toddler has suddenly got dark circles under his eyes - anyone know what this could mean?

[kissmummy]

they don't look great and i'm wondering if it's some kind of vitamin deficiency? i've also heard it could be linked to an allergy like hay fever but for the first time in ages - he's had a succession of colds etc - ( his nose isn't running at the moment, so i'm not sure that's the reason. he has a good diet though doesn't like red meat. the dark circles have appeared in the last few days. any shared experiences?

Hi kissmummy. I posted something similar to this about my DD a few months back and got very little response. I was hoping for some suggestions like you.

DD had a series of colds/viruses over the winter and we put it down to be a little tired and run down. A little sunshine to her face has made a big difference as she is not looking so pale.

But will watch this thread with interest.....

my dd got this a few years ago when she suddenly decided to become a vegatarian......i belive it must be a lack of something in the diet as she began eating a 'normal' varied diet again a few years later and the dark circles appear to have lessoned

Tired/too little sleep?

Is he dark/sallow complexion?

Is he otherwise well?

My ds was like this - GP said it was common in chn with allergies and nothing to worry about.(He has hayfever)

A friend and i were talking about this the other week and she was saying that it can be down to allergies (hayfever/asthma/dairy etc) that means that the children don't get a 'proper' nights sleep in the same way you don't when you have a cold.

Never really thought about it being connected to allergies but dd has dark circles under her eyes, a constant runny nose and eczema. Am off to google.

Well my google research has revealed it could be milk allergy, wheat allergy, dehydration...take your pick!

However, I have reduced wheat and dairy in my diet & upped water intake which has had positive impact on my skin, but am wary about any exclusion diet for my young dd, but will certainly try to up the fluids.

Have you got a dog? The reason I ask is that it may be a worm infection (sorry!) My DS had dark circles under his eyes for ages, along with a couple of other symptoms like a very pale sickly complexion, irritability and tiredness, and I thought he was deficient in something too. It turned out he had worms (urgh!) See signs and symptoms of worms in children here. We treated both DS and the dog and DS is absolutely fine now, he looks much healthier and has more energy. If you own a dog it's very common for young children to pick up a worm infection.

thanks for the replies.
chickatee no dog but two cats! however i don't think the cats have worms and i'm pretty sure DS doesn't either as i'd notice it in his nappy. i know the signs. don't cats tend to get tape worm (not our cats, touch wood, but cats generally, i believe) whereas kids get thread worm, don't they?
i wonder if there's a link with dark circles and eczema, as we've had a lot of problems with him having eczema on his cheeks...

You need to google "allergic shiners" for allergy links.

This thread is quite relevant to what we are facing. My LO is 2 years old and has just recently (3/4days back) developed purple/red patches under the eyes. She has multiple food allergies but is off all the allergens. So it can’t really be that. Don’t know what it is :/

You would be netter starting you own thread , this thread is 14 years old!
Nobody bothers reading the answers so they will just answer the OP and ignore you. I only saw it because i was already on this thread