Lactose Intolerance, protein sensitivty, etc...

Sarh - posted on 03/22/2011

I didn't give him any dairy today, ok, thats kind of a lie, he stole his sister's pizza crust so he might have had a tad bit of cheese. This little boy is SO SNEAKY! haha. But, starting tomorrow I will make sure he has no dairy for about a week.
I'm wondering if his random "viral infections", cough, runny nose, congestion are from when I would consume a lot more dairy then other days?! Along with the random rash he gets only on his upper chest. Which now thinking about it, he had the rash and the runny nose for about 2 weeks now and we started dairy about 2 wks ago. I'm curious to see if this is all just coincidence?

I was as well surprised that doctor wanted me to try and give him some dairy since he was sooo gassy and miserable just when I ate dairy and he was breastfeeding, right after he was born. Doctor said like cheese and cook with milk, but no milk as a drink yet (duh), yogurt, etc.
Hmm... I haven't tried yogurt, because my fiancee said that really tares his stomach up or was it cream cheese that tore up his stomach and he doesn't like yogurt? Sorry, sometimes I have the memory of a 90 yr old!

I'm not really stressing about him being able to eat dairy, I'd just like to know for sure if he is or is not allergic or whatever else before we try to introduce milk because I need to wean him at 12ms. I need to go back on my medications.
Thanks. :)

Catherine - posted on 03/22/2011

I definitely agree with Jody that a milk protein allergy is the much more likely scenario for your little boy than lactose intolerance (http://www.kellymom.com/babyconcerns/lac...).

As for introducing dairy, I'm surprised the pediatrician advised it this early. Most babies will outgrow a milk protein allergy between 1 and 3 years old, so maybe if you wait a little bit longer it might go a bit better? Since you're unsure whether the dairy is causing his problems or not, maybe you could stop for a few weeks and then try again and see if the same things happen? Sometimes a little trial and error a few times over is the only way we can really figure things out.

Also, yogurt might actually be the best dairy product to try first. The process of making yogurt actually breaks down some of the proteins in it and makes it easier to digest, so your son might have an easier time with that than he's having with cheese (http://www.askdrsears.com/faq/fit23.asp).

I hope this helps. As long as you're still breastfeeding, there's no reason to stress too much about whether or not he's eating dairy. If it was me, I'd just stop for a few weeks and then try again and see what happens.

Jody - posted on 03/22/2011

They say it takes a while for the proteins to work their way out of your system if you ar breastfeeding, I think they recommend somewhere around 3 wks but you will have to look it up. If he isn't feeding off of you anymore then I would try removing dairy from his diet until the stuffy nose etc is gone for a few days. maybe a weeks and then try reintroducing it. I am sure if you go online and look they will have some specific recommendations if you are unsure or call your doctor they might have a recommended reintroduction method that will hold more weight with them and get them to act faster if he shows sensitivity/allergy.
As for you think of lactose tolerance something like alcohol tolerance, if you never eat it then your tolerance goes down since why make something your not using, it will still make some but not enough to hande a sudden reintroduction, so start out slow and maybe try starting with things like yogurt etc with probiotic to help get your digestive system primed :)
Good luck!

Sarh - posted on 03/21/2011

Ok, I will definitely TRY to cut dairy out again! We live in WISCONSIN!!! This is so hard to do! haha.
A few years ago I was getting horrible stomach aches from ice cream and dairy, but I managed to I guess build up my tolerance...? I could eat dairy just fine until I had to cut it out of my diet for this little monster.
I don't want to go completely no dairy in the house... I don't want my daughter to become intolerant.
And I refuse to put my son on anything soy! Soy is horrible for boys! Not trying to make anyone who has a boy on soy feel bad, but it's not something I would do.

So cut out dairy for a week and after that week if the runny nose went away then go to the doc? Or should I wait longer then a week? I wonder if all his skin rashes, congestion, coughing, etc that the antibiotics never worked for were from me "accidentally" consuming a little dairy...?
Very interesting.

Jody - posted on 03/21/2011

LoL sounds like my man and yours are very alike then lol

It also sounds like you are showing signs of intolernace yourself, you can try lactaid or another dairy enzyme supplement for when you eat more than you intended and want to help prevent those nasty symptooms.

One of the most noticable differences between the lactose intolerance and milk allergy is that intolerance symptoms stick to the digestive track except for headache and usually results in you getting the runs while the allergy usually results in constipation. tThe allergy also tend to result in traditional allergy symptoms, skin irritation or rash even hives and in some they get breathing problems, wheezing, stuffiness, coughing sneezing, they might even get itchy watery eyes. So the stuffiness you mentioned might be coincidence but maybe not, try cutting the dairy out again see if it goes away and then reintroducing purposely a little skim milk each day and see what happens if the stuffy nose returns and he gets crank and gassy go to the doctor and push for tests for sure! Make sure to have some benedryl on hand to treat those allergic symptoms if you need to.



