Toddler bruises easily....could it be diet?

Question

Our 15 m/o is at the 'no fear' climbing and racing stage. Today she bumped her head on the corner of a wall and it swelled and bruised terribly. An hour later she bumped her head slightly (I was there for this one) on the corner of a padded chair....again, black and blue and some swelling. Later today....after getting home from our travels...I took her leotards off and her legs are bruised!
:( I'm wondering if the bruising and swelling could be indicative of a diet issue? She's at the stage where she's refusing to eat certain things (well, most things)...she drinks Vit D whole milk, some fruit, some eggs, and anything carb (cheerios, crackers, toast, etc). Could the bruising and swelling be an indication of lack of protein/iron? Something else? She's always been quite active and has had the normal accidents...but none have caused this type of result.

Tx-in-advance!

11/25/06 update: tx to those who encouraged me/us to get our daughter to the dr.

as it turns out, she has Idiopathic Thrombocytopenic Purpura (ITP)...
more info: http://www.childrensbloodfoundation.org/whatsitcalled.html

we'll know more next week...staying postiive...just the luck of the draw.

tx-again!

Answer 1

Hi, last month I found out that my 13 month old was anemic and her pediatrician asked me to make sure I consistently give her more foods conatining iron and also vitamin C(helps absorb iron). My daughter was drinking too much milk which was lessening her consumption of other iron enriched foods and eating WAY to many carbs (breads and crackers). That has since changed. Since she doesn't get much red meat yet, I give her adult oatmeal and cereals entriched w/ iron, Also mixing spiniach w/ her mac and cheese. She ate a little bit of lean ground beef /cheesburger. And she LOVES turkey and cheese sandwiches on toasted wheat bread which also contains iron. I try to give her diluted OJ at least once a day. I noticed 2 months ago that my daughter seemed extra tired and had a purplish look under her eyes. But don't worry, w/in a couple days of diet changes and iron drops, my baby looked so much better. Take your daughter to the doctor and they will test her at the lab but until then try offering her more foods containing iron/vit C. I think it's s quite common for a 15 month old to be bumped and a little bruised while learning to walk around and master their balance. I think their skin is super sensitive. The only thing we can do is keep our eyes on them and baby proof as much as possible. :)

Answer 2

Is she receiving the baby multivitamin drops? It could be possible that she is deficient in a particular vitamin, or does she run a low grade fever often? Does she act unwell or tire at times for no reason.

The best thing may be to have her bloodwork done up. Childhood illnesses and diseases are sometimes uncovered due to the way in which the body reacts to certain things...easy bruising/swelling is known to be the sign of certain conditions but without the doctor investigating it could take you a fair amount of trial and error to uncover.

A quick blood work up and check by the doctor might work more quickly to put your mind at rest and ensure that there is nothing to be worried about.

Good luck

Answer 3

This could be a sign of many things; however, it may be she just bruises easily. If I were you, I would schedule an appointment with her pediatrician. More than likely the pediatrician will run tests to either rule out the possibility of a medical problem or to discover what is causing her to bruise so easily. I hope the results turn out to be nothing. Good luck to you.

Answer 4

Once again it could be something basic like she just bruises easy, anemia, or (I hate being an alarmist) something a little more serious like leukimeia, or other cancer. My sister in law was just diagnosed with lymphoma and her biggest symptom was bruising. Just talk to the Dr, have them check her out to rule out anything bad.
My son is 19 months and his little shins are always black and blue! Especially after a playground trip. Good Luck!

Answer 5

It could be as simple as anemia (iron deficiency). I have occasional bouts of anemia and when I do I seem to be one big walking bruise! There could also be other reasons for the bruising. Your best bet is going to be to take her in to see her pediatrician, tell them exactly what's going on and see what they have to say.

If her doctor tries to brush it off, insist, if you feel the need, that your daughter gets a full work up. Sometimes doctors will not see what we as parents see in our children. If you feel that something is wrong, don't let it go.

Good luck.

Answer 6

I had that same problem with my kids (twins) and the doctors could not find any reason for the excessive bruising... until I visited a homeopathic doctor who told me the kids had "scurvy" or lack of vitamin C. Amazingly the bruises disappeared ONE day after we started the vitamin C. I used the soluble one you can mix with water. It has a good taste kids like. Good luck!

Answer 7

This is not because of diet. Some kids just bruise easily. My wife is like that and no doctor could find out why.

Answer 8

You need to visit doctor. Yes it could be from diet issues such as low iron, but it is also a sign of a bleeding disorder or something, especially if she is slow at healing.

Answer 9

um i think it is because she is at a growing stage and with out the proper nutrients and her having all these accidents her body is weak and this can cause swelling and brusing so dont trip just trick her/him into getting what they need by using thing that taste good and are good for u .

Answer 10

get the baby checked for clotting factors
it can be a bleeding disorder