could lo be allergic or lactose intolerant to my breast milk??

[lazfam]

I promise I will try not to write a book... From the beginning breast feeding has been a challenge. My daughter has fussed and cried and carried on at most feedings, and thrown up. I saw a lactation consultant a few times and an occupational therapist and it was determined that she had a weak latch and only a moderate suck so she might be getting in extra air. I have tried different exercises with her to help her suck and latch. Our pediatrician also put her on reflux medication, Zantac. BTW, she is almost 10 weeks old. Her weight gain has been slow, and the pediatrician didn't like that. She's not even gained 2 lbs since birth. Recently I had to take antibiotics for an infection in my jaw. LO's throwing up started to turn to wretching and throwing up. I thought it might be the anitbiotics because they were making me nauseaus, so we did formula from a bottle for a few days and and I pumped. Well, HELLO new baby. She stopped throwing up, stopped fussing, stopped wretching, all smiles. It was like a new happy baby. 36 hours after I stopped the antibiotics, we went back to breast. She threw up ON my breast, down my back, on the couch, three places on the floor, in her swing, and all over herself. WE kept on during the day, but she kept throwing up like that. We thought maybe I still had the antibiotics in my system, so we went back to formula for a day (Gentlease) and she was fine again. It also occured to me that it might be the positioning that if she is on her side nursing and has reflux that maybe if my let down is fast (it spurts across the room if I squeeze) that she cannot get it down fast enough and it comes back up. So, today I pumped and gave her my breast milk in a bottle. She threw up all over the place, on her jammies, all over the new clothes I put her in , all over me, etc. Could there be a problem with my breast milk?? Side note: in the beginning, I tried dietary changes as well. I cut out everything that I had ever read about that could be upsetting to a baby's stomach and I cut it out for almost 4 weeks. If anyone has any thoughts on this, I'd love to know. I really want her to get my breastmilk for as long as she can. But, if it's making her sick I'd rather she keep her food down and be happy. Thanks for any help!!

[Carter'sMama]

Wow, sounds like you have had a rough time! 

What does your pediatrician say about all the vomiting that has been going on?  I truly do not know much about reflux etc but my lo did have a dairy allergy until he was 18 months and he never vomited after feeds.  I never had to change my diet either ...    Hmmm ...  Was the formula you were using a special lactose free formula by any chance?  Because if it wasn't then formula's are usually made with cow milk type proteins which is a usual cause of allergies.  But she seemed fine after formula right??

{{HUGS}} that things get better for you and that you are able to find out some answers soon!  Hang in there!

Sorry I'm not much help ...

[deb]

My very first thought was that the antibiotics might still be affecting her. Antibiotics kill off not only the bad bacteria but also the good ones in your guts that help you digest your food. To re-establish good gut flora (yes, it's actually called that! LOL), I'd suggest looking into probiotics. I know at Whole Foods I've found some that's in powder form and made to dissolve in milk or formula. I'd try a smaller-than-suggested dose of that once or twice and see if it makes a difference (too much can cause gassiness and tummy cramps if your system isn't ready for it/used to it).

My second thought is that she might be allergic to something in your OWN diet. Common allergic triggers are milk, wheat, nuts, tomatoes/nightshades veggies (also includes peppers, potatoes and eggplants), and corn; milk in particular in mom's diet seems to cause tummy upset in babies. Tummy upset can also be triggered by cruciferous veggies (broccoli/cauliflower, cabbage) in mom's diet. How much of that kind of food do you eat?

[binxyboo]

My thoughts were that maybe you could feet her upright, straddling your leg. so to speak. Although if small, you may want to pop some cushions underneath to hoist her to the right level. Have you considered pumping and feeding her your milk to see if it is the milk or the feeding method that may be causing it?

Riley was tonguetied and his suck took a while to truly develop. But by three months we had it all figured out, I think.

[lazfam]

Hi, sorry it's taken me so long to get back here. The formula we have been using is GentlEase. It has partially broken down proteins and reduced lactose. I've heard that about antibiotics, which is why I never take them. I do take a daily super greens that has probiotics in it. I will check Whole Foods and see if I can find what you 're talking about, deb. Is it in the infant area? The first thing I did was to change my diet. I cut out milk (all dairy), wheat, nuts, peanut butter, onions, garlic, gassy veg, corn. It didn't seem to change anything for her. I have also expressed my milk and given it to her in a bottle to see if positioning is the issue. She still throws up. Pediatrician said the throwing up is reflux. But, no medications are helping it. She still spits up on formula, but much less than my breast milk. It is SO confusing. I thought my breastmilk was supposed to be the best thing for her, but she doesn't seem to be doing well on it. What about a foremilk/hindmilk imbalance? I've notice when I pump and put my breast milk in the fridge for the next feed that when it seperates....there is very little fatty stuff on the top. I mean VERY little. Sholdn't there be a nice head of fat on it?

[binxyboo]

I don't know if pumps are as efficient at getting all the milk out as a baby would be....How long did you eliminate things for?

[deb]

Probiotics at Whole Foods are in their own section, usually in the same area as vitamins and supplements, in a refrigerated case, as probiotics generally need to be kept cold as they're actually live organisms. There are capsules for adults, chewables for kids, and a variety of powders good for dissolving in liquids or mixing in other foods, and some are specifically made for infants/babies.

Does the GentlEase have any soy in it at all? I know that soy intolerance isn't unusual, and if you have soy in your diet but there isn't any in the formula, that might be the trigger. Soy is REALLY REALLY hard to avoid, but it IS possible. I'm not sure if the symptoms would be related, but it might not hurt to check into it; one of my kids' sitters is intolerant of soy and the soy formula they gave her as a baby was how they found out.

Also, depending on which meds your LO is taking for reflux, they may or may not have anyhting to do with the actual throwing up. Zantac, for example, reduces acid but does NOT inhibit the muscular reflux action, while other meds (I forget which ones, sorry, but we were Zantac users here) do NOT reduce the acid but DO inhibit the throwing up.

When I pumped, I did notice changes in the composition of my milk depending on when it was pumped and sometimes around a growth spurt., but most times I pumped a full feed there was a decent amount of fat. Are you yourself getting good helpings of GOOD fats daily? Butter, olive oil, dark meat chicken, full-fat milk and yogurt, oh, and coconut oil (also available at Whole Foods), and flaxseed oil and fish oil - ALL of these are good fats.

That's all I can think of at the moment, but I've been checking back to this thread. Keep us posted.