milk allergy!? What next? Anyone else have experience?

biblionerd · May 2011

We took Linus back to the Dr. today for gas and she thinks he has a milk protein allergy. We only switched from the Similac Advanced to Sensitive 2 days ago, so she said to go ahead and give it a week or finish the can since yesterday was much better for him, but she is leaning towards it not being enough. She gave us a couple samples of the Similac Alimentum, but it is SOOO expensive. On top of that... it also means that basically my vegetarian self now has to become a vegan if I want to continue to breastfeed! I eat/drink so much dairy! Even all of my fake meats that I eat have milk in them. I'm just so frustrated. Just when I was starting to feel like I had a little control over things this happens. I know it's not the end of the world, but we really were not planning on having to feed this $$$$$ formula. My pump is supposed to be here tomorrow and I really wanted to keep trying to pump and bf even though I've had a horrible supply. Now I just feel so guilty that I just don't want to do it anymore.

I love bf'ing him and that bond, but I feel like I have such a hard enough time with my diet as it is...

GHBEA · May 2011

I am allergic to milk so Olivia gets no milk from me what so ever in my diet. Having a milk free diet isnt as bad as you think. Its easier to prepare all your own food instead of prepackaged foods (they almost always contain milk in them). Its an adjustment but it can be done. Also when going out for dinner I never order desert because they always contain milk.

I don't know if any of this made sense or if I offered any thing helpful to what you really wanted to know.

MissLadyTay · May 2011

I'm so sorry. As a fellow vegetarian, I can't imagine having to suddenly give up dairy. Especially right in thE middle of having an infant. ThaT would be really, really hard. Almost all of my protein comes from dairy. No real advice, just wishing you luck. Maybe a nutritionist could help you come up with a vegan breastfeeding diet?

genaruthp · May 2011

I'm sorry I hope that it isn't.

biblionerd · May 2011

Thanks ladies. GHBEA- as a vegetarian, it's a pretty big difference when you're relying on it so much already.

shaindelr · May 2011

I would ask about soy sensitivity, too. I'm not trying to make things worse, but on the BF board they were doing some "dairy-free/soy-free" challenge because of LO's stomach problems, and I was in shock thinking when I was vegan, everything I ate was soy--ice cream, cheeses, milk, etc. I don't know what else that would leave vegetarians.

I'd consult a dietician for advice...

So sorry...

GHBEA · May 2011

biblionerd:
Thanks ladies. GHBEA- as a vegetarian, it's a pretty big difference when you're relying on it so much already.

Sorry thats why I typed that I might not of been much help.

QTee · May 2011

This happened with my daughter. I ate a lot of Asian food - mostly Thai. Chinese, Japanese. They don't use dairy generally. I also started buying coconut milk for baking, it makes GREAT pancakes. There's also soy milk. And almond milk. It's a hard adjustment but once you get used to it its manageable.

naysmom · May 2011

Does your insurance cover the formula. With my dd the pedi wrote a prescription for this formula and our insurance covered the cost. I believe we got like 12 cans a month.

BerlinMum · May 2011

So sorry - I've been wondering what I would do if I had to cut dairy out of my diet - I also eat/drink a lot of milk, cheese, etc.

Have you ever tried Oat milk? It isn't quite the same as regular milk or soy milk for that matter, but not bad.

Here is a list of Soy-free Vegan foods that I found that might help...

https://glutenfreesoyfreevegan.wordpress.com/convenience-foods/

Rachel*Neocate · May 2011

It's definitely tough eliminating dairy and soy, especially if you're a vegetarian, I am currently BFing my son and avoiding dairy.soy,eggs, tomatoes and nuts. I'm not a vegetarian but a friend of mine who also BF'd her son was and she said she ate a lot of seeds, and sunflower butter to add protein to her diet. Formula is an option, but if you LO can't handle Nutramigen or Alimentum he may end up on Neocate or Elecare. I would check with your insurance company to see if they cover the cost And if not I would fight for coverage as a medical necessity.

With an eliminatin diet, you would need to eliminate not only obvious dairy, like milk and cheese, but also ?hidden? dairy, like whey and casein. Also these websites may be helpful: Allergy Moms (www.allergymoms.com), Kids With Food Allergies (www.kidswithfoodallergies.org), Go Dairy Free (www.godairyfree.org) and Food Allergy Living (www.foodallergyliving.net) are all very helpful too.

Good luck and hang in there!

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