Help with Son's 'Food Sensitivies'!! Leaky Gut??

My son had the same thing. Although it was 18 years ago I remember it like it was yesterday. He never seemed to do well when he nursed as he twisted, pushed, grimmaced and squirmed.
I tried elimination, stopped nursing, used soy formula, all with not results. This was withing the first 6 weeks of life.
Much of the suggestions were from the doctor over the phone. I finally demanded he be seen. When we were seen by the doctor he didn't even have to examine the baby and knew what was wrong. He had thrush! I had never heard of it at that time. The thrush (yeast) had gotten so bad it was through his entire system. They gave him Nystatin orally which is supposed to be a 10 treatment. He had to do three courses of it (30 days) and it finally helped. If I had known then what I know now I would have put him on Probiotics right away. These good bacteria are what normally prevent an overgrowth of the yeast (candida) that is always present in our bodies. By taking probiotics, you replace some of the good bacteria in your digestive tract that are needed to prevent a yeast overgrowth.

Read this website for lots of good info.
http://www.kellymom.com/bf/concerns/thrush/preventing-thr...

Probiotics also boost the immune system and help with digestion.

I hope this helps.

K.
www.GreenKidzRUs.com

WOW! I had the exact same problem. I am so glad to hear that you are willing to go on the elimination diet. You are taking the right steps. I can help you eliminate some of it though. There is something called NAET...Nambrudipad's Allergy Elimination Technique. You can check it out at www.naet.com. I go to Marcell Hanish in Mesa. She is great with kids. Don't give up and go to formula if you can help it, it is so expensive, and you can treat his food sensitivities right now! I tried the naturopath and probiotics and all that fun stuff, I was told my son had a leaky gut. Turns out he was allergic to the probiotics, so by trying to help him, I hurt him worse! I hope this helps. Please don't hesitate to contact me if you would like more info.

Good luck!
L.

Hi,

I am a stay at home mom with a 2 1/2 year old son. I nursed until he was 1 1/2 years old so i understand the frustrations that go along with breast feeding.
I know that you said you were taking probiotics but have you tried giving him some? They make them for infants too and they might help with his skin problems and digestion problems.
If your son has been given antibiotics at all, it is really important to replace the good bacteria in his intestins with the probiotics. The good bacteria helps prevent a lot of health issues. The makers diet book goes into great detail about how important good bacteria is if you want to read up on it.
My son got really gassy around that age too. I had to cut milk
out of my diet. As far as cutting everything though, i wouldn't. I would cut out spicey foods and dairy products. If you cut back your calories too much you won't make enough milk. As far as milk production going down at night you should try mothers milk tea. They sell it in the organic section at frys and at most health food stores. It worked really well for me. Ezekiel bread or sprouted grain breads are a very nutritious way to get carbs also that probably wouldn't upset his tummy. They taste pretty good too. It takes a while to get used to the sprouted bread but I like it better than regular bread.
For the eczema you might try putting aquaphor healing ointment on it. It worked great for my son. I would give him a bath at night and just coat him in it.
Try to stay at the breat feeding if you can. It is way better for baby and it significantly reduces your risks for breast cancer (not to mention it helps you get back to ideal weight a lot faster. i gained fifty pounds with my son so i needed all the help i could get).
Good luck. i hope this helps you.

Hi M.,
There's a great pediatric allergist in Albuquerque, Michael Clayton whom I would highly recommend (not sure where you are located). It isn't the most pleasant experience for kids to have skin and blood tests done, but it will help you to determine which foods are problematic. Also great to consult with a pediatric allergist or one who has lots of young child experience. They can help determine which foods you 'can' eat safely. I noticed you haven't tried wheat, gluten or caseine all can cause gut issues, but are really a pain in terms of figuring out what to eat!! My son has similar problems, we eliminated egg, wheat, soy, egg, dairy, nuts, beef (all confirmed by allergy testing) and he now at age 5 is allergy free (except for furry friends). The eczema and face 'rash' were directly related to foods he was ingesting. Although a somewhat rare condition, a friend of mine's son had the same problem, but docs etc. seem less aware of these signs being directly related to food allergies. Her diet was reduced to chicken, potatos, ginger and cabbage, only to find out that her son was highly allergic to ginger as well!! Even the slightest trace of ginger and her son's face would light up with the red rash. My son is also highly allergic to cats and dogs, which apparently if children live with pet dander and have food sensitivities the combination takes a toll on their system and their systems can become more highly sensitive to the foods they are ingesting.
In terms of formula, my son was on Neocate and Neocate Junior, I highly recommend it, but it is very expensive.
A great family allergy resource is FAAN (Food Allergy & Anaphylaix Network) thier URL is www.foodallergy.org. If you need recipe book suggestions let me know and I'll send those, it's hard to find things to eat when the diet is so restrictive.

