Lactose intolerance? in 3 month baby - HV advising to wean?

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My friend has a 3 month old baby who is formula fed. She was weighed yesterday and has lost 6 oz. The health visitors think she may be lactose intolerant and have suggested weaning.

I don't know anything much about lactose intolerance but don't see how weaning would help. Her DD has been doing lots of very liquidy poos and sleeps a lot. Not sure whether she is sick a lot as well.

I think I want some information to suggest that weaning a 3 month old baby isn't a good idea and that the possible lactose intolerance isn't a reason to do it.

Anyone with any experience please?

Sorry I don't have any info or experience, but that makes no sense to me.

If she is intolerant surely she should be tested to confirm that? If she is she could be put on a lactose free formula.

I fail to see how weaning would help. Apart from the dangers of early weaning, you would also have to wean on a lactose free diet.

If you google weaning age you will see that the advice is as close to 6 months as possible. 3 months is too young - and too wean beacuse of what the hv 'thinks' is not justified. I know a child with a lactose allergy - and she was weaned at 6 months having been on a special sort of formula which they got on prescription (don't know what exactly)

You can get soya formula for lactose intolerance

Babies can be sensitive to cow's milk protein. This is different to lactose intolerance, and more common.You can give special formula milk. The baby should be seen by a paediatrician.

Not directly but friends experience - this is definitely the wrong thing to do. Their health visitor advised soy milk and the kid developed a soy allergy, fortunately now outgrown, to go with their milk intolerance. When they were finally allowed to see a consultant and a dietician they had Pepti Junior until he outgrew the problem. They tried nutragen and nutramagen first but he wouldn't take them.

Your friend could also try lactase (sold as colief).

Weaning now could cause more problems than it solves! If the lining of the gut is being damaged by lactose intolerance you stand a good chance of developing other alergies.

if she really thinks that about the baby, and the baby has lost that amount of wieght, then she should be referred, NOT told to wean.

bad bad advice from the HV

please tell your friend to go to the docs and insist on a referral to a paed trained in allergies. do NOT let her be fobbed off, it is her right to ask for, and be given, a referral.

if the baby really is an allergic baby, then weaning early when poorly could be the worst thing to do it ensuring the allergy gets worse (or intolerance if that is what it is).

I have had three allergic-to-dairy babies and altho yes, one was advised to wean early, my other two were not, and indeed I weaned one (DD3) at 7mths!

she needs proffessional advice for this, not HV advice.

I will try not to launch into the utterly bad bit of HV advice but here goes:

The HV suggests there is something medically wrong why this baby isn't gaining weight. By her own code of practice, I suspect, she should suggest a Paediatric appointment to find out what the medical reason may be behind the weight loss? Not advise weaning.

Less than 1% of humans are lactose intolerant when they are below a year old. If this was so, it would have been discovered by the time a baby is a week old. Lactose is a milk sugar and all mammals have lactose in their milk - including human milk. therefore lactose intolerance is hardly the reason why this baby is having weight problems.

This baby may be allergic to Cow's milk protein - relatively common. That is for medical tests to determine, not a HV to decide based on a baby's weight loss. Other things can be causing weight loss, a recent bout of D&V, a congenital defect that may not yet be discovered, for example therefore see a GP or Pediatrician.

HV is clearly bats. If the baby has a dodgy gut already I don't see how introducing even more potential allergens is going to help. A wet nurse or donated breast milk would be the best things, but not really socially possible these days.

Can you still get goat milk formula? I don't think soya formula is that brilliant. She should go to see her GP and ask for a referral to a paediatrician if the child is not gaining weight.

DO NOT WEAN!! Babies with food intolerances are more prone to developing other intolerances to other foods, weaning at this stage and thus introducing new food groups at a time when this baby's body is plausibly reacting to it's only food source is just asking for more intolerances to develop.

My DD was breastfed but suspected coeliac, she was a failure to thrive baby and we went through all the testing to try and find out what her issues were - she had blood tests, sweat test (for CF), allergy screening and goodness knows what else before they even started eliminating food groups (from me, as she wasn't weaned until 8 months because she was so sick). Your friend needs to ask the GP for a rapid referral to the local paediatric ward/hospital.

