ebf - embarking on a dairy free diet

[eastmidswarwicknightnanny]

Ok so baby number 2 is 7weeks old since 3weeks old has had reflux got prescribed gaviscon at 5weeks with minimal improvement seen 2 gp n very much of the watch n wait approach.

Baby screams alot in day when feeding latching on n off n doesn't really nap other than on me for short spells, the not napping has become more an issue in past week used to nap ok.

He does now sleep from 8pm til midnight if can get him settled down for bed. Then he wakes hourly for small feeds n on bad nights sometime rewakes every 5mins because of milk refluxing n is writhing around crib.

Health visitor thinks feeding issue is due to his tongue tie picked up at 1 day old so has now asked gp to refer to clinic.

I think cmpi he had green mucusy poos before going on gaviscon n never had just a wet nappy n did 8-12 poos in 24hrs.

We have a strong family history of cmpi from me as a baby n my siblings to my sister 4children n my brother one child having multiple intolerance.

Gp just said carry on bf review when gaviscon runs out (about 2weeks from when I saw him fri)

Anyway after much screaming yesterday n being up every few minutes since 3am I am going to try being dairy free although won't be able to do forever.

Tips, suggestion foods you have found dairy free as aware it's the hidden milk in bread, sponge cake, processed meats etc.

[lavendersun]

I went DF for the 30 months I fed my daughter. She ended up with a very severe allergy/epipen so we became very good at DF.

I found Waitrose the best place to shop, a lot of their 'normal' food is dairy free - biscuits and bread for instance.

You can buy bakery bread there (can't do that in Sainsburys or Morrisons), you can buy a lot of bread in Tesco too. I ended up making my own bread which is lovely but not everyone's cup of tea.

I became very good at baking and found Pure Sunflower gave me the best results. Oatily is a good milk substitute (found soy milk too sweet and found the unsweetened version had an odd taste). Pure is fine in things like crumble topping but I found that I had to cook it for longer at a slightly lower temperature otherwise it had a funny taste/smell that put me off!

My local health food shop sells a good DF cheese which tastes very good in a risotto - Bute Island Strong Cheddar.

Alpro creamy yoghurts are nice. Oatily or Alpro cream substitutes good in cooking. Alpro custard is OK.

Treats - Swedish Glace ice cream and Booja Booja chocolates (latter expensive but a nice treat), Lazy Day chocolate tiffin (v good).

I don't eat much processed meat but you have to watch things like sausages obv and even some hams have dairy (saucisson sec comes to mind).

Naked bars are a good snack.

You will have to read a lot of labels, once you get used to it you can do most of your shop outside the expensive free from section. Easier if you cook a lot from scratch.

A really good cook book is the Intolerant Gourmet - lovely food ideas:

www.theintolerantgourmet.com/my-books/

I just substituted normal flour etc in the recipes.

[eastmidswarwicknightnanny]

Thanks much appreciated.

I have been told vitalite spread is cmp free.

Milk wise I only have in tea so will do without.

I cook alot from scratch too

Hoping gp will take more seriously all I get is well he is gaining weight he is nearly 14lb. - I know reflux babies n often cmpi feed for comfort n relief from pain.

[lavendersun]

Yes, Vitalite is df, in fact my mother used to buy it for my brother (b.1973) as he had an allergy too must have been around forever. I just preferred the taste of Pure.

My daughter gained weight too, born at 1430g and weighed 24b at 1 year corrected. She was always happy too but looked like she had eaten a hot curry every time she fed and was covered in hives with a touch of yoghurt to her lips at 8 months old.

I was fortunate, probably because of her early start we were taken seriously from the word go.

[lavendersun]

24lb.

[fidgetywidget]

Hi
I found I preferred Provitamil oat drink as it had a nicer texture for having on cereal & didn't separate out in tea.

Pure spreads are good, there are sunflower& olive oil versions.

Sainsburys own brand bourbon biscuits &,Jaffa cakes are df. There were my saviour as I have a really sweet tooth & was missing chocolate badly!

9 bar cerael &seed bars are nice if you want something sweet & healthy.

I was only df for a few weeks but it definitely got easier (in terms of willpower) as I carried on. Eating out is a bit of a pain though, I kept a df snack in my bag just in case!

Good luck & I hope it helps your DS.

