DD (3) has dark/red shadows under eyes - should I be worried?

[GoingQuietlyMad]

I have started to worry that dd1(3) always looks ill. She is v pale (genetics I suspect) and has permanently dark/red shadows under her eyes.

I spend a lot of time and effort to provide a good and varied diet, but she is very fussy and doesn't eat very much.

I wondered if anyone else had come across this. I have no exact reason to go to the GPs as such, but she seems to look ill all the time. Should I be investigating or is this normal?

My DS gets them when hes tired, even when he doesn't act tired...they dissapear after a nap (hes nearly 8 months though)

My DD was like that around your DD's age. Apparently my DH was also like this so think it must be genetic. She was v. fussy eater and sleeps about 10 - 11 hrs a night. But wasn't grumpy with it, so figured she was getting enough sleep. Now at 5.5 she doesn't have the shadows unless she is v.v. tired her diet has improved. Though would still can her fussy.

So unless she is grumpy or seems unwell -- I'd say she's okay.

Is it all year round, GQM, or just around wintertime? My DS2 used to look ill all winter when he was little, but lost the shadows in the summer - he was a very fussy eater too (lived on pizza, bread and air). He's 13 now, less pale anyway and only gets the shadows when he's really exhausted.

Does she have a multi-vitamin? If not I would give her one - it means you needn't worry quite so much about her limited diet!

just just going to post about this! DD (13 months) has red all round her eyes (not in them). Its worse when she's tired but she seems to have had it pretty much all the time for the past month. She is also very pale skined.

Thank you QP, UUM, JH and Jasper for your replies!

JH, I hadn't thought about the fact that it gets worse in winter, but I am pretty sure it does, or at least more noticeable. Vitamins just to be on the safe side is a really good idea.

UUM and QP - I will try and observe if it is worse when she is tired, very good tip. I suspect that it is - although she does seem to get a good night's sleep, I know that she does have a kind of adenoidal breathing thing which makes her breathe very noisily and awkwardly while asleep.

Jasper, it could be the pale skin that makes it noticeable. When I think about other children where I have noticed a kind of redness around their eyes, they have tended to have red hair and/or pale skin. It could just be the transparency of the skin that makes it prominent. That fits with winter as well when the skin pigment is slightly lighter.

All very good suggestions. I think I will give the vits, observe when it gets worse, and as long as she is not ill, I will try not to worry.

I don't know if any of you felt this, but when I am out with her, I always think she looks really ill and I suppose I worry that other parents think I am not feeding her or neglecting her in some way.

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Thanks giddy, I'm sure you are right. I was reflecting on the fact that she is a healthy girl, she is never actually ill. The not eating is probably unrelated, but just another worry that I have somehow attached together.

She did have mild eczema when she was younger, which has now cleared up, but I do wonder if it is a touch of that, because the skin is a little bit dry as well as red.

GQM I used to think that about my DD too ! (the going out and people thinking I was neglecting her). BTW the only vitamins my DD would take are the Gummy Bear ones from Boots. We tried all the other types!

The adenodial breathing at night may mean that she is having a bit of disturbed sleep -- even if she doesn't fully waken. So thus more tired. One of my DD's BFs had really bad adenoids and was usually quite "touchy", he finally had them removed and is a much happier boy now. But he did have a severe case.

BTW I am a redhead and my daughter has fairly pale skin (though not the red hair.!)

my dd 1 is 4.75 and has dreadful bags when tired-gets it from me! they disappear almost fully after a good sleep. she is olive skinned and pretty but can look quite ill , on a bad day.

i do worry that she often looks tired. her teacher asked me what time she goes to bed . it's never any later than 7.30, but i struggle to do the bedtime routine before then, as dd2 aged 2 is quite demanding atm. with dd1, i think she basically needs an hour more sleep than she's getting. she will not sleep past 6.45, though. i guesss i'll have to try harder to put her to bed at 6.45.

is you dd geeting enough sleep, do you think?

Thanks UUM, I will try the Gummy bears. I have previously tried to get her to have vitamins but they taste so horrible that I couldn't get her to eat them. The fish oil one was so horrible that it even made me gag - there's no way I could get her to eat that.

Not sure about sleep, noonar. I think that sounds ok but I am not an expert. I think they tend to wake up when they have had enough sleep - whenever I instill earlier bedtimes, mine just wake earlier. Mind you they are younger than yours if she is at school!

I'm pretty sure as long as they have a regular routine and they aren't having to be woken up grumpy, then they are likely to be getting enough sleep. Not sure.

I once heard that dark patches under eyes can indicate allergies... don't know if there's anything in that tho...

Tesco children's multivits (the ones with iron in, not just ADC or whatever) are teddybear shaped and strawberry flavour, so if the gummybears don't work you could try those.

DS2 gets this when tired and looks really ill. He also gets very dark eyes when his asthma is bad - I know they are a common sign of allergy and are sometimes called 'allergic shiners'.

Singersgirl and bizzi, the allergy thing is another possibility. I have been pondering for ages that she might have a dairy allergy and am building up all my reserves energy to do an exclusion diet. I have been in denial about it, because she loves dairy products and they are the only protein that she gets, so have been putting it off. I need to try it asap.

Thanks for the tip about the multivits, JanH, I will bear those in mind as well.