Milk Protein Allergy/Breastfeeding - Food Elimination Diet/Nutramigen

Yes, Nutramigin helped my daughter tremendously, she was like a different baby. I know exactly what you are feeling I remember my daughter cried one day 19 hours straight. I as so exhausted I remember standing in front of the door crying and telling my husband you cannot go to work today I am going to loose my mind. I was soooo sleep deprived I couldn't function. I like you had another child to care for and a terminally ill mother in law living with me at the time. I know breastfeeding is important to you but taking care of you is more important. Formula is not going to hurt your baby, and if it helps that's even better. I also gave my children chamomile tea (check with your doctor first) and that helped as well. Good luck mamma and give it a few days, you may not see immediate results until everything else is out of his system. If Neutramagin does not work then Alumentium may also help. I have some babies at my daycare that have to have some rice cereal in their bottles to help with the reflux (also check with you doctor first) I hope your baby and YOU get some relief soon. Good luck!!

I am so very sorry! I have two children - a 6 month old and a 3 year old and both have severe food allergies and also had reflux. Although I breastfed my first and am with my second also, I can understand why you would consider formula, especially since your baby is still miserable. It certainly wouldn't hurt to try it and then you can see how he does and if it is something you're eating or not.

Was he tested for any other allergies at the time? As you probably know, wheat and eggs are also very common.

Just know that you are an awesome mama for doing all this for him and eating practically dirt (been there!). If the formula does not make a difference, I would definitely keep breastfeeding because usually children with food allergies have a compromised immune system, and the breastmilk will really help him in the long run. But if it doesn't work out, don't beat yourself up about it because you are definitely doing the best you can. Best of luck!

I have a good friend who had all 3 of her kids on Nutramigen. She ended up taking her first to the ER and that was what they put the baby on. Alimentum is soy based in case that is a potential allergen. I also went through all kinds of craziness trying to breastfeed and it never worked out for either of mine to be mainly breast fed. The first was in the NICU for 10 weeks and the second turned blue from lack of oxygen when I first tried to nurse her. I pumped a lot but it never quite worked out. If things get too crazy it is okay to switch to formula.

Give the formula a try but keep the breastfeeding going as well. In a few months, flu virus will be making the rounds. If you are exposed to a virus, within hours, your immune system's antigens will be present in your breastmilk and provide your baby with protection. For now, just tell yourself that most moms have been where you are now and survived to tell the tales. My 4th child was very collic-y & had his days and nights completely reversed for what seemed like months. I got ZERO SLEEP because I had 3 other school-aged children with DAY schedules to keep. Just keep saying to yourself, "This too shall pass." Boost your own health & well-being with a morning smoothie. Try VEGA - a highly nutritious veg-protein powder sold at Sprouts & Central Market. (I also agree with the mom that suggested that the reflux meds could be part of the problem.)

My son was very much like this. Reflux, dairy and soy allergies, you name it. It turned out that he had many food allergies and I did the special diet and everything. In retrospect, if I could have gotten him to take Nutramigen, I would have done that. It was exhausting trying to manage his issues and fussiness. I would give it a go. By the way, he's almost 4 now and pretty much eats a fairly normal diet, just no nuts and we rotate other foods that might be bothering him. We've done extensive allergy testing, and so I know what he tests positive for.

Nursing is always best-it could be gluten and you can go gluten free in your diet for the length of time you nurse. A good lactation consultant and LeLetche League is more helpful than any doctor about these things. Formula is never the answer-they don't need the corn syrup/sugar in their intestinal tract. They are too immature for it. Call LLL now.

My oldest son was diagnosed with a milk protien allery and reflux before we left the hospital when he was two days old. I breast fed him for 11 months. In the beggining I supplemented with nutramigen until he got the hang of breast feeding. He was a colicky baby and screamed everyday for about 11-12 weeks. I eliminated everything from my diet that I thought was causing it. I tried Grip water and anything else I thought would help. We took him on many car rides to calm him. Aound 11-12 week his digestive system matured and he was sleeping 8-9 hours at night. He is still allergic to milk at 2 1/2 years old and was weaned off of reflux meds around 20 months old. We had some touble with constipation with nutramigen when I started working when my son was 6 months old. I mixed 1/3 nutramigen and 2/3 breast milk in his bottles for day care. By 6 months of age he was eating solids so I had to make sure he always had enough fruit in his diet. I hope you find something that helps. I know when my son grew out of his crying stage I was happy I was still breast feeding. The price of nutramigen was not in my budget and I hated scrubbing nad making bottles. Good luck and I hope you get some rest

I have a 4 month old on Nutramigen, love it! We did try others and then my doc also said she has a reaction to milk and soy. It is a little pricey but worth it. She also has reflux and took meds for about 10 days and no longer needs it. We also visit the chiroprator once every other week for her to get adjusted and it helps with the spitting up and gas! I never breast fed so that is a difference for us.
She started cereal last week and my doc said to your beechnut cereal because it is milk and soy free, gerber is not.

