Tummy Bug or Lactose Intolerance.

Stevie - posted on 04/08/2011

My daughter has secondary lactose intolerance. She was diagnosed at 2 months old. She had surgery that removed 20" of her bowel at birth.

Her symptoms were essentially colic. During a hospitalization her doctor diagnosed this.

Since then we began crushing Lactaid pills and mixing them with water. At 16 months she now takes a half chewable pill. She is still breastfeeding.

She has very acidic stool at times because when lactose mixes with stool the bacteria it breaks down the sugars into lactic acid.

I hope everything continues to work out well for your family!

Natasha - posted on 01/10/2011

Thanks everyone. Today i got "lactose free" formula, instead of soy. The lactose had been replaced with corn syrup (:

Ronni - posted on 01/10/2011

My daughter, who is 10 yrs old now, had problems with keeping her formula down as an infant. The doctor first checked her for reflux and finally diagnosed her as lactose intolerant. After switching to a lactose free formula she was able to keep it down. It was a gradual process weaning her off formula. Started with lactose free milk in her formula and eventually just the milk. She will now drink organic milk without any problems, but she still cannot have regular milk. Something to consider. Good Luck.

Laura - posted on 01/10/2011

Trying soy formula might help. Be aware that soy is one of the top foods for allergies so it's no guarantee that it will help! Make sure that your doctor is aware of the change. Most likely her intestines have been "cleansed" of ALL bacteria, including the very beneficial ones that help people digest their food. These bacterial colonies will re-establish over time, which is the most likely cure--TIME. Good luck!

Minnie - posted on 01/10/2011

True lactose intolerance is extremely rare in babies. It is typically diagnosed within the first week of life- due to failure to thrive. Human milk has the highest percentage of lactose of any milk. After the infant/toddler period many people become lactose intolerant around age six as a normal condition (adults don't need milk so they lose the digestive enzyme for lactose).

However- after a period of illness infants can have a form of lactose intolerance that is the result of damage to the lining of the intestines. This will resolve itself over time.

She doesn't have congenital lactose intolerance though. It would have been diagnosed within her first week.

Renae - posted on 01/10/2011

If this helps, frothy poo is a sign of lactose intollerance. My baby had very watery poo until he was around 12mos, his problem was not lactose or any intolerance, it was diagnosed as "transitional colic" which means "we dont know why he is in pain but are assuming his digestive system has not yet matured to properly handle food". By all means try soy, to the best of my knowledge it cant hurt.

Helen - posted on 01/10/2011

ask your dr to do a lactose allergy test, it's very simple to do - just like putting a palster on your child for 24 hours