Acid Reflux in an Older Child

She may need to be tested for Celiac disease. www.celiac.com
it is more common than you think, and children are prone to have it

My daughter doesn't have acid reflux, but my husband does. My suggestion would be to see a doctor ASAP, get some allergy testing done to see if she's allergic to any foods, and get on a different medication. The esophagus can erode and scar, and at that age you really don't want that starting.

I cut out wheat and gluten products and I no longer have acid reflux. It could also be diverticulitus. Things with seeds should not be eaten. I hope this helps.

I am just impressed that you had a doctor listen to you enough to do something about the acid reflux. My 6 year old has been getting heartburn about 3 times a week or more for the last 3 years. Usually he vomits everything he has eaten, sometimes it seems for the past couple of days, and then the heartburn goes away for a few minutes. I give him a glass of milk which usually helps, but only for the short term. I would love to hear any advice you get because all his pediatrician tells us is that he will out grow it. I don't think he is old enough to have any long term medications and like you said the side effects were worse than the reflux. Please let me know if you get any advice. Thanks!!

My son is the same way an dhe is 9, If he eats alot of grease or driks alot of caffine or even chocolate it causes him to do the same thing. So maybe it is something she is eating. Hope she gets better soon.

I have acid reflux. Recently we have learned that eating raw cucumbers will stop an acid reflux attack. I have not tried it but will soon. It is really worth a try.

Hi R.,

You can visit our Tummy Issues Inc site we have loads of info there . Click on the tummy issues links. I would try a bland diet for awhile till tummy heals I would stay away from :OJ,Chocolate,spices,ketchup is the WORST thing for children with senstive stomachs,mints,anything with tomatoes, I would also raise her bed at the front with maybe two bicks on each side. stay away from greases foods like fries, even too many high sugary things can do it and things ith citrus acid in them. My daughter is 12 now but she has two permanment colostomies and her story can be read there. I hope some the information helps your little one. Be blessed , C. the website is http://www.tummyissues.net

Hello R.,
I know in adults, I suppose it would be the same for children
our bodies have a certain PH balance and when that balance is off a bit is when we get heart burn or reflux symptoms. I feel the meds do nothing to correct the problem just cover it up. What helped my son was when we changed his diet to lean more towards fruits and vegtables, with those being the majority of his diet and meats & dairy being less. Milk is the opposite of what we would think and may be part of the problem. When the diet is more meat & dairy than fruits and vegtables, this causes that PH level to be off a bit. I think, if I remember right we need to be a bit more acidic?? (sp?) I think drug stores may have those strips to test at home.
If you do a search on the Internet you may find this info in more detail. There are foods that trigger it,but usually would not be a problem if ph is correct.
A warm / hot cup of water with cinnamon & honey will stop an attack of reflux or heartburn or any kind of digestive problems almost instantly. Just sip it. Also a cup of warm water with lemon & honey prior to a meal may set the body up to digest the meal. Also I noticed another response suggested goats milk!! This is an excellent suggestion. Goats milk & Cows milk are opposite ph. Goats milk would be great. I have real goats milk so I don't know if the kind in the grocery stores would be the same, but maybe. I've always taken a more natural approach with my family & my farm. I do know it does damage, so you want to get it under control.
Hope it helps
J.

Is your daughter currently on a reflux medication? If so, perhaps you could try something other than Prevacid and see if it helps.

Reading your post, it occurred to me that your daughter might have Eosinophilic Gastrointestinal Disease (EGID). My son has this condition. An organization called American Partnership For Eosinophilic Disease (APFED) is a great resource for info and support. For more information, go to www.apfed.org. Also, please feel free to contact me if you have any questions/concerns. People with eosinophilic disorders often have an allergic component. But it's not an immediate allergic reaction (like anaphylaxis to peanuts). Rather, it's a delayed reaction. If your daughter does have this condition, I would hate for you to go months and months without a diagnosis. Many people have gone months, if not years, without getting a diagnosis and proper treatment. But more and more doctors are now aware of eosinophilic disorders, so hopefully that will translate into faster diagnoses. It would be easier for me to talk with you about this than email.

