Blood in Diaper 3 month old

B2BMN

I am new to this board and want to say thanks in advance for any advice. My son is 3 months old and I am EBF.  For the last month and a half he has had blood in his poop. The doctor said I should eliminate dairy, I have been dairy free for a month and a half and he still has the blood in his diapers. I went back to the dr 8 days ago and she told me to also eliminate soy. I have since eliminated soy AND wheat with no change to the blood in his diaper. Yesterday I decided to try formula (a very emotional process for me). My doctor recommended Alimentum, I mixed half breast milk and half formula just to get him to try it. He took about 2 ounces at each feeding but cried and screamed, gaged and spit up...the formula smells terrible! By last night he was refusing to drink it, BUT there was no blood in his poop. So, I had to breast feed again. 

So, my main question is...do you think it would be ok to give him Similac Sensitive? I’m not fully sure that he had a dairy sensitivity as the blood stayed in his diaper after a month and a half of no dairy. I’m confused and looking for the best choice for my baby. Is it just something in my breast milk that doesn’t sit right with him? I hate to see him cry and fuss with the Alimentum and I’m wondering if a different formula would be more appealing to him. 

Thanks for any advice.

Stillharbor

My DD HATED Alimentum and we never could get her to take it. Sounds like the pedi, isn't sure what to do but eliminate the usual suspects. My advise would be to go see a pediatric gastroenterologist. Another thing doc might not have told you, if LO is allergic to dairy, and you get even a small amount in bread, meat, etc..(I was floored by all the things that dairy was in, or there was the chance of cross contamination.) it can effect your son. It can clear your system in 24 hours but it will take 2-4 weeks to clear babies system and to let their internals heal. My DD had bad stomach and intestinal cramps (you could feel the spams when you laid your hands on her belly), and our gastroenterologist said that the dairy had created sores in her digestive tract which in turn made pooping like trying to pass shards of glass. LO got to where she would clamp her cheeks and legs together so she wouldn't poop. Makes another round of problems with constipation. Seek out a gastroenterologist. P.S. our gastro also tested LO for an infection which could also have explained the blood in her stool. "Blood in the stool of a baby this young [3 months] is only from dairy allergy or an infection."

sschwege

It might be dairy AND soy and since you have only been soy free for 8 days that wouldn't be long enough to be totally out of his system.  DS had MSPI and was extremely sensitive, even trace amounts were enough to cause a reaction.

I would suggest reading the labels of all that you eat again.  Soy in particular is in so much, check even your vitamins.  I wouldn't try any other formulas because most will contain dairy or soy.  And you are right that formula does taste awful from what I understand.  

You should cross post this on the BFing board there are a lot of girls who had to go dairy free, soy free.  They would be more than happy to help you.  Also check out this site:

https://www.mspimama.com/p/milk-soy-protein-intolerance.html

Mom38673

OK.  My LO went through this at 8 weeks.....   You will most likely need to go to GI Specialist.  My LO has a Milk Protein Allergy.  He is on an RX Elemental formula called Neocate.  It's expensive as hell, but has worked WONDERS for LO.  LO had blood in his poop as well.  This does take some time to heal.   I know you probably want to breastfeed, but I would discuss it with a GI Specialist at this point.  He or she should have some great advice for you.  I LOVE Jake's Dr.  

Don't get down.  The health of the baby is what's most important.  Hope all is good for you soon!

Rachel*Neocate

I agree that it may not be enough time soy free to determine if it's working... and like pp mentioned, were you eliminating all sources of dairy, like the hidden dairy found in breads, baked goods, spices, etc?  Here is an ingredient list to help you read food labels, you'd be surprised where dairy and soy pop up... most processed foods have one or both in them:

https://www.kellymom.com/store/freehandouts/hidden-dairy01.pdf

https://kellymom.com/health/baby-health/food-sensitivity/#specificlink

If your LO does have a milk and soy protein intolerance and/or allergy, just be aware that even Alimentum may not be broken down far enough for your LO.  Some babies do well on it because it is broken down more (into partial protein chains) than "regular" formula, but some more sensitive babies (like my LO) still cannot handle the partial protein chains and end up needing an elemental formula, like Neocate, which is broken down 100% into free amino acids the building blocks of proteins.  

Hang in there

luvboston

Make sure the foods you are eating say pareve if that is on the label it means abs no milk is in there. It can take several weeks for your LO to get better I def agree with pp see a gi we did and it made a ton of difference.