Does this sound like a food sensitivity/allergy?

[HollyRhea]

My nearly 4-yr-old daughter seems to have some sort of digestive issue. About once every day or two, she'll fold herself into the fetal position down in her chair after eating. She says her stomach hurts all the time, but it's hard at this age to know what's really happening and what's her play-acting. Other things I'm suspicious of:

Her stools are really loose most of the time - and frequently float. Even though we eat the same foods, her stools are not like mine or my husband's.

Her stomach is noticeably distended. It's hard to know what's still baby-tummy and what's abnormal.

Extreme irritability. But again, she's almost 4. It seems like she's abnormally irritable, but maybe that's because I'm around her ALL the time. She does try to bite her baby brother almost every day.

Insomnia and poor sleep habits.

I think the only way to know if she's having a dietary problem is by trying an elimination diet. Man, I am not looking forward to that. I just wanted some input before altering my entire family's habits.

[lil_miss_understood]

I think you're on the right track by investigating food allergies/intolerances.
The 2 most common seem to be gluten and dairy. You could try taking out both or just one if one seems more likely to you.

[tanyalynn]

To read about poop...

http://www.enzymestuff.com/rtstools.htm
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bristol_Stool_Scale

Floating isn't normal, I think it's indicative of fat malabsorption.

Food intolerances can cause gut dysbiosis, a bad bacterial balance in the gut and lots of digestive/absorption issues. I'd guess that really is part of her saying her stomach feels bad. My daughter also has a lot more whiny/irritating/irritable behavior when her gut is worse and when, in general, something is off in her body (she feels bad = she behaves poorly).

For my daughter, eliminating gluten (we cut out dairy at the same time, but I think gluten was a much bigger issue for her) helped, but I still need to provide probiotic-rich foods every day for her to have formed, brown poop. I make kimchee and sour pickles, both very tasty and quite easy.

Gluten and dairy are pretty typical, but it could definitely be other things (instead or in addition).

[scbegonias]

Just wanted to give you another nod of support. The description of your DD could have been my DD one year ago...every single thing.

We've since cut out gluten and non-cultured dairy, and DD is doing well. The gluten seems to be the culprit, with the dairy aggravating her seasonal allergies.

We also had DD allergy tested (blood test), and she tested positive for wheat...but just minor (1).

Good for you for working through this for your DD!

[longislandmom]

Sounds like she might have celiac disease or a food allergy. I would get her checked for celiac.