6mo EBF, TED success, then relapse

rcm201408

Hi Everyone! I'm hoping to find some guidance/direction here with my 6mo EBF LO. 
She has been gassy from early on. I mean excessive, excessive gas. So badly that she constantly strains to poop and sometimes goes days without pooping because of the gas (yes, I know EBF infants can go days without pooping. I wouldn't be worried if she didn't seem incredibly uncomfortable)

At 8wks I removed dairy from my diet which cleared up these tiny bumps she had on her forehead and scalp, but did not eliminate the gas.

Around 12 weeks, I gave up eggs which seemed to help the gas a bit, but did not resolve it. 

So, at 15 weeks, I decided to try the Elimination Diet Dr Sears recommends. I struggled getting that ironed out, was cheating and didn't know it. Finally after 2 weeks of following it to a T - with the exception of removing rice from the list as it seemed to disagree with her (subbed quinoa) and removing white potatoes we were good! Her gas was only first thing in the morning, she was pooping 2-3 times a day (which made her very happy, pooping is a struggle for her b/c of gas usually), and I was elated to have my happy baby. 

After about 4 days of this, I added avocados to my diet, things seemed to be ok so the next day (I know, I didn't wait long enough), I added cranberries. Still things were ok. Then, 3 days after that (1 week from day 1 of no symptoms) I tried brown rice again, since it's supposed to be such a low issue food item. Wrong. That night she had horrible gas pains. So, needless to say rice was added to my 'NO' list. Then, 4 days later I tried white potatoes, that was another disaster - red target around the anus and more gas issues. I decided to return to the basics of the elimination diet to try to find a baseline again, however I tried hemp milk, in place of rice milk, due to her reaction to brown rice. That did not go well, she had constipation and smelly gas (usually does not have a scent). Hemp milk added to the 'No' list, rice milk added back into my diet. Then, I tried avocados again and she became gassy - although now I'm driving myself nuts thinking is this a coincidence or really a reaction? Regardless, I've eliminated avocados again to see how she improves. Instead, I tried grapes which are also listed as likely safe on Dr. Sears website. Nope, big problem there too. Very gassy, difficulty pooping and a rash on her belly (tiny red bumps, not sure if related to grapes, but nothing else is new in her world, no new washes, detergents etc)

I'm beginning to be concerned if I'm doing all of this for nothing.. If she's reacting to the foods or just having a gassy day.. The only times it was obvious was rice & potatoes, and after that I really don't think I've gotten her back to a true baseline.. 

Right now, I'm only consuming turkey, sweet potatoes, quinoa, puffed millet with rice milk at breakfast (she seems to be ok on the rice milk, or at least she was for that one week...), pears occasionally and green zucchini squash. I've stopped my vitamins for fear they may be causing a reaction... Although, they are all allergen free... I'm not sure what I can try adding to my diet next, or what I need to change.. I just want her to be happy and not have these gas pains. That 1 week was like heaven for all of us.. 

I should also mention during that week I was eating all of the foods mentioned in the previous paragraph that I am eating now plus avocado for the last 3-4 days of that week and cranberries for the last 3. The only thing I can think of is that I switched to safflower oil for cooking from canola, but could that really be the problem?

I guess I'm just beat and hoping on this forum I can find some direction or some encouragement. Any ideas ladies? 

Thanks in advance. I really appreciate any responses.

Thankfulforwine

I am so sorry that you are dealing with this, it sounds like it has been extremely frustrating. The only suggestions I can think of would be to stop the rice milk since rice seemed to cause discomfort and check the oils you are cooking with. I found a lot of oils would randomly have soy or corn in them if they weren't 100% vegetable oil, I had good luck with olive oil. My LO had mucous in her stool that took 8 weeks of me being on the TED diet to fully clear. We had days that were better than others in that 8 weeks and I would think we were finally in the clear and the next day she would be mess with blood and mucous again. I think sometimes when their guts are just extremely inflamed it takes a while for it to fully clear. I wish I had better advice for you, I know how frustrating this experience is but it is totally worth it if you want to continue breastfeeding. I'm pretty sure you said that you stopped your vitamin but if you haven't you may want to, there is corn in almost every vitamin on the market, even the ones that say they have no allergens in them, since corn isn't one of the top 8 allergens it isn't always listed and it is a sneaky one that is in everything!!! Good luck to you! I hope your LO feels better soon

summermedic

Hello and giant hugs! It is not an easy road that you are on. I am so sorry you and your LO have to go through all of this. I am not sure if you have heard of or have looked into FPIES, but that might be just what you are looking for. Take a look at fpies.org or fpiesfoundation.org . My DS #2 has it. He is acute to rice and oats, and chronic to a few other triggers. It seems crazy, but FPIES babies seem to react to what are normally 'hypoallergenic' foods. My LO is now 9m and EBF and I have a modified TED due to his allergies. Where you are already used to (and willing) to cut trigger foods out of your diet, you will be fine. So many switch to formula because they aren't willing to sacrifice their favorite foods to breastfeed. Have you gotten together with a pediatric allergist yet? Or GI? Hopefully they could give you some insights. Also, maybe you already do this, but keeping a detailed food log is a HUGE help!!! And as the previous poster mentioned, read any and all food labels and triple check them before consumming. Companies seem to have a habit of changing labels and contents without any notice... And gut rest is very important! It takes more than just a few days. Sometimes a few weeks. The last time I had to try and get my LO back to baseline it took 3 weeks. Hang in there mama! You will figure this out!

rcm201408

Thank you both for the support and for sharing your stories! After my original post, I found safflower oil to be a MAJOR problem for her! I'd been putting it on EVERYTHING to get my calories up!! Since giving up safflower oil, we've seen an enormous improvement. I have my happy baby back! I also keep a food journal, which has helped tremendously. We found carrots to really bother her as well (target sign diaper rash, gas, green poop..) so, that was added to the list. To answer questions, yes I gave up my prenatals. I was taking Rainbow Light as they are supposed to be allergen free, but I decided to give them up to be on the safe side and I'll trial them back in when I can. We also started an infant probiotic, which I'm sure has helped a ton. Finally, I started taking 1 1/2 - 2TBSP of ACV with any meal that I'm consuming proteins (turkey & quinoa). Idk if that helps, but it certainly doesn't hurt and I know it's good for both of us. It's been a couple weeks now and I'm so pleased that these changes were the changes we needed!!! This IS a hard road, but it's worth it to continue breastfeeding. I know that's the best for my LO.