Advice on poos if you have a strong stomach! :)

[clairemmcc]

Hi

My dd has had really runny poos (never any solid ones) for about two months now. The doctor has suggested cutting wheat out of her diet for a month which has not worked and we have given a stool sample to the hospital which got lost !!!!!
so we are to do another one soon. I was wondering if anyone has experienced anything similar with their child. It is a constant thing.

I am worried as it has been going on for a while and also, dd is at the age for potty training and as she does not have to push too much(!) it is difficult for her to know when she does need the potty.

Just one further thing, sorry guys, I am not sure if she is digesting her food properly as sometimes there are whole bits of food in there that she has eaten the day before, eg whole olives and quarter bits of tomato etc.

Please let me know if you have any solutions or ideas as to what it could be. My gp doesnt really seem overly concerned but I am a bit worried about it.

[WigWamBam]

How old is she? Lots of children under the age of about 3 get "toddler diarrhoea"; there doesn't seem to be a cause or a treatment for it, it's just the way they poo. At least that's what my GP said!

Re the undigested food thing - that's pretty normal because their digestive system is immature - it will change as she gets older.

I wouldn't bother with potty training until you've got this sorted; it will wait.

[cleaninglady]

hi there
not really sure to be honest but just wanted to say my ds had this as well - for about 3 months in all - really runny and stinky too! stool sample done but nothing found - it eventually stopped but was just like your describing - i didnt cut anythign out but tried to give him more fibre to "bind" it together (TMI) sorry! - no help but it did just go back to normal after a bit!

[Roobie]

DD was like this a while back. We didn't go to the docs as she had no other symptoms but I started giving her a natural probiotic (half teaspoon in water or other liquid daily) and she 'firmed up' within a week.
It was BioCare Banana Acidophilus Plus.

[charmkin]

sounds like toddler diarrhoea which is apparently common. no personal experience, just sounds like that may be it

[MrsBadger]

NB more fibre will do the opposite of 'bind'!

As everyone has said, 'toddler diarrhoea' is common and generally not serious unless accompanied by other symptoms like vomiting, abdominal pain etc. It's just the digestive system settling down and growing up.
It may be worth including live yoghurt and/or probiotics in their diet to encourage healthy gut flora, and check they have enough water to drink so the loss of fluid through poo doesn't dehydrate them.

[cleaninglady]

hope you didnt read my message as to actually give more fibre - thats why i put "no help" but it was a student HV that suggested it but was advised to give lots of water as suppose its the same as for diarrhoea -
its all very common though !

[clairemmcc]

Thanks thats all great advice. Cutting out the wheat from her diet (on advice of GP) seems to have made it worse or at least had no effect but it has also been very hot weather recently which may have had an effect on things. I will try out the methods and let you know how it goes.