16 Month Old with Yucky Diahrea

It sounds like food allergies. Perhaps all the wheat products you are giving him to solidify his bowels are actually making him worse. Take him off wheat first, and then try the other big allergens like all gluten, eggs, dairy, soy, etc.. I bet his rash goes away, and he gets better. Both my boys have had food allergies since birth. I had to stop eating things while breast feeding them because they reacted to stuff through the milk. They were much happier babies when I didn't eat what they couldn't tolerate.

Have you tried Lotrimin (jock itch cream) on the rash? Most often a bad rash from diaheea is a sort of yeast infection. Paladin diaper rash cream is wonderful and can be purchased at the Windsor Walgreen's Pharmacy counter for about 3 - 5 dollars. The Pediatrician that most of my daycare clients use suggests soft wash clothes plain water. Use Paladin then cover with Auqaphor ointment(usually found in baby products aisle).The common diet to relieve diarrhea is the BRATS diet. Banana, Rice, Apple and Toast.

D.

I agree with the other moms that you should look into food allergies. As for the diaper rash, leave him naked as much as you can. I know this means more cleanup, but with the weather getting nicer being outside should help. My neice gets bad bloody diaper rash from yeast infections alot and the more they leave her naked the faster it heals. Using the sink for cleanup instead of wipes and long baths help too. If you cannot leave him naked make sure that his bottom is completely dry before you rediaper him.

I hope this helps : )

Hi D.,

Oh, you're poor baby boy! Isn't it just AWFUL? You simply MUST get their little bottoms clean, but it's the cleaning them that hurts the rash, with all of the rubbing and all. It's a terrible cycle! My daughter got horrible bleeding rashes when she was a baby. To avoid all that rubbing with wipes or a washcloth, I would just rinse her off in the tub with warm water or use the little sprayer thingy in the kitchen sink instead. It seemed less torturous. Then I'd just gently pat her dry with a soft towel. It made for a bit more time & laundry, but it was worth it, just to avoid inflicting all that pain on her.

Next, I'd use pure, plain ol' vitamin E on the rash. (You know, the little capsules with vitamin E oil in them. You just poke it with a pin and squeeze the oil out. (Usually 4 or 5 capsules worth.)

There's also an over the counter remedy that I remember working really well for both healing and prevention. The last I remember, you had to ask the pharmacist for it but you don't need a prescription to get it. I'm pretty sure it's called "Paladin" but I'm not positive about the name. (My "baby" is now 18 years old... it's been a while!)

I'm a bit confused by your post. You say you son is on Kaiser insurance? Or CHP+? Is it a Kaiser doc that you don't want to go back to? Why is it you don't want to take him to the same doctor? Was it a Kaiser doctor?

I live in Longmont, and am on Kaiser also, and therefore also go to the Longmont clinic. The GP we see there is Dr. Pamela Wanner, and she is simply wonderful. When she's not available, we see Dr. Zegob, (also a woman) who is also out of this world. Generally speaking, I really don't like Kaiser all that much. But I've gotta say, these 2 doc's are pretty darn good. You might want to give them a try, maybe?

I hope your son heals quickly!
Best Wishes,
~M.

So, I would get him off of the milk for a month--water is sufficient for the fluids he needs and he may have a sensitivity to the milk. Try giving him Recharge (a natural gatorade) to keep his elecrolyte levels good. Probiotics are also good for his digestion.

Add calcium to his system throught dark green veggies--kale, broccoli, spinach, etc. If his poo has rough grain looking pieces, like undigested bread, he may have a gluten/wheat sensitivity or allergy. Try giving him rice, quinoa, amaranth--non-gluten whole grains; bananas are also a better way to plug him up. Stay away from the "cheap" junk (refined white flour). My son has a gluten allergy, and if he has wheat, barley, rye, breads or pastas, he gets diarhea and his poo tears his bottom up. Let him soak his bottom in the tub and add a little NON-mineral oil (apricot, grapeseed, olive work fine) to his bath. Mela-gel, a Melaleuca product works wonderfully on relieving diaper rash. Or Un-Petroleum products at Whole Foods.

The best pediatrician I know of is Dr. Andrea Vianna. My children are on CHP+ and we were assigned to her, but turns out she's wonderful. She's at Monfort Childrens' Clinic in Greeley. She really cares about children and has treated a lot of my sons' allergy and food sensitivies with natural methods, including diet and stuff I can get cheaply at the natural food store.

Good luck!
J.

My son, at two, still had the diariah (baby pop like at best) At that point, I took him to Dr. Bock for allergy testing (not sure what age they start that) He was negative. I then went to a GI and had all kinds of tests since we have Khrone's and other disorders in our family. Al negative. So they call it Infatile Non-Specific chronic diariah. Try looking that up online to see what you can learn. My son, now 2.5, is off dairy, red meat, corn (including corn syrup), and all beans incuding soy and hummus. Our whole family feels better taking these things out of our diet. So read online about how to do a control diet and watch that dairy.

Hi D.,

Like Mary W. I'd like to also add a recommendation for Dr. Warner and Dr. Zegob-Hartman at the Longmont Kaiser office. I use them both for myself and my children and they have been wonderful.

Also, I have always used A&D ointment for my childrens diaper rash. It works wonderfully to both clear up the diaper rash and keep moisture from the baby. Because it is an ointment rather than a thick cream, it is easier to clean during changes and therefore more gentle on little bottoms.

D.,

Good for you for pursuing this further. Diarrhea is not normal! I also would say it sounds like a food allergy. Had he started on any new foods before this episode began? As mentioned before, dairy and wheat are big allergy culprits. I would probably start him on the BRAT (bannanas, rice, applesauce, toast) diet. Once his diarrhea clears up, start slowly adding foods back. Make sure to give it several days to a week between new foods to see if he is reacting. When you find the culprit food, you will know pretty quickly!

As far as the rash, it could just be burnt skin from the diarrhea, or it could be a yeast infection. You can use over the counter yeast medication on him. Neosporin makes an antibiotic cream that also contains an antiyeast/antifungal component. A friend of mine has found it very helpful on her daughter's persistent rashes. You could also add a few drops of tea tree essential oil in his bath water. Tea tree oil is a natural antibiotic, antiyeast, antifungal. It's wonderful. If you wanted to dilute a drop or two in an ounce of oil, you could also apply it direction to his rash between diaper changes. I bet it clears that rash right up.

Since he is having persistent diarrhea, the flora in his gut is probably out of whack. You might want to consider adding a probiotic in his diet to help get things back on track. Live culture yogurt can help maintain gut flora, but it does not have nearly enough culture in it to get things working properly once they are really off balance. Jarro-dophilus is a great probiotic that has a wide range of species in it. You can get it in the refrigerator section at Whole Foods, Sunflower market or Vitamin Cottage. (Probably any health store would carry it.) I have heard that a straight acidophilus supplement can actually be upsetting for small children's stomachs. I add one capsule of Jarro to my girls yogurt most every day. Just open up the capsule and mix the power into his food or drink. Jarro makes a children's formula, or their regular formula says its safe for infants and toddlers.

Best of luck,
S.