Lactose intolerance

[caseysmummy11]

Hello ladies. After a long hard battle we've finally had lily diagnosed as lactose intolerant. It really kicked off when we tried introducing full fat milk into her diet just before her Birthday and she came out head to toe covered in really red sore eczema within a couple of days and started to have diarrhoea with every nappy . She's always suffered with eczema to the point the paediatrician recommended I give a daily dose of piriton but it got a lot worse and after 2 weeks of back and forth to the Dr's the Dr finally agreed it's the milk. What I want to know is what substitutes are there available. We've tried alpro yoghurt which is not a big hit but she will eat them and violife cheese and lacto free milk which are doing well so far but I was just wondering you ladies know of anything else out there to try. Were not really getting any support, we've been referred to the dermatologist and there's a 3 month waiting list to see the dietician and don't want to limit her diet too much as she can be fussy at the best of time. I'm just a little stuck fur breakfast ideas as most seem to be milk based and although we've got the lacto free milk she likes a variety. Xxx

 

[CARNAT22]

My little girl has CMPA. I've suspected since we started weaning (immediate reactions but looking back even before weaning she was such a sicky baby and she has always has eczema) we got a diagnosis at 13m

She is still breastfed at night but daytime she has soya milk - the one suitable for 1+. This is the one http://www.sainsburys.co.uk/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/gb/groceries/alpro-junior-1-soya-milk-alternative-1l?langId=44&storeId=10151&krypto=Lg4u8CnZmrP%2BRutWNdEMqpJ1KspmzhbjiaIkvqcYZ1Jx01fyx%2ByblK%2Fp97jC4HeI3IAr7t0RV7bUsKHI14xMe%2FD%2Bo%2B5IaksKUwijdk3QZQ%2FBwH8lk7%2BZpaTwy9uJO6yGMlfC8Zk2qOK%2F1Jo9JFWe7ltcsX%2F9x24RxW8aXSCRU7s%3D&ddkey=http%3Agb%2Fgroceries%2Falpro-junior-1-soya-milk-alternative-1l

We don't give her cheese substitutes and she isn't keen on milk free yoghurt.

She eats everything else.


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[El1en]

My Lo loves peanut butter on toast for breakfast, or crumpets? My Lo hates scrambled eggs but it's another option, or a nice variety of fruit

 

[Aimee84]

Hiya we got told by dietician to try soya stuff, so gave her soya yogurts to make sure she wasn't allergic to that. As for milk there is a fortified soya milk for kids by alpro which has a giraffe on it called 1+ beware tho it's high in sugar than cows milk. We're on a dairy reintroduction program now fine with dairy yogurts but cheese has been stop and start. Good luck and don't panic, but does mean lots of checking on ingredients of things x

 

[BunnyN]

I know its not what you asked but incase it helps. Cows milk protien allergy (CMPA) or cows milk protien intolerance (CMPI) is often misdiagnosed as lactose intolerance in infants. Lactose intolerance is common in adults but actually pretty rare in babies. A lactose intolerant baby cant digest breastmilk ot regular formula either as a large part of any milk is lactose. It sounds more like your little girl has a problem with the protiens in cows milk. You will find lots of support and tips on diet etc by googling CMPA. I hope I'm not being interfering but I found the information other mums gave on forums invaluable when we were trying to work out what was going on with our girl.

Our 15 month old has CMPI and breaks out in eczema if he has milk. When he was breastfeeding I had to stop eating dairy because even the small amount that passed through my milk gave him diarrhoea. Dd had the same problems but pretty much outgrew by the time she was a bit over a year old. She was able to eat small amounts of yogurt without much reaction from about 8 months. Yougurt is more broken down than milk so it is okay for some. We dont really give DS anything special to be honest. He loves his food and eats large amounts of pretty much anything we give him so I just make sure he gets a good varied diet.

The protiens in soy are similar to the protiens in cows milk so a lot of CMPA babies will react to soy also. All you can do is experiment really.

