lactose overload ***EXPERT ADVICE PLEASE***How to break the cycle?

[cosima]

Baby is 3 weeks old. was calm, feeding great for first week. Then I took antibiotics for stitches infection, baby became fussy,windy green poo. have got back to yellow poo by feeding from same side 2-3 times in a row but now baby not satisfied, only good latch when there is foremilk, then pulls away to just comfort suck on nipple. as soon as i give new side, explosive poo, fills up on foremilk, stops feeding after five mins, only sleeps for half hour through the night then awake for 3 - 4 hours. gaining loads of weight. SOMEBODY please help me. Have cut out sugar and caffeine today, dont know what to try next other than adoption!

[cosima]

anybody?

[BabiesEverywhere]

Loads of poo and gaining loads of weight sounds like baby is geting enough milk. Babies learn to take milk more efficiently as they get older, so maybe 5 minutes feeds is all your baby needs ?

Why do you think you baby is not satisfied ?

[cosima]

because he cries and does not sleep. gaining loads of weight is a symptom of lactose overload

[BabiesEverywhere]

I'm just a mum and have never heard about 'lactose overload', hopefully Tiktok will be along to address that point. Have you spoke to your midwife/Health Visitor/Doctor if you think there is a health issue ?

When you say he doesn't sleep, how much sleep does he actually get during the day and night ? Does he catnap ?

When he cries at night, does offering him a breast or picking him up stop him crying ?

[Lulumama]

what is lactose overload? and how much is loads of weight?

is he awake and feeding all night, or crying?

[BabiesEverywhere]

I have goggled Lactose overload and according to this article

It said
"You will know when this problem is resolving as green stools will gradually become yellow."

So if your baby has yellow poo, than Lactose overload is no longer a concern.

[Lulumama]

i googled it too!! seems to be an issue with oversupply....

re baby not being satisfied... babies have frequent growth spurts and need to feed a lot , especially in the early days when supply is getting established. also, babies suck for comfort and to be close to their mothers..

the first few weeks with a newborn are just a round of feeding, sleeping and more feeding, his tummy is tiny and needs filling often

[Lulumama]

howbreastfeedingworks.com/tag/breastfeeding/ good website wiht helpline numbers

www.kellymom.com excellent webiste too

[cosima]

thanks for the help. i'm just trying everything that is suggested so will see if there is an improvement. the midwife just came round and she wasn't sure either. maybe the cats protection league would be interested in the extra milk supply. one thing the midwife said was that when baby is crying and looking like it wants feeding, it may not, because they suckle for comfort too so no need to overfeed, as milk supply is not an issue. its just that he will only feed for five mins so will he ever be getting hind milk?

[fishie]

no reason why your baby shouldn't suckle for comfort though!

i think you should try a helpline cosima, it does sound as though talking to somebody trained would help to reassure you. and there are ways of managing over supply / forceful let down (not that these are problems i know anything about )

[BabiesEverywhere]

Babies do suck for comfort but that is not a bad thing, they love being on/near the breast. A breastfed baby can not be overfed, let him nurse as often and for as long as he likes.

Don't worry about the hind milk thing, as long as your baby gets a volume of milk that should sort itself out. The only difference between fore and hind milk is the level of fat in it and the milk fat content increases the emptier the breast. So if your baby is having a short 5 minute feed frequently, he is likely to be getting high fat hind milk all the time as your breast is relatively empty.

Some babies can get a lot of milk in 5 minutes, where as another baby might take 50 minutes to get the same amount of milk, they are all different.

[tiktok]

cosima, I think you'd be helped by speaking to someone knowledgable about this. I don't care for the term 'lactose overload' personally - it's not often used in the UK and plonking a diagnosis on something can make it seem serious and 'bad'. No need to cut out sugar and caffeine (a very few babies seem to reduce colicky behaviour after their mums cut out caffeins but it's rare).

If you think your milk supply may be a tad over-generous, and I think you may be right from what you say, try 'block nursing' or one-sided feeding (descripts in archives) . This will reduce your milk supply, reduce the 'fire hose' effect of the powerful let down, reduce the lactose your baby gets ...worth a try

[mangolassi]

Hey, I had the same problem - absurd amounts of milk. It sounds like you're already doing everything you need to, just remember it takes a little while for your body to catch up and produce a bit less milk.

I ended up feeding from the same side for hours - about 6 or 8 hours per side, I think. The only problem was that then when I changed sides the fire hose thing Tiktok mentioned got worse - but only for a week or so, till things settled down.

Anyway, the oversupply seemed to make it easier for me to express later on

[cosima]

thank you mangolassi that really helps to know someone else had same problem. it has improved slightly today but i fear using the new side. i'm trying to put a breast pump together so thats the latest hurdle. any idea when the explosive poo gets better?