C.
WAke Forest, NC
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R.- you may want to try to put your daughter on digestive enzymes(you can get them at a good health food store) she is probably not digesting her food well- NOW brand makes "Super Enzymes" that may do the trick-they need to be given when she eats. After she eats if she starts to develop reflux symptoms - papaya enzyme(also available at the health food store) really helps settle the stomach- as far as foods go- you may want to try eliminating gluten(from both wheat and corn) from her diet- they are both not very digestible and cause alot of gastrointestinal issues. good luck!!

one thing to definitly consider is the hiatal hernia. you could also try a bland diet, which is usually used for acid reflux in hospitals. the one hard part is sticking to the diet. check out some of the websites on bland diets and it should help. good luck!

My daughter doesnt have the vomiting, but she has chest pain that her Dr. attributed to acid reflux(which she had bad when she was a baby)My daughter is almost 9. They said to try and stay away from acidic foods citrus, tomato, chocolate, caffeine, or cig smoke. But my daughter takes tagament(cimetidine generic) 300mg, twice a day. It really seems to help. I try not to give her as much acidic food, but I dont completely change her diet. She is actually only taking the medication once a day, but twice a day sometimes if needed. I dont know if this will help, but I hope so.

Hi R.,

I have a 7 Year-old daughter that has had reflux since she was 3. At age 6 we went to a pediatric gastroenterologist and she was diagnosed with eosinophilic esophagitis which is a food allergy which causes acid reflux. We went on an elimition diet and took out wheat, milk, soy, nuts, eggs and fish from her diet. Her reflux went away and now we are adding foods back to determine the culprit.

I have heard there are also other things like celiacs disease that can cause reflux. I would suggest seeing a gastroenterologist.If it is severe and medicine doesn't help, reflux can erode the esophagus over time. A gastroenterologist can help determine the cause.

R., My son has had problems for about 4 years and my cousins little girl did too. They took her to the doctor 1st for vomitting and stomache pain. They first thought she had a bowel obstruction but, when she went to the bowel specialist they did blood work on her and had her swallow pellits, take laxatives, and then come back 7 days later for x-raye to see how far the pellits when in her bowels to make sure she was functioning correctly. Her bowels were moving at the right pase but her blood work showed that she was actually allergic to the proteins in milk and whey.It was causing the insides of her bowel to swell and preventing her from having proper bowel movements and her bowles were backing up causing stomache pain and vomiting. My son was treated for UTI but it would not grow, he was sent to a Unrinary tackt doctor and I was advised he just had constipation to change his diet and exercise. They started him on Myralax and this worked for avout a year then he began to vomit every two weeks or so and once he had a episode that lasted a day he would be fine for another 2 weeks. His pediatrician advised the same thing, diet and exercise, and give him an enama, I had already changed his diet, added Karate for exercise, he was still taking the medicine, I tried the enama and it would not go in he was so impacted. I gave him oral medication and cleaned everthing out. Again 2 weeks later the same thing. I insisted on seeing a specialist. Come to find out, two meds he is on causes constipation and to go along with that, they did the same tests as they did on my cousins little girl, he is allergic to tomatoes and tomato base product to go along with everthing else. This too was causing his bowel to swell inside increasing the problem and added exercise and diet to his routine would have never corrected the problem. Allergies can cause so many problems that are not seen by the eye. I would insist on seeing a gastrologist ( I am sure I did not spell the right) and have allergy testing for the 8 foods that cause bowel and stomache irritation and if nothing shows up there I would request an upper GI. My son's doctor advised that if he continued throwing up after we made these changes then she wanted an upper GI done to make sure there were no problems in that area. Some times I think docot's get so use to seeing you all of the time and treating you that they don't look outside of the box and we have to insist, in a polite manner. They don't mean to I don't think, but my cousin and I both had to insist on referals before we could get them and look it paid off, both of our children are doing much better and regardles to what our doctor's said or thinks, we were not imagining it, there really was a problem. Good luck. M.