 

[caseysmummy11]

I've been looking into it more this evening and I agree bunny that her symptoms are more of an allergy as she has eczema severely which gets worse when introduced to full fall milk and now yoghurt. Within a day of introducing the cows milk it flared up severely she was having 5 or 6 nappies of diarrhoea and her nose was runny. She's always been wheezy. We've been on lacto free milk for 2 days now fully and nothing really changed she's still itchy and in a flare-up. After reading tonight it sounds to me like she's having a delayed reaction to cmp. I suspected it when she was around 4 -6 months old as she had severe reflux also we saw a pediatrician at the time who said it was just her reflux. It's only really got alot worse since introducing the whole milk (which I stopped) but now has reactions to yoghurt and cheese. I just feel like the professionals aren't listening to me but I know somethings not right. After reading the symptoms of lactose intolerance she doesn't have this I'm sure, so we've been misdiagnosed. Is it worth trying soy formula as I can get this from a supermarket? Or do I try again with the Dr's as it feels like I'm banging my head against a wall continuously. Xxx

 

[BunnyN]

Honestly there isnt much a doctor can do anyway. We were really worried about DD as a baby because she wasnt putting on weight and ended up with blood in her poo. We found a private doctor who specialises in pedeatric allergies. It was a relief to finally confirm what was going on but other than giving us peace of mind she didn't really do anything. We found out way more information from other parents on the net. When our second had the same problem we didnt even bother talking to the doctor about it. It can be handy to have an official diagnosis for explaining dietary needs at school or playgroup etc. For small babies they can be prescribed a special formula but your LO is getting older so it might be hard to get a prescription and you can probably make do without it.

Is she drinking normal formula now? Formula is more broken down than whole milk so some with cmpa dont react to it or have a lesser reaction.

In answer to your question about breakfast ideas. For breakfast I feed DS wheatabix or cornflakes with warm water rather than milk. Porridge with grated apple mixed in it is a favorite. I make porridge from porridge oats like grown ups eat, not baby porridge which usually has added milk. Peanut butter on toast is also a hit. He likes bananas and most other fruit.

It often takes a week or so of excluding milk for symptoms to improve.

 

[JD.Deedee]

I just got my results back for my son who turns out who isn't but the paediatrician he's under suggested to try dairy free diet. I've figured by now that health visitors are best to request any referrals. I do still have questions regarding my sons reaction towards milk but no lactose intolerance or milk protein allergy being found in his poo, I think it's always best to ask for a referral to the child dietician, substituting milk or dairy can be quite a hassle and I think it's nice to get the advice from someone who has more in depth knowledge in regards to nutrition.

 

[BunnyN]

I just got my results back for my son who turns out who isn't but the paediatrician he's under suggested to try dairy free diet. I've figured by now that health visitors are best to request any referrals. I do still have questions regarding my sons reaction towards milk but no lactose intolerance or milk protein allergy being found in his poo, I think it's always best to ask for a referral to the child dietician, substituting milk or dairy can be quite a hassle and I think it's nice to get the advice from someone who has more in depth knowledge in regards to nutrition.

There isnt a test for CMPA. Or at least there are tests that can be done but a negative result doesn't really mean anything. The best way to diagnose is through a combination of symptoms and testing a dairy free diet.

 

[JD.Deedee]

Well that's what she put on the letter so I'll ask if she can further elaborate when I next see her in clinic...

 

[Phoenix85]

I agree with Bunny about it being more likely an allergy or intolerance to cows' milk protein than to lactose.

You could try oat, hemp, or almond milk on breakfast cereal (you can get unsweetened almond milk if you want to reduce the sugar intake, Alpro almond unsweetened is good and not too many ingredients - some contain too many thickeners and stabilisers etc).
Just make sure she is getting plenty of fruit & veggies so her diet is good

My 9yr old was dairy free as an infant. At 1 I started giving cows milk on cereal and as a drink but found it made her sick and flared up eczema so I stopped and gave rice, soya or oat milk instead (but was still breastfeeding and on minimal dairy myself so breastmilk stayed the main milk drink). That was 8 yrs ago now though, a few years later we discovered almond milk so now we mostly drink that (I have soya in my tea but otherwise I use almond. Recently we're on oat milk again because it was on offer lol).
Now she's 9 she's still mostly dairy free but does get to have a bit of chocolate or cake, cheese or small amount of icecream. I just stick to dairy-free options whenever possible, and we don't have cows milk as a drink ever.

