How long does it take to get dairy out of your system?

[gmbsmom]

My DS is 5 months old and is BF. We have slowly introduced some solids per our pediatrician. We have battled reflux and he started having eczema around 2 months old. We use a cetaphil lotion/soap which help quite a bit but I notice when I eat a lot of dairy his eczema gets so much worse & I noticed from an early age that it upset his tummy. I almost completely cut dairy out of my diet & it helped quite a bit. I recently tried to add it back in and back came the eczema. My question is how long does it take for the dairy to get out of his/mine body? I think this may lead to his horrible sleep issues as well. He tosses and turns all night, wakes frequently & only takes 30-45 min naps unless cosleeping. We have been cosleeping just to survive but he no longer sleeps well doing that either. We need to start back sleep training & getting him in his own crib but I need to make sure that his tummy troubles are taking care of first. Thanks in advance!

Rhonda

[~ Vik ~]

Hi Rhonda

My ds has eczema and a dairy allergy too.  When I initially cut dairy out of my diet my doctor said to give it a month - 2 weeks to get it completely out of my system and breast milk, then another 2 weeks to clear ds' system.  If he's really sensitive, make sure you eliminate hidden dairy too - there's a list of ingredients to avoid in the food allergy faqs I think

Where are you from? There are a few creams that I use on ds' eczema that work wonders. I'm in Canada, and the brands I use are Aveeno Baby Soothing relief moisture cream and Spectro Kids EczemaCare. I tried a zillion different lotions and they worked the best

Good luck, and I hope your little guy starts feeling better soon!

[gmbsmom]

He seems to be able to handle dairy in very small amounts. I am in the US. The cetaphil works great for him so far. I just noticed that after I had ice cream yeasterday, & today along with a few products that have milk ingredients that his back, arms and legs have dry patches all over them. So that tells me that it is definitely the culprit. He is a terrible sleeper & if it will help us all get sleep its worth a try. Thanks for the advice

[Spectra]

Yes, I've also heard that it can take up to a month to fully clear out of the system.  Hopefully your little guy will be quicker!