Have you had her esophagus checked for abnormalities? Several of my family members have a problem with the esophagus getting smaller just before the stomach. This has caused a lot of heartburn, indigestion, and sometimes vomiting. My father actually had food get stuck, when he drank water to help it down he would throw up the water, but not the food (a piece of chicken.)He ended up in the emergency room to have it removed! There is also a condition where the valve or flap from the esophagus into the stomach is weak or has spasms causing food to remain in the esophagus. It is also very possible that it IS a food allergy. You should talk to an allergist, but my sister and I narrowed down her sons allergies by putting him on basically nothing but rice (and rice milk) for several days then slowly introducing other foods such as dairy, wheat, and soy based foods. We found several allergies including wheat and dairy that were not severe, but were causing him various problems (including ADD symptoms which disappeared by eliminating the allergy foods -- when he eats corn based foods he loses focus, concentration, talks back and generally gets in trouble--- when he eats milk based dairy products he has an upset stomach and diarrhea.) I hope you figure it out...good luck to you and your daughter!

Good Morning R.,

I don't know if this will help or not, but a friend of mine I grew up with had a similar problem. It turned out to be a hiatal hernia. It caused her to have stomach cramps and then she'd just start throwing up for no apparent reason. At first she was also told that it was Acid Reflux.

Hey R.,

I had the same problem as a child and into adulthood. For the past 7 years, I have been reflux free, but it took a consistent approach and avoiding somethings that I really liked. I avoid carbonated drinks and anything with bad oils (partially and fully hydrogenated), I also take enzymes from the health food store, because I don't digest carbohydrates as well as most people. And a big thing I do, which helps the most is I take a tablespoon of virgin coconut oil each day. In the beginning, I took one tbl in the morning and one in the evening. I still take a little more when I eat bad oils. Another thing to look for is whether your child is having a bowel movement daily. But, if the diet is right and the oils are right, it should help in that department as well.

Good luck!

Have you consulted a chiropractor? I frequently attend a chiropractor for back injuries and he has a laser system that can work on so many different problems. I have had my face lasered to help me with sinus problems. It is painless and quick and really helps. He has helped children in the past with stomach problems. It doesn't hurt to ask. Hope she gets better.

I have personal experience with acid reflux and now have a 6 1/2 mo old son with reflux as well. While I cannot say what foods do NOT cause AR, I can say that for both of us all dairy (milk proteins NOT lactose) certainly made it a lot worse. I have had to learn to monitor our diets very carefully and eliminate all lactose, casein, whey, caramel coloring ... any form of milk protein and now I am totally medicine free. My son is on children's Prevacid still since he is so young. I took Nexium for a long time. Nexium worked much better for me than did Prevacid, Prilosec or any of the other common brands. Best of luck to you. I know how frustrating this is.

I would look into probiotics and digestive enzymes. I give my son both of those from a website called "Natural Wellness Centers of America."

L.

Hi R.,

My youngest has acid reflux, too. Prevacid was really helpful for her, but the insurance company refused to cover it any longer. I was eventually able to get her to a GI specialist, which has helped us alot. She is 11 now, and let me tell you some of what we've learned not to let her have.

First, we learned chocolate sets it off, so now we limit that a lot. School lunches! She can't eat them. Its too likely to set her stomach off. I pack her lunch. She can have sandwiches using wheat bread. For some reason the white is iffy, meaning some don't bother her, some do, and we don't really understand why.

She can eat tuna or eggsalad with mayo. Peanut butter is chancy, but most lunch meats are ok. She can't eat apples, but I have found this is related to a latex allergy. But its something to think about and watch.

Its a shame, because she loves so many of these things, so I let her have them in moderation, if she will be home.

We eliminated some things by putting her on a very resticted diet for a week, and bringing in suspicious foods one by one to learn what was causing the worst of her problems.

Hope this is helpful.

