As adults you’ve probably had many bouts of bloating and are used to dealing with it but did you know that children can get bloated too? If your toddler or preschooler has a distended stomach and complains about a stomachache, or cries, acts out, is fussier than normal and refuses to eat, chances are he or she may be experiencing bloating and gassiness.

Gassiness is a normal part of digestion. It’s a natural process where gas forms in the digestive tract and is then released through burping or passing gas (flatus). Most people pass gas multiple times throughout the day, and it's considered normal.

However, when there is excessive gas and it is not released but remains trapped, that’s when bloating starts.

A bloated child is not a happy child. Bloating causes pain and discomfort but children don’t have the language to describe it as bloating and may just say their stomach hurts.

If your child's stomach looks rounded, swollen, or puffy and feels hard to the touch, consider one of these possible causes of bloating in kids.

Causes of Bloating in Children

Abdominal distension and bloating can have several different causes in young children. Five of the commonest reasons are as follows:

1: Your Child is Swallowing Air

Swallowing extra air, called aerophagia, can cause a few unpleasant problems for the gastrointestinal tract. Aerophagia leads to symptoms like belching, bloating, and gas. It can be caused by various factors, including:

• crying excessively
• moving around and playing while eating
• eating too much and too quickly
• talking quickly
• drinking large gulps of liquids
• drinking carbonated drinks
• ingesting too much sugar by drinking sugary drinks
• drinking through a straw
• sucking on hard candies
• chewing on chewing gum.

Children who swallow excess air may excessively burp or pass gas, have a gurgly tummy, or feel belly pain. Aerophagia in children can cause stress and anxiety that can affect their performance in school. Some children have a habit of swallowing extra air when they are nervous or worried.

What you can do to help

• Abdominal massage can help relieve gas pain and bloating. It stimulates the digestive system and encourages movement of gas and stool through the colon. Gentle circular motions following the direction of the colon are recommended. Have the child lie down, then place your hands on the right side of the lower abdomen just above the hip bone followed by rubbing with gentle pressure in a circular motion upwards towards the ribcage. Then move the hands across the upper abdomen towards the left side of the rib cage then slowly move down the left side of the abdomen towards the left hip bone. Repeat the sequence as needed.

2: Your Child s Constipated

Constipation is a common cause of gas in children. It is a huge problem among kids but it often goes unnoticed by parents. One common trigger is that many children withhold their bladder and bowel movements because they don’t feel comfortable going to the bathroom in school. For younger kids, they may withhold when they resist potty training. This can lead to painful bowel movements, constipation and a hard, bloated belly.

What you can do to help

• Make sure your children are adequately hydrated. All children, regardless of age, need adequate fluids throughout the day especially in our hot Malaysian weather and after heavy physical activity such as sports or playing outdoors.
• Feed children with more fibre such as whole grains, berries and peas.
• Keep your children physically active as movement and playing can help move food through the intestines more efficiently.
• Stick to an eating routine as regular meals can help create a bathroom schedule naturally.

Children with chronic constipation should be seen by a pediatrician. Read more about constipation in this article.

3: Your child has food intolerance

One of the most common causes of bloating and gassiness in kids is excessive intestinal gas caused by food allergies or intolerances.

Certain foods like beans, broccoli and cauliflower are known to cause gas. Some children may be sensitive to high fibre foods such as cereal, and fatty foods like French Fries. Carbonated drinks and caffeine, even those in chocolate, may be to blame. Juice, which is high in sugar, can bring on gas and diarrhoea.

What you can do to help

• Food intolerance can be tricky to pinpoint since the symptoms—including bloating, gas, and diarrhoea— may not appear until six to 10 hours after eating. This means what he or she has eaten during breakfast may not bother them until dinnertime. Keep a journal to pinpoint the cause and eliminate the foods that are the culprit. Sometimes bloating may be due to lactose intolerance.
• Talk to your child's pediatrician who may suggest eliminating suspected culprits from their diet before gradually adding them back and chronicling the results.

4: Your child has trouble digesting certain foods

Your child may eat a lot of foods that commonly cause gas. Fructose (naturally found in many fruits and veggies), fatty foods, beans, cruciferous vegetables such as broccoli, Brussels sprouts, and cauliflower, and artificial sweeteners like sorbitol can tax the digestive system, leading to bloating and gas. Sugar in sweet beverages such as fruit juices can also cause gas, abdominal pain, diarrhoea, nausea or vomiting. A toddler has a developing digestive system and may not fully absorb a food. The food ends up in the colon where it is fermented by bacteria causing gas.

What you can do to help

• Introduce fruits and veggies one by one. As you slowly add new foods to your child's diet, keep a food diary to monitor the reaction. Once you determine which food triggers your child's abdominal distension, avoid those triggers.
• Teach your child to thoroughly chew their food. Chewing can help break down fibrous foods and better aid digestion.
• Cut back on sugary drinks or eliminate them altogether. Give your child water instead of juice. Water reduces gassiness commonly caused by fructose, sucrose or artificial sweeteners. It can also help with constipation. Apart from reducing gassiness, the switch to water can lead to healthier teeth and blood sugar levels.

5: Your child has Irritable Bowel Syndrome (IBS)

Although Irritable Bowel Syndrome (IBS) is often associated with teenagers and adults, many young children can get IBS too. IBS is a digestive disorder that causes abdominal pain, diarrhoea, constipation, or a combination of these. While the exact cause of IBS isn't known, factors like a heightened sensitivity of the colon, problems with food moving through the digestive system, stress, and certain food sensitivities can contribute to IBS symptoms in children.

Common signs of IBS in children include:

• Change in bowel habits
• Diarrhoea and/or constipation
• Chronic stomach aches
• Flatulence, bloating, gas, and nausea
• Urgency when needing to have a bowel movement
• Feeling of incomplete bowel movements
• Mucus in stool
• Dizziness
• Loss of appetite
• Weight loss in some children

What you can do to help

• Talk to your child's paediatrician. A paediatric health care provider can conduct an evaluation or refer you to a specialist.
• Work with a registered dietician who can help you figure out food changes that can ease symptoms. Sometimes, it may be as simple as adding more fibre to the child’s diet but follow the dietician’s recommendations.

Morinaga Chil-kid

Compared to fresh milk, some formula milk can help with gassiness and bloating in children by being easier for a child’s digestive system to process.

Morinaga Chil-kid is a nutrient-rich, growing up formula milk that has been made specially for Asian children aged one to seven.

The milk is a carefully balanced formula featuring 45 essential nutrients such as ARA+DHA, Inositol, Galacto-oligosaccharides (GOS), 5 Nucleotides, Omega 3&6 Long Chain Polyunsaturated fatty acids, Protein and 21 key vitamins and minerals. The GOS in the formula is a prebiotic that can help support a healthy gut microbiome and aid digestion.

Formulated in Japan, the new and improved Morinaga Chil-kid is completely free from sucrose and features a subtle vanilla taste. With just two servings a day complemented with meals, the milk can satisfy a fast-growing child’s daily Recommended Nutrient Intake (RNI).

Morinaga Chil-kid’s formulation is backed by more than 100 years of Morinaga R&D in Japan, and the latest scientific research. Wholly produced and packed in the Netherlands, the milk goes through a double inspection process in the Netherlands and in Japan before it is exported to Malaysia.