Breastfeeding Baby with Milk Protein Intolerance

Congratulations and thank you for making the best choice in feeding your baby! When I was nursing my son, he seemed to have a lot of gas that caused him a lot of pain. I was told to not eat certain foods (broccoli, cauliflower, and others known to cause gas) and I was told to cut dairy out of my diet. I did these things and although he still seemed to have issues, as he got older, it got better and I am so glad that I never turned to formula. I don't remember there ever being any kind of diagnosis, but it was likely similar to what you are experiencing.

You know your baby best. You are obviously an experienced breastfeeding mother and I encourage you to continue. I also encourage you to contact La Leche League and speak to a leader about your concerns. They are wonderful women and are always happy to help, plus it's free to get their advice. I can provide names and phone numbers if you need them. Just let me know!

Best of luck to you and your family!

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S.,
I went through the same thing with our son who is allergic to dairy, nuts and soy. Cut all the dairy out of my diet and he got much better. You do NOT have to stop nursing. And by the way, it's a great diet for everyone, though you have to plan a little more when making meals. Xander is 2 now and still allergic but very healthy happy boy and I feel better for having continued nursing him through it all.

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First, I would find a new pediatrician. Second, I would not stop breastfeeding. My son has a milk protein allergy and b/f him for 8 months. When we tried regular formula, he vomited for 3 hours. If you do go to formula, it will have to be soy or a hyperallergenic formula. Just eliminate milk products from your diet and she will be fine. A bonus is that it helps you lose baby weight... no cheese, creme, butter, or milk chocolate :)

Studies show that breastfed babies have fewer allergies that formula fed babies. If she already is showing signs of one, there may be others.

Good luck!

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Hi S.,

I had the same problem with my first child, and did not stop breastfeeding! I did exactly what you read, which was also recommended by a pediatrician -- stop all dairy. He said it would take about a week for the milk protein to be out of my system and therefore alleviate all symptoms for my baby. I DID supplement with her -- but only 5 oz. per day. Hang in there, it is worth it for both of you to continue bf if you can -- but I will never forget that time in my life of so little sleep and my baby screaming a lot. I'll be thinking of you, let us know how you make out!

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Pardon me, but I think your pediatrician is mistaken. I'm doing my masters thesis on breastfeeding and read breastfeeding research all day long and have seen nothing to support his recommendations. Far from what he suggests, what I read suggests you should stay as far away from cow milk based formulas as possible. What is he thinking? Get a second opinion from another pediatrician.

2 moms found this helpful

Hi S.-
I had this same thing happen to me. My daughter was only three weeks old when they told me that. So I of course listened to the DR and put her on a very expensive formula, keep in mind I had to pump every two hours to save my milk. Then after three weeks of formula it was time to introduce suggest getting a second opinion. I had talked to several people who had never heard of this before. My husbands sister made some calls and found out that you just have to change your diet not stop nursing. I wonder if we went to the same DR. :-)
If you want to talk more feel free to email me. I really hope everything works out. I know what a struggle it can be!

1 mom found this helpful

I have a wealth of knowledge on this subject. (Not trying to brag...) My youngest was thought to have MSPI (milk/soy protein intolerance) but it turns out it's a total allergy. Anyways, the BEST thing you can do for you daughter at this point is to pump and dump for a few weeks. You will need to do a total elimination diet (TED)- cut out any and all dairy- even hidden dairy. It will take at least 2 weeks for the milk proteins to get out of your system and another 2 for them to be out of your daughters system. I know it's a long time, but you can cause so much damage to the GI tract by feeding her something she can't tolerate. During this time, try her on either soy formula or a hypoallergenic like Nutramigen or Alimentum. If it were me, I'd say do a hypoallergenic because most of the time if they have a milk intolerance, they also have a soy intolerance. They seem to go hand in hand. I know you don't want to stop nursing for this amount of time, but TRUST ME, it needs to be done. Keep pumping to keep up your supply but just pump and dump (or donate!). So...

1) Put her on a hypoallergenic formula ASAP.
2) Start pumping and dumping (or donating).
3) Once she has been on the formula for 2-3 weeks, start nursing her again.

If it's a true milk protein intolerance, you'll notice a difference in her disposition within two weeks. I know this all sounds so drastic, but I'm living proof that if this doesn't get taken care of NOW, it can cause permanent damage in the long run.

If you have any questions, PM me.

1 mom found this helpful

First off: it never hurts to get a second opinion.

Your doctor was probably saying to stop breastfeeding for a few days to get the milk out of your system. I also have an infant that has a milk protein intolerance. It takes 4-5 days to get rid of the dairy in your breastmilk. Did your pediatrician tell you to use Nutrimigen or Altumintum(sp?) or a soy formula. My daughter has been on Nutrimigen and breast milk since 4 weeks. Regular formula has milk proteins in it.

