Vomiting 20 Month Old

Hi S.,

I think the advice about taking a look at the diet is great. Also, with the age that you mentioned, it could be teething. My daughter got her 2 year molars very early, and vomitted with teething issues. It is something to consider. Blessings to you both. :)

K

One way to check for a milk intolerance would be to take him off dairy for a week (use soy milk instead of cow's milk) and then re-introduce it. When did you switch to regular milk from either breast milk or formula? I am guessing it was around 12 month of age, but if it was more recently, maybe the switch was too sudden. My son had runny poo a lot at that age, I think. Those little bodies have to do so much adjusting to new kinds of foods and some of them handle it better than others.

If you think it is food related, keep a food diary of what he eats at every meal (you should be able to get a daily menu from daycare if he is in daycare). In the food diary write down all food he eats, what time given, and what time, if any he has any reaction to it. i.e. vomiting, diareah, skin rash, etc. Once you get an idea of what food might be causing it, don't give that food for a week or two, then re-introduce it again. If he get's sick, I'd cut that food from his diet...at least for a while. Also, if you do find a food that is making him sick, read food labels carefully. You would be surprised at some of the things in certain foods. For example, a lot of bread, even plain, white, wheat or potato bread has raisin syrup in it. I never would have thought that.

Also, your husband is right, kids do vomit a lot. My future mother-in-law says "kids are always throwing up" (she has 3 grown kids, at least one of whom got carsick).

My son had a lot of vomiting spells at around that age (same age as your son). I am not sure if it was the age, or that he was at a very large daycare, or if he was adjusting to different foods in his tummy. Sometimes I could tell, and others I couldn't. I make mac'n'cheese from scratch. One time before he could have noodles (a little younger than your son), I gave him some of the cheese sauce to eat. He loved it! so I let him have a bunch, not thinking of how rich it is. A couple of hours later he vomited all over my future mother-in-law's floor (10 points for mom right there! lol). He used to poo out whole raisins, and vomited one time about 12 hours after eating cereal with pureed raisins in it...so I have not given them to him since (although he has no reaction to any bread with raisin syrup in it). IT DOES GET BETTER. After my son turned about 2 (I think it was around there) the vomiting was FAR LESS FREQUENT.

I wish I could offer help on the motion sickness front. Perhaps there is some sort of pressure point thing that is safe for toddlers? You might ask a pharmacist or perhaps a naturopath for ideas.

It is so hard knowing your little guy feels sooooo crummy. Don't be afraid to take him to the doctor for this. They will probably want to know about any kind of pattern to it (i.e. you said about every 3 weeks, so does anything stressful happen every 3 weeks). Good luck and I hope your little guy feels better soon.

Have you told your doctor? It might be acid reflux. I know young children can have that. I think you should follow your instincts about the milk intolerance and maybe get him tested.

if your baby gets car sick, see if you can position something for him to look at or play with to keep his eyes fixed in one place instead of looking out the window (which could make him dizzy with looking at everything you're driving by) if it seems to be during winding roads, be prepared to hand him something right before you get to that point.

I would also start keeping a diary of what he eats and his bowel movements to see if you can see a connection with what he eats. Then bring it up to his doctor.

and also... some doctors disagree... but many moms will tell you their kids get the same symptoms every time a tooth comes in.

S.,

I completely feel your pain! My son, who's now 4 1/2, had the same problem. It seemed like we were constantly cleaning up vomit! We decided to take him off milk and the vomiting stopped almost immediately. He still drinks rice milk and soy milk (only because we don't want to go back to the vomiting to test his allergy! :) ) He does fine with cheese and loves yogurt... he can have ice cream every once in awhile... hope this helps!

The advice about food intolerances including lactose and GERD is great. I just want to tell you that both of my grandchildren vomited a lot. One was lactose intolerant. We gave her rice milk because she tested allergic to soy. She outgrew it at 3 or so. The other had GERD and we learned to keep him upright while feeding him and for an hour or so after feeding him. He outgrew it also in the early toddler years. What is different between my grandchildren and your son is that they had this difficulty while they were just a couple of months old.

If stopping drinks and food with lactose doesn't help then I'd recommend a visit to the dr. My granddaughter had food allergies as well as lactose intolerance. Trying to figure them out on your own is complicated and takes a long time. The dr can do a blood test that will point you in a direction so that you can immediately keep certain foods away from him and if that helps just keep him on that diet. The blood test is not as accurate as one would like but it gives you an idea of where to start.

Because his poo is runny I think it's probably a lactose intolerance or something else beside GERD.

I think most babies have a tendency to vomit if they've been coughing or crying hard. My grandchildren are 4 and 7 and they still vomit sometimes when coughing or crying.

If he's vomiting from motion sickness I think the dr can recommend something to keep his stomach settled. When he vomits in the house is he in motion of some sort? Could also be motion sickness.

If it's GERD it's important to remain upright and somewhat quiet until the food empties out of the stomach. A cause of GERD in babies and small children is that the muscle that keeps the food inside the stomach hasn't developed yet.

If he were my son I would call his pediatrician, describe his symptoms and ask if you should bring him in. If he's been seeing the pediatrician regularly the dr/nurse might be able to give you suggestions over the phone.

You can cut out milk for a month and see what happens. You didn't mention whether or not you breast feed. If you do, you should also abstain from milk for his sake during the time you cut out milk, as well. Usually you can tell in about 4 days if there is an intolerance. There will already be improvemenet. Make sure he's getting veggies, fruit, lots of fiber in his diet. Check for celiac disease as well. If milk doesn't turn out to be the culprit, try cutting out wheat for 1 month. The MDs say my daughter is NOT celiac, but she has all of the symptoms of being so. So you have to go by your instincts, no matter what someone else says.

More and more people are becoming "gluten" intolerant. This is the protein in wheat and can strip the digestive sytem of the little celia that aids in digestion. This can cause diarhea and vomiting as well. That's why wheat should be the second thing you cut out for 1 month (or do that first - pick one thing to cut out at a time)

God bless. Digestive problems are difficult, but if not taken care of, can cause toxins in the system to the degree that they interfere with learning. My daughter would be autistic by now if I hadn't cut out wheat after my naturopath told me she was intolerant. Her mind wasn't working by the time she was 3 but now she's fine.

My son threw up a lot, too. Usually more after he ate (projectile type!). As it turned out, he is lactose intolerant. Both of my boys are. When our youngest was done breast feeding, we started him on rice milk. We didn't have as may digestive problems with his as our first. It may be as simple as trying to take him off of dairy. It's an easy place to start.

Good luck.

A food allergy is very likely. You need to consult your doctor as soon as possible for a blood test. If his digestion is that poor, he is not absorbing the nutrients he needs to develop.