Thread: baby has milk allergy (i think) suggestions?

we've tried slowly adding whole milk to Z's diet (cutting it with his formula) but even a slight trace of it gives him the runs and a horrible rash for a few days. we've tried this slowly over the last couple of months..we also tried the rice dreams or rice milk..same results. i also cut yogurt out of his diet much to his dismay

we can't get him in to a doc appt for another couple of weeks so i have him back on sensitive formula..he's always had a sensitive stomach and easily tossed his cookies from day one, even on breastmilk. it's been a few days since the last milk attempt and the poops are slowing down..

any other suggestions? i'm assuming it's a milk allergy or intolerance. i'm nervous about trying anything else cuz the poor kid gets a bad, flaming rash from pooping so much. the only thing that helps his rash is nystatin (yeast medication) ..desitin, butt paste, etc don't help the rash

he's still a really picky eater..just nibbles on cheerios and mashed potatoes so formula is still most of his diet

Can you at least call the doctor and talk to a nurse or get some advice over the phone? He may have some kind of tummy bug--however, there is a definitely an asian connection to lactose intolerance, so it could be.

I agree with Mish Mish about calling the doctor. Perhaps you can also try soy milk. I know some parents with kids who are lactose intolerant and they give them soy milk instead and it seems to work for them.

Have you tried soy milk? I was allergic to milk as a baby and raised on the soy stuff. Later outgrew the allergy but I still prefer soy milk to anything else!

Souzan

All I can tell you is my experience. My youngest, Melody, was lactose intolerant when she was a baby. (she has since outgrown it) When I weaned her (she was fine with breatmilk) I had to give her soy formula. Any milk product would make her vomit. It was very uncool. I actually had to keep her on the formula unitl she was two years old because she was also very small. After she was 2 she did fine with milk products.
Have you tried soy? Definitely call your pediatrician or nurse to get advice. Allergies are tricky.
Hope it goes well.

my bad..it was Soy Dreams so it seems he cannot handle soy either

I'm gonna call and ***** on monday:)

and then i'm gonna go smack his daddy (actually i can't handle milk either so it may have come from me if such things are genetic

It's very important that you tell your pediatrician right away. It sounds just like what happened with my son. The pediatrician referred me to an allergist who performed a RAST test. My son has a severe milk allergy (and egg allergy). I have to carry an Epipen with him everywhere, in case he goes into anaphylaxis.

If your son is having that kind of reaction, it's important not to give him any milk products. The allergist told me that many parents make the mistake of thinking that if you give your child a little bit of the allergen, they'll develop an immunity to it. That's the way you can deal with food allergies with adults but children have different immune systems. With babies and children, you need to keep their diet completely free of the allergen to enable their immune system to get strong enough to outgrow the allergy.

Severe food allergies are much more common now than before.

Here's a great website with loads of information:
The Food Allergy & Anaphylaxis Network

Originally Posted by ZohraMostafa

It's very important that you tell your pediatrician right away. It sounds just like what happened with my son. The pediatrician referred me to an allergist who performed a RAST test. My son has a severe milk allergy (and egg allergy). I have to carry an Epipen with him everywhere, in case he goes into anaphylaxis.

If your son is having that kind of reaction, it's important not to give him any milk products. The allergist told me that many parents make the mistake of thinking that if you give your child a little bit of the allergen, they'll develop an immunity to it. That's the way you can deal with food allergies with adults but children have different immune systems. With babies and children, you need to keep their diet completely free of the allergen to enable their immune system to get strong enough to outgrow the allergy.

Severe food allergies are much more common now than before.

Here's a great website with loads of information:
The Food Allergy & Anaphylaxis Network

thank you for the info! my sitters kids are allergic to milk as well ..he doesnt show any other symptoms other than the poops but i'd like to avoid future probems

A large portion of children who have a sensitivity to milk also have a reaction to soy. I raised both my kids sans dairy (tried it with both and they got the red, inflammed rash or cheeks and diaper rash too). There is also rice milk and almond milk, but my kids didn't like those either.

What worked for us is to add probiotics to their diet (Jarrow makes a powder you can sprinkle on baby's food or dissolve in formula) and to supplement with calcium chewables once it was safe.

It sounds like his diet is very limited right now, and I would talk to your doc about it...there are other vitamins that he needs that it sounds like he might be missing in his diet if he's not eating any orange or green foods.

Symptoms of milk sensitivity seem to fade at about 5-6 years for most kids, but they can manifest in other ways (I literally just now made the connection between any dairy consumption and the dry cracked skin on my feet).

For now, though, talk to doc about what you can do to make sure Z is getting essential stuff into his body during his key growing years. :)

Is the rash only on his bottom? Or does he get it on his face as well?

I have always been allergic to milk. As a child I thought everyone ate cereal with apple juice in lieu of milk. Was I shocked to discover apple juice was the oddity, not milk. If you pediatrician will not make time for a consultation regarding something this serious I would have to call the AMA. Food allergies can be serious, especially in infants. Z could easily become dehydrated. Bless his sweet heart.