Good luck - and let us know how she gets on.

Thank you everyone for confirming what I thought .

Friend has said she's not intending to wean DD2 yet, which I am v glad about. I will suggest to her that she sees a GP.

My D is suffering from severe reflux and is also allergic to formula milk. Im breast feeding her 100% but get no sleep or a break due to 1-2 hourly feeds 24/7 (thats the reflux). I wanted an alternative to normal formula to get a break from time to time and have been given Nutramigen by my doctor. It tastes gross and wondered if anyone out there had actually got their baby to take it or know of an allergy free alternative? My Dr has also told me to wean at 3.5 months to help with the reflux, just baby rice 3 times per day! After reading all the above posts im now worried about the weaning as well as everything else! Any one have some tips, alternative or advice?

rainy3 Both my children stopped vomiting quite so much when they went onto solids, but I'm still of the opinion that any younger than 16 weeks is just too young. Have you been given ranitidine/gaviscon/domperidone (motillium) to help settle the reflux? Also, do you carry your baby in a sling? I found that keeping my two upright for as long as possible after a feed kept them a little more settled. I wouldn't have survived the initial few months if I hadn't had a moby wrap.

DS was recently at Children's Hospital for a week, and he definitely is lactose intolerant.

Not sure how a H/V could diagnose this

Agree with PsychoMum: she should ask for a referral to a Paediatrician...

(and it's a stool sample that will confirm the diagnosis)

Rainy 3 -- Yes! DS is on Nutramigen. He loves it But he has been a very very ill baby, so it's the first thing that isn't making him ill.

But if you are b/fing, which is preferable, you will also need to be dairy free if your DC is allergic to cow milk

Blottedcopybook - yes weve had all of those drugs and shes now on omeprazole. Waiting to have a barium scan done in the next week or so to investigate further. I have a baby carrier which like you I have used daily (my back is almost broken!) Its the endless feeding that is taking its toll, she feeds every 1.5 hrs 24/7. If i try to stretch her she goes wild and starts chocking and scratching at her face.

ilovemydogandMrObama - Thank you for the advice about being dairy free. I keep getting different advice from Drs and I dont know what is right now. Am waiting for an appointment with a pediatric dietritcian. So dairy free means total stop on all milk types ie goats etc. ? Even to the extent of small amounts in other products, ie biscuits??

Absolutely no reason to wean early with lactose intolerance! I am lactose intolerant, as was my father and his mother. I recognised the symptoms in my newborn baby. It took the first three weeks of his life, but as soon as my ds was on SMA LF (SMA lactose free) formula all bloating, diarrhoea, gassiness, screaming, back arching, gagging, refusing feeds, etc etc stopped. You can buy it at chemists, which we did initially, until I thankfully got a perscription as it is soooo expensive! Also, I had to stop breastfeeding as the lactose in my breastmilk was making him ill as well.

Also, unless there is no other option, soya is not good to give babies due to their small size relative to their large intake of (soya)milk which contains high levels of plant oestrogens. It can effect the development of reproductive organs.

A hypoallergenic formula such as nutramigin is preferable (but it tastes disgusting and my ds refused it).

Surely SMA LF or lactase drops would be a better option than early weaning?

Agree with getting appointment with pediatrition, and I agree 3 months is too early to wean but I am so amazed / gobsmacked at the continual stupidity of HV's!!

Hi, I have started a new group which is for parents dealing with allergies and intolorences, Reflux, colic and skin problems. Weaning is a controvercy at the moment. Some say by introducing solids and forien things to the diet too early it can cause further allergies. I was told to wean early due to Reflux and I have a son who has allergies to egg, soya, milk and eczema now. It may not be linked but it just might.

I read your post and think it may be of interest to you to have a look and hopefully join. It is a new site and open to make better so any input you have on the site will help others too. We have a few memtor members who are ready to help you settle in and welcome you and have files and links to intresting topics and items.

It has a recipe page where we can upload great things we have tried and the more people we encourage to use the site the better it will become.

I hope this is of some use to you please use this link and to join click on the purple button and I will aprove you membership when I get it through.

Hope to speak soon Michelle
groups.yahoo.com/group/reflux-baby-you-are-not-alone/