I feel for you!!!

N.

I didn't experience this first hand and I'm not sure how my cousin ever figured it out, but, her son as an infant also began to get eczema and they were able to pinpoint it to an allergy to dairy. Here's the tricky part, my cousin was breastfeeding and stopped eating dairy. Her son was still breaking out. She noticed that whenever her husband ate or drank something with dairy and then kissed or even touched their son, the baby would break out in a rash in that area. Basically, the baby had a severe dairy allergy and even second hand contact with someone else who ingested dairy would cause irritation. Just food for thought, again I'm not sure how to check and see if this is the issue with your little guy.

My daughter had severe eczema when I breastfed but did much better when I cut out just milk. Did you try just eliminating milk? My daughter started clearing up within a few days.

Another solution is to stop breastfeeding. I think it is the hardest part of having a new baby only because the stress that other people put on you. I had issues with both my kids and realized that I would still be a good mom without breastfeeding. Hope this helps!

Aside from taking them yourself, are you giving your son probiotics? You can find the powdered kind for children at Whole Foods, mix with just a bit of water, and put in a dropper. They did wonders for my son.

I agree with some of the other postings about thinking about other potential allergens--detergents, lotions, perfumes, etc. One major allergen could be the formula you're supplementing with.

As difficult as at is (and it is incredibly hard), a true elimination diet has to be thorough. That means reading labels on literally everything you eat. Processed foods like crackers and cereals often have have milk products in them, so if your're not reading labels, you may still be getting lactose/milk products. Plus it can take a couple of weeks for milk to be out of your system and your baby's. I found out that even small amounts of milk can continue the problem.

When my son was 5 weeks old, he had allergic collitis, and after a visit to a specialist and being told to stop breastfeeding, I went on a total elimination diet. I did try the special forumula, but my son hated it and so did I. I persevered and followed my gut instinct which was to continue breastfeeding. I ate turkey, rice, apples and squash/zucchini for a couple of weeks. That's it. I researched food allergies online to guide me. It was difficult and frustrating, especially because my other child and husband were eating regularly. I very gradually added one thing at a time to my diet, waiting 2 or 3 days in between to watch for reactions. It was so worth the effort. I breastfed my son until he was a year old and he's now 3 and has no food allergies at all.

Good luck figuring out what is best for you and your baby. You'll look back eventually and be so happy this phase is over! :)

Y.

I would take him to a naturopathic Dr. that does NEAT testing (http://www.azadvancedmed.com/allergy.html) so they can identify and eliminate the allergy completely pain free :). We see Dr. Kail at Arizona Advanced Medicine.

Hi M., I just want to write a little bit of encouragement. My son is now 9 months old, we too went through a lot of the same things you are going through. I don't want to push my thoughts on you, but in my case, my son "burst out" with eczema right after his two month shots. With that said, I started researching the immunization shots. I decided not to overwhelm his little body just yet but decided to defer the shots a bit until he gets bigger and his body has a chance to develope a strong immune system. With that said, I too visited a naturopath (now not taking patients either) she suggested the elimination diet. I stuck with it for 7 weeks (and lost all the baby weight too), after the first week it really wasn't that bad. Lots of oatmeal w/ raisins for me and salad with meat mixed in. His eczema cleared up greatly after 4 weeks (according to the dermatologist we visited, he said that it would take a long time for his body to come back to normal). With him testing negative for all allergies, I decided to go back to eating normal after the 7 weeks but just introducing one new item every three days to my diet. The info I gathered suggests that a baby can have an intolorance to something and if you keep it totally out of their diet and give them time to strenghthen the digestive system then they may not have issues when it is time for them to eat those same foods. Sorry for the length, it's hard to see your little one go through these troubles.
S.
P.S. I had a girlfriend who had similar issues and she decided to stop nursing and switched to formula, just to find out that it didn't help she had to switch him to the most expensive out there and he still had the same symptoms.

