Cows milk allergy...anybody else?? Formula questions!

cnamommyof2

So in the beginning I was exclusively breastfeeding my daughter but after the first few weeks all she did was cry, there was no soothing her! So our dr said she probably has a cows milk allergy so she's been on nutramigen since she was about a month (she's 4 months now) she got a lot better but didn't completely calm down till around 3 months so I'm wondering if maybe it was just colic. The formula is really expensive and wic will not provide it so I was thinking about switching to soy but I'm afraid if she does have the allergy I will be hurting her. Does anybody else have a baby with the allergy? What were there symptoms? Have you tried soy?

laurexx

Sounds like colic. It got better and better. My baby didn't settle down till about 2 1/2 months and cried every single night for hours. Talk to your doctor.

Jaltland15

My baby has cow milk and soy allergy, I'm also A registered dietitian. I exclusively breastfed for almost 3 months- he would cry hysterically nothing would soothe him, I did the elimination diet he still had blood in his poop and green mucous in his poop as well. We tried nutramigen and allimentum which are meant for cow milk protein allergy but they are still milk based- caused him to projectile vomit, blood in poop again. Finally we switched to amino acid based- elecare there is also neocate and puramino. All very expensive luckily Aetna is paying for it otherwise it's 55 for 96 fluid ounces.

Now if there's no blood or mucous I would say it's reflux which my son also has- horrible horrible silent reflux- doesn't spit up, but burns! Signs are poor feeding, screaming, arching of the back, holding his breath, and bad breath like vomit- all of which my son Michael had- and talk about a poor sleeper. If this is the case or sounds familiar start medication right away- it's a life saver. Pepcid is usually the first to try if it doesn't work then there is nexium or Prevacid. We're on nexium twice a day!

Let me know if you have any questions!!! We work with a great gastroenterologist that has helped us tremendously!

cnamommyof2

Jaltland15 said:

My baby has cow milk and soy allergy, I'm also A registered dietitian. I exclusively breastfed for almost 3 months- he would cry hysterically nothing would soothe him, I did the elimination diet he still had blood in his poop and green mucous in his poop as well. We tried nutramigen and allimentum which are meant for cow milk protein allergy but they are still milk based- caused him to projectile vomit, blood in poop again. Finally we switched to amino acid based- elecare there is also neocate and puramino. All very expensive luckily Aetna is paying for it otherwise it's 55 for 96 fluid ounces.

Now if there's no blood or mucous I would say it's reflux which my son also has- horrible horrible silent reflux- doesn't spit up, but burns! Signs are poor feeding, screaming, arching of the back, holding his breath, and bad breath like vomit- all of which my son Michael had- and talk about a poor sleeper. If this is the case or sounds familiar start medication right away- it's a life saver. Pepcid is usually the first to try if it doesn't work then there is nexium or Prevacid. We're on nexium twice a day!

Let me know if you have any questions!!! We work with a great gastroenterologist that has helped us tremendously!

Wow so my daughter never showed any signs of an Allergy. No hives, no bloody stool no mucus in her stool nothing but the excessive crying. And she has always been a great eater. Even when I was breastfeeding. She was just very very upset all the time! There was no soothing her. She pulled her knees up so I knew her tummy was bothering her but that's it. She does have acid reflux she would gag really bad In her sleep and she's been on medication twice a day since about a month and we haven't had a problem with the reflux since. Do you think it even sounds like she has the allergy or do you think the dr was quick to judge the situation? I have bought some soy formula to give a try but I'm afraid to give it too her

BKKirby0526

My daughter was diagnosed with a cows milk allergy after 6 weeks of breastfeeding. After each feeding she would projectile spit up (sometimes vomit) and constantly cry. We took her to the doctor at 6 weeks after she had a bloody stool. At that time we switched to Nutramigen as well however after a week on Nutramigen she had another bloody stool. Apparently Nutramigen still has milk protein in it but it's just broken down so that's easily digested. Not the case for severe cow's milk allergy babies. We switched her to puramino and that worked miracles! At her 2 month apt the ped wanted us to try transition her back to Nutramigen but she was soaking burp cloths and having about 5-7 dirty diapers a day. After doing some research other moms had said their little one did terrible on Nutramigen but well on Allimentum. We switched her to Allimentum and at 4 months she's doing so much better! The Ped won't let us try a sensitive milk based formula until she's 9 months. Hang in there, it's so tough finding something that works! A happy baby is worth the cost and struggle to find the best fit.

shadykady

@kforbes14 I EBF until 3 months. The week before I returned to work, we transitioned to formula. Hives right away! We were first switched to soy formula then Nutramigen. LO has reflux, so she also takes 2 doses of Zantac daily. It has helped. Nutramigen is no life saver, but the hives went away instantly, and my pediatrician filled out a form, so WIC does pay for her Nutramigen. I also signed up for the specific Nutramigen rebate program through Enfamil, and they sent me a form to have Nutramigen covered by insurance.

TessaGarringer

My son threw up on enafamil and progestimil. Switch to elecare. Which IS covered by WIC with a prescription.

Jaltland15

It's definitely still a possibility of allergy- 1 symptom could be excessive fussiness and crying- blood in stool can be microscopic- the doctor can check the poop in the office for blood- bring in some poop! I would continue on the more expensive formula and bite the bullet. Plus it can take a month sometimes two for them to start feeling better after being exposed to allergens, or if reflux for their gut to heal! Hang in there!

Jaltland15

I also agree if elecare is covered then switch to this formula! It worked wonders for my son- it took months for him to normalize out and get happy!

Slpst5

Ask your doctor to write you a prescription for the formula based on the allergy. You might have to fight with your insurance company for a while but they should cover as medically necessary if your pedi will write the script.

Starla777

My insurance does not cover the nutramigen. My son was having very bloody stools as his only symptom, I was breastfeeding and supplementing with formula. I just switched right to the nutramigen and he is doing great now, took a couple weeks though.

TessaGarringer

Elecare is honestly the best. My son was in the NICU for 3 months. He was born with gastroschisis. So a severe GI condition. He also had a cows milk allergy. As soon as we switched to elecare he cleared up and got to come home.

cnamommyof2

Where all do you guys live because I'm in California and wic definitely does not pay for any type of hypoallergenic formula and we have Kaiser insurance and they don't provide it either even with the prescription. We stared her on soy today so we're hoping that it goes well!

shadykady

NJ