6 year old farting in school - teacher opinions

[Sunnydaysarethebestdays]

My 6 year old is really struggling with school at the moment. She gets really upset every morning and is difficult to get into class, and says she feels sick.
It transpires after chatting to her this afternoon that she farts a lot when they are sat on the carpet in class and everyone looks at her.
She thinks her teacher is cross with her about it too.
She has started asking to go to the toilet when she feels she needs to fart but her teacher refuses to let her go after so many times which makes it worse.
I can’t help thinking that it’s quite common at their age for this to happen but also asking for any advice at all as is becoming quite an issue for her.

Pick up the phone, call the school and ask for an appointment to speak to the teacher. My DC’s school always has time to discuss issues like this. If your child is anxious about something (which it sounds like they are), then the teacher would like to know and help resolve it. If a child is anxious they’re not learning well, if they’re relaxed and happy at school they do better. That’s what my DC’s teacher told us when my DC constantly complained of tummy ache in school. It wasn’t tummy ache, it was anxiety over friendship troubles that the teacher helped to resolve.

I've taught 6 year olds for ten years. Yes, sometimes they fart. If at a quiet moment so the others notice, they will laugh and I'll shh them and we'll move on quickly. I'd say this is what has happened to your daughter. She's farted and everyone has laughed and the teacher was peeved (with them, not her) and she is now worrying it'll happen again.

Instant agree with previous posters. Cut out the porridge and dairy in the morning. Sounds a lot like an indolence digestive. You’ll see an instant change if it is. Look for bloating.

@Sunnydaysarethebestdays awwww bless her! Have you spoke to the teacher to see what they say about it?

isnt the average something like 20 times a day

Thank you everyone, every response has been really useful abd it’s helpful to hear other people’s experience.
I’ve sent an email to school just now giving the heads up on what’s going on with her at the moment and asked for them to call/meet to discuss further.
I will of course contact the GP if necessary and Seek medical advice If necessary and before I start cutting out food groups.
Thanks again everyone.

@PandaDander

Nobody should have that much of an issue that they feel sick as an ongoing issue for holding farts in

@CovidCorvid are you for real? The sickness is anxiety related fgs...

@PandaDander. Really no need for the face at all. OP in her first post gave no indication of any anxiety issues (that came in a later post). It’s not at all unreasonable to suggest it as a possibility for investigation as this was a very similar symptom for my Dd and also another poster looking at a post soon after mine had the same and turned out to be coeliac. Farting and feeling sick and tummy ache is very common for coeliacs, 1in 100 people have coeliac disease and the average diagnosis takes something like 14 years as people are fobbed off with having a dodgy digestive system, etc.

So excuse me for trying to be helpful. Obviously as OP then returned (after my post) and said she hasn’t noticed the same complaints at home then it could well be anxiety rather than physical health but I was only going on the first post. 🤷‍♀️

@CovidCorvid
All of the responses, including yours, have been really useful and given different considerations. Dairy intolerance and celiac are still possibilities and I will seek medical advice if this continues after speaking to school.

