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| FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS (PEDIATRIC FAQs) |
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| Question 1 |
My daughter has a small anus. The pediatrician suggested using an anal dilator for 2 to 3 months, which we did. However even after doing so, while passing stools, she starts crying. What treatment do you recommend? If this is left untreated will it lead to piles? Pramela (Philadelphia, USA) |
| Answer 1 |
If the size of the anus is small, the treatment is repeated dilatation as advised by your pediatrician. It has no long-term side effects. If she still has some pain while passing stools you can try a mild laxative like Cremoffin liquid 5ml at bedtime for 2 weeks. If the problem still persists, please consult a pediatric surgeon.
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| Question 2 |
My baby is feeding on my milk as well as on formula. She keeps passing a lot of gas and seems to have some pain in her stomach. Can you please suggest a remedy?
Lena (Wales, U.K.)
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| Answer 2 |
Stop bottle and formula feeds. That is the best solution. Give your baby only breast milk till he turns 6 months old.
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| Question 3 |
My daughter is 3 years old. Last month I saw a pipe-like thing coming out of her anus and when I consulted a doctor, he said that my child's anus was collapsing and that I would have to show her to a surgeon. But the surgeon said that surgery was not required and I just have to see that she doesn't have constipation. But now it has become a daily issue. Whenever she passes motion her anus comes out. I am quite worried. Is a surgery required? She is a very active child. Why does her anus come out? Please help me! Ratna (Patna, India)
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| Answer 3 |
Your daughter has something called as prolapse. There are many reasons for this including pin worms, severe constipation and dysentery. Severe straining at stools is also one of the reasons. What the child needs is dietary advice and may be a ring reinforcement of the anal sphincter. Get in touch with a paediatric surgeon.
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| Question 4 |
I have a 2 and a half year old son. He had been constipated for a week. Our doctor prescribed a medication which works as long as he is on it. The minute he stops the medicines, theconstipation continues. We tried changing his milk formula. He has Soya milk as he is allergic to cow milk. (We thus mix an equal amount of cow and soya milk and give it to him.) He seemed to be fine, till he developedconstipation . We then tried giving him more of cow milk, a bit of honey and a lot of water and fluids. And now he has developed loose stools. What is happening? The doctor feels nothing is wrong. Prakash (Jaipur, India)
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| Answer 4 |
Stop all forms of milk.
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| Question 5 |
My two year old daughter passes hard, painful stools. She drinks milk and has lots of fruit, prune juice, black beans and Nestle Cereal. She has had this problem ever since she started taking formula milk. Darren (Washington, U.S.A)
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| Answer 5 |
Children on formula feeds have tight stools. The ideal solution would be to stop formula and start the child on regular pasteurised milk.
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| Question 6 |
My daughter who is 2 years old has rice twice a day and in the evenings she has Ragi and oats. She also has bread, prune juice and bananas regularly. For the past two weeks she has been passing very hard stools. What should I do? Sima (Johor Bahru, Malaysia) |
| Answer 6 |
Please give your child syrup Cremoffin 5 ml everyday for 15 days and report back to me. |
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| Question 7 |
My baby's stools have black spots in them. Why is this so? His stools are dark yellowish in colour. He is also constipated. I gave him banana powder mixed with formula milk. Now what should I give him? Rinkie (Forth Worth, USA) |
| Answer 7 |
The stools of your child are normal. You must wait till your baby is 6 months before you give any outside food. |
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| Question 8 |
The problem with my 2 months old baby is that she is not regular in her bowel movement. Sometimes she does not have bowel movement for 2-3 days. I am very worried about her health. She is breastfeeding. Is she constipated? What should I do to regularise her bowel movement? Amita (Boston, USA) |
| Answer 8 |
Bowel movements of new born children vary a lot. Not passing stools for 3 - 5 days as well as passing 15 to 20 small frequent stools are normal. There is no need to worry and no treatment is required. As the child grows her bowel movements will normalise. In fact, in some children such a pattern may persist even till 5 years. |
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| Question 9 |
I have started giving solid food like kichdi (rice and mung dal) with salt, jeera powder and turmeric, twice a day. I give her milk 4 times a day, and some fruit, soup or biscuit. But she doesn't pass stools daily. Sometimes she passes stools after 2 days. The stool is very hard, and it does not come out easily. Jharna (Nasik, India) |
| Answer 9 |
Stool patterns in babies are highly variable and cannot be compared to the adult pattern of daily passage of motions. Try this home remedy: Take half a glass of water, and boil a ripe tomato in it. After it is nicely cooked, squeeze and extract the juice. Filter off the juice and add a pinch of salt and give it to the child every day for 15 days. Motions will become softer. |
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| Question 10 |
My baby is 26 days old and weighs 3.6 kgs. She seems to be constipated. Her stool is hard. Do you have any home remedy? Can I give her Milk of Magnesia, honey and boiled sugar water? Pranaya (Gohati, India) |
| Answer 10 |
We do not call it constipation. It is called infrequent stools. There is no need to worry, and no treatment is required. |
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| Question 11 |
I have a 5-month old son. He does not pass motions daily and is highly constipated most of the time. In the last week I had given him a suppository thrice. Is it safe to use a suppository? I have a bad cold for which I have been taking Avil. Is it safe to take such tablets, since I am breastfeeding my baby? Charulata (Indore, India) |