You mentioned that he is on a reflux med but does he have a GI (gastrointestinal) doctor? If not, a full GI work up might help.
Also, there is a collection of disorders called Eosinophilic Gastrointestinal Disorders (EGID). People with one of these disorders must eliminate all foods except their "trigger" foods and supplement the rest of their diet with formula (this is an extreme over simplification of these disorders). My son has Eosinophilic Esophagitis. He is able to eat 6 foods (turkey, pork, potato, rice, apple, blueberry) and the rest of his diet is Neocate formula. It would be worth considering and begin possible treatment (although he can't really be diagnosed until he is at least 12 months old) if you have already done an extreme elimination diet and he is still fussy.

You are so busy, I am not going to make this answer too long. All my kids have had milk allergies to some degree.
1. remember that it takes a couple of weeks for all the bad milk stuff to get out of his system so even though you eliminate things from your diet, it will take a while to see the difference in him. Try to wait it out.
2. Keep yourself sane. If breastfeeding, in conjunction with caring for your other kids and your husband and yourself, seems too overwhelming, don't beat yourself up for not breastfeeding. YOU know what's right for your son, whether it's formula or breastmilk or a combination. Don't let other people's opinions, especially those who know nothing about your family dynamic, influence your decisions.
3. keep in contact with your pediatrician and consider finding a pediatric gastroenterologist. A specialist will know more specific answers and may be able to offer workable suggestions.

Good luck. I know it's tough. You can do it.

Oh I so know how you feel. Being on the diet alone was enough to bring me to my knees but the lack of sleep on top of that was horrendus.
BeckyW was correct about the probiotic. With my third baby I was on a very strict elimination diet and I also had my little one a good probiotic. My second little babe had reflux but I have a very conservative pedi that does not medicate unless he feels there is a very good reason too. He was absolutely correct when he told me that babies will grow out of it, he did. And I see his point, how many kinder kids do you see throwing up every time they eat? Not too many LOL
But back to my third baby who had the dreadful milk protein sensitivity...I didn't see improvement for about 3 weeks after I had eliminated. But after that I started seeing improvements in his diapers and with his weight. I never did have to supplement with formula but I can so understand your feeling of desperation. I had no desire to go the formula route especially after the sacrifice I had made with my diet.
I slowly started adding food that I had eliminated when he turned 4 months with the last thing I added back to my diet being dairy. By 6 months I was eating normally and he was doing great!
Perhaps sit down with your doc and tell him your concerns. Try the probiotic though and see if there is any improvement. Good Luck! I hope your baby starts feel better soon and you can get some much needed and deserved rest!!!

*Disclaimer for the ones whom offend easily or tend to get defensive (I don't want my inbox bombarded by those who are) . This was good for my family and I realize that not everything that is good for us is good for all.*

My daughter had blood in her stool from when she was 4 days old to 3 months. I had to cut everything from my diet and couldn't eat at any restaurants for fear of contamination. It took several months for her to finally be clear. I kind of wondered all along though that I might have just had an over supply- too much foremilk. Because that can cause digestive issues and blood in the stool also. My Dr. recommended pumping and mixing my milk to see if that helped. She was clear by 3 months and my supply had finally regulated by then also. I also was able to introduce milk and soy back in my diet and she hasn't had trouble since. Hang in there I know it is very frustrating. I didn't want to give up breastfeeding and my GI Dr. said the benefits of breastfeeding much out-weighed formula even if she had an allergy. Good luck and I hope your little guy feels better soon!

Hi KA,
My dd1 had

I hope that things get better for you. I tried to breastfeed my daughter and she did fine for a while and then started being colicky and screaming from 2 am until 8 am every night. I worked full time and never slept. We tried medication, every formula on the market and nothing ever worked. After her being this way for about 3 months, I needed some help. So out of desperation I talked to some of the ladies at my church. After her being this way for about 3 months, I needed some help. I decided to put her on buttermilk. I would heat it in the saucepan over the stove until it was warm and then strain it and feed it to her. That child never had another issue. The doctor was ok with me doing it since I had no other choices at that time. She is now 9 years old and in perfect health. good luck with your child.