Baby Allergic to Breastmilk?

My daughter had the same problem when I was breast feeding her. After I switched to soy formula, she would sleep longer and be less gassy. It would be something you would need to talk to her doctor about.

HI K.,

One thing that you may try ... It's likely not the breastmilk that he's allergic to. Basically whatever you eat... baby eats. Therefore if your are drinking milk then so is the baby by way of the breastmilk. I had a similar problem and I just drank the acidophilus milk/lactose free stuff and he stopped being gassy. The lactose free stuff tastes like yuck to me, but the acidophilus has a bacteria that breaks down the proteins easier, and I think it tastes just like milk.

Good luck!
C.

its most liking something you are eating that is making your baby gassy! i still can't eat corn, broccoli cuks, beans, cauliflower etc because my son gets constipated and gassy from him nursing and he is 11 months. at 3 months his doctor put him on zantac because he had acid reflux and that was wonderful. if you are laying in the crib you could try putting in a swing or his car seat being upright would help. all i know is breast milk is best formula would probably just make him more gassy! also have you tried putting him to bed awake and letting him fall asleep by himself, instead of you holding him or him nursing asleep, you should try and see if it would help. S. D.

Hi K.,
I had a friend who's baby had the same problem. She had to cut everything dairy out of her diet. It included things like milk and cheese, etc. Shed had to be very cautious of what she ate by looking at labels to see what contained dairy. You'd be surprised at the number of things. She said once she did that, her baby was fine. I hope this helps.

All milk has lactose! Your baby is not allergic to lactose. He NEEDS lactose for proper development of his brain. Please don't switch to formula! I am a lactation consultant in private practice and I know what I'm talking about. Changes to your diet need to be done systematically with the guidance of a professional--if it's a diet problem. Try eliminating dairy first. There could also be a problem with an over-active let down. Try nursing on one side per feeding if it seems your milk comes out very fast. please email me if you need more help.

Try Zantac. It works great for gassiness, and is very mild so it won't hurt your baby at all. It's cheap and most pediatricians will gladly give you a prescription to try it and is safe to be on for long terms. This saved BOTH my kids from their horrible colicky days!
We also used the gas drops from the store (can't remember the name right now) and they work pretty well. Doctor said there is no way they can overdose on it and you can use it almost as often as you want. But the zantac is what really "cured" the problem, not just covered it up.
H.~

Yes, I know from experience also that breastmilk does contain lactose since my son had the same issues. While nursing, I had to COMPLETELY cut out eating dairy myself, since even a little bit seemed to bother him. If you want to continue breastfeeding, this is probably your only option. Make sure that you're looking for 'hidden' milk using names like whey when you eat packaged foods, and ask restaurants if you can see ingredients lists since a lot of people don't call things like powdered milk, sour cream, etc. dairy. You may have to get a little rude if a friend cooks for you as well and ask them to list everything they've put in the food. Steer clear of chocolate and eggs as well, since they have lactose. If you want to switch to formula, I wouldn't bother trying the Lactose Free kind; they still have the same milk components, with an added lactaise enzyme to 'break down' the lactose to a generally safe level, but your baby sounds as sensitive as my son, and it isn't broken down enough.
On another note, he had the same issues with sleeping through the night, and it was just due to the fact that I didn't nurse him for long enough periods during the day (my 1 year old kept interrupting) so he was still hungry every couple of hours. I don't know if that's your issue, but you may want to start offering a bottle of breastmilk or formula at the end of the feeding to see if your baby is still hungry- that helped for my sister, who didn't know that she had a milk supply issue. Good luck!

It is possible for a baby to be allergic to his mother's milk, but it is very rare. I know you said you changed your diet - that's what I had to do and I wondered how you had changed your diet. I had to stop eating broccoli and onions because they made my son very gassy.

Breastmilk ONLY has lactose that a baby cannot digest if a mother is taking it in through her diet. I learned that my son was reacting (with gassiness, cramps ,abnormal stool) to my breastmilk when he was about 3 weeks old. I cut out all dairy from my diet and he has been nursing just perfectly for the last 6 months.

(FYI, it can take up to 2 weeks after cutting out dairy to see a change but it is worth it!!)

E-mail me if you have any more questions!!____@____.com

I had trouble with my daughter being gassy when I ate certain foods and had a lot of dairy. I did change how I ate and also drank a lot of tea with ginger, lemon, and peppermint all of which aid in digestion. If I wanted to have some cheese I just followed it with a big strong glass of ginger ice tea. It helped her immensely. I asked my lactation consultant if taking beano would help her and she said it would not hurt to try. I had such good luck with the tea I never did take any beano, but you may want to give it a shot. I believe in breast milk being the perfect and most beneficial food for our babies. We just have to put the right stuff in it for them. I hope this helps and good luck.

