You may have already addressed all of these things, but here goes:
When I see a baby with what appears to be extensive food sensitivity, I
find it is absolutely essential to look at the mother's nutritional
profile. It is almost always the case that these mothers have permeable
guts and to heal the baby requires that we heal the mother. It is
important to evaluate the mother's diet before, during and after
pregnancy--looking especially at foods she herself had allergic
symptoms to (most moms who say they have no food allergies, actually
have many symptoms they consider normal, like constipation, congestion
and skin conditions). I also look at any condition the mother considers
normal as part of the bigger picture, in conjunction with those she may
consider problematic, such as overweight or underweight, diabetes,
depression and others that often find their origin in poor gut functon.
I have a group of health care practitoners I can refer to if I need
them (a naturopath, homeopath, chiropractor and
herbalist/nutritionist), but I usually begin with suggesting the mom
make basic changes like adding esstial fatty acids to her diet, adding
green foods, eliminating all trans fats and so on. Adding a probiotc is
often essential.
What troubles me so much about your post is that the doc wants to use
Neocate before he tries anything "invasive". AIM is horrendously
invasive to the human infant!!! In addition to the baove, i would go
over the mother's elimination diet thoroughly to evaluate ingredients
and be sure she is eliminating ALL of the suspected foods. Often, moms
are not and don't realize it.
BTW, the ped's request that the mom eat fruit, veggies, fish and
chicken seems to me like a stab in the dark. If the baby is allergic to
eggs, he is potentially allergic to chicken and fish is so highly
contaminated that this is a very poor choice. The mom needs healthy
fats in her diet and a lot of fruits and veggies. I get the sense that
she did not eat a healthy diet, but relied too much on protein foods to
the exclusion of foods rich in phytonutrients and EFAs. I do not have
notes in front of me, but there is a migration of gut cells to the
mother's breasts during pregnancy and those cells are involved in
immune function of the breasts. So, I would conjecture that there is
significant relationship between the mother's gut health and this kind
of allergic response in infants.
All of that said, I think the answer lies in much more CST. A baby
whose oral structure is so taught suggests rigidity throughout the
system and he may be unable to shift from sympathetic to
parasympathetic function, which means he cannot digest food properly.
Proper tongue and cranial funtion, motilty of the diaphragm and the
Pyloric sphincter are essential to his gut function and can be healed
with CST. His birth was very traumatic and colic is most often related
to imjury in the nervous system that CST can heal. I find that food
allergies often resolve when CST is employed, although I think that
during the healing process, removing the irritants is very important..
Be sure that the CST is trained in pediatrics and has a knowledge of
oral function and gut function. And, I think that the mother needs to
make changes in her diet anyway.
Jennifer Tow, IBCLC, CT, USA
-----Original Message-----
From: Kathryn Ward <[log in to unmask]>
To: [log in to unmask]
Sent: Tue, 5 Apr 2005 20:45:48 -0400
Subject: Puzzling Case
Dear Lactnetters,
I'd like to get your thoughts on the following case, with the mom's
permission.
The baby has now seen at least 4 different lactation consultants and a
few LLL
leaders, not to mention an OT/CST, besides the pediatrician. Over the
past 71/2
wks. he has gone from not latching at all to at least latching well on
the right
breast. Still having fits with the left. Mom is most concerned about
blood in
the stool. Here's the summary:
7 1/2 wk old infant, gaining weight, well hydrated, normal amount of
wet and
poopy diapers, appetite is fine, no fever.
a.. cries beginning halfway through feeding and continues after
feeding until
you can calm him down like a Reflux baby would
b.. cries when having gas or bowel movement
c.. bowels are now dark green, streaked with blood and mucous
d.. nasal congestion
e.. Doctor ran tests on stool for inflammation due to bacteria or
allergies--came back negative
f.. Doc then consulted a Ped. G.I. who feels that it's an allergy to
something in breastmilk and would like to try Neocate predigested
formula before
doing more invasive tests such as endoscopic procedures
g.. OT/CST saw him last week for "colicky" symptoms and latch
difficulty.
Couldn't even get her finger in his mouth because he was so fussy. Did
some
other work to loosen his left side. He had not been turning his head to
his
left, but now he can. He has a very small, tight, clampy latch.
h.. Mom has eliminated soy, dairy, and peanuts for at least 2/12
weeks (added
back in Parmesan cheese without making a difference.) Starting
yesterday, the
ped asked her to eat only fruits, veggies, chicken, and fish. No
grains. No
nuts or olive oil.
i.. She had gestational diabetes and was very faithful to the diet,
which
involved huge amounts of protein. Since mom is mostly vegetarian, that
mean a
lot of nuts and peanut butter, with fish. Very limited fruits and carbs.
j.. Labor was long, with epidural and pitocin. Mom thinks she may
have had
antibiotics due to water being broken for a long time.
Mom really doesn't necessarily want to introduce formula, but feels she
would if
that would "fix" the problem somehow. She is very worried about the
more
invasive procedures because the baby is already to miserable, and has
spent so
much time being poked and prodded since birth.
Her question is what is causing the baby to need something other than
breastmilk
to begin with, and would formula really be the answer in the long run?
Will it
help pinpoint what it is in her milk (if anything) that the baby is
allergic to?
Mom plans to pump even if she uses formula, and the ped said she could
reintroduce it slowly after 3-7 days.
Have you ever heard of a similar situation, and do you have any
additional
insights? I have checked the archives already.
Thanks so much!
Kathryn Ward, IBCLC
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