are very common in all children, probably one of the most common phone calls we get in the wintertime. Where kids will vomit, it's usually worse in the first twenty-four hours and then it's periodic but it can last up to seven to ten days even, sometimes even two weeks, where kids will vomit every day or every couple of days. And the most important thing for vomiting is again supportive care and keeping them hydrated.Caption:Thanks to:Dr. Scott CohenBeverly Hills Pediatricsbeverlyhillspediatrics.comCaption:Executive Producers; Peter J. Schankowitz, Ross KaimanProducer; Tien NguyenCamera; Tien NguyenEditor; Tronica JonesNarrator; Tien Nguyen
How do I treat my child's vomiting?
You do not need to re-hydrate your child right after vomiting. Most people think, "A child throws up. They must be immediately dehydrated. Let's pour fluids into them." And that's really the wrong thing to do after vomiting. What you want to do is give the stomach some rest. Wait 30 to 60 minutes before you offer your child anything to eat or drink, even if they're begging you. This is because anything they take, they're more than likely going to throw up again. And if they vomit five times in a row, wait 30 to 60 minutes after the very last time. Then you want to offer them only very small amounts of liquid. They're going to feel thirsty after vomiting, so if you give them the cup or the bottle they're going to chug the whole thing and throw it right back at you, so you want to give them only very small amounts. We're talking a teaspoon, and a minute later another teaspoon, and a minute later two teaspoons. Give them small amounts, gradually increasing it, so they can hold it down. It's more important to do small amounts frequently than large amounts, to keep your child hydrated. As time goes on, they'll be able to hold down more and more. Another common misconception is that you should give your child water after vomiting; but they'll probably throw it up. You want to give them something with electrolytes after vomiting, which include sugar, sodium, and potassium. These are things like Pedialyte for babies, which is like baby Gatorade. Indeed Gatorade, sugar water, tea, broth or something along those lines such as watered down or flat soda, is best to get them the electrolytes they need, until the vomiting goes away.
What could cause my child to have diarrhea?
Diarrhoea is usually caused by a virus. One of the most common causes of diarrhoea in children is something called rotavirus, which we have a new vaccine for. Diarrhoea tends to be most severe in that first 24 hours. And what happens is children with diarrhoea have lots of watery stools. And then again diarrhoea could last 1-2 weeks, but sporadically. They may have diarrhoea a couple of times today and none tomorrow or 2 or 3 times a day.
How do I treat my child's diarrhea?
With viral diarrhea, the most important thing is supportive care. You want to keep your child hydrated as they're losing alot of fluid, so you need to replace it. Again, it doesn't have to be all at once. You want to stay away from all dairy products because when you have diarrhea, it wears away the lining of the intestine that absorbs lactose, and lactose is the sugar in dairy products. If your child only wants milk, they can have soy milk or soy formula, which does not have lactose, or lacto free milk. But in general, it's probably best to stay with clear liquids like gatorade, watered down juice and electrolyte solutions like that when your child has diarrhea. If your child wants to eat, you want the food to stay very bland,giving them foods that bind such as really starchy foods. They call this the BRAT diet: bread, rice, applesauce, toast, pasta. But don't be surprised if your child doesn't want to eat. Very commonly with these stomach viruses, you're child is going to have a crampy belly pain, the sort of belly pain where they say, "it hurts all over", and in between they're running around. In those cases, it doesn't matter if they don't eat. I don't care if they don't eat a solid for a week and I know they're going to lose weight, but you want to keep them hydrated because that keeps them out of the hospital and away from IV fluids. With solids, if they want it, great but if they don't, don't push it.