K.-

It's actually impossible for a baby to be lactose intolerant. Breastmilk is specially formulated by your body to be digestable for your little one. What may be causing the gas is not your milk, but something that you're eating on a regular basis. You may have to cut out all gas-producing foods from your diet to make your little one comfortable. Cut things like beans, broccoli, onions, super-spicy peppers, etc. Anything that is likely to cause gas for you will in your baby, too. You may also want to buy some gas drops for your baby. I've been using those for about 2 months now and it's saved my sanity! I wish I'd done it for my older ones when they were babies. But... live and learn!

Good luck to you!

-B.-

hi krists. i had this problem with my son he wasn't alergic really to my milk he was allergic to the dairy i ate. he was always cranky and never slept more then two hours at a time. it was takeing a longe time for my body to longe to flush out all the dairy. so the doctor put him on enfamil soy milk. he started responding the same day but it still took him a couple of days to sleep better and not be in pain. he 8 now and still can not have dairy, but he's healthy. sue

When my children were "gassy" I would give them "Gripe Water" which aids digestion among other things. It was a godsend during my time with my daughter. This is a product that is used throughout the world - Canada, Britain, and the Middle East but for some reason doesn't make it's way into American knowlege. You can usually pick this up at a European or Arabic delicatessen. If you call and ask for it they can tell you if they have it. This would calm my daughter right down and she would go right to sleep. I have a friend that drives all the way to Canada from Everett to buy it. That's how good it works.

I had to stop eatting all dairy while I was breastfeeding my daughter. As soon as i cut that out of my diet she started sleeping, it was wonderful. No pizza for a year was a killer but it was worth it to give her the start I felt she deserved. My daughter is 5 now and is just begining to be able to have a little dairy without it hurting her stomach.

All the love in the world to you and your baby!
Keep up the good work.

My son was the same way. He was both lactose intolerant (and as we found out years later... had a problem with fructose corn syrup.) We did Nutramigin because this was the only one available at the time that he could somewhat handle. Nutramigin made him burp violently (most likely because of the fructose corn syrup) but at least he wasn't throwing up or curling into a painful little ball. If I had all of the options available now, I would just try the lactose free formulas! Good luck.

MY BABIES HAVE THIS TOO! My first pediatrician told me it was an old wives tale that babies are allergic to the dairy moms eat. we suffered for 4 months before I cut out dairy and it took a week before any results were noticable (hes not my ped anymore). I descovered that I too was sensitive to dairy and it wasnt the lactose but the milk protien (and especially whey). Lactose free products still made him (and me) ill and even most soy products (and baby meats) add whey for the protien. Its difficult to watch out for. I just watched my diet with my first born while nursing but my second wouldnt nurse at all and she is on soy formula. My aunts children suffer from this as well and as they grew could handle dairy in small amounts. I have decided that until my son is old enough to decide if he wants the discomfort that follows the icecream we are just sticking to a dairy free diet. Nursing is such a wonderful experiance for bonding with your baby I would hate to see you give it up. I was really disappointed that my daughter wouldnt nurse despite everything we tried (and we tried nearly everything), but you both need sleep so do what works for you. Good Luck, Jen

hi there,
a friend of mine thought she might have a similar problem with her son, and she stopped consuming dairy products herself while she was breastfeeding. don;t know if that would help, but i spose it's worth a shot!

Yes your baby could be allergic to any dairy you are ingesting. My 5month old is allergic to dairy and we found this out at about 2wks old. He was usually very laid back then would go to colicy in nothing flat add to that a rash on his face and trunk and some diarrhea and he was not happy. I knew something was wrong so I took him in and his first doc just said baby acne, which it wasn't so I took him in to my other son's doc and she took one look and said allergy to something then sent us down to xray after listening to his gut and it showed that his whole lower intestines were nothing but air. I felt bad so we cut out pretty much everything and then added one thing at a time to find the culprit and sure enough rash and all only appear with dairy. When I can get him to take formula I use soy or alimentum since its hypoallergenic. So far he's fine. Hope this helps,sorry so long.

My son was breastfed and very very gassy. I found that gas drops work wonders.

Hi K.-

My little boy (3 months) is sensitive to both dairy and soy products. Once I went off of all things with milk or soy proteins (included in bread and some crackers as well as favorites like chocolate, too!) he got much better. Going off all of these products for the months I'm breastfeeding IS challenging, but I still have a good variety in my diet. And the improved sleeping is worth it! As these proteins are a main cause of allergy or sensitivity for children, it is a possibility for your son. If you haven't tried this, may be worth a go! Good luck!!

Does your baby seem very stiff? Almost like a board? Some babies have reflex disease. It usually wears off around 6 months or so. I know that they can proscribe prilocec or something similar to help until it goes away. If this is not the case, normally what you are eating is what the baby has a sensitivity to, not the lactose in the milk. You could try goat's milk. Also, I would recommend going to a pediatric naturopath. You could even try the Naturopathic College.
From what I have learned,it is a myth that any baby can actually be allergic to its own mother's milk. Good Luck!