Cow's Milk Allergies in Infants/toddlers

Katrina,
I would say just be as patient as you can. My 2nd son also had this problem, so bad at the time that he was included in a study at Childrens Hospital. I remember we had him on a special formula for what seemed like forever. He's now 8 and tolerates dairy and soy fine, but even as a preschooler he refused most cheese and milk, other than in small quantities. He got the necessary amount of dairy, but as a toddler we just did exactly what you are doing. Might need to keep him on the formuala for a little longer. Maybe the hard stools are another issue all together. I wish you well and hope he's eating normally again soon.

Why not try straight soy formula? Use a good quality - I use Enfamil Next Step ProSobee LIPIL for toddlers, aged 9-24mo. You could use it longer, then try transitioning to soy milk until his system settles down.

SAHM of seven

Hi K....I am a little confused...if your son has been diagnosed (or is even suspected of having) an allergy, why is your ped telling you to give him whole milk? I have a son with a milk/dairy allergy...he is 4 1/2 and has had it since birth. NOt only does dairy make him vomit terribly, his throat swells up due to the histamine production of his body when he drinks it. If your child is actually allergic to milk, the best thing to do is to avoid it completely...it can actually be dangerous for him to have milk if he is allergic to it, because every exposure can increase his histamine response and lead to a more severe allergic reaction. You can give him soy milk instead...Silk brand soy milks make very good milks that are calcium and vitamin fortified. I would wonder, though, if he actually has a milk INTOLERANCE and not an allergy...and in that case, maybe you could try lactaid or something. If it were an allergy, you might notice him being sick off of other foods, also (ie cheese, foods with cheese, ice cream, etc.) Good luck, and if your ped. thinks he has an allergy but keeps telling you to give him milk, find a different pediatrician!! :)

Hi K.,

Just a few sources of information on cow's milk I thought you might find helpful.

http://www.drlam.com/A3R_brief_in_doc_format/print/2003-N...
http://milk.elehost.com/html/why_does_calcuim_leave_the_b...
http://home.bluegrass.net/~jclark/calcium_foods.htm
http://www.safeminds.org/mercury/

I would personally recommend providing a rounded alternative, meaning, switching between soy, rice, almond, or other kinds of milks and fruit juices(though nut milks may be risky to give to a young child). Dairy (among other other animal products) is known to harbor hormones and chemicals given to the cow (animal) it came from... and with especially with dairy this also means concentrated amounts. Consuming dairy means that we are consuming growth hormones and all these other chemicals that are dosed for 1000+/- pound cattle. This can cause all kinds of problems for us because they interact and interfere with our own hormone production. (A good example is women who typically suffer extreme menstrual cramps and complications, who go on a primarily vegan diet -- excluding specifically cow, pork, dairy, chicken, and other dairy products -- end up having significantly less pain/discomfort, or no pain at all during their periods. Hormones also impact breast tenderness and swelling during the monthly cycle and may contribute to fibrocystic breast disease. Male hormones are no less susceptible to the hormone interference.)

Also, make sure he's getting enough water in his diet (plain water), and 100% fruits and vegetables (meaning no additives like sugars/corn syrups).

Best wishes,
H.

Hi K.
I think it is totally all from the milk. My son had milk allergies also so we need to use goats milk. You can buy rice milk or soy milk. The human body was not desinged to break down cows milk so it is certianly fine to not give him cows milk. You can get more calcuim out of green vegtables than in milk anyway. I say take him off the cows milk and you will have a much happier child. Good Luck:) T.

Hi, we just continued to give my son Target Next Step instead of milk. He also had issues with it. We tried various soy milks but just couldn't seem to find the one he would drink so to make our lives easier, we just continued to buy Target Next Step. (My son doesn't eat much so we just make sure he drinks at least 12 oz of milk daily.)

Katrina,
Taking milk out of the equation is the easiest thing to try. And milk has so many different symptoms! My daughter gets gas/cramps/loose stools & itchy skin, my son gets stuffy (extra mucus) and thus sinus infections. When I was little, I had bad constipation (so my mom tells me). You may have to go off it for 2 weeks to know for sure. Make sure you include all sources of milk -- whey, lactose and "milk solids" are in a LOT of foods -- even some hot dogs, so read the labels. If it isn't the milk, and constipation is his only symptom, try giving him small doeses of a fiber supplement -- I like Benefiber since it mixes into anything. Good luck!

All 3 of my children couldn't tolerate me eating any kind of dairy either. I breastfed them until almost 2 and supplemented with Fortified Rice Milk(FRM). After they were weaned, they used the FRM until they eventually grew out of the sensitivity at around age 3. They all use dairy now with no problems.

I hope you find the solution you're looking for.

My daughter had a milk allergy and had to be put on goats milk. She did wonderful on it! But she was vomiting and had diarrhea as her symptoms. Just switching over to cows milk can be constipating, so try adding a tablespoon of Karo syrup to his milk. That should help. I am a grandma, but that's what we used to do, and it works!!! Give it a try!

I just wanted to add one thing I didn't see here already--many people who are allergic to dairy are also allergic to soy. My son had a dairy allergy when he was your son's age and for that reason our doctor didn't even suggest soy as an alternative. He had allergy testing done at age 2 and he was allergic to soy. He is now 11 and has outgrown the dairy allergy, but is still mildly allergic to soy. Goat's milk worked for my son, but it doesn't work for everyone. It depends on the nature of your son's allergy/intolerance. Good luck.

