Munchie goes dairy free

Okay, so this post isn't about me. And it may be a little TMI for any of you with sensitive stomachs, so there's your fair warning.

I talked a few weeks (months?) ago about Adi and her eczema and bowel problems. Basically, she has eczema that comes and goes. Some of it seems to be related to cold, dry weather (which is hard to avoid here in CT). But other times it just gets really bad for no apparent reason (raised red, sometimes seeping sores). She also has always had loose bowels. Rarely does she have solid bowel movements (some are more solid than others, but none really qualify as turds - told you - TMI for some of you, I'm sure). Lately, not only have they been quite loose, but she will complain a few minutes before and tell me that her belly hurts. Then she tells me that she has to go, she goes, and then feels better.  Now, I'm keeping in mind that she's 2 and somewhat potty training, so her "belly hurting" may just be her being aware for the first time in her life that she has to go. BUT, coupled with her eczema and what I know different food groups can do, I've been (very unscientifically) trying to keep track of what she eats and how it all might be related. It seems like if she eats a lot of dairy in one sitting, that's a bad thing for her belly (yogurt, cottage cheese, straight milk, etc). I have not been as good at tracking her eczema vs. food intake, but should probably start.

I did talk to her pediatrician about this at her two year appointment. His suggestion (re:bowels) was to first increase her fiber intake to see if that helped. He actually suggested oatmeal cookies, which I thought was hilarious. First, because Adi gets so few "treats" that she didn't really care for the oatmeal cookies (yet mention ice cream and she's THERE). Second, because really? Cookies? So we went for more oatmeal. More whole grain cereal. And we tried to get more fiber in, but it didn't seem to help much. He wasn't as opposed to cutting out food groups as I thought he might be which surprised me. So because of her apparent reaction to dairy foods, we are cutting out dairy for a few weeks to see if that helps.  If it does, great! That's an easy fix and one we can certainly deal with, as Jared and I eat very little dairy at this point. If it doesn't, we'll reassess and think about cutting out gluten, which will definitely be harder for Munchie. She does love her pitas and crackers.

I'm determined to figure out if there is something nutritionally that might be upsetting her gut. I hate the idea that she's uncomfortable and her poor bum gets so irritated (I know, TMI again). Her eczema is sore and I can just imagine how irritating it gets on her arms and legs where clothes and everything else rub. If this is something I can fix, then I will. We can play around with new foods - it'll be good to expand her palate and challenge Jared and me to come up with new recipes that we can all enjoy.

Munchie loves to read. :)