Stomach Flu/Food Poisoning Advice

Hi. I have tried flat coca cola (you can stir it or boil it until the bubbles dissolve)? Try feeding that 1 TBSP every 15 minutes. I've had good luck with it. If you are not having luck, call the doctors office before the child gets dehydrated. Maybe try Pedialite?

Use pedilite and give it with a dropper. you need to keep on it and keep her hydrated, so give it every 10 minutes. Like a few drops and wait and then give her a few more drops. ice pops that the child can suck on works so does jello. any thing that has any fluid it it. if she is not going to the bathroom (peeing) take her back to the dr. dehydration is very dangerous

I don't have any suggestions for holding it down, except for saltine crackers, but I just wanted you to know that my six year old granddaughter had the same thing about a month ago. I was quite worried since she couldn't even hold down water, but after 2 days, she was able to hold down solids and after 3 days was back to school and feeling fine.

I had two with food poisoning 2 years ago. One was 2 and the other was 1 at the time. It is a tough course, but 1 tablespoon at a time is the only way and the popcicles really help. Sugar free or pedialyte are the best. If she is lethargic, take her in imediately so she doesn't get dehydrated. Ours passed in 48 hours, hopefully yours will too.
Stac

I remember my mother using the soda trick- she did a spoonful of sugar mixed into 7up to get rid of the bubbles. I remember it helping a *lot*. But definitely do one tbsp and wait 10-15 mins.

Pedialyte pops are also fantastic! Restoring electrolytes will really help her feel better. Get those back in balance and everything else will fall in line.

Good luck!

Make sure you are waiting some time between the tsp of fluids.Wait 10 mins between each tsp. Use Pedialyte or some other electrolyte containing liquid. Her tummy can only handle very little. Stay in touch with the doc. When our daughter got to that place, she was put on IV fluids for 8 hours. It made all the diff. in the world. Her recovery was quick.

I agree with the others -Pedialyte. It is better than water for babies in the initial stages of sickness. Even a little of it is better for them than the equivalent amount of water/juice. The flavored ones worked best for my son. Just keep giving it no matter what. They will ususally come through it just fine. Don't worry about eating either - they can do with very little to no food for a couple of days.But they must have hydration! Do be aware of signs of worsening dehydration such as dramatically reduced urine output, inability to produce tears, dry mouth. If you think she is not making any progress, return to the dr! Good luck.

iced gelato kept my 23 month old out of the hospital--i scraped a spoon across the ice and fed the shavings to her every few minutes.

There is an old home remedy for stomach upset that many don't remember but is very effective. Get some decaf cola (it doesn't matter what brand, just as long as it's cola) and boil out the carbonation. Give the syrup a tablespoon at a time (sipping) every 15 minutes for 3 tablespoons and se how she does. The cola reduces the acid in the stomach and calms it.

The only reason cola is "bad" to drink on a regular basis is because it reduces stomach acid (which we normally need for digestion) overuse over time will cause the body to create an over abundance of stomach acid and disease. Used for a very short term specific purpose, cola is great.

I hope your little one feels better soon! It's never fun to be sick:(

P.S. Pedialyte pops are awesome!!!

Hi J. D,

Try giving her small tastes of yogurt. Just begin with small, tiny tastes of yogurt as much as she can take in throughout the day. She doesn't need to "get full" but what she does need is to build up her body's stomach cultures again. A good quality yogurt from the natural foods section should be good. The flavor isn't really important because the goal is to subtly reintroduce the cultures into the stomach. Pay attention to her signals and don't force her to eat too much; but do try to get her to taste about a teaspoonful of yogurt every 3-5 hours every day until she can handle a regular diet again.

I hope this is helpful for you,
-M

We've always had success with ginger ale mixed with water or pedialite, a spoonful at a time. Saltine crackers some other salty sot cracker to get some salt into her as well. When my kids got a little older, the doctor recommended salted popcorn because it was something they'd eat, even when not feeling too well, with the soda/water/pedialite mix.

I can sympathize because my 9 month old has just got over the stomach flu. He did go for the pedialyte ice pops. Our dr said that they only need a few oz of liquid every few hours to stay hydrated (one of the pops is just over 2 oz). He would be fine for hours then suddenly throw up. It was really horrible and I was so worried, but in the end, it came to trying to get a few little bits down him and hoping they'd stay down long enough to get into his system. Just be careful you are really giving tiny amounts - he got hungry and would guzzle pedialyte from a sippy cup, then throw it up.

(BTW - we were advised to use pedialyte and not water to replace the minerals that are lost during vomiting and diarreha).

Good luck, its horrible but does pass eventually...

E.

Try popsicles -- I know now's not exactly prime weather for that, but it will help her stay hydrated. Pedialyte makes ice pops (sort of like Otter Pops) and those were a *godsend* when my daughter had similar illness at same age. Also maybe sips of clear soup (chicken broth, etc.), if she will take that.

Keep her close to you with lots of hugs and loving, and keep an eye on her temperature; this too shall pass and she'll be on the mend soon. Best of luck...