My family has AR. But that is not the same thing as an allergy. My best example of foods that do not create AR is Cream of Wheat. Our big offenders are caffeine/chocolate, tomatoe-based anything, anything fried, and the entire onion/garlic/pepper family. Other things set it off as well. I always pay when I eat anything within 4 hours of bedtime. Nexium has changed my life but I didn't have real trouble until I was in my 20's. My daughter is now off of her Zantac and will hopefully be OK for a while. If this happens with a variety of foods, have you thought about checking her for an allergy to gluten? It is in almost everything. Good luck.

We've gone though a similar situation with my son, though he's not as old as your child. After having him tested for allergies, we knew the items to avoid. Also, he had several food intolerances that caused upset tummy issues. Goat milk and goat yogurt really helped settle his tummy. You can find goat milk at Kroger and Walmart and the goat yoguart at Wild Oats.

I have a 12 year old that had 2 scopes when she was around 10 and prevacid did not heal her problems. I have another daughter who is 7 and she had a scope last year and prevacid did not heal her problems. My 12 year old has out grown her problems after treating the initial problems. You need to avoid foods that cause acid like tomatoe based foods and chocolate. Do not let her eat school food. It is a big problem. My 7 year old is currently on prescription strength prilosec.(stronger than otc) If you know that you are going to eat something like pizza give her a pepcid complete prior to eating and if she has a problem after eating you can give her a tums.(check with your Pediatrician prior to giving any medications) Pepcid complete is a preventative and tums is to treat the symptoms. We have a wonderful Pediatric Gastroenterologist and I recommend that you take her to be checked. It is better to find out what the problem is exactly and how to treat it. My 7 year old had some ulcers and inflammation as well as a hiatal hernia. As of today she is doing well. Prior to the medication change she would have stomach pain and occassionally throw up after or during lunch at school.

Best wishes to a speedy recovery.

Has she been diagnosed with acid reflux and been to see a gastroenterologist? Acid reflux in an older child can be a symptom of a more serious underlying condition. It can also erode the esophagus and cause ulcers if left unchecked. Has your daughter had an endoscope to determine if she possibly has a hiatal hernia or other underlying condition? These can be repaired. There are also other medications and combinations of medications out there that can effectively treat this in a child. I am a medical professional whose daughter was diagnosed with a hiatal hernia at age 7. It took a lot of persistance to get it diagnosed, but is well worth it. She had surgery to repair the problem and is now a healthy 16-year-old. The only thing she must avoid is high-fat and extremely spicy foods. She also must avoid caffeine, as it relaxes the sphincter muscles surrounding the area where the stomach connects with the esophogus.

I have a 14 yr old (my stepdaughter) she comes to visit every other weekend and she tells me that when she eats soups the best thing for her. So you should try some broth to see if it will stay on your daughter's stomach.

Nita

Good Morning,

I took prevacid for years until I had to get my gallbladder removed. I still have gas really bad so I try not to eat foods like cabbage, tomatoe sauce products and
beans. I think you should start your daughter out with mashed potatoes (bland foods) and then add vegetables. As you add more foods and she starts to get sick then you can see what she has eaten. Spicy foods are a real problem for me such as spaghetti with onions and bell peppers. Pizza is a problem also. I started taking tylenol when I get gas and I get quick relief. I think it is strange but it works. Have a blessed day.

Dear R.:

I often have acid reflux during pregnancy and was told by my ObGyn to stay away from extremly cold or hot beverages. So no ice, and then no really hot hot chocolate. Amazingly it has helped. Also, something that has helped me, is to only have something to drink after I have finished my meal, not during the meal. Sure hope this helps your daughter. What an awful thing to have at such a young age.

my oldest daughter was also diagnosed with acid reflux at age 8. she took prevacid but it didn't help. she had to see a specialist and have an upper gi and an endoscopy. these tests showed she was having the reflux and her dr. put her on nexium. she had to take it one hour before breakfast for about four months. so far she hasn't had any more problems. this is a great relief to me and her as well. she was throwing up nearly every night and i couldn't do anything to make her better. my daughter took herself off of cokes, extra sugar, spicey foods. she now has cokes on occasion and spicey foods but tries not to have too much because then she will be sick again. my daughter is 10 now and has very few problems with the reflux now. nexium is expensive even with insurance but it is well worth it.