Is It Something I Am Eating?

I had a lot of problems with my daughter and YES it really does matter what you eat if you have a child with stomach problems. My child also had bad reflux and her reflux medicine helped alot. but she was stillhaving problems. I had to give up all milk products and that helped a lot. My sister had to give up wheat,milk soy and eggs and any thing spicy like tomato sauce. mucus in the bowl movement usually means that your child is allergic or intollerant to something you are eating. I think it takes about 8 hours for foods to show up in your breast milk and it takes 2-3 days to get things like milk proteins to get out of your breast milk and it can take a whole month of your child's digestive tract to heal. I would ask your ped to check your childs stool for traces of blood. because if there is any blood in their stool then he is most likely allergic to something probably milk. Talk with a lactation speciallist about what foods to give up first.
My daughters stomach problems seem to vanish at 9 months of age it was really weird. She was weaned at 10 months and was on Ailmentum. She even had a hard time when i introduced solids the only food she could eat at the begining was rice cereal, pears, peaches, sweet potatoes and squash. that was it for months then all of a suddend it was like her digestive track healed. She went to an allergist and wasnt allergic to anything. Now she eats and drink everything and has no problems. I would have never thought that she was going to get over this. It seemed like everthing made her sick. I thought I had a baby that would have food issues for the rest of her life but she is great now.
good luck I woud give up milk products first.
E.

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If you suspect a food allergy, you can find a lot of useful information about elimination diets at www.foodallergy.org and www.askdrsear.com (has an elimination diet plan that many follow). When my daughter was reacting to dairy she had similar symptoms and it took about 3 days of no dairy before her symptoms improved. They didn't disappear because of the GERD but the fussiness and stomach cramps almost disappeared. Another thing to consider: Green mucousy poops can be a sign of allergy but they can also be a sign of baby getting too much foremilk and not enough hindmilk when nursing. This happens a lot with GERDlings because they take smaller feedings. If the baby is only getting the foremilk (thin watery stuff at the beginning) it races through their body causing pain and gives green poop. You may want to express some of this beforehand so that the baby can get to the rich hind milk which won't reflux as easily AND will soothe their stomach. GERD forums such as www.pager.org and http://health.groups.yahoo.com/group/breastfeedingreflux/ can be a terrific place to find info on nursing a GERDling. I've had two severe refluxers and nursed both. It was really difficult in the beginning but I ended up having wonderful extended BFing relationships with both. Hang in there. It will get easier! These forums can be a terrific source of support and information. I hope your little one is feeling better soon!

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I found it was my digestion. I made a tea with fennel, anise, and dill and that helped; I also took digestive enzymes and good probiotics. The big 3 for food allergies and harder to digest proteins are cow's milk, soy, and wheat. This leaves you with a lot of options; breakfast can be eggs, smoothies, and oatmeal/non-wheat warm cereals or things like apple or pear crisp made with oats and oat flour, lunches can be luscious salads or nourishing homemade soups with non cruciferous veggies, and dinner can be rice/rice pasta and non cruciferous veggies + meat- or cornbread, millet, quinoa... I found it to be almost comforting to be limited in food options as I could make a rhythm/schedule of what I ate, vary seasonings/spices and which veggies I had, and stick with very simple, plain items. Coconut milk was also a delicious way to get rich and creamy effects without cow's milk. After 4-5 months I was able to resume my normal diet but I learned from the experience what *I* digest best- it's not just our babies with sensitive tummies, but the combination of our baby's tummy and our own poor digestion (which we often don't realize until we remove common offenders). Also pay attention to frequency- too much nursing can cause problems; stick to one side and make sure your baby is actually rooting for food and not just crying for other reasons.

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When my SIL had this issue, she had to eliminate one food every three or four days to figure it out. Turns out, her son was allergic to EVERYTHING she ate, and she had to put him on special formula.

My youngest son had issues with Acid Reflux as a young infant (he was seven weeks premature...). He'd spit up (a fair amount) anywhere from 30-60 minutes after nursing. It went away completely about three days after he started eating cereal - the cereal was heavier, and so stayed in his tummy better - even when nursing, and he's been just fine ever since (he's now 3 1/2).

