Is this normal?

[starfairy]

My son is 19m old and in the top 75-97 percentile weight range for his age. he walks, runs, can say lots of words and a few sentences and looks like a healthy lil boy.
he eats well, has a good appetite, and also has a b-12, iron multi everyday mostly for my partners peace of mind (not a vegan)
do most vegan kids have softer bowel motions? his are never more than twice a day but they are quite often gritty like hes been eating fine sand. they also contain some undigested foods (esp beans and nuts that havent been mashed/ground)
i wouldnt normally be worried but he has had 3 colds this year all of which turned into coughs. they did clear by themselves normally in less that two weeks and he has never had antibiotics. Could he be allergic to some foods? Could he slowly become more and more malnourished if hes not absorbing all the goodies in his diet. i have tried eliminating some foods; soy, gluten, wheat, citrus and there has been very little improvement

any advice/ideas would be awesome:)

[vegma]

Originally posted by starfairy
do most vegan kids have softer bowel motions?

Yes! Many non-vegans are constipated which is definitely not the way its supposed to be!

[Fiona]

Sounds similar to my son (28 mths). He still has a lot of breastmilk, and I've found in general that when he drinks a lot, his movements are looser, and when he drinks less, they are harder and less frequent. He doesn't always chew very well, so sometimes there are easily identifiable lumps. So what you're describing sounds pretty normal to me.

Fiona

[annie7]

Besides, don't food allergies generally present themselves as rashes and hives, etc.?

[shai]

Food allergies are mostly accompanied by skin reactions like hives, eczema, and swelling. Usually if there are immediate reaction you will notice weezing within minutes after the person eats, tongue swelling, coughing, runny nose. Other symptoms of food allergy are diarhea (FREQUENT loose bowels), vomiting, tummy aches, and the skin problems. I have bad food allergies and if I eat something I am allergic to I will get all these symptoms...plus some more embarrassing ones like an itchy butt...:(
My bet is that you or someone in your house works in a place where they come into contact with a lot of people, which is why your child has been ill so many times. And he may just be suseptible to cough, which is the bodies natural mechanism to getting rid of the virus. As long as it doesn't last more then a week everything is fine. If it does and becomes more frequent he could have environmental allergies (like dust or mold). Not around any smokers, is he?

[Zoesmama]

My dd is still pretty loose at 23.5 months. She sometimes has firm bms but usually not. Make for hard time with potty training.

She drinks soy milk and loves fruits and veggies so I know she probably needs more grains to help fill it in.

Wanted to add that she has NEVER been constipated like a lot of my friends babies' have who eat little veggies and fruits.

I agree it wasn't intended to be really firm.

[starfairy]

thanx guys, not knowing many vegan kids means that i dnt have nething to compare with! I was only concerned about allergies cos I was allergic to wheat, dairy and eggs as a baby but he seems to tolerate wheat just fine. dunno bout animal products tho!
yep his non-vegan dad smokes but never inside and not around Jayzien.
he did have reflux as a baby but grew out of that at about 12m. I did wonder for a while if that was cause by an allergen passed on through breastmilk.
Oh yeah and i work in a day care facility and he occasionally comes along with me.(he usually goes to granmas house when i work) So i guess i bring home all the germs!
thanx again for putting my mind at ease!