Just a word of support. I did 50/50 formula and breastmilk with her. She is my second child and I was able to nurse my first child 100% of the time. I felt tons of guilt and felt like i was a bad mom. I finally realized that you have to do what is best for your baby. I myself have a soy allergy, so it was really hard to give up milk products. I gave them up for 4 months while I took tons of calcium supplements. Despite the supplements, I had muscle spasms and cramping. I pumped liked a mad woman for those 4 months and froze enough breastmilk for my daughter to have 50% breastmilk through a year. Formula doesnt make you a bad mom, or a failure. We all have to do the best for our babies.

Milk products include anything with whey or whey protein.

1 mom found this helpful

Hi S.-
My second child developed food allergies at seven months old and we didn't figure out what it was until she was 12 months old. We tried many different doctors who also advised to stop nursing and switch to formula. I did not believe this was the answer and am so glad that I did not!!! I have the name of an alternative doctor I will list below that we found who has changed our lives!! I had to remove a huge list of foods from my diet to continue to nurse her and it was worth it but very hard. It was not until over a year ago that we found Dr. Salas. He is the only doctor in the city doing the kind of work that he does. He can clear most allergies and I know that he can help you and your baby. Please contact him! He checked my breastmilk for reactions and can even clear a breastmilk allergy. If it is just dairy then he can clear that as well. I highly encourage you to resolve it now before your baby gets older. I went through 5 months of depression and anxiety watching my little baby with loose, bloody stools and not being able to do anything about it. It was very frustrating to have the doctors tell us they didn't know what it was or that the answer was to switch to formula---which would have made her worse as she had a dairy allergy! We went on to successfully nurse for a long time. Breastmilk is the best and you should not be dissuaded from doing what is best for the health of your baby.

Dr. Alain Salas
Pain and Stress Elimination Center
www.kcpainandstresscenter.com
405 E. 19th Ave.
North Kansas City, MO 64116
###-###-####

1 mom found this helpful

I went through the same with my son. I actually gave up on breastfeeding. But, If I knew now some of the things I would not of. If he can not have Milk he will not handle the Soy protein or Goat Milk. The Protein are the same. You can still breastfeed but your diet would have to be strict. At Whole foods off of Metcalf and 91st ST. They have a brand 365. There is tons of food that are dairy and soy free. Soup, crackers, tuna, bread, chips, and more. And the Oat Milk is great for cooking. And you have to be careful with meat. Needs to be 100 natural. Our son was still getting sick and we figure out that the meat was doing it. They like to injected milk protein in the meat. Hy-vee meat is good. Also if you Google MSPI. You will find tons of site with other Mothers going through the same. If you have any question just ask.. I hope this was helpful.

1 mom found this helpful

My son had the same issue and i am suprised your pediatrician recommended stopping to breastfeed?? My pediatricuan suggested an elinination diet - I would get a second opinion...it can't hurt. My son is 8 months old, still breastfeeding and hasn't had problems since. Best of luck!

1 mom found this helpful

Hi S.,

You are on the right track questioning this advice. It doesn't make any sense to me - I nursed my daughter for 33 months and became very invovled in our mom's support group.

There is more 'milk' in formula and it can be harmful. It's your diet that will need to change, and it can be done.

Please take a minute to contact a local La Lache League, they have the facts and will help you. Another option, and one I would reccommend, is to contact the hospital and ask for their maternity ward, then ask for the Lactation Consultant. These people are trained breastfeeding professionals.

Sadly, most doctors have little to NO training in anything related to breastfeeding and the easy answer is for them to suggest formula. It's easy for them to suggest for many reasons including you can meausre the ounces and they get info on formula from the forumla companies. (And the formula companies shower them with gifts - at our little bitty hospital, formula gives them $20,000 in education funding for their staff - makes it difficult to be non-biased.) Even more sadly, I have more breastfeeding traning than many doctors (and I'm just a mom and a volunteer). I take a day of vacation from my regular job and attend conferances - mainly, they are free. Sadly, VERY few doctors, if any attend. However, the conferences are full of Certified Lactation Consultants (who are typically an RN, with extra training and certifications to become an CLC).

I can't stress enough how much better information you will get from a Certified Lactation Consultant. Check with the hospital, then the yellow pages, then switchboard.com. You will be able to find one. They are angels.

Good luck to you!!
K.

