Regarding this mother below, presented by Janice Reynolds:

I suspect dairy is the main issue here.  Dairy is big offender when it 
comes to gastrointestinal sx, eczema rashes, and other allergic sx. Most 
likely, an allergy or "sensitivity" to dairy proteins that are passing 
through the breast milk.  True lactose intolerance is rare and a severe 
medical problem that would result in a failure-to-thrive baby from 
birth.  Lactose intolerance can occur secondarily to other situations such 
as gastroenteritis, celiac disease (intolerance to the gluten in wheat- 
which typically presents with abnormal stools), and food 
allergy/intolerance- basically anything that can damage the intestinal 
lining where the lactase (the enzyme which digests *lactose*) is produced.

To test if dairy is truly the culprit, a total dairy elimination diet is 
best.  That is, no obvious dairy products such as milk, ice cream, butter, 
cheese, yogurt, cream, cream cheese, etc. AND no "hidden" dairy proteins 
such as any food made w/casein or whey (which are dairy protein).  There 
are also other names dairy proteins "masquerade" as, and I would be happy 
to provide a list, if you'd like to email me off-list. This type of trial 
requires label-reading of all food products, because dairy is included in 
many food items that one would never consider (e.g., some canned tuna 
brands contain "sodium caseinate," caseinate being a dairy protein)

The other alternative is to eliminate only the dairy "top guns" (milk, 
cheese, ice cream, yogurt, etc.), as that might do the trick.

For a dairy elimination diet to be given a fair trial, it must be followed 
for at least 2 weeks, preferably 3 weeks, before making any determination 
as to its effectiveness in solving the problem.  Dairy proteins can remain 
in mom's system for 2-3 weeks.

It has been my experience that when a mom says she has eliminated dairy for 
a period of time (and, again, 7 days would not be a long enough trial), 
often there have been some instances of dairy consumption sometime in that 
period (cookie made w/butter, scrambled eggs w/milk, etc.).  This can be 
enough to affect some babies who are sensitive to dairy.  And, with the 
dairy proteins from even one "dairy transgression" hanging out in mom's 
system for a couple of weeks, the effect can be felt for days or longer by 
baby.

Did or does baby receive any formula?  If dairy is the problem, a cow's 
milk -based formula is going to, obviously, be wreaking some havoc on his 
little system. The post states that problem began around 6 weeks- did mom 
return to work and formula entered picture then?

Also, does mom/dad or other family members have any food 
allergies/issues?  If so, then baby is more likely to be sensitive to these 
foods also.

~Dianne Oliver, IBCLC, LLLL
Simi Valley, CA




 >A 27 year old mother of a first baby, has struggled with her 9 month old
 >since 6 weeks after he was born. He breastfeeds frequently (every 2 hours in
 >the day and every hour at night) and is gaining well, but he is very gassy,
 >very fussy and has episodes of screaming at nights since he was 6 weeks old.
 >He is relatively happy and content in the day. There is no evidence of an
 >oversupply or an overactive letdown. His latch is good. Mom has a good
 >supply and her baby handles the flow well. Stools are yellow. She has tried
 >eliminating dairy, eggs, wheat and nuts from her diet for 7 days with no
 >improvement. She feels, however, that he is reacting to foods as she thinks
 >his episodes of screaming are more severe and frequent if he takes wheat
 >products or is she eats certain foods (for example, pizza). He is eating
 >some fruit, vegetables and chicken. She has eliminated all cereal from his
 >diet. She is seeing a pediatrician next week for a complete medical checkup,
 >but is feeling exhausted and frustrated. We are feeling that he is receiving
 >more lactose than his gut can handle, but are not certain of the cause. Any
 >suggestions?
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
Holistic Lactation
805-582-2058
www.holisticlactation.com

             ***********************************************

To temporarily stop your subscription: set lactnet nomail
To start it again: set lactnet mail (or digest)
To unsubscribe: unsubscribe lactnet
All commands go to [log in to unmask]

The LACTNET mailing list is powered by L-Soft's renowned
LISTSERV(R) list management software together with L-Soft's LSMTP(R)
mailer for lightning fast mail delivery. For more information, go to:
http://www.lsoft.com/LISTSERV-powered.html