| Answer 11 |
The stool pattern of breast fed babies is highly variable. Children may not pass stools for 4-7 days, or they may pass stools 12-15 times with every feed. There is no need for any treatment for either. Suppositories are habit forming and can damage the rectal mucosa. Do not use suppositories. Drugs are excreted in breast milk in extremely small quantities, so don't worry about the Avil. If your child gets drowsy, take a milder antihistaminic. |
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| Question 12 |
My child passes stools after every feed. Last night he passed around 6 stools. He also hiccups very often. Divya (Nainital, India) |
| Answer 12 |
A healthy breast-fed baby can pass up to 20 stools per day. So also may not pass stools for 1 week. Both are normal and no need to treat. Also hiccups are normal. |
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| Question 13 |
My child has been suffering from diarrhoea-like symptoms for the past three days. Stools vary from watery to a curd-like consistency, accompanied by vomiting and fever. Stool frequency was 5-7 times a day and he has been vomiting 3-4 times a day. What should I do? |
| Answer 13 |
I think your child has viral diarrhoea. This generally starts getting better after 3-4 days. Give your child 'Econorm' granules (half packet dissolved in half glass of water twice a day for 3 days). |
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| Question 14 |
For the past 7-8 days, my child has been passing watery stools. Recently, we found blood in the stool. We consulted a physician. It was revealed that she has contacted bacterial dysentery. Is this dangerous formy child? What food can I give her? She doesn't eat! How could she have contracted it? Nitin (Banglore, India) |
| Answer 14 |
Bacterial dysentery is quite common problem, especially if you are bottle-feeding the child. Give the appropriate antibiotic prescribed by your doctor. It is not a dangerous disease if treated promptly. |
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| Question 15 |
I nurse my baby and give him one solid feed. A few days ago he developed viral diarrhoea. My doctor asked me to give him Walamycin. I had his stool test done. He had a mild bacterial infection. My doctor says that there is nothing to worry about - the infection should clear on its own. I am worried. Should I continue giving him solids or should I only nurse him till it clears? Janki (Mumbai, India) |
| Answer 15 |
I think you are unduly getting worked up. Such stools are normal in breastfed children. You are doing a perfectly good job as far as your son's feeding is concerned. Do not stop the solid feeds. Continue with what you are doing. |
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| Question 16 |
My daughter has diarrhoea. We have given her a lot of medicines, including antibiotics (Normet) but the motions have not stopped. We are extremely worried as she is becoming very weak. Please help! Chintan (Jaipur, India) |
| Answer 16 |
Try giving Syr. Wallamycin 5 ml 3 times for 5 days. |
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| Question 17 |
My daughter has been passing loose motions for the past month. She passes stools about 8-10 times a day. Her stools are sometimes green in colour. The water quantity in the motion is not much. We gave her Gramoneg (Nalidixic acid) for 5 days, but she hasn't improved. Sohan (Chennai, India) |
| Answer 17 |
There is no need to give your child any medication since she is passing semi-solid stools. Your child is just experiencing what is called a gastro-colic reflex, which is normal in babies. There is no need to worry. Continue feeding her as before. |
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| Question 18 |
My 2-year old daughter gets a blocked nose very frequently. She also spits out a lot of mucous frequently (especially after burping). Swati (Mumbai, India) |
| Answer 18 |
You can use NAso clear drops 2 to 3 drops every 2 hourly. |
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| Question 19 |
My 2 year old baby boy has had a cough and cold for the past week 10 days. My doctor has prescribed Triatussic syrup. He has a bit of throat infection and had a mild fever today. I have given him Crocin drops. What else should I give him to control his cough since Triatussic seems to be ineffective? Vaijanti (Calcutta, India) |
| Answer 19 |
I think your child has an allergic bronchitis. Give him syr.Derryphyllin 5 ml three times a day for 1 week and report back to me. |
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| Question 20 |
My baby boy has cold since 3 weeks and it is not subsiding. Our pediatrician gave him antibiotic and Nasal drops (Nasoclear) I guess due to winter the cold is not subsiding. He has cold in the Evenings, nights and early mornings. Day time his nostrils look clear. And he has no cough or fever till now. Yesterday night he had very bad cough through out night. I am giving him banana but stopped it ever since he has cold. Can I give my baby banana / orange juice when he has cold? What foods should be avoided when a baby has cold? Can we do head bath for him every alternate days? Also in winter what is the kind of skin care to be taken? Can we do massage with besan daily in winter? Can we give Ragi / dry dates juice in winter? Amena (Ajmer, India) |
| Answer 20 |
Give him some antihistamines like Alerid for 5 days. There is no need for food restrictions. Head bath can be given once a week. Besan is good for skin. |
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| Question 21 |
My two year old daughter constantly suffers from cough and cold. She starts with a slight cough which soon develops into congestion. In fact she has been hospitalized twice for this problem. I take care in terms of not letting her have cold food stuff or letting her out in the cold without adequate protection.But she does not seem to outgrow this problem. We give her Asthalin/ Albutamol when she has congestion. What else can I do to help her and Is there any preventive medicine that will help her build her resistance and fight these infections? Paribi (Mumbai, India) |
| Answer 21 |
The description that you have gives suggests that your child is suffering from some kind of allergic bronchitis. Is there any family member who is suffering from Asthma or any kind of allergy? Then most likely your child is suffering from asthma.( mild variety). Having this in mind it is better the child is under regular follow up with a pediatric pulmonologist in your city. There is no link between food and the child's condition. |