@SukiPook

Hi I'm a nutritional therapist so some experience and training re diagnosing food intolerances. Coeliac (which is a very serious gluten intolerance) can only be diagnosed through doc. But you can find out very easily re intolerances by taking the food out for 2 weeks, then reintroducing and see what happens. The usual suspects would be gluten or dairy, so either take both out at once, or do it separately. Take the suspected food out completely for 2 weeks.... not even a crumb of it. Reintroduce one day.... have that food at 3 meals (e.g. if you're testing gluten have toast in the morn, sandwich at lunch, pasta for dinner). Then cut it out again and watch carefully what happens over the next 48 hours. Note down symptoms/reactions etc. Don't reintroduce 2 foods within the same 48 hours. The problem could be gluten, which may or may not include oats. Her diet at the mo is high in gluten, remember it's in so many places- bread, pasta, sausages, couscous, biscuits, etc etc... and in a lot of sauces. Dairy is also a big suspect and it could be just a lactose intolerance (a big cause of sore tummies and flatulence), in which case you could reintroduce lactose-free milk; or it could be a complete dairy intolerance in which case it would have to stay out completely. Sometimes if you stay off the offending food completely for 6 months plus, you will stop making the antibodies to it, and once more be able to eat the food without problem... but in some cases the intolerance will come back. If it turns out that wheat is the problem, at that stage you could get coeliac testing from the dr. You can be gluten intolerant but not coeliac, which is more serious. The cure in either case of course is avoid gluten (definitely for life, for coeliacs). Of course it may not be an out and out intolerance.. maybe she just needs to avoid some food that is making her gassy. Sugar and flour and yeast can all be culprits so try replacing night time biscuit with nairns oatcakes (no sugar) and honey or nut butter, try changing breakfast to see if that helps (natural yoghurt and honey, fruit, eggs). Or... taking a digestive enxyme supplement with meals, esp before school, could help break down the food more fully, so that smaller particles are going into the gut and not feeding quite so many gas-producing bacteria Just a few suggestions but if you want more guidance with that type of investigation you could try going to a nutritional therapist. But google exclusion diets for more info on how to suss out possible problematic foods.

Coeliac Disease is not a serious gluten intolerance, it's an autoimmune disease.

The carpet at school can be a very 'farty' space. Young children do tend to fart a lot, probably because they just let go more than adults?

But the fact that it's causing your DD anxiety and worry is concerning. She may well have a condition, possibly a digestion condition. Definitely take her to the doctor's.

Many PPs have mentioned Coeliac Disease and it's definitely worth exploring, especially if she has tummy aches and fatigue. My DD has Coeliacs and had terrible wind before her diagnosis due to her immune system attacking her tissues and destroying her small intestine. It didn't matter how healthy her diet was, she was getting absolutely no nutrients from her food and became almost malnourished.

Of course it may not be Coeliacs, but just to be on the safe side, it's worth getting tested because it can cause Osteoporosis, infertility, ataxia and cancer (to name a few) if gluten is not completely removed from the diet. DD has her own toaster, chopping board, utensils etc to avoid cross-contamination.

She has also developed Hypothyroidism and has to take Thyroxin every day 😥

@Stroopwaffle5000 Let's start with the basics - Constipation? does she empty her bowels properly? how often does she poo? you be amazed how daily farting can be exacerbated by ongoing long term constipation.

How about increasing her water intake for starts, make her to drink lots of water everyday especially when she gets back from school. That way, it will help with her bowels later and maybe you will see a reduction in the farting at school the next day.

At my child's primary school if they fart it's instant visit to the head master's office.

100% oats, they have a terrible affect on me. worse than beans or any other food.

I think she's anxious.

And/or it's something she's eating in the school lunch.

I remember at school always struggling with farting in school assembly - it was nerves. Honestly I was terrified of assemblies as I knew as soon as I went into that hall I would be desperate to fart the whole way through.

My DS farts a lot. I ask him if he does it at school (he has done very occassionally) but he says no he saves them all for me. Delightful.

DD complained of feeling sick every morning on the way to school.

Diagnosed with coeliac aged 5.

Please speak with your GP, which it sounds like you will.

@SukiPook you are a dangerously, partially-informed person, please stop giving out quack advice and misinformation that could potentially harm someone.

@HoneyFlowers

At my child's primary school if they fart it's instant visit to the head master's office.

What?

Not common. Is she wheat intolerant, the only time I encounter this is when kids are eating wheat bread or cereal and have intolerance, not necessarily allergic. Does she eat breakfast?

Definitely have a chat to the teacher before eliminating food groups!

Has anyone suggested that sitting cross legged on the floor, which means the legs are widespread, could contribute.
Can she kneel down, that would definitely make it easier for me to hold one in - yoga classes commonly have farts ringing round the room but it's partly the leg and body positions.

Nope, not normal. Intolerance?

Try dropping the porridge initially to see if it makes a difference. You may need to drop all the gluten however if she’s gluten sensitive. Trial and error will help you find our what the cause is.

Are her poo’s solid?

Her poo’s are normal and regular.
She is generally well in herself.
She doesn’t suffer with tummy pains just feels sick.