"There are numerous, numerous causes." Though gastroenteritis, or the stomach flu, is the most common cause of vomiting in children, vomiting doesn't always point to the stomach flu. "Anything that makes a child sick can make them vomit," says pediatric gastroenterologist Katja Kovacic. As a result, children may vomit in response to things that wouldn't make an adult blink: a stubbed toe, for example, or a fever. But there's more to it: Their bodies send, and listen to, afferent signals for all kinds of other physical problems. You might think that children's sensitive immune systems make them more prone to stomach bugs, and that's true. Kids receive the same vomit-worthy signals and their bodies perform the same carefully coordinated set of preparatory motions as adults.
At the same time, the abdominal walls squeeze the stomach. The negative pressure it creates inside the body opens up the esophagus, where food goes into the body. Then, the diaphragm pushes down forcefully. The larynx and upper palate rise up to make room for what's about to occur. After a deep breath, the glottis, the opening between the vocal folds, shuts. The body then pulls off the physical equivalent of a perfectly timed set of dance moves.
When the brain experiences stomach-upsetting stimuli, nerve fibers, also called afferents, send signals to the body to expel what's in the stomach. But in kids it can be a hair-trigger reaction. It can be stimulated by a variety of things, from a virus irritating the stomach lining, to disgust or surprise, to the motion of a car or a boat. The mechanism of vomiting, or emesis, is the same in kids and adults. But when is it just a messy inconvenience and when do you need to get the doctor involved? And why do kids throw up so much, anyway? Sometimes, kids seem to vomit at the drop of a hat, causing parental panic. The Tocks' experience has been shared by parents around the world. "We just got showered." Puke splashed onto every surface - and even into her unlucky husband's open mouth. "I put the trash can over my head," Tock recalls. Then it happened: a rain of vomit from the balcony above. She sprinted for a trash can, ready to run upstairs to help her son, with her husband, Simon, close behind her.
When Linda Tock heard her 5-year-old telling her he was going to be sick, she moved quickly. Children's vomiting reaction is easily triggered and sometimes all parents can do is hold back their hair and wait it out.
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