Mum said:
1) pediatric gastroenterologist on Friday, who told me that I was in
his office because I am still exclusively breastfeeding her...WHAT THE, she's 7 months, not 5 years old??!!
2) 'lazy' digestive tract, What the??!!
3) that if I continue to exclusively breastfeed her, that she'll have to go on stool softeners in her second year because the constipation  What the??!!
4) told me that breastmilk is binding What the??!!
5) His suggestions: What the??!!

Sooo glad this mum is visiting with you Fleur. 

Is there possibly reflux here?? Manageable/bearable  up to now?? Once bub is crawling (head down, bum up) might reflux symptoms have increased, coinciding with the increased pain/crying, etc. 

It may be worth chatting about some of the foods we know (many of us from personal experience) that lead some breastfed babies to be windy/irritable/cry a lot. Some of these things she hasn't mentioned when she talked about elimination diet. Things like onions, garlic, herbs, gassy drinks, high fibre foods (which we are all told to eat lots of after the birth to keep things "moving" ...right??) such as high fibre breakfast cereals, dried fruits, bran, fruit such as pears, apples, etc, peas, beans lentils, legumes, broccoli, cauliflower, cabbage, etc. 

Some mums and dads really need to be their own detectives to work these things out. If she could do a week's food and drinks diary and you post it here, someone might be able to hit the nail on the head for her or make a better suggestion of what she could try with an elimination diet. 

Is she on any vitamin etc supplements/ herbal remedies? since she is visiting with a naturopath this is a possibility. She mentions Fish oil and Flax seed oil?? How long have these been going on?? Could these be a problem. She's been trying to boost supply - could she be taking herbal galactagogues?? might these cause/exacerbate a wind/colic problem??
I'm surprised the naturopath hasn't suggested probiotics - perhaps gut flora are all out of balance and causing great amounts of gas?? I haven't had experience with this but others here may have?? 

As an aside, do not rely on blood test for allergy diagnosis. Personal experience, first son blood test showed absolutely no allergy reading to nuts/peanuts (ZILCH), skin prick test showed peanuts, cashew and almond, challenged with cashew in controlled surgery conditions ended in anaphylaxis and four hour emergency department stay and subsequent diagnosis with severe nut/peanut allergy with meds and action plan now in place. Do no rely on blood test. 

Attachment/tongue tie/blocked nose as possible issue for gathering gas in the tummy? No mention if wind is in the tummy or further down in the gut?? I'm not thinking this would really be likely as the problem seems to start around the 5 month mark rather than all along. Thumb/pacifier sucking? Sleep apnoea/snoring? 

Perhaps bub's gut has been irritated by illness. Has she been unwell before this started? 

Is mum pregnant? Ovulating?? New hormonal contraception?? Perhaps supply IS dropping due to these and bub getting less breast milk overall? 

Has baby been doing lots of crying, swallowing gups of air? Scheduling? 

Could be gluten, she didn't try elimination of that? Any family history of coeliac disease or a wheat intolerance? 

Sorry for the meandering thoughts, this post just really grabbed me due to personal experiences of intolerance/allergy.
Good Night or Good Morning, (according to your location), I'm off to bed!
Del
*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~**~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~**~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*
Del Smith
Breastfeeding Counsellor
Australian Breastfeeding Association www.breastfeeding.asn.au
9 sleeps!!!

----- Original Message ----- 
From: "Fleur Bickford" <[log in to unmask]>
To: <[log in to unmask]>
Sent: Wednesday, October 10, 2007 8:40 PM
Subject: Baby needs more fiber??


I'm working with a mom right now whose baby has had a lot of GI issues since
birth. She recently saw a pediatric gastroenterologist who basically told
her that her baby's problems are because she's still exclusively breastfed
(baby is 7 months), and that baby just needs more fiber in her diet (despite
the fact that baby's poops are still soft, so she's not constipated). Mom
has given me permission to post her story in hopes that some of you might
have some suggestions. I'm thinking that baby is reacting to something in
mom's diet, and I've suggested to her that she should wait to start solids
at least until baby's allergy test results come back. Any thoughts or
suggestions are greatly appreciated. Below is the e-mail the mom sent me:


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