For your little one maybe go ask for a

The stool acidity test:(this test analyses levels of acidity in the stool brought on by undigested lactose. This test is usually given as a substitute for the hydrogen breath test for young children and infants) for lactose intolerance or get referred to an allergist to get a blood test for IgE as christine mentioned to look for the milk allergy. If he is allergic you need to talk to a specialist and get the low down so you can form a solid well informed game plan. But from what you have said, that you breastfeed etc it sounds like a milk allergy/sensitivity for sure.



TO help everyones general digestive helath you can also look for vegan digestive enzyme suppliments or try eating more fresh papaya or pineapple, they contain enzymes that help with general digestion.

http://www.ehow.com/facts_4883446_what-a...

http://altmedicine.about.com/cs/herbsvit...

specifically look for a vegan probiotics for yourself and your kids, they are available in liquid but it is usually harder to find but worth the effort. I know we all notice a big difference when we take them, we just feel better and notice less stomache upset, gas etc

Good luck!!

Christine - posted on 03/20/2011

my boy has a milk protein allergy. he cant have any dairy at all. his allergy also means that there is a good chance that he would be allergic to proteins in other animal milks. so he is soy, almond or coconut milk only.

mason will have an asthma attack if he gets any. it is VERY scary. mason unfortunately had to go through a whole allergy test because he is allergic to like everything. BUT if you think that milk is the only problem i think the doc can draw blood and do a serum IgE to milk rather than a scratch test.

sorry that people have treated you badly for asking questions :( if you do have to cut dairy out of his diet, we hove found that it is easiest to buy dairy free for the whole family. check your labels on the back you will see things like "whey, non-fat dry milk powder" etc. they should be in bold. underneath the ingredients list, allergen information may also be listed. the FDA required this in 2006 and it makes my life sooo much easier (although i dont rely only on that, i still check just to be safe)

good luck!! milk protein allergy is really common is kids and usually resolves by age 3-5!

Sarh - posted on 03/20/2011

Thank you Jody! Much nicer then some of the other people who "correct" me in other threads. :) So on the first link I read the symptoms and he has had a runny nose for about 1.5-2 wks now. Started dairy 2wks ago, just coincidence?! Or should I stop dairy and call the pediatrician to confirm it?
You sound pretty knowledgeable about the differences and what not. I have never knowingly known someone who was lactose intolerant until I started dating my fiancee, but he still eats dairy and then complains about the stomach ache and it either makes him constipated or have diarrhea, anyways. Sorry, to much? haha. But, do you suggest I discontinue the dairy? I have no clue what to do. Since cutting out dairy from my diet for the past 8ms if I consume too much (which is not a lot compared to what I used to consume), I get a horrible stomach ache and diarrhea. I'm hoping he doesn't get the same tummy ache because it is truly horrible!!

Jody - posted on 03/20/2011

Ok i will explain the difference :)

Lactose intolerance is common...in adults but NOT in babies, lactose is the sugar found in milk, it is in all milk made by mammals, including us and whether you eat dairy or not.

If you baby was lactose intolerant he would be vomiting, diahrea, very very sick and not gaining weight.

That said, it sounds like he has a problem with one or more of proteins found in cows milk meaning he is allergic to or at least sensitive to cow milk. When you eat the dairy products the protiens pass through your milk to him and he reacts.

THe reason your husband etc are lactose intolerant ( though being completely intolerant is rare too even as adults) is because they are adults and as we get older our bodies start to make less of the enzyme lactase necessary to digest lactose since we were only ment to drink milk as children and our bodies dont like to waste resources making lots of something we don't need. Think about other mammals, they do not drink milk past infancy nor do they drink the milk of other mammals like we do.

Our production of the enzyme lactase for digesting lactose starts to decline around 6yrs old. This can be a long long slow decent or quite quick and depending on your ethnicity (since the amount of enzyme made is dictated by our DNA) many people are at least partially lactose intolerant by their thirties (30), and many show signs of intolerance but do not realize it. North americans tend to stay more tolerant for longer since we ingest soo much more dairy compared to many other cultures, over time our genetics have adapted for it.

The symtoms people experience, the stomache upset,gas and bloating etc are due to the fact that their is more lactose to digest than we have enzymes to do the job :) ( this is what happens to babies when there is a hind milk fore milk imbalance, lactose overload!!)

So for people who are noticably less tolerant usually small amounts are fine, but a bowl of ice cream is not. Lactose, since it is a sugar is in a lot of foods, even chips! go to your cupboard and check some labels you'll be surprised!

Looking at close famiy and when they noticed becoming intolerant will help you figure out when this might happen to your children, if at all :)

Also know that some bacterial infections affecting the stomache and intestines, tummy flus etc etc can temporarily make a child lactose intolerant, so they should avoid dairy for a while and slowly reintroduce it when they feel better since it is not a permanent thing. ( unless your breastfeeding in which case you have to stick it out and ensure hey get lots of hind milk)

http://kidshealth.org/PageManager.jsp?ar...

http://www.differencebetween.net/science...

the above are just a few sites with information to get you started:)

Good luck, i hope this helps :)