After Thanksgiving

Kids throw up, they just do, sometimes only once and sometimes for a few days. After your child throws up, their stomach is irritated, so although they are thirsty don't give them anything to drink or eat for an hour, then give them small amounts of fluid frequently. For example; a sip or 1/2-1 tsp every 5-10 minutes, after they keep that down for a hour, then give them 2 tsp every 5-10 minutes for an hour. After 2 hours of the small amounts of fluid frequently, they can have normal amounts of fluid. If you let them drink normally too soon after they throw up, they are just going to throw up again. It's your job as a parent to be amazingly annoying and say, " Here take a sip, here take a sip". Good signs that they are getting enough fluid are at least 2-3 wet diapers a day, making tears when they cry and when you look in their mouth it is pink and moist.


I am fine with children drinking whatever they would like during the first few days of illness. That can be in frozen form like popsicles or in solid form like jello. We use popsicles a great deal in the clinic to get a child who is otherwise not taking fluid to take something. There is nothing magic about pedialyte, it won't make the vomiting stop. It has some electrolytes in it and is good to treat acute dehydration, but that is about the extent of it.


Good reasons to take your child to the doctor:


You've tried the small amounts of fluid frequently and they continue to throw up

They are having blood in the vomiting.

They have vomiting for more then one day without diarrhea.

Vomiting without diarrhea is accompanied with a high fever.

They seem to be dehydrated.