[ElphabaTheGreen]

You really need to try to go soy-free as well. 40% of CMPI babies also have a soy intolerance. I actually found soy harder to eliminate than dairy - it is in everything. Pretty much anything with flour in it has soy flour as well as wheat. Most dairy substitutes are soy (e.g. the Alpro yoghurts) which makes it a PITA, but it really is important to eliminate both, and do it for four weeks before re-introducing each one at a time. Don't just do it for one or two weeks as it takes a while to get out of your system.

I liked hemp milk best in coffee - I think it's the creamiest of the non-dairy milks. Almond milk was also nicest on cereal and in porridge.

[eastmidswarwicknightnanny]

Thanks elpha aware need to do for at least 2 weeks for it to go out of system then another 2 weeks to see if any benefits

Why oh why do gravy granules have milk in them ?!?

[StoryOfMyLife]

I was df for 14 months from when my dd was about 8 weeks, it's hard in the beginning but you quickly get used to it and find nice substitutes. Cheaper biscuits like bourbons and ginger snaps are df and Oreo cookies for a sweet fix. I find m&s very bad for putting milk and butter in everything!

Aldi sunflower spread is 69p and df. I liked koko milk best for tea and coffee, cooked a lot of Asian dishes for meals as they tend not to use dairy.

We were lucky as we were also taken seriously (dd didn't gain weight) and had a referral to an nhs dietician who was great and helpful when weaning my lo.

I was put on calcium and vitamin d supplements, dd was given vitamin d I can't remember from what age those were ok though.

We were subscribed 1 tin of formula which smelt rank and never used but it was nice to know it was there just incase!

[trinitybleu]

Stork blocks are also df but not the tubs.

Watch out for milk in crisps, tomato sauce and teething powders ... they were the ones that caught me out!

Value garlic bread is usually df too. In fact, a lot of the cheaper / value brands for things like biscuits / cakes / treats, as they use oil rather than butter.

[OneHorseOpenSandwich]

Jammie Dodgers, some dark chocolates, Aldi chicken ridge crisps are all good treats.

We have a variety of milk substitutes. I find Koko nicest for coffee, sweet things like custard, and in soups, curries etc where you might normally use cream, milk or yogurt. Soy works best in tea as it doesn't separate. Oat is great for cereal, and chocolate Oatly is delicious either cold or microwaved for a very easy hot choc! If you have space, I have a separate small fridge which I keep entirely dairy-free. Also because my life is now full of many cartons :)

lavender do you mind me asking, how old is your DD and has she grown out of it at all? My DS is 6 anaphylactic since his first taste of cows milk in porridge. Your description of looking like a hot curry is spot on for him, but I have been told to keep dairy in my diet whilst feeding him since his weight is fine. But the redness and itching is awful. They have said it is eczema and may or may not be related to the allergy, but the way it flares so suddenly and isn't responding much to steroids, makes me think I should look at my diet too.

[eastmidswarwicknightnanny]

Thanks went to Sainsbury n got vitalite spread but found out about aldi spread at breast feeding group I went to after.

Found Sainsbury chicken gravy granules have no milk n potato waffles.

I am not fussed about a physical milk replacement as only had a drip in tea n can drink black, suppose if I want to make a white sauce a milk substitute will be needed.

I hate yogurts so no issue there.

Will check crisps as am a crisp monster :)

I am amazed what has milk in really - especially processed meats, gravy, pot n noodles.

I did get Sainsbury pork sausages as milk free.

[lavendersun]

OneHorse it wasn't out grown but the level of iGe detected reduced to a level which allowed us to trial tiny amounts of dairy (hospital setting initially).

It really did become a huge part of our lives, in the few (three) places we trusted to eat out we had to wipe the table and never allow the colouring in things to be used as the residue would trigger a major reaction.

We used to research the location of local hospitals whenever we travelled (UK or otherwise). DH thought this was OTT to begin with but the wife of a colleague does exactly the same thing and she is a GP which made him realise it was prudent rather than anything else.

Blood tests at 7 showed that the level of iGe had reduced significantly (based on tests 24 months earlier) and so we did a gradual re-introduction. I think that the research was done by the University of Leicester. Three months later we were all eating croissants in the alps on our first skiing holiday which was amazing!

As well as being completely lovely our paediatrician was/is very clued up, she listened to everything I had to say over the years, always on the ball.

NHS at its best.

We really enjoy the freedom not having an epipen allows - it is bloody hard and unless you have been there you have no idea.