Milk Allergy or..? Conflicting Info

pelicanesque

My LO is almost 11 weeks and I am EBF. A few weeks back, I told a pedi that she was crying after feeding and she said I should try eliminating dairy due to a possible milk protein allergy. When I told another pedi about this she attributed it to something else, and didn't mention the allergy. I started back up on dairy because it didn't seem like it was affecting LO. Well a few days ago we had what I would describe as a 12-hour diarrheal bout: 4-5 watery poopy mucousy diapers. It happened over the weekend and resolved on its own, so didn't go to the dr.  Yesterday she had an unusual fussy episode that ended in a lot of gas relief and a mucousy diaper. Then last night, I pick her up to feed her and she SCREAMS bloody murder when I try to get her to latch. She was apparently so gassy and uncomfortable. And then yet again this afternoon we had the crazy screaming bout and had to essentially force feed her. I've had no dairy (but I have had soy) for two days, yet we're still getting mucousy diapers, and more often than normal (she usually only poops once a day). She also has weird bumps/rash that I was told was heat rash, but am now thinking could be linked to allergies.

So now on to the conflicting information... I've read that milk protein allergy is actually quite rare, and that cutting milk can actually be detrimental because of the nutrients we get from it. I also read that it takes 2 weeks to get out of your system, while the pedi said it only takes half a day (!) A friend of mine said "don't bother trying to find out what they may be sensitive to" and suggested her regimen that she used with her fussy/gassy baby: probiotics and gas drops.
So do I cut dairy for two weeks, and if that doesn't help, then I start cutting other things out? Do I force-feed my screaming child with my "poisoned" breast milk?
Also, if I do end up cutting all this stuff out of my diet, what do I do about my freezer supply (that dates back to early June) that I need to feed her with sometimes??

shotzie

Sounds very similar to my younger daughter. When she was an infant, she had green, mucousy poop and terrible gas. She'd scream during feedings. I could hear the gas bubbles in her tummy while she was nursing. She was milk and soy protein intolerant (MSPI).

An intolerance is different from an allergy. An allergy triggers an immune response like hives, swelling, anaphylaxis. An allergy *can* also cause GI issues. An allergy will show up on a test. If someone has an intolerance, an allergy test will end up negative. I'm not saying she needs to be tested, I'm just outlining the difference between an allergy and an intolerance. A lot of people use the terms interchangeably. 

My daughter turned into a different baby once I cut out dairy and soy. Her GI symptoms cleared up, and she was happy! It took about 4 weeks to see full improvement. When she was about 4 months old, she developed eczema. So I decided to try cutting out nuts from my diet too, and her skin and cradle cap cleared up within a week. We had her tested for allergies at 6 months (due to her history and because my older daughter has food allergies too). She tested positive for soy, eggs, nuts, and sesame. She did not test positive for a dairy allergy, so her GI symptoms were an intolerance. 

There's absolutely no need to worry that your LO won't get the proper nutrients if you cut out dairy. Your body will still produce nutritious milk. You can get calcium from fortified orange juice, coconut milk, as well as beans, leafy greens...

My 6 year old has a dairy allergy (she gets hives if dairy products touch her skin). So she's never been able to eat cow's milk products. My 4 year old still hasn't outgrown her dairy intolerance (which is rare), so she doesn't eat dairy products either. They're both healthy and growing just fine.

If you cut out dairy and see major improvement after 2-4 weeks, I'd stick with a dairy free diet. A lot of moms have to cut out soy too. Down the road, you could try giving LO a bottle from your stash from June to see if she's outgrown her issues. Or you could donate that milk to a mom through a local group like Eats on Feets. 

Sorry for the novel, but I hope it helps!

christina4436

My LO was gassy but what was the real signal was blood specs in stool and green sometimes. If you look real close do you see any of this? This is a common symptom which we saw at 6 weeks. I cut out dairy and it literally went away in a day or two, but yes can take longer as well. Soy didn't seem to bother her but it's worth to cut out both for 2-3 weeks and see if it improves. The rash and mucous and screaming thought sounds like maybe she could be sick? Have you brought her in recently or monitored temp? My LO was dairy intolerant until about 6 months so I couldn't use any of my huge freezer stash. I started to use it again around 6 months when I started eating cheese and she didn't have any symptoms. It's good for one year in deep freezer so I give her a bottle a day and donated alittle. Good luck !

pelicanesque

Thanks for the responses! I've been avoiding obvious dairy but also giving her gas drops (simethicone) with almost every feeding. I've also started giving her a probiotic that is supposed to help with GI distress called Baby Jarrow-dophilus or something like that. I got it at Whole Foods. It was pricey, so hopefully we'll only have to use it temporarily. She's definitely improved! We had a few normal poopy diapers with little or no mucous...although now she hasn't gone in 36 hours, which isn't totally normal since she usually goes once a day. Skin has improved, too. She still has gas that we have to help her "work out" and also on the flipside she seems to have developed a cold during the improvement. Coincidence? I'm not sure. No high temp, just congestion, sneezing and cough, although that too seems to be improving.