Advise on Milk Allegy and Use of Soy Milk

Is there a reason why she was weaned at 13 months? If not, you might want to try going back to breast milk. My daughter never has liked milk and being breastfed for as long as she was, she never needed to drink it. It's just an option. Albeit a not totally convenient one. Still, for brain development and nutrition, it's a good option.

I had used soy formula for my son, then at 1 they want you to put them back on cow's milk. I tried that. He got so constipated that I had to put him back on soy. His dr said that as long as it was fortified with Vitamin D that it was ok, because not all soy milks are the same. The 8th Continent was a perfect choice, as that is what they are now offering through the WIC program. I found out that Silk didn't have all the nutrients that were needed for younger children. Hope that helps!

Here's the deal: rice milk and similar milk do not have very high nutritional value. I know this first. My 2.5yo has had protein intolerances to dairy, soy, and egg since birth. I had to exclude them from my diet when nursing and lost a lot of weight. He's been on rice milk since I weaned at 1yo (yes I could have nursed longer but it was really hard to be on such restricted diet for the year I was and was extremely underweight despite eating like 5000 calories a day). Anyway, there is little to no fat and protein in these milks which is not healthy for little bodies. Being on rice milk eliminated the protein issues from his diet but left a huge nutritional hole that created secondary diarrhea. Now to make up for what isn't in his diet (both due to his GI issues and him being VERY picky) we have to add a special dietary formula to his diet that costs $200/month and isn't covered by insurance because it is OTC. Make sure you have your doctor send you to a nutritionist to help find ways to make up for what she won't be getting. Yes there are others ways to get the needed fat and protein but having grown up on milk it's hard to know what to use instead.

I gave my son silk soy milk the plain you can get with added nutrients. It is cheapest to buy from costco. He had the same problems and cried all the time. We switched him to soy for about a year and now he can have normal dairy but we do limit his quanity.

Hi M.,

We chose to go with goat's milk when my son needed to go off milk. I stay away from soy for my little ones because at the age of 7 it gave my daughter very enlarged breast buds, which went back to normal when we went off the soy.
E.

Another option for Cow milk allergies is goat milk. Most people who are lactose intolerant can still have goat milk. It's actually a lot healthier than cows milk for you. In the store it's quite expensive, but you can sometimes find someone who owns goats who are willing to sell it at a reasonable price. And of course, depending on where you live, you can always get your own goats. :-) We have several and love it! Good luck.

I know what you are going through...it can be tough. I honestly would skip soy, lactaid and real milk for a long time. IT is clear your daughter has an allergy and by adding those it can make it worse. Although almond milk is yummy I worry about a nut allergy issue if given to early being she is showing signs of an allergy anyway. If a child has signs for one it is important to keep away from other allergies until over 3.
I would use Goats milk, comes in a can or premade. This is easily digested too.
Do not stress over cows milk....people do not need it, they can get calcium in other forms. It is not necessary even though so many docs push it as being important...it causes alot of problems down the road for little ones that may not be clear right away.
HOpe that helps, I know you are getting alot of info...keep doing your own research and go with your gut!

My daughter had the same problem. We used Lactose Free silk Soy Milk. A lot of nutrients. Good (for you as well as for your daughter). My daughter is actually now on cow's milk after we were able to clear up part of the problem. And also, if you are worried about brain development... juicy juice has a juice specialized in helping with brain development. Also gerber has foods for toddlers that help with that. Hope that this helps you!

My son also has a milk allergy. Right now he is on Silk from Costco...but it looks like you have all the advice you need on choosing what (soy, almond, rice, goat, etc..) to give your daughter, but my son would not drink any. We had to add strawberry syrup to cover the soy flavor and slowly reduce until he would drink it plain.

Also, beware hidden milk products. LOTS of common baby snack food has milk (or some milk derivative like whey) in it.

Good luck and I hope your daughter feels better!

be very careful using soy products - most commercially grown soy that is economical for processed products is bathed in hexane - a toxic chemical similar to gasoline - it retains this through processing - try organically grown and processed almond or walnut milk as substitutes - nuts are higher in omega-3 and better for brain anyway - also, human beings were not created to drink cow's milk throughout their lives - that is a myth perpetrated by the dairy industry

I was a child with severe milk allergy, I am 47 and am still lactose intolerant, have microscopic colitis and severe IBS. My 3 yr old grandson is also lactose intolerant and has never been able to drink Cow's Milk. The type of soy does matter, most soy milk has a thickener added to it called carageenan which many people are allergic to. Also, many soy milks have added sugar and other preservatives that can cause allergies. Westsoy makes an unsweetened, no carageenan added one. It is NOT in the refrigerated section it is in a box on the shelf usually with other organic foods. I buy mine at Trader Joes. It is in a green box and is Trader Joes brand, organic unsweetened soy milk. Don't get the one with all the added stuff which is next to it, it contains carageenan. You can also make your own. I would not bother with giving her Cow's Milk except Lactaid, she probably will never get rid of the allergy. We give my grandson Lactaid milk and when he's at my house he drinks my soy milk. She is old enough to drink Lactaid milk, he's been drinking it since 14 months. Also, there are "naturally lactose free" cheeses that she can eat. Just google it. I am symptom free as long as I stay away from lactose and carageenan and preservatives. I suggest if you haven't already started using as much organic foods as possible. I also recommend you read a book called "The China Study" and you will realize that we place too much importance on Milk for our source of protein and calcium. We give my Grandson very little milk & lactose free cheese and he is as healthy as a horse! But if he has any milk, including ice cream he gets very bad diarrhea and gas. Also, Trader Joes has the best Soy Ice Cream ever! I hope this helps. Good Luck!

Hi M., My son is now 2 yrs old. He was also breastfed and we went through the exact same thing you are talking about. When I took him off ALL dairy he never had another diaper rash or runny stool again. I had him tested and they said his allergy to dairy was off the charts. THe thing about food alleries at a young age is that you can re-introduce them later when they are older. I put him on rice milk or almond milk and he is still drinking that a year later. My doc said soy is not good at such a young age. He has developed just fine and is even learning spanish as a second language currently! Good luck.

Hi M.,
If you want to go with a soy milk, I'd use Eden--it's the healthiest formulation of soy for milk. My thought, too, is to consider trying her on goat milk, rather than cow's milk, if you choose to put her on animal milk again--it is generally much-better assimilated than cow's milk, due to its composition, which is much closer to human milk. If you choose to keep her on plant-based milks, I'd look at almond and rice milks, possibly in lieu of the soy milk.

My daughter became lactose intollerent having to race to the bathroom etc with even a half cup of milk. at age 4 and we started her on lactaid chewables and soy milk. She didnt like the taste of plain soy so we bought chocolate soy milk. by 5 she had out grown it

My son also has a dairy allergy. I continued to nurse him to ensure he'd get the fats he needed.....if your daughter only weaned a month ago she could start again if you both wanted.

Second to that, if she can't nurse or drink whole milk, I'd strongly suggest Almond milk or Hempmilk (can be bought at Fry's) for fats...we rotated between these two w/ my son during the daytime & he'd nurse to sleep. ANother thing you can do to boost healthy fats is buy some Flaxmeal, you can add that to almost anythign, and it is a great source of healthy fats...add to yogurt, oatmeal, soups, smoothies (stir in after blending)

One other thing - before you give her two much soy do a little research on Soy and estrogen / progesterone.

We tried raw goat milk to but my son wouldn't drink that. My brother & I were pretty well raised on goat's milk (lived on a farm), since my brother is also allergic to dairy. Worth a shot...it's actually easier to digest than cow's milk, even w/out an allergy (if he'll drink it of course)