Pedialyte or Gatorade Substitute?

[SweetErika]

Our little one is dehydrated from vomiting and diarrhea. The doctor prescribed a bottle of Pedialyte (but also said he could have gatorade/powerade), but he doesn't like the taste at all, and he's allergic to stuff that contains a lot of artificial colors and other additives. He's drinking some water, but it doesn't seem like that's rehydrating him sufficiently and it may be making the vomiting and diarrhea worse. I know we could make our own electrolyte solution, but I doubt he'd like that either (I've made it for puppies, and it's worse than the Pedialyte he hates!). I even tried making a slushy out of the pedialyte and some fresh OJ, and that was a no-go after a bite or two.

This is probably the one situation where not giving him anything but water and soy milk will come back to bite us.

Has anyone found a substitute for Pedialyte or Gatorade-type stuff that isn't loaded with artificial colors and other chemicals?

Or do you have any other ideas? The only things he's holding down right now are bananas and little sips of water, even with an anti-emetic medication.

 

[winegirl]

you can get clear, relatively flavourless pedialyte which can be mixed with juice.

My kids also like the pedialyte freezie pops.

 

[fire_breeze]

Our little one is dehydrated from vomiting and diarrhea. The doctor prescribed a bottle of Pedialyte (but also said he could have gatorade/powerade), but he doesn't like the taste at all, and he's allergic to stuff that contains a lot of artificial colors and other additives. He's drinking some water, but it doesn't seem like that's rehydrating him sufficiently and it may be making the vomiting and diarrhea worse. I know we could make our own electrolyte solution, but I doubt he'd like that either (I've made it for puppies, and it's worse than the Pedialyte he hates!). I even tried making a slushy out of the pedialyte and some fresh OJ, and that was a no-go after a bite or two.

This is probably the one situation where not giving him anything but water and soy milk will come back to bite us.

Has anyone found a substitute for Pedialyte or Gatorade-type stuff that isn't loaded with artificial colors and other chemicals?

Or do you have any other ideas? The only things he's holding down right now are bananas and little sips of water, even with an anti-emetic medication.

I'm sorry to hear about the Kidlet I do hope he' gets better soon.

I've occasionally used this and this when I was dehydrated, but used honey as a sweetener. It isn't bad, and the good thing is that I was able to brew it up in no time in virtually any kitchen (pretty useful when digging).

I've also heard that coconut water is an excellent substitute for gatorade, as it's full with magnesium and potassium, both which are essential for rehydration, and is mild on the stomach.

However, and I'd like to emphasise this, I'm an adult with a very unique stomach/immune system and so I don't know if this is toddler appropriate. From doing a quick comparison, it seems that it's okay - maybe diluting it more to make it more palpable for the little one?

Best of luck

 

[SweetErika]

Great ideas and links, thanks!

I actually have a juice box of coconut water in my car, so we might try that in a day or three. The only juice he ever has is maybe an ounce of apple at one playgroup we go to occasionally, but I found a bottle that I've been saving for illnesses like this, and he's even declined that. He wouldn't even try my electrolyte/OJ icee concoction, even though he wanted it while I was blending it up. And I thought the broth article was a great idea because he loves soup, but when I asked if he would eat a bit of soup, he screamed "NO SOUP!" so I guess that's that.

He did manage another banana and one gummy vitamin, so hopefully he got some nutrition from that and we won't find him rolling around in vomit tonight. He was a healthy boy to begin with, but he's already lost over 10% of his body weight, which is kind of concerning, especially now that his caloric intake has dropped so dramatically in the past couple of days and he's not talking about being hungry anymore.

 

[bailadora]

My kids never liked Pedialyte - so don't feel bad. I use Gatorade when the stomach bug hits my house. IRC, there was a clear Gatorade - but I don't remember what flavor it is. It doesn't address the chemicals issue, but it does the artificial colors.

The tummy bug hit our house several weeks ago and we couldn't even hold down water. The only thing that got us through was ice chips.

I'm so sorry the munchkin is ill. I hope he's better soon.

 

[clutch1]

Gatorade is also full of sugar, the coconut wate sounds like the best substitute.

 

[sunandshadow]

Apple juice is not really a substitute for pedialite but when my baby brother was dangerously dehydrated it's about all he would drink, and he did get better. You can get fortified apple juice with extra vitamins and no added sugar.

 

[thesweetsweetness]

If you are still nursing, and I think I remember a post saying you did nurse, then try to nurse. Breastmilk is an amazing dynamic food that will give him everything he needs. Hope he feels better soon.

 

[SweetErika]

Apple juice is not really a substitute for pedialite but when my baby brother was dangerously dehydrated it's about all he would drink, and he did get better. You can get fortified apple juice with extra vitamins and no added sugar.

No, it's definitely not! And I steer clear of juice when he has diarrhea because the sugar can make it worse, for sure. But, I figure a bit of apple juice with a pinch of sea salt in it (as recommended by Fire's link) is better than nothing or too much water. However, he took a sip of the plain juice and didn't want any more of it, so that was the end of that. Hopefully he'll be willing to try it tomorrow if he's feeling better. And we do keep juice on hand to dilute because that's all he's been willing to take in the past when he's been really dehydrated. A little over a year ago we actually had to take him to the ER for IV rehydration, and that's definitely not an experience we want to repeat if we can help it (especially not now, since he's bigger and way stronger!).

