Stomach Flu Help

Updated on December 21, 2006
L.B. asks from Saint Paul, MN
10 answers

My daughter who is a year old has had the stomach flu since Friday, nothing on Saturday and started again on Sunday and then I got called from daycare today because she has been throwing up and diarrhea. I called the dr's office and they said to give her bland foods, like applesauce, pasta and then give her pedialyte too. Does anyone have any tips on what to do. She hasn't been too bad just more clingy and wanting to be held more than usual. Thanks.

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D.L.

answers from Janesville-Beloit on

Toast, crackers, bananas, apple sauce, cheese, plain cheerios and lots of water has got me through more flu seasons in the last 15 yrs! Lots of lovin' helps. Good luck and I hope she feels better soon!

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J.P.

answers from Minneapolis on

My son had rotavirus when he was 7 months old, which is a really bad stomach virus. They told me, to get the vomiting to stop, to not give him anything for 12 hours so his stomach could calm down, and then it would be able to handle it again. At that point he wasn't even keeping pedialyte down. I did that (over night) and then 1 oz. of pedialyte an hour like they told me, slowly increasing, and the vomitting stopped. The diarrhea continued, but that is how it gets out of your system. Once the vomiting stops, try to get as much fluid in as possible, and if she is hungry give her something bland... bread or toast are probably easiest. Also, rice cereal can help to bind them up. There is also a special formula they put my son on last summer for diarrhea, Similac Isomil DF. It is a soy formula with special ingredients to bind up the diarrhea. It worked great. That is only available at Walgreens in a liquid form, and should only be given when the dr says to. Sounds like your daughter has Rotavirus to me. You could give the dr a sample to test, they weren't going to test my son, but he wanted them to have a sample... and gave it to them in their faces... lol (we were in the ER, and they were putting a catheder in at the time). Rotavirus usually lasts about 10 days to 2 weeks, and starts like that. The vomiting usually is only in the begining, and my son got dehydrated and got a high fever (106... on christmas eve). It is only contagious to children under 5, by 5 we build up an immunity to it, and it only spreads if you do not wash hands after changing diapers. That was a true test for my sons daycare... not one other child got it there. And he went back after the rough first few days were over... so still had the diarrhea there for over a week. I do not know for sure if that is what your daughter has, but it sounds like it to me. My clinic told me when my son was vomiting a couple weeks ago (from strep, but we did not know that at that time) that if it didn't stop within 12 hours to bring him in and they would give him something to stop the vomitting. That was at Quello, when I called in the middle of the night. They said they won't let it go more than 12 hours, so you could ask your dr about that too. Good luck, and I hope she feels better soon! It is so hard to see young kids so sick... and there isn't a whole lot you can do for them.

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J.R.

answers from Minneapolis on

My Mom is a nurse and she told me to cut back on milk and push pure juice to help with the diarrhea. She also said to use the BRAT diet: bananas, rice, applesauce and toast.
Good luck,
J.

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B.H.

answers from Minneapolis on

It's the norovirus going around. It's been all over the news. I got it myself on Saturday and still feel icky. I went on the internet to learn more about this. You start out with vomiting, which turns into diarreha, then horrible gas. I had stomach cramps and aches the entire time. It's super duper contagious 3days to a week AFTER the symptoms are gone. If you have it your not suppose to cook meals for anyone etc. My kindergartner hasn't got it yet but I bought some gatoraide and sprite and applesauce just to be prepared.

When you start to feed your daughter again give her very small amounts if you can. Try to not give her anything cold out of the fridge room temp. is better. If you give her a normal amount to drink right away or something cold it will start the vomiting or diarreha back again. So a sip here and there til her stomach is handling it works best. If she got done vomiting and a hour later she was to eat a bowl of applesauce that is to much to soon.And most likely she'll vomit or have diarreha from it again. Just a bite here and there for I'd say around 24 hours and gradually work your way back to her normal amounts. Consuming a normal amount of food or beverage or anything cold out the fridge will bring the diarreha and vomiting back on again.

A.D.

answers from Minneapolis on

Our son had rotavirus 3 times last year! We found that yogurt helps the tummy feel better (on our doctor’s advice), pedialyte helps to hydrate, and like the other mom said ginger helps too...give her ginger cookies. There is also this stuff that is over the counter at Wal-Mart but they keep it behind the counter. I can't remember the name of it but it is little packets of granular stuff that you can pour over something like yogurt and it helps take the diarrhea away...it is a miracle worker! Good Luck!

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A.S.

answers from Minneapolis on

The rule of thumb is anything white, so banana's, white rice, baked potatoes, etc. You could also try the pedialyte pops. The biggest thing is to keep her hydrated, so really try to get her to take fluids, not a lot all at once but little amounts periodically-like a tablespoon or two every 30 minutes, so she's able to keep it down. If she starts to act lethargic bring her in to urgent care. Dehydration is the biggest problem with having this kind of illness and with her being so young, it's better to be safe than sorry. I just saw on the news last night that there is a Norovirus going around which can be pretty nasty (the thing they seem to get on cruise-ships where everyone on the boat is puking and has diarrea)- anyway, they say it's more problematic in daycares, schools & restaurants. Try to exclude your child from daycare until the diarrea has passed, or you could risk infecting other children and reinfecting her! That wouldn't be too fun! Good luck!

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M.R.

answers from Milwaukee on

One of the best things I found to give with the flu is bananas, when she can get the food down. Jello is also another good item. I used to give my daughter the jello to drink before it set.

*hugs* Good luck!!

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N.H.

answers from Minneapolis on

Our son (now 3) had horrible bouts with stomach flu between 1 and 2. During one month, he was hospitalized TWICE. Most kids get over these viruses within 24 hours, but some kids take a few days. After going through what we did we now have a process we follow when any of our kids throw up:

NOTHING by mouth until the child has gone 2 hours without throwing up.
After that: 1 TBSP Pedialyte or Gatorade every 15 minutes for the first hour, 2 TBSP Pedialyte or Gatorade every 15 minutes for the second hour, etc., etc. (double every hour).
If the fluids stay down, we introduce food 8 - 10 hours after the last throw up episode (if that falls in the middle of the night we wait until the next morning). We start with a small piece of toast (1/4 slice of bread) and then add more foods if that stays down. We keep them on the BRAT diet (Bananas, Rice, Applesauce, Toast) for at least 2 days, and then we resume a normal diet.

This can be a big pain, because the child is usually very thirsty, but it has kept us from further hospitalizations!

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M.D.

answers from Minneapolis on

1 - 2 Tablespoons of baked potato (I suposed about 1 -2 teaspoons for your girl - plain nothing on it (clean and poke potato and mircowave for about 5 minutes and let cool) Boring and blah to eat but my mom swears by her baked potato method and has cured her kids many neices and nephews during the holidays

Good luck - ginger ale is good for the tummy too - let it go flat no fizz :)

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S.H.

answers from Minneapolis on

monthly i get the stomache flu and i have to stick to a B.R.A.T Diet Bread, Rice, Applesauce, Tea. Make sure and fluids you give her are clear and pop must be defizzed or drank in small sips. Dairy is also something to lay off of. Take it in slow steps and watch food consumption. Too much will make it come back up! Hope it is helpfull to anyone who goes through this it stinks!

S.

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