Such movements are nearly always due to an irritation in the bowel, set up by the fermenting food which has not been digested. The diarrhoea is Nature's effort to get rid of the irritant. Nothing to stop the movements should be given until the bowels have been thoroughly cleared by the treatment mentioned.
[ BAD HABITS ]
What are the most common bad habits of young children?
Sucking, nail-biting, dirt-eating, bed-wetting, and masturbation.
What do children suck?
Most frequently the thumbs or fingers, sometimes the clothing or blanket; often the "pacifier" or rubber nipple.
When is this habit most frequently seen?
It begins in quite early infancy, and if not broken may last until children are six or seven years old.
Is the sucking habit a harmful one?
When persisted in it may produce a misshapen mouth or fingers. It constantly stimulates the flow of saliva and certainly aggravates disturbances of digestion during which the sucking habit is likely to be practised. It may lead to thrush or other forms of infection of the mouth. It is not necessary as a means of quieting a child, though it may in some degree cover up the consequences of bad feeding or bad training. On no account should the habit of sucking the "pacifier" be allowed as a means of putting children to sleep, or of quieting them while restless from dentition or indigestion.