Your Child's Digestive Health... Food Intolerances & Allergies
By Jo Jordan and Jim Danna, M.A.
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Just like adults, children are vulnerable to food intolerances and allergies, and digestive tract imbalances. In fact, in 2011 the journal of Pediatrics reported an estimated eight percent of American children have at least one food allergy,1 a projected total of 5.9 million children.2
While some of the symptoms are similar, food allergies and intolerances are quite different. Intolerances don't affect the immune system; reactions are generally less serious and are limited to digestive problems.
A true food allergy causes an abnormal immune system response to specific foods that affects numerous organs. Food allergy symptoms range from diarrhea; cramps; eczema; hives; itching of the lips, mouth, tongue, and throat; swelling; and vomiting, to more serious and sometimes life threatening difficulties such as tightness in the throat, wheezing, difficulty breathing, and lowered blood pressure.
Ninety percent of food allergy reactions are triggered by the consumption of eggs, milk, fish, peanuts, shellfish, soy, tree nuts, and wheat. While many children outgrow allergies, peanut, shellfish, and tree nut allergies tend to be life-long.3
Gluten intolerance and celiac disease are very similar. Gluten is the substance in cereal grains (i.e. wheat, rye, barley, and oats) responsible for the elastic texture of dough made from these grains. Gluten intolerance is a broad term referring to all types of gluten sensitivities; symptoms present like nutritional deficiencies. In contrast, celiac is a digestive disease that damages the small intestine, and interferes with nutrient absorption from ingested food.
Though often less serious than celiac disease, some research links gluten intolerance to childhood autism.4
Lactose intolerance – a condition caused by a lack of an enzyme called lactase – affects between thirty and fifty million American adults and children.5 Digesting lactose – a sugar found in milk products – becomes problematic when a child's body has a shortage of lactase. Common symptoms include bloating, cramps, diarrhea, gas, and nausea. Digestive enzymes are very beneficial to aid in the digestion of lactose as well as other components of food.
Specific Treatment for Childhood Food Intolerances & Allergies
Never make assumptions about product ingredients – read the labels.
For severe allergies – in addition to food avoidance – being prepared with an emergency kit containing epinephrine is crucial.
Digestion-friendly multi-vitamin supplementation is vital when a child is doing without certain vitamins and minerals because of an inability to eaten specific foods.
Gluten Intolerance
As with celiac disease, a gluten-free diet is the right treatment for intolerance to wheat, rye, barley, and oat gluten.
The damaging result of gluten on the intestines may affect nutrient absorption. Children with gluten intolerance ought to supplement their diets with a high-quality, easy-to-digest multi-vitamin to ensure adequate nutrient intake.
Lactose Intolerance
Removing lactose from your child's diet is a wise approach to treatment. In this case, vitamin supplementation is vital because dairy products are a key source of calcium. And, since vitamin D is essential to the body's ability to absorb calcium, a digestive-friendly multi-vitamin is often the best choice to ensure adequate daily levels of each.
Since each individual has a different tolerance level to lactose, you may have chosen to limit, rather than eliminate, your child's intake of dairy products. In this instance, probiotics may help your child to digest lactose.6
Additional Treatments for Childhood Digestive Disorders
While there are many digestive ailments that can afflict kids from a very early age, there's good news; parents can do a lot to protect their child's digestive health for today…and for the rest of their lives.
Starting kids down the right track early in life with natural, kid-friendly supplements as well as dietary and lifestyle changes is the right thing to do. Under the advice of a health care professional, such as Puristat's Nurse Vickie, supplementing a child's diet with multi-vitamins, digestive enzymes, and probiotics can help alleviate the symptoms of childhood digestive problems, and may even prevent serious digestive problems later in your child's life.
Many childhood digestive problems affect vitamin and nutrient intake. A digestive health-specific multi-vitamin is vital to digestive health. Together, along with digestive enzymes and probiotics, the symptoms of many digestive ailments can be greatly alleviated. Modified dosages of these natural, digestive health products are recommended and considered safe for children by many physicians.
Puristat is here to help. The information contained in this Children's Health section of our website provides specific steps you can take to relieve your child's digestive issues. And as always, our digestive specialists and staff nurse are only a phone call or Live Chat away!
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Notes:
1. Ruchi S. Gupta, MD, MPH, et al., "The Prevalence, Severity, and Distribution of Childhood Food Allergy in the United States," Pediatrics, http://pediatrics.aappublications.org/content/early/2011/06/16/peds.2011-0204.abstract (accessed August 8, 2011).
2. Wikipedia, "Food Allergy," http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Food_allergy#cite_note-2 (accessed August 8, 2011).
3. Children's Hospital of Wisconsin, "Food Allergies," http://www.chw.org/display/PPF/DocID/22798/router.asp#2798 (accessed August 8, 2011).
4. Wikipedia, "Paul Shattock," http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Paul_Shattock (accessed August 8, 2011).
5. Yale Medical Group, "Lactose Intolerance in Children," http://www.yalemedicalgroup.org/stw/Page.asp?PageID=STW026407 (accessed August 8, 2011).
6. Mayo Clinic, "Lactose intolerance," http://www.mayoclinic.com/health/lactose-intolerance/DS00530/DSECTION=alternative%2Dmedicine (accessed August 10, 2011).
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