Alternatives to cow's milk, due to lactose sensitivity?

bim38106

Right now DD is on soy milk because of a lactose sensitivity. I've heard/read conflicting information about soy milk though and I'm just wondering if anyone is going with something other then soy and what your reasons are?

Pedi suggested soy, so I know I should just trust that.. but I figured it can't hurt to see what others think about it. Is Lactaid lactose free or does it still have some in there? Anyone using Goat's milk? Other? TIA.

costfords

We are on soy.  The only thing that the pedi said about soy was that dd could drink as much of it as she wanted, since it didn't have the same affect on iron as cow's milk does.

We do Silk Omega-3/DHA.  It has the about the same amount of fat and calcium as Horizon organic milk. 

I'm curious what you heard about soy that is causing so much concern.

hippotree

We just switched Henry to soy because whole milk suddenly started making him puke last week (he had been drinking it for almost a month by that point, so it is confusing to me as to why he suddenly developed this).

Lactaid is lactose-free.  That's what I use for myself since I am sensitive to lactose.  We thought about switching Henry to this, too, but it still has cow milk proteins in it and I thought it best to just avoid them altogether since he was having such a severe reaction to whole milk.  So far the soy is going great.  Hope it works for Kylie!

Oh, and what symptoms did she have?  Just wondering if anyone else's DC has been vomiting from their whole milk...

 

bim38106

I've heard conflicting info on the isoflavones (when soy it eaten/drank in large amounts) possibly being unhealthy for adults and even more so for toddlers, messing w/ their hormones or something.. But I've also heard there's no concluding evidence that it does..

Also, because soy milk contains phytates, it can reduce the absorption of calcium and other minerals. And it doesn't have any vitamin B12.. So you're supposed to supplement to make up for that..  I'm sure if there was a better alternative out there that the pedi would have recommended that instead.. but I still thought I'd ask

 

Hippo, when I weaned DD and switched her to FF at 9 months, she started having loose stools. So I switched her to Gentlease (w/ less lactose) but it didn't make a difference. Last week when I switched her to NextStep formula, she began having diarrhea 6+ times a day. So the pedi thinks it's a lactose sensitivity. As soon as we switched her to soy, the problem went away. She never vomited.

Eclaire08

Lactaid is lactose free.  My nephew is lactose intolerant and he is on lactaid.

My BFF's 2 daughters are both on soy b/c they actually have an allergy to milk not lactose.  Lactaid has the same effect on both girls as milk.  According to her pedi soy should be used for allergies and Lactaid for lactose intolerance.

If you're concerned about the possible effects of soy, I would try Lactaid since your DD has a sensitivity to lactose.  If she has the same problems with the Lactaid as she did with formula, you can always switch her back to soy.

FWIW, when we start weaning off of formula we are trying Lactaid first (my DD had a problem with milk as well).

GL!

nosoup4u

bim38106:

I've heard conflicting info on the isoflavones (when soy it eaten/drank in large amounts) possibly being unhealthy for adults and even more so for toddlers, messing w/ their hormones or something.. But I've also heard there's no concluding evidence that it does..

Also, because soy milk contains phytates, it can reduce the absorption of calcium and other minerals. And it doesn't have any vitamin B12.. So you're supposed to supplement to make up for that..  I'm sure if there was a better alternative out there that the pedi would have recommended that instead.. but I still thought I'd ask

 

We were just talking about this on my mom's group message board. I would be wary giving a baby so much soy, but that's just my opinion. This article might help - https://www.utne.com/2007-07-01/TheDarkSideofSoy.aspx, but I don't know if it cites research articles. This website is good, too, but I'm not sure how much she addresses what babies with lactose intolerance should drink: https://www.ninaplanck.com/index.php

A lot of traditional diets that incorporate soy (like miso, tempeh, stuff like that), don't eat a lot of it, and even organic soy has the same estrogen imitators you mentioned. Things like soy milk were bascially invented to help with huge amounts of subsidized soybeans that are grown in the US.  Hope that helps - and also, do what you're comfortable with - I think there are plenty of doctors who wouldn't recommend soy milk for kids.

Oh, also, can you do rice or almond milk instead, even? Can she eat yogurt, or does that bother her tummy, too? 

julie1408

We are avoiding soy products when we can, you would be surprised how many foods have soy added to them.

Here is a good link on soy:??https://www.westonaprice.org/soy/index.html

DD is sensitive to cow's milk so we give her goat's milk, cheese, and yogurt.? I personally hate goat's milk, but DD loves it.? If you have any questions about it just let me know.

JARbaby

Took me 5 months to figure out the soy was causing C to have diarrhea...7 months of it! Lactaid is lactose free.

I got the soy from Costco by the case and it does not need to be in the fridge except the cartin open. REALLY cheap!

C is now on Rice Milk and I add protein powder. If this does not continue to work I will try Almond Milk.

franciscaz

My brother did goats milk and did WONDERFUL on it but, I'm not kidding, he smelled ever so slightly like a goat.

Dobie_Mama

Goats milk is good stuff.  You could also look into rice and hemp milk.

Meeshe

My DD is allergic to dairy.  After several months on soy milk I asked my pedi about this and she said, well no one really knows yet, so avoid it where you can.  Oh ok, no problem.  So I cut out the other soy stuff (like tofu, soy burgers, etc.) and we've started mixing in some rice milk.  So she gets about 1/4 rice milk, and 3/4 soy milk throughout the day.  And I'm hoping she's outgrowing it so we can just go to regular milk soon.

 It's hard because this area is not clear.