I'm not an expert on leaky gut, but I've been reading a book called "Enzymes for Autism and other Neurological Conditions" by Karen DeFelice. I'm not saying that your son is autistic--they just address leaky gut quite a bit in this book. The book is about using enzymes as an alternative to elimination diets (the author went through YEARS of elimination diets only to see some improvement followed by more problems because she and her sons had leaky gut and would basically develop new food sensitivities to whatever foods they ate the most). Enzymes basically help break down food for digestion. Anyway, like I said, I'm no expert, but it might be worth checking this book out from the library or even talking to your GI.

Maybe it isnt your milk that is causing the skin allergy. Have you changed detergeants ,soap,lotions perfume not just for the baby but for you anything that his skin might come in contact with. Babies can have very sensitive skin. I know when I was nursing my children I couldnt use lotions or perfumes any place where their face might touch.
Also remember skin to skin if the baby is getting sweaty or dripping milk that will also cause irritation. I hope this helps

Hi M.,
I hear your frustration. I have a 2 1/2 yr old with severe dairy allergies to the point he can't even come into contact with dairy residue or he will break into hives. I live in Tucson, AZ and have a great pediatric allergist who realy took the time to educate us. As far as feeking like your breast milk has gone down, make sure you are drinking enough water. Also you can take supplements Fenugreek and Milk Thistle to help with your supply. My milk decreased when my son was 6 months and I tried formula, this is when I found out that he had dairy allergies because he swelled up as soon as he had the formula, so I then tried the non-dairy formulas which he refused to take. It was at that time that I figured if he wouldn't take formula then I needed to increase my milk supply some how so I tried the supplements I listed above, needless to say it worked and I continued breast feeding him till he was 18 months becuase I was so limited with what I could give him. There is dairy in so many baby foods as well as some baby toothpastes, and those teething tablets. If you do find that he has a true allergy to dairy, be sure to read everything, look for the words milk, yogurt, whey, casen, lactose. As an FYI, even if the label says "lactose free" read the ingredients becuase as I have found, the product may still have dairy in it, it's just a different protein of dairy. If you live in the AZ area, the allergists name is Dr. Montiah and he is located in central Tucson as well as Oro Valley. Good luck!

Hello there
I have not had this issue but i have read a lot about Celiac disease!! "Leaky gut" My husband has it! i only know about adults and such! but you may be able to find some information on www.celiac.com or www.celiac.org
Good luck
J.

For transitioning from breast milk to formula I started mixing it 3 parts breast milk to 1 part formaula and decreasing the breast milk by an ounce every couple of days or so. Not sure how much your so if you choose to pump and add it to his formula just add more breast milk than formula and try different nipples to. My daughter refused the bottle until I found a nipple she liked. Funny I know. Good luck.

I've had very similar problems when I breastfed my kids. They were very sensitive when I ate. I had to also cut gluten out of my diet. I do know of one person who's child is extremely allergic to pesticides and other things that are in meats and stuff. Maybe you could try going organic. I know my son can only have organic eggs. Other eggs make him extremely sick. It seems like your son is still having trouble even after an extreme diet change which seems like you haven't cut out the right thing. Once you find the trigger food or problem, it will be a huge relief, such a difference. Good luck! BTW~ I ended up nursing my children until age 2. Once I found the problem, it went a lot better for us! Hang in there!

Hi M.,
I have Leaky Gut. I cannot eat gluten, which is often the factor when Leaky Gut is the problem. At least one of four people have gluten allergy/intolerance. I highly recommend you cut gluten out of your diet for 3 wks and see what results you have. My daughter's family had unbelievable results in their health once they discovered gluten was the problem for them. I have been studying health, and wrote my research paper on Leaky Gut, so I could share a lot, but I would rather talk with you than write it all.

Let me know if you want more info. I know it sounds tough to give up food, but if it is a certain food that causes health issues and you give it up, results will be so amazing you wont mind giving it up! It is hard for me to believe that formula would ever be a better choice for your baby. Blessings to you.