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Our son was allergic to the milk protein, casein. In order to continue nursing him, I gave up all milk products. That means reading the label on everything. When this first happened, we were disheartened to find out that nearly all products contain some degree of milk or casein but eventually you will find manufacturers that are very conscious about food allergies. But on the up side, I lost 25 lbs eating so healthy :) Go to one of the allergy websites, like allergymoms.com, etc. and get a list of all the names that identify the milk protein and then start reading labels. You will find a noticeable difference in your baby and you too. Our son did outgrow the milk allergy when he was about 6. They are good substitute products out there for milk. Silk (soy milk), Vance's Dairifree which is a powdered milk (chocolate is best). There is not a good substitute for cheese but the soy cream cheeses and sour creams are okay. Please feel free to contact me if you think I can help more. It was overwhelming to us at first but then we became regulars at eating milk free. He was also allergic to eggs and peanuts too but those are a lot easier to avoid than milk. D.

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You can also consider going to see Dr. Clarke in Olathe. ###-###-####, 138th and Mur-Len. He has gotten rid of all my kids allergies and food allergies. I don't have to worry about what I can and cannot feed them. No shots, no meds...it just works:o) This way, you can still nurse with out depleating your milks nutrients.

1 mom found this helpful

My 13 month old seemed to have this problem. I am still exclusively breastfeeding him. I didn't eat any dairy for the first several months. After a while, I tried it again, and it didn't seem to bother him. This may not be true for you, but by all means - just give up milk products for a while and see if it works! Some doctors think formula is better because they can control it - knowing exactly what the baby is getting and how much. There are LOTS of other opinions out there that are more supportive of BREASTFEEDING! Mine included!

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Not nursing is a very poor idea, but doctors hate unpredictability, so that's why they say to switch to formula. You can quit eating dairy (hard, but not so hard; I did it for several months, and I LOOOOOOVE dairy). It can take up to six weeks for all of the dairy to get out both your and her systems, but the worst of it will be gone within 3-5 days. So, if it were me, I would consider how serious her allergy is: is she pooping blood? That's the worst, and we know she's in a lot of pain that way. Is she just fussy and spitting up a lot? Maybe rashy or increased eczema rash? If she has bloody stools, I might consider switching to some formula for a few days, but remember that if you reduce nursing at all, you risk weaning because it is hard to build up demand again. Of course, you can do anything you put your mind to, but try not to make it harder on yourself. Nursing a newborn is hard, having other children at the same time is hard, and having a baby who has a food allergy is hard, too. I hope it works out for you. Once mine was 7 months, I could eat dairy again.

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True lactose intolerance is rare and only very few ethnicities deal with it. If it's a milk protein issue (like you said)- it is nearly 98% a COW's milk protein issue. My son had this and I simply cut out all dairy as well as casin and whey (milk proteins.)

It takes 6 weeks to completely rid your body of the proteins but there should be a noticable difference within a week or two. As long as she is gaining weight, producing enough wet/poopy diapers, and isn't falling behind on milestones- the risk of artificial baby milk is much higher than having a fussy baby for a couple weeks.

Cow's milk is made for calfs, which is why humans, especially human babies, don't do so well on it.

Please feel free to message me and I can get you in touch with a La Leche League Leader who would have correct information about this issue :)

1 mom found this helpful

Don't stop nursing! Please get a second opinion. Breastmilk is the best source of nutrition and very few babies cannot tolereate bm. it may just take diet changes. i would contact a lactation consultant. I am very passionate about this because I am exclusively pumping because of some bad advice from a nurse practioner who was undeducated about breastfeeding. Most doctors are uneducated about breastfeeding. Nursing students get on lecture on it. Please contact a lactation consultant or get a second opinion. Your baby needs your breastmilk. Good luck. Let us know.

1 mom found this helpful

First off - it's ALWAYS okay to seek others' opinions and confirm/deny Dr.'s advice... Just be choosy about what you take as true vs. misinformation.

I have not had this issue, but everything I've read says to cut out milk and milk products from your own diet, but continue nursing. It's a lifestyle change for you - but hey - you are already making a change by nursing!

((My 5 1/2 month old is also breastfed. Of all the things I read about nursing babies, I never knew how much time it would take and how much planning is involved!))

Congrats on your third child and good luck!

J

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I havent had experience with this but it seems that doctors these days dont know anything! You have to diagnose yourself or your kids and find out whats wrong and how to fix it via the internet!! My daughter's doctor said the eczema on her arms was heat rash!!! I didnt know, Ive never seen eczema so I believed him. When it turned cold outside and it got worse, I knew it wasnt heat rash!! What a turd! Anyway, point is, doctors dont know nearly as much as people give them credit for. I would get a second opinion. You wouldnt have to go in to a different doctor, you could call any clinic and ask a nurse or doctor and see what they say to do (or not to do) for the intolerance. Good luck!