I agree with using the pedialyte popsicles for her age. A little bit older and ice chips are also helpful but I think she might be to young for that. Hang in there, it's so hard to see them not keep anything down.

Also as an alternative to pedialyte, use coconut juice.

J.,

Less than two weeks ago my entire family experienced this horrible stomach flu. My daughter, 28 months old, was throwing up for about two days. We purchased jello, pedialyte popsicles, pedialyte juice and ginger ale for her. Despite the fact that she continued to throw up during the day, we were able to ensure that she did not become de-hydrated and that was our main concern. We went to the doctor's office and our pediatrician told us we were doing the right things. The 'bug' would have to run its course, but should only last between 48-72 hours. Keep her hydrated and when she is ready and able to hold down food, she'll let you know. I wish you and baby the best.
- T.

I just went thru this with my son, he lost 2 lbs within two weeks time (10 % of body wieght). It seemed as though It would never end. Its been about a month and he's just now getting back to normal. He would have a few good days then it would start all over again.
He had a diet of nothing but liquids for a whole 24 hours everytime he threw up. We gave him a table spoon of water every 15 minutes. When he was finally able to hold that down, we gave him more fluids, pedialyte frozen pops, jello, chicken broth. Then slowly I'd added carbs, such as steamed rice, toast, rice cereal, cheerios. No Dairy, it seemed to make it worse. If all went well, then i started to intoducing other foods, fruits (bananas) and veggies (potatoes, carrots, sweet potatoes) and gadually add dairy back in the diet.
He seems to be good now and tries to make up for it.

Hi J.,

My kids' pediatrician explained to me that kids that age become dehydrated very quickly. If he still can't keep anything down, I would call the doctor and see about getting him in right away. Dehydration can actually happen in a day for a child that age. Water or juice is not the same as using Pedialyte and not only due to the electrolytes. I cannot remember the scientific facts the doc explained to me but it is something to do with the consistency being equal to the blood or something that makes more sense that that. :) I hope he is better soon.

L.

I just want to add a 'second' to the de-carbonated cola idea. It sounds like something wrong for a child, but it really worked for us when we were on a cross-country trip when our son was about 9 months old and so sick he couldn't hold any food down. We were out in the 'middle of nowhere' as they say, and could only keep on traveling to get to where we could stop. No way to boil out the carbonation, so I simply put the cola in his bottle and shook it until the carbonation was all released. BTW...also no diet cola available... and I think I'd prefer the sugar of the regular over artificial sweetners for a child anyway. We didn't create a desire for the sweet drinks by doing this. In fact that boy is now a father and still doesn't like to drink much soda.

Hello J.,

Homeopathy can significantly reduce the stomach flu duration. Please take a look at my article http://www.masharosen.com/FoodPoisoning.html

Best wishes,
M..

We all had the stomach flu about a month ago and my doctor said that plain water was actually not the best and didn't help much with flu dehydration. You can try the flavored Pedialite (my son won't drink this at all) or you can try Gatorade if you check with your doctor. I can't remember how old they have to be before drinking that. My 2 year old son tolerated the lemon flavor well in small doses. For food, try oyster crackers or saltenes.

Good luck!

Dear J.,

We have had amazing success with "liquid bentonite". You can order it from www.vitacost or look for it locally at a health food store. I recommend the brand "Sonne". Bentonite is a liquid volcanic ash. It binds itself to irritants in the gastrointestinal tract and takes them on to elimination. This action is called "adsorbtion" (versus "absorbtion) which means, it pulls impurities from the soft tissues in your GI tract, helping to relieve stomach flu, food poisoning etc...very quickly. When your body is vomiting, it is attempting to rid the GI tract of impurities. Bentonite binds itself to those impurities and they are then flushed out of the body via a bowel movement - much less violent and taxing on the body.

Any one of any age can take liquid bentonite. It is impossible to overdose with this product as it is totally benign. The literature that comes with the bottle is very clear and straightforward. I mix a 1/4 cup of it with a full cup of warm water and have my son sip it (he is 3.5 now)in a sippy cup with a straw. It has a chalky taste to it. This has also worked wonders for me, my husband and other moms in my moms group who have them selves been terribly ill from the flu. It has literally stopped vomiting within a few hours of taking it. I asked my pediatrician about it and she thought it was a good idea. Turned out to be a great idea.

You can read about it here: http://www.healthysales.com/SONNES/sonnes_7.php

Best of luck to you and hope your little one feels better soon!

-S.
Mom of Sam 3.5 yrs old

I'm sorry to hear about your situation - it's never fun! Has your doctor recommended pedialyte? I know that you need something that has electrolytes in it - and usually they use something like that for younger kids.

J. F.

Try the pedialite popsicles. Also, bananas, applesauce and toast in small amounts. That should settle he stomach if she is feeling sick.

We've always had great luck with flavored Pedialyte, usually the mixed fruit or apple flavor instead of the grape. They also have unflavored Pedialyte if your DD likes the taste of plain water better.

Best wishes!
A.

You should be able to find coca-cola syrup at most big pharmacies and it's always worked like a charm for me as a kid and as an adult.