My son too at 2 months of age developed rashes but with my research that kids with food allergies rarely have reactions when breastfed and it is a myth that something you are eating. By the age of two after deeling with his ezcema and sensitive skins. I find out he is allergic to grass. I give him allegy medicine and he is much better now. At 2 months he could be too young for allergy medicine but you can get a hepa filter and keep the animals away plus make sure to rinse his nostrils out with a saline wash and his skin rinsed with just water.

I went through the same think with my newborn. He squirmed every time he ate, his stomach made loud grumbling sounds, he was gassy, he had acid reflux and excema on his cheeks. He also went to the bathroom ALOT....420 diapers the first 6 weeks. Everything went right through him. So, I took everything out of my diet, including soy products, for 12 weeks. I don't think it helped but I did it anyway. After 12 weeks I decided to start adding things back into my diet because taking them out wasn't working. I figured that if taking these things out my diet didn't work anyway, then it was something he would just have to outgrow. Besides, it was more important that I get the nutrients that I needed to make sure he got them and to make sure I produced enough milk. By four months he was less squirmy during feedings, the rash dissappeared and was much more content overall. He continues to spit up and has a little acid reflux. I saw my pediatrician about once a week during the first two to three months of his life. I was paranoid and wanted to make sure there was nothing else wrong with him. I was told that "colic" is really an allergy/digestion problem. While my son wasn't crying for 3 or more hours non-stop...he was definately uncomfortable for long lenghts of time. My son was a large baby at almost 10 pounds. He continues to be a big boy...MY theory is that his body couldn't take the volume of food he was intaking...who knows. By the way, my dermatologist (one of three in Phoenix that focuses on children only) told me that his excema on his face is not a result of my diet. In fact, allergents such as dairy will irritate the condition but are rarely the cause...If you have seen your doctor and they have ruled out anything serious, you may just have to ride it out. Reagrdless, make sure you consult with our pediatrician. I was fortunate that by 16 weeks he got through most of it...best of luck....He is 17 weeks now, and I no longer taper my diet by excluding dairy or soy. I dind't have this problem with my first son, but both suffered from some sort of excema. Most recently, I switched to organic wash and lotions and I make sure they take a bath everyday. Neither have it now.

This is definitely an area of great debate- allergies. Has your son felt better since the elimination diet? My son has several food allergies. The elimination diet your doctor put you on seems a little overboard. Typically an elimination diet is the seven major allergens (dairy, soy, corn, wheat, fish, eggs, and nuts). Check out CHOP, children's hospital, they are the leading researchers/experts on allergies and they have an elimination diet on their page that works really well. IF the elimination diet isn't making your baby feel better then its time to see a GI doctor. Hang in there-- and listen to you "gut" on what your little one needs.

From what I've read, you have to elinimate the offending food for at least a month then it takes another 2 or 3 weeks for it work out of the baby's system. There is some good info on Kellymom.org about elimination diet, etc.

Most formula is made from milk. So if it's a dairy issue, that's going to make it worse, not better. Just my 2 cents.

Dear M.

Please go see a naturopath soon and I wouldn't recommend asking people that are not trained medically for suggestion or advise... It can be fatal or not good and I don't think you would want your child to suffer from bad recommendations...

So, please go see a naturopath soon. Another thing is that whatever you eat, baby will eat. Very important to stay in tip top shape with your diet since you are breast feeding.

I would recommend staying away from garlic that you are taking also.... but great job on the prenatal vitamins and omegas and etc...

Keep the skin clean and also pay attention to your detergent and whatever you might use to wash the clothes...

And lastly, see a chiropractor to get your baby and you checked for misaligned bones in your baby's neck which would cause skin breaking out such as eczema...

Good luck and keep me posted..

F. Rooh, DC
____@____.com

Leaky gut is common when food has a chance to ferment in the intestines instead of being eliminated. Lack of elimination causes toxic conditions as well. The best thing you can use to heal the gut is called Sangre de Drago - but you also need to cleanse the digestive tract and detoxify the organs of elimination - this means you need a good fiber product as well as some other herbs - I have been working with Amazon Herbs for over three years now and recommend the Fiberzon (which contains the Sangre de Drago along with other healing herbs) as well as the cleanse and detox pack for this condition - if you are interested in more information you can contact me or visit my website: shootingstarherbs.amazonherb.net - good luck.