You most likely have an oversupply. Look into it on Kellymom.com and talk to a La Leche leader. My first son had the same thing and I got bad advice from the pediatricians and hospital LCs because I didnt have ALL the symptoms of oversupply but that is exactly what it was. DONT give up, I did with my first because of all the reasaons you mentioned and actually thought my son was allergic to me! Couple of weeks afterwards I still had milk and re-lacated (long story) and everything was great. Dont give up if you want to BF, get help, it will make a huge difference. PS. It takes about 4-6 hours (I think!) for food you eat to make it to the baby's digestion. With my second boy (almost 9 months) I also had a huge supply (let downs every hour!) and baby never finishing a breast, rock hard all day. I saw Dr. Christina Smillie in Stratford, CT and a La Leche leader to help. Worth every bit of it!

I didn't read the other responses so forgive me if I repeat. First, are you trying Mylicon infant's gas relief? My doctor said when babies have green poop it's because they have to much gas and the food is passing through the digestive system too quickly. I've heard broccoli and garlic are the big nonos when it comes to GERD. When I was nursing my first though, I found that I was so bored sitting at home that I would just sit on the couch and eat almost a whole box of Wheat Thins in a sitting. He would start screaming in the middle of his meal and have horrible, very painful sound farts. I stopped eating the Wheat Thins and that stopped right away. So it does matter at least somewhat what you eat.

i would contacta lactation consultant or la leche league to see if they have ideas. i recently moved here so i don't know of people in this area, but i saw a few lactation consultants for the first 4 months after my daughter was born. it was very helpful and i felt supported.
good luck!

My son had the same issues when he was younger and was super colicky. I actually went to a lactation specialist that told me one issue was oversupply so I switched to one breast per feeding. Then I also eliminated dairy and soy from my diet. Soy is in everything! I was basically living on plainly seasoned protein and veggies. Even after doing these things there really wasn't much of a difference. After 5 weeks of that, I slowly reintroduced dairy back into my diet and things remained unchanged. He cried constantly, had some very strange mucousy poops and seemed uncomfortable half of the time. It wasn't until he was 3-4 months that it started to improve and resolve itself. Another thing that I dealt with was that everyone had a different opinion about the situation which only confused me more!

Honestly I think some babies just have a hard time adjusting and no matter what you do, it's just a matter of waiting it out. I'm not saying this is the case with your son, but I just thought I'd share our experience.

I hope things get better soon!

C.,
Congratulations,
Keep on Nursing!
You can change what you eat until the cows come home, but it may not affect him, positively or negatively.

Formula may only make it worse (and from what I have read, very likely!)

Take things one day at a time. One minute at a time if you have to.

The big ones to TRY are: Onions, garlic (this includes green onions), and cruciferous (broccoli, cabbage, cauliflower, artichoke, etc (you'll have to look up the rest, those are the ones I know).

You can't eliminate them ALL at once; you'd never find out what the problem is - if the problem is indeed food at all.

With the garlic and onion - it is HARD - it is in a LOT of prepared foods (pasta sauce, soups, even stuff you wouldn't think of!).

I had to eliminate those 3 things and my son's life was a lot less gassy. Translation - things were a LOT quieter all the way around.

Don't give up - don't give in, just try one thing at a time, and HOPE for the best. You may not eliminate it, but you might tone down the diaper changes after a bit.

Good Luck and DON'T GIVE UP! (rooting for you here, I understand a LOT!)

M.

Hi C.,

It sounds to me like he is having an allergic reaction. Have you called the doctor? When in doubt, that's what I do and also I look up stuff online. My best and favorite resource (besides here) is babycenter.com. You will get emails every week with info on what to expect at this point in your baby's life. when a baby is sick though, always best to call the doctor early on. Good luck!

