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Child Having Smelly Farts. Suggest Diet And Medication

Posted on Tue, 30 Apr 2013

Question: I have a 4 yr old girl (will be 5 in june). she has what i can only describe as very smelly farts, its not normal smell for a child ( i have 3 older girls than her) its so bad that her playschool teacher has mentioned it to me a few times. Its worse than what a grown man could smell like! She has had this for the last 18mts-2yrs. It comes and goes and doesn't seem to be any pattern to it. I tried changing some foods in her diet, but doesn't seem to have made a difference, i changed her from cows milk to goats milk and cut down on red meat. she has a very healthy diet with plenty of fresh fruit and veg and limited treats and no fizzy drinks. she is starting school in a few months and i am concerned that it could be a social issue for her with her new friends. any suggestions? Thanks

Answered by Dr. E Venkata Ramana (1 hour later)

Hi,

Thank you for your query on Healthcare Magic.

I can understand your concern regarding the foul smelling farting of your daughter.

Yes it really causes social issue if she continues to pass really foul smelling farts.

I can suggest you some suggestions to help her to decrease the frequency of farting.

1.Decreasing the gas producing foods like beans, lentils, legumes, cabbage,
cauliflower, broccoli, Brussels sprouts, breads, cheese, carbonated drinks.

Decrease apples, pears, and peaches in her diet.

Include rice in her diet.

2.Look for any increase of gas after consuming dairy products. If it is there she
may be intolerant to lactose. In such case avoid dairy products including ice
creams and cottage cheese.

3.Change her eating habits to reduce swallowing of air. Ask her to chew foods
slowly and not to gulp beverages when drinking. Avoid drinking with using
straws.

Properly chewed food is well digested and produce least amounts of gas.

4.She can take the over counter (OTC) medication like simethicone as it is some
what effective in lessening the gas formation.

5. In spite of doing all these measure at home, still child is passing foul smelled
farting consult your Pediatrician to look for any underlying medical problem
associated with foul smelling flatulence (farting).

Hope my suggestions will help you to deal with your daughter problem.

Hope I have answered your query, if you have any clarification please let me know.

Regards.

Above answer was peer-reviewed by : Dr. Chakravarthy Mazumdar

Follow up: Dr. E Venkata Ramana (11 minutes later)

thank you for your answer. what underlying medical problem could be associated with this? the suggestions you suggest for change to diet i have already tried and still results in fould smell. Thanks

Answered by Dr. E Venkata Ramana (29 minutes later)

Hi,

Thank you for getting back.

Still I think this type of farting in your daughter is related to her food and her habits of chewing and swallowing.

Usually an underlying medical problems are uncommon in an otherwise healthy child without any significant symptoms.

In spite of trying the measures suggested to decrease the foul smelled farting, evaluation may be required with appropriate investigations to rule out these problems after consulting her Pediatrician even the these are very rare in children.

Some times bacterial over growth of intestines, intestinal malabsorption syndromes associated with digestive enzyme deficiencies, crohn's disease usually lead to formation of foul smelling gas.

As you tried all the suggestions, I advise you to consult Pediatrician or Pediatric Gastroenterologist to evaluate.

Hope I have answered your query, if you have any clarification please let me know.

Regards.

Above answer was peer-reviewed by : Dr. Chakravarthy Mazumdar

Follow up: Dr. E Venkata Ramana (5 hours later)

thanks. i will go back and try reduce some of the foods you mentioned. should i completely cut all of the above from her diet, or just cut down? how long should i do this for? what about red meat, is she ok to eat that? Thanks

Answered by Dr. E Venkata Ramana (8 hours later)

Hi,

Thank you for getting back.

I advise you to reduce the mentioned foods which may increase flatulence.

Complete cut down of those foods is not required but you can reduce the quantity or if she likes very much those food you can plan to give them on weekends or on holidays.

Follow this method for 1 to 2 months and if you find any betterment you can continue to follow this methods.

The quantity of red meat also to be cut down as meat is also associated with increased flatulence.

But the reductions in her diet should be compensated with other healthier foods like rice based diet, dark meat of poultry.

Hope I have answered your query, if you have any clarification please let me know.

Regards.

Note: For further queries related to your child health, Talk to a Pediatrician. Click here to Book a Consultation.

Above answer was peer-reviewed by : Dr. Chakravarthy Mazumdar