Food for thought

June 5, 2008 | Print

Diet for Diarrhea

Children sometimes have diarrhea. And then there are those occasions when they catch a bug and have severe diarrhea with diaper blowouts for days. We need more tools than bananas, rice and toast.

We’ve found a diet that aids the healing–the idea is to offer binding foods that help repair the gut.

General advice: Warming foods, no cold food or drink, avoid raw foods, low to no sugar (so little fruit), we watch dairy and wheat if we think it’s a contributor, ground flax seeds (add to cereal), colostrum, probiotics, lots of water, and we honor our child’s desire not to eat much.

Breakfast: Warm cereal like oatmeal, millet or rice cereal with cooked bananas and/or raisins, gluten free waffles, eggs can be good if there’s no allergy.

Lunch: Turkey burger, turkey or chicken hot dogs, steamed vegetables and any of the dinner foods listed below.

Dinner: Plain chicken, ground turkey mixed with peas, red lentils, sweet potatoes (or mashed with butter), brown rice cooked in chicken broth with ginger, quinoa or millet, vegetables cooked in light chicken broth and light ginger.

Snacks: Brown rice cakes, brown rice crackers, wheat free fig bars, applesauce with cinnamon (if they like it that way).

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