Vbites do yoghurts made from pea protein which I find quite nice (it sounds weird but they do taste ok lol) so that would be an option if you're LO isn't keen on soya yoghurt but still wants yoghurt.
http://www.hollandandbarrett.com/shop/product/redwood-wot-no-dairy-raspberry-dessert-60098244

Viatlite and Pure are dairy free spreads.
For breakfasts you could do cereal with oat/almond milk etc, or fruit, or toast with dairy free spread & jam etc, eggs, you can even make pancakes with plant-milk rather than cows milk.

Just remember it can take 6 weeks for all the CMP to completely leave their system so it can take a few weeks to notice a real improvement.

 

[Browneyed Girl]

Everything I read around this subject indicated that eczema is a possible symptom of cmpa not lactose intolerance. Lactose intolerance doesn't involve the immune system which is basically what activates eczema so it has to be an allergic reaction not an intolerance. We trialled an extensively hydrolysed formula (Aptamil Pepti) where the proteins are broken down, this works in a lot of cases as the immune system is less likely to recognise them as cows milk protein. We also tried the next stage which is an amino acid based formula (Puramino) which contains no cows milk protein. For my lo it confirmed that cows milk wasn't causing his eczema as it was actually a lot worse on these formulas and he's back on Hipp Organic (incidentally I think this might be helping his eczema now as it contains probiotics which a lot of people say helps eczema but that's another topic). Your GP can prescribe these but if your lo is over one you might struggle. Either way whether your GP thinks it's lactose intolerance or cmpa your lo should be referred to a dietician as you will be cutting out major food groups which should only be done under supervision for a child. My health visitor was able to refer us to the dietician but if yours can't your GP should be doing so I would definitely ask about this xx

 

[caseysmummy11]

Thank you ladies. I think I'll just cut the dairy out completely rather than go back to the gp. Last week I bought more fruit than usual and we've been doing fruit for breakfast but will try some of your suggestions as well to give a bit more variety. I did buy a good cheese last week which is completely dairy free and we bought vitalite spread too. I'll also tell the nursery when she goes back Tuesday no dairy. And I'll try some almond milk starting today. Looking back from when she was born it all points that way to a cmpa. I expressed breast milk for the first 2 wwwks as she was 7 weeks premature, I'm not a big dairy eater myself and with losing her sister I quite honestly didn't eat much around that time. I switched onto formula as she was discharged from hospital we tried sma but within an hour she was projectile vomiting and had a foul green poo for a few nappies. So we tried aptamil no bad effects but didn't gain weight on it so was switched to nutri prem 2 then gradually developed eczema and reflux and still had slow weight gain. Looking back to me these could have been early indicators too. Thanks ladies. I'll keep you updated on her progress and fingers crossed she will start to get better xxx

 

[Browneyed Girl]

The signs do seem to be there. I hope going dairy free improves things, definitely keep us updated! xx

 

[Browneyed Girl]

Hi, just wondered how things are going now you've cut out dairy? xx

 

[caseysmummy11]

Hi hun. They've gotten a bit better. There is still eczema but not as much we've been referred to a dietician now to help with substitutes aa were not sure what other allergies she has. She's currently on almond milk violife cheese soya yoghurt and sunflower spreads we be even managed to find dairy free biscuits. What I'm finding hardest is when she wants what we've got. I try to not eat what she can't have in front if her but my son isn't and shes always try to get him to give her a bit and as he's 5 he's got no self restraint even though we tell him not to. He gave her a bit if chocolate moose the other week and within 24 hours her face came up blotchy. Xxx

 

[BunnyN]

We have that problem too. Our boy begs off his 3 year old sister and she loves to please him.

Glad things are a bit better.

 

[caseysmummy11]

Just another update as we saw the dietician today. Lily has been diagnosed with cmpa finally she looked at the history and agreed she has a delayed allergy to cows milk protein and now got information to help me continue with her dairy free diet and will see her in 6 months and try to reintroduce it and see what happen. So relieving to know I was right all along xxx

 

[BunnyN]

Glad you finally got some sensible help. We started DD on small amounts of yogurt and cheese to start with. She seemed to tolerate them okay as long as it wasnt in large amounts.

 

[Aimee84]

So pleased you got the help. I just wanted to let u know after the reintroduction program my lg she's pretty much fully onto cows milk. Good luck.