He's asleep now, and hopefully we'll have a barf-free night since he's barely eaten anything all day!

 

[SweetErika]

If you are still nursing, and I think I remember a post saying you did nurse, then try to nurse. Breastmilk is an amazing dynamic food that will give him everything he needs. Hope he feels better soon.

He'll be two in a week and typically only nurses maybe a total of an hour during his nap and maybe around 10 minutes before bed. My milk supply has never been sufficient, and it's obviously extremely low now that he barely nurses. I can definitely feel a supply increase when he's sick and nurses a lot more, but I'm betting the amount is still negligible. I do know even a little bit of milk is better for him than none at all, healthwise.

We haven't weaned yet because he clearly needs it for comfort--especially when he's sick or really hurt--and now that it's obvious he has a sensory disorder, I understand the routine, position and closeness helps him a lot more than we thought previously. I'm sure he'll let go of it over the next year, though, and I'll be great with that. Even if we could just get down to comfort nursing when he's sick or hurting, I'll be thrilled!

 

[VA_Boy]

Gone!

 

[fire_breeze]

I was thinking, and have two questions that may help or may just completely fail.

My youngest nephew (who's 5 1/2), until about a year and a half ago, slept with a bottle when he was sick, particularly with the stomach flu. That way, he could take sips when he wanted to and he also could take comfort in the sucking motion. Would that be a solution?

Also, how about trying again and again with the juice? I know that a lot of people, myself included, is not always in the mood right then, but later on, will drink/eat. If he refuses to drink more, could you possibly offer him another sip a few hours later, of the same concoction? It may take a while for the little one to develop an appetite/desire to consume anything.

Again, I'm just going based on what I know from my interactions with my nieces and nephews and with me, so it really might not be applicable in this case.

Good luck, and I truly hope that today is a better day

 

[SweetErika]

Something to ponder with Gatoraide. Not a doctor, but I have been an EMT for 10 years. Watch giving too much, as the elcectrolytes and potassium in large quantities can have an adverse affect on the heart. In the fire service gatoraide is mixed 50/50 with water for that reason, also to reduce headaches. Fire fighters face hydration problems because of all the gear they wear, plus the heat of fires (It gets critical when you combine that with the heat of summer). Common signs of dehydration in little ones include dull, sunken appearnce of the eyes, sinking around the fontanelle if not already closed, and lack of energy/playing/acting listless. Pull up the skin on the back of the hand, it should go right back down, if it stays up (called tenting) and they may be dehydrated. Also watch input (drinking) with output (is the diaper wet or dry?). If their is input but no output, again a problem!
While adults can show symptoms for awhile and compensate, little ones do not. Once symptoms appear, they decline quicker than the adults. It sounds like you are a concerned loving mother, so they should do fine!The stomach bug hit our house last week, had my two year old projectile vomiting and the wife doing the same thing! Good luck to you all.

The 50/50 thing is good to know.

We've noticed he goes downhill with dehydration really quickly, for sure! I guess the upside is little ones also get back on track quickly. Today he woke up feeling significantly better (not vomiting since yesterday morning really helped!); yesterday, all he wanted to do was lie on the floor, nurse and sleep until late afternoon, and I thought we were right on the edge of a hospital trip. We'll keep him on the BRAT diet and introduce mild foods very slowly over the next week, and hopefully he'll be in fine form for his birthday next weekend!

I was thinking, and have two questions that may help or may just completely fail.

My youngest nephew (who's 5 1/2), until about a year and a half ago, slept with a bottle when he was sick, particularly with the stomach flu. That way, he could take sips when he wanted to and he also could take comfort in the sucking motion. Would that be a solution?

Also, how about trying again and again with the juice? I know that a lot of people, myself included, is not always in the mood right then, but later on, will drink/eat. If he refuses to drink more, could you possibly offer him another sip a few hours later, of the same concoction? It may take a while for the little one to develop an appetite/desire to consume anything.

Again, I'm just going based on what I know from my interactions with my nieces and nephews and with me, so it really might not be applicable in this case.

Good luck, and I truly hope that today is a better day

Honestly, we had to stop the bottle because he started chewing and pulling out the nipples, and I wouldn't ever trust him to have one in bed because of the potential choking hazard. But maybe a hard, spillproof sippy cup of water in his bed is something to consider in the future.

So far, he hasn't wanted the juice I've offered today, but if we're not having issues with vomiting or diarrhea, I'm sure he'll be fine with sips of water and a bit of soy milk (he was able to take a few ounces this morning, and that's probably one of the first things we'll try to reintroduce slowly since it's one of his main sources of fluid and protein). We certainly try-try-try foods he hasn't liked previously, but he's moderating his food, fluid and energy pretty well today (like he went with Hubby on a couple of easy errands, and told him when he wanted to stop walking and head home), so I do trust his body to tell all of us what it basically needs to recover. He still looks sickly and somewhat dehydrated, so we'll probably take it easy on all counts for a while.

 

[123Josh]

Just water, and maybe make sure he gets a little extra salt with his meal

 

[satindesire]

Man, I hate to be so warm-fuzzy-nostalgic but I remember when we both didn't have babies, Erika. Now your baby's the same age as mine and I have one that's not even 1 1/2 yet, too.