As the diet of children and young people with CP expands to include more foods, and circumstances change, such as starting school or attending social events, gut health may be affected.

As the diet of children and young people with CP expands to include more foods, and circumstances change, such as starting school or attending social events, gut health may be affected.

Signs that a child or young person with CP has gut health issues may include:

• refusing food
• issues with swallowing
• vomiting
• choking or aspiration (food going down the wrong way)
• unusual weight loss or gain
• constipation
• incontinence
• unusual fatigue.

If you are concerned about your child or young person’s gut health, there are many treatment options available, so it’s important to seek advice from their healthcare team as soon as possible. The sooner treatment can begin, the higher the chances of success.

Your child or young person may be referred to a gut health specialist, such as a gastroenterologist, who can help with digestive issues and develop a plan of treatment and support. Sometimes, it can be as simple as finding and eliminating the foods that are causing problems.

For more serious digestive issues, the team may advise solutions such as percutaneous endoscopic gastrostomy (PEG). This delivers liquid nutrients through a tube in the child’s abdominal wall. This is achieved with a surgical procedure. Your team may recommend a nasogastric tube (NGT) which delivers liquid nutrients through a tube inserted into the nose and down the throat to the stomach.