I was TOTALLY allergic to milk, soy, rice, bananas...pretty much everything. Goats milk was totally fine and this is what I drank, along with breast milk. Allergies are nothing to mess around with, I had respitory symptoms along with really horrible rashes and bad digestive issues. Might want to check this out. Dairy Allergies and Allergy to Milk

yeah next to allergies i'm worried about him not getting enough nutrition

he doesn't like anything right now ..when we had him on baby food he'd down two of those jars but now he likes cheerios

am on hold right now with a clinic that is not ours to see if i can talk with a triage nurse..

oh rash is just on his butt

Please keep us informed on the status of our baby Z. He has many Bhuz Aunties concerned about him.

Jess,
My daughter is technically "sensitive" (her category of reaction is not considered a true allergy) to milk protein which is different from lactose intolerant. Most of the alternative milk products - rice, almond, etc. - still have casein (the protein) if you read the ingredients but they do not have lactose. When we started introducing her to milk she got red blotches anywhere it touched her, she got incredibly hyper, had trouble sleeping and had very little appetite and quit gaining weight. After much work with a doctor who didn't believe kids could be allergic to milk, RAST testing and a lot of research I found these are all possible casein allergy symptoms. The range of possible reactions to milk is very large which at times makes it hard to spot.
Hope you can work things out for Z soon... it is no fun at all to have your kid feeling lousy
Shannon

What is the rationale for wanting him to consume milk, rather than other nutrient-dense foods?

I'm just hearing that it is very important that he consume milk, even though he is having reactions to it.

The reason I ask is, I was forced to drink milk. I couldn't stand it, and I'm sure I had IBS because of it. My mother was convinced, however, that milk was the only nutritional food that would help me grow, despite my allergic reaction and disdain for it. Years later I'm still the same size as I was in junior high school so milk obviously did not help me grow.

I don't think she was wholly informed as to what else she could feed me that would fulfill my nutritional needs. In the meantime, while I was being force-fed milk and meat, no one seemed to acknowledge or appreciate the fact that I loved my rice and vegetables. While I was a skinny kid, I was not wasting away and I had a lot of energy. Barring any underlying health issues, children often know what their bodies need.

I understand that you are concerned for your child's health. If he's rapidly losing weight and it is obvious he is not feeling well, then by all means consult a physician when you can. You can still provide himnutrition in other ways than by just drinking milk (and I'm not saying this to push a vegan agenda or anything like that).

I'd be fine if he drank formula or some other nutrient rich food..it doesn't have to be milk. I didnt make Moki drink milk (i hate it too, won't drink it)

so no as long as he is healthy and getting what he needs it's not important whether or not it's milk specifically ..if that makes sense

Originally Posted by jesennia

I'd be fine if he drank formula or some other nutrient rich food..it doesn't have to be milk. I didnt make Moki drink milk (i hate it too, won't drink it)

so no as long as he is healthy and getting what he needs it's not important whether or not it's milk specifically ..if that makes sense

Yes, that makes sense, Jes.
I hope he's feeling better soon!

Justin had problems with whole milk. His doctor had us keep him on formula until he was a full year old. then we slowly switched him to 2%, which he now drinks by the galleon! He also had a rash on his butt when he was given whole milk.

It may simply be that whole milk is too rich for him.

{{{HUGS}}}

last night we switched his formula and cut out all dairy..not even a bite of cheese for him. it'll have to be an elimination process..but this is the first morning in a couple of weeks he woke up with just pee pee in the diaper and his butt is mostly clear :)

thank you aunties. you can pay his way thru college (j/k)

My son had a milk allergy. It was discovered when I was breastfeeding him. I gave up all dairy - including food that was processed near dairy and it cleared up. Now - it sucked for me because I gave up dairy for 10 months! The doctor said that dairy allergies in children usually clear up. My son is 2 now and does not have an issue with dairy anymore. Thank goodness!

You have no idea how much dairy is in stuff. Even some crackers have dairy!

This website was such a great help to me...

Go Dairy Free | Your Information Resource for Dairy Free Living

This site helped me to identify "dairy free" foods that I could eat and what to avoid. Like Pizza Hut uses dairy in their dough!

Lets just say I lost a lot of weight over that time period. I also did feel healthier. Bur darn it - I love cheese!!

Ally is 16 months and right around the 12 month mark we introduced cow milk to her diet. After about three weeks we realized she was having the same reaciton as your little one. We took her off cow milk, yogurt, and cheese immediately and within a day she was just fine.

I would suggest trying goat milk (as it's nutritionally superior to cow milk and easier on the digestive system) or lactose-free milk. Ally wouldn't touch goat milk, so we use the latter.

She's now able to eat yogurt and maybe a little cheese here and there without any problems.

Good luck Jes! Hope it works out soon and the little one feels better.

One other thing I just thought of. For the diaper rash, put a layer of vaseline over whatever ointment you're using. It will keep moisture away and help clear things up faster too.

We haven't tried cow's milk with Joshua yet (1 year next week), but we suspect either a wheat or gluten allergy (really bad butt reaction whenever he has some). He has allergy testing at his 12 month appointment, which is on the 10th. For us, we're just keeping him away from any wheat products (they told us to avoid introducing ANY new foods until after his testing). Joshua has excema, and his butt reaction is a really bad excema flare-up that bleeds (sorry, hope nobody's eating while reading this). The only thing that clears it up is Aveeno diaper rash cream. Can't wait until allergy testing (and kinda sad that it means no birthday cake for the borthday boy!)