My daughter went through GERD and dairy sensitivity. Her first three months were miserable as we tried to adjust her and my diet. The 'hidden dairy' cheat sheet i attached helps a lot. there is dairy in so many foods! as well, talk to your doctor about the GERD if you haven't already. we put our daughter on pepcid and prevacid and it worked so well. we took her off of it around 8 months and found she still needed it, so put her back on until she just turned a year and has now outgrown it. the dairy sensitivity wore off around 9 months- that's when i started to introduce cheeses and yogurts into my diet to see how she reacted, then into hers, and all was well. as for the doctors who say it doesn't matter- in my opinion that is wrong. it was an amazing turn around in my daughters health and on occassion when i accidentally or unavoidably had dairy, and then nursed, it was obvious in her reaction. lastly, whenever i supplemented, i used Alimentum. it's hypoallergenic, meaning all the dairy is broken down as much as possible so the baby doesn't have to do it. oh, one last thing, i took mega-zyme, systemic enzymes that break down dairy in the digestive system. i did that when i would eat out, just in case. dr. glassman in norwalk, ct is amazing if you need a good gastroenterologist. good luck. its a battle, but you can get there. once you do, its worth it! (websites listed below).

http://www.kellymom.com/babyconcerns/food-sensitivity.html
http://www.kellymom.com/store/freehandouts/hidden-dairy01...
http://www.askdrsears.com/html/4/T041200.asp
google "dairy intolerance, milk sensitivity in infants, etc"

I'm assuming you've tried stopping dairy. that's the one that's hard and takes 2wks+ to see an effect. You also have to read all of the boxes b/c trace amounts ar in lots of stuff. Since he's been having a hard time, I'd call your local La Leche chapter--they have tons of information. It is so hard--but, now that you're at 3mo and his GI tract is a little more developed, it might actually get easier. Let's cross our fingers.

Hey, what's the matter with pasta and olive oil?!?!?!? Have you tried an allergist or a GI Dr. I'd give them a try, especially GI. Maybe the baby's allergic to your breast milk and there's some type of formula out there that he can handle. I know it's tough. My 1st was born sick and 8 yrs later, we're still battling issues. Don't stop at just those 2 types of Dr's. Go for 2nd and 3rd oppions and find specialists, not just "joe-shmoe" dr. Good luck!

Do you have a very strong milk letdown reflex? I had that problem with my first daughter and her poop was frothy green. Sometimes if your milk comes down strongly and if you have an oversupply, baby gets too much foremilk, which is high in lactose. That can make baby gassy and fussy and lead to frothy green poop. If you suspect this could be the problem, once your milk lets down, let it flow into a burp cloth until it stops spraying (or pump off an ounce or two) before you start your feed. This may help (and it's easier on you than quitting food!).

My daughter went through the same thing a few weeks ago and the doctor told me to try cutting out dairy. My daughter has a milk protein intolerance. Try cutting out dairy and see if that helps. Sometimes soy also does it so be careful of substituting soy milk for regular milk. Good luck!

Hi Caroline; I know you feel stressed about this but I went through the same issue with mydaughter when she was an infant. I spoke to a nutritionist about it and we came to the conclusion that is was all dairy that I consumed. Dairy in any fashion would upset her stomach bad.Even to the point of bleeding in her diaper area from rases she had developed. We even tried formula and she had the same reaction switched to soy formula and she stopped having symptoms. So I stopped drinking and eating anything that was dairy based.. I hope you find a solution but it does sound like lactose intolerence in your baby and it does come in different forms.

I would try to cut out all dairy products, even the whey in some breads. My son isn't allergic to milk now, but he couldn't tolerate it the first five months or so. He would get very gassy and miserable, and his reflux would get worse. When I got rid of dairy, he was fine.

It can also indicate a wheat allergy, which is pretty hard to avoid. My friend's baby showed sensitivity to dairy, eggs, and wheat. She finally ended up giving up nursing and put him on the Similac that's for allergic babies. I can't remember the name, but it's pretty expensive! Again, he had outgrown all these problems by 12 months. Now he's eating everything!

But I would start with dairy. It's easy to avoid, and it made all the difference for us!

If you decide you want to try formula again try Enfamil Gentlease--this should help with the gas and fussiness!

I would highly recommend reading the book, "Eat Right for Your Baby". This book talks about food compatibility for pregnant and nursing moms. My daughter would get eczema when I ate certain foods, and this book helped me avoid that without having to stop nursing

Best of luck,

A.