You could try lactose-free milk too if you still want to try cow's milk. It could be a lactose issue.

My 14 month old was on soy formula, when I switched him to whole milk he had a lot of the same issues. He would be constipated one week and diarrhea the next. He also was vommiting and it seemed like he was up all night. My ped said to just cut back but keep giving him milk. That was 2 weeks ago and hes evened out for the most part. If he is still having issues in a couple weeks then take him back and ask them to take a deeper look.

My 18 mon. old was just tested today for milk & soy allergies. His symptoms were extremely upset stomach (I think gassy ...) and crabby. I also breastfed and had to eliminate all milk and soy. The periods in his life where he had either milk or soy he ended-up with ear infections. It has been 6 months since the last ear infection and total milk/soy elimination. I feed my son fortified rice milk and add healthy fatty foods to as much as I can...

He is going to a chiropractor that claims we might be able to get rid of the allergy. I am not sold on that, but he was the one who originally identified the milk and soy as both problems...so we will see.

I have heard that there maybe blood in the stool that you cannot see.

Good luck!

Kristine

We used Nutramigen for my son too and waited until a little later to introduce dairy. His pediatrician eventually did some allergy testing and that was very helpful. You could see if allergy testing is available at your pediatrician's office. If your son has a milk protein sensitivity/allergy, try the alternatives such as soy, or rice, etc. Cow's milk is not essential. My sister, now 30, never drank milk. She hated it and would have nothing to do with it. She went from being breastfed to eating table food. Our mom was able to fulfill her calcium and protein needs through other foods. She is a wonderfully healthy woman now. You know your child, so if the milk is causing other health problems, it might be best to keep milk out of his diet. Good luck!

Sounds like it is a milk allergy. Tyr using goats milk or soy. Rice, almond etc. are ok too but have more sugar & less nutritional value.

Keep him off the cow's milk unitl he is old enough to tell you how he feels when he drinks it and can make the decision fo rhimslef if it is worth the constipation, gas, etc. it may cause him

We do goat's milk as well. It resolved all my daughter's tummy trouble!

Try using soy milk and see if there is a difference. I don't tolerate lactose very well, not enough enzyme production to break it down. I switched my son to soy to see if that helps his autism. I have drank some soy and found I don't get sick. You can always try soy for your son and see if that makes a difference. I know my son was on soy as an infant due to colic.

My daughter has a milk allergy as well. She is my first child so I didn't pick up on the clues that she had an allergy. She was so fussy all of the time, spit up quite a bit, but was still growing. I did know that she had an intolerance because she couldn't tolerate icecream. What I didn't know was that the cheese I gave her was not going through her like the milk would, but would constipate her and give her horrible stomach aches. I kept a record of what she ate and when she acted up. The dr agreed it was a dairy allergy and when we took it away the skin stuff and the stomach aches all went away.

I had an allergy to cow's milk when I was first eating solid foods. After a while I "outgrew" the allergy and started eating dairy products again. Then in my preschool years, I had terrible constipation issues and after my parents put me again on a dairy free diet, my digestion improved. By the time I was in High School, I was able to eat dairy again without problems. Now I have a 3 mo. old son and he does not tolerate any cow's milk in my breast milk. Neither of us have reacted to goat's milk, so that's something you could try. Some of us are just not made to digest cow's milk very well.

K.-
Both of my son's had issues with cow's milk. I discovered the solution by bringing both of them to a chiropractor, who did some non-invasive testing to diagnose the problem. I could not believe the difference in each boy after I eliminated dairy (while I was nursing.) Luckily, both of my boys eventually grew out of their allergy to milk. I would highly recommend that you bring your son in to see a Chiropractor to see what they have to say. I know that Davis Chiropractic (offices in St. Louis Park and Excelsior) will see your child for a complimentary consultation in either one of their offices. Let me know if you would like more information, or try a Chiro near your house if they aren't convenient. I don't think you will regret it! Good luck!

Both of my daughters were allergic to milk protein and it caused constipation. My oldest went on Soy Formula and then to Silk Soy Milk at 12 months of age. Once she turned 2 we switched her to skim milk and she did fine. My younger daughter was allergic to Soy also so she went to Nutramigen. At 12 months old I was able to put her on Whole milk and she did fine as long as she got lots of pears and occasionally some Miralax.
If I were you I'd try the Silk Soy milk and see if it works. Nutramigen is SO expensive and he's old enough to be off of formula.
Best Wishes and please email me if you have any questions that I might be able to answer,
J.
Mom to 4, almost 5 through another adoption and hopefully more :o)

I strongly encourage you to have him allergy tested. He's not too young. My first son turned out to be allergic to milk and tree nuts. Son #2 is allergic to eggs. It would have taken me a while to figure out the egg allergy on my own. No need to make them suffer while we experiment with eliminating foods when they can just get tested. (Just remember that food intollerence doesn't show up as an allergy, but can still cause a great deal of discomfort.)

K. ~ why are you so attached to your son drinking milk? It sounds like he has either Crones Disease or Collitis - both of which cannot tolerate any milk. You should definitely have him checked for the potential of either... both of these diseases have severe food restrictions in order to live a healthy life.

Give him water. His body needs it and he will be getting plenty of nutrients from his food from now on. Incidentally, my kids didn't drink milk at all - not because of allergies but because the reading I did indicated that there is no reason for it.