Many children today enjoy snacks and fried foods, sometimes consuming them as main meals without restraint. This often leads to digestive issues. While some parents may offer digestive tablets or reduce snack intake, these measures alone are insufficient. Prolonged dietary imbalances can damage a child's gastrointestinal function.
Symptoms of Infant Digestive Issues
1. Infants often exhibit spitting up, while older children may vomit. Vomit is usually mild and has a sour taste.
2. Affected children experience decreased appetite, abdominal bloating, and hyperactive bowel sounds—often audible without a stethoscope.
3. Bad breath. Undigested milk accumulating in the stomach typically causes morning breath with a sour odor, clinically termed "high-level food stagnation."
3. Bad breath. When milk or food stagnates in the stomach, halitosis often occurs first. Morning breath with a sour taste specifically indicates milk stagnation, clinically termed "high-level food retention." When this happens, reduce or skip a meal to aid gastrointestinal recovery.
4. Foul-smelling stools. Even without loose stools, the presence of undigested food particles signals impending food-induced diarrhea. Immediately reduce food intake and adjust the diet to prevent diarrhea.
Causes of Infant Indigestion
1. Foods are not easily digestible: Parents should gradually transition the child's diet according to age, moving from liquids to semi-liquids like rice water, porridge, and congee, then to solid foods such as soft rice and bread.Infants under 3 months have digestive juices different from adults and digest starch poorly, requiring special attention. For children under 2, complementary foods must be thoroughly cooked, finely chopped, and soft—for example, finely chop and mash vegetables into puree. Children aged 2-3, having 16-20 baby teeth, can tolerate slightly coarser textures.
2. Introducing too many new foods at once: Some children may enjoy the taste of a new food like shrimp and consume too much at once, leading to indigestion. Parents should allow infants and toddlers to gradually adapt when introducing new foods.
3. Unbalanced food combinations: After 4 months, parents should introduce complementary foods beyond milk. Ensure nutritionally balanced meals containing proteins, fats, carbohydrates, vitamins, minerals, trace elements, and fiber. Grains form the foundation, while meat, fish, dairy, eggs, vegetables, and fruits are essential for the body.