1 mom found this helpful

You don't need to stop, but you will need to eliminate all dairy from your diet. It's in a lot of baked goods, so for a while you'll eat nearly an Atkins diet, but then you can reintroduce things with a little dairy (like bread) and see if they upset your baby. I did this for a few months with my son and weaned him at about 10 months, when I started using Nutramigen exclusively. I didn't want to wean yet, but it was too hard on me and calcium supplements constipated me, so that's what I did. The upside was that our insurance at that time, Humana, covered it, so that was nice since it's almost $30/can. Good luck, and let us know how it goes!

S.,
If you trust your Dr. why are you doubting him by doing your own research on the internet? If you doubt his medical knowledge and advise, why don't you go to another dr for a different opinion and see if you trust him more. Every case is different and to go to the internet, read something and take it for gospel means that you don't trust your dr's opinion. I think your issue is that you don't want to give up nursing. It's great to go on the internet to get information and learn about what your dealing with, but if you trust the information on the internet instead of what your Dr says, you either need to share this information with the Dr and get his take on this or get another Dr.

I think your ped is right. My younger daughter has a milk allergy. She reacted horribly to my breastmilk while I was eating dairy. It takes about two weeks for the protein to leave your breastmilk, so your ped is recommending half formula and half breastmilk to lessen the effects of the offending breastmilk. My advice...pump and dump after you feed her formula to keep up your supply. Make sure the formula you choose is soy based and not milk based.

Edited to add...
You have to be diligent about avoiding all dairy or you will just have the same result.

You need La Leche League! They will know the answers. Either their website or find a group in your area. They are the best!

I think you are perfectly reasonable to research any direction your doctor gives you. Doctors aren't perfect; they don't know everything. To blindly trust anyone without thinking for yourself is not wise. And it sounds like you've gotten some advice that conflicts with his suggestion. That's not to say he's wrong; sometimes there's more than one answer to a problem. Once you've found a solution that seems to be the best answer for you and your baby, I would call your ped and ask him his thoughts on it. The dr/patient relationship should be a two-way street. There's a book called "The Complete Book of Breastfeeding" by Marvin S. Eiger, Sally Wendkos Olds, Wendy Wray, and Roe Di Bona that addresses lots of potential issues. I don't remember if that's in there or not, but it was an incredible resource for me. Best of luck!!

S....back in the day when I had my children, I did not understand why two of them were such great breast feeders yet continually threw up what seemed to be everything they had just eaten! So, I put them on formula full time. Then my 3rd child came and he ate great, too, and never threw up anything.

Turns out, my first two children were lactose intolerant. And, we did not learn this until they were 12 or 13 years old!!

Your doctor is correct. The only way to stop the lactose intolerance, is completely stopping the milk for two or three days, then slowly introduce it back into their diet. My adult children will have one cup of milk on Monday, one and half on Tuesday and by Wednesday, they can drink all the milk they want.

Hope this helps!

You didn't mention what kind of formula. Either she can tolerate your breastmilk or not, is what I would think. Side tracking her with soy milk may not help, but just be changing things around. Of what I have heard, changing their milks too often can make babies go on food strike. Not sure if that is true, but my sister had 9 kids when she said that. And, there are side effects to pure soy too, like heightened estrogen levels, but we shouldn't go into that. Nogreaterjoy.org gives some info on that.

I would say eliminating ALL dairy from your diet is advised. We are not cows, so therefore, WE do not produce dairy product. KWIM? Now, goat's milk is dairy, but is more tolerable to babies and children then cow milk. Go figure. I would want to have it proven that breastmilk is the problem before playing around with that.

I HIGHLY recommend contacting your local La Leche League. The leaders are well-trained in exactly these types of issues and all have personal breastfeeding experience. can You can get extremely helpful answers and advice. Here is the link to the page for contacting leaders in the Lenexa, KS area: http://www.lllusa.org/web/LenexaShawneeKS.html

You can also go to www.lllusa.org (or www.llli.org) to find leaders in other communities. I can't tell you how much they've helped me and all the wonderful information I've learned! They are so well-versed in breastfeeding and health issues, it's really amazing how much work they have done simply to help people get good, reliable and accurate information about breastfeeding that is so hard to get elsewhere, even the medical community.

I'm not a leader I just love my local LLL group!

I haven't read any other responses, but I could not help but tell you do not stop breastfeeding! Your doctor is completely wrong on this one. You just need to eliminate dairy from your diet to help your daughter with this one. Breastmilk is always best!! Good job breastfeeding all your babies!