neocate - flavouring or gradual weaning?

[narmada]

DS 15 wks has been prescribed neocate due to suspected milk intolerance. Surprise surprise, he utterly hates it.

Paed has suggested gradually weaning him onto it by upping the ratio of neocate to aptamil every 3 days, longer intervals if he is not liking it. I am not convinced this will work as i don't think the problem is habit but rather the disgusting taste which surely he is instinctively likely to want to avoid as it is bitter and metallic. I raised the issue of flavouring with the paed and he said he wasn't keen on that approach...

Has anyone got similar experience they could share?

Stopped BF at 5 weeks owing to health issues and can't do relactation this time around - which I did with DD1 :(

DD is cmp and has neocate, she was diagnosed through blood testing at 10 months during hospital admission for Adenovirus.

She took to neocate straight away, I thought because she was so hungry, but DS loved it too and finishes all of her bottles.

She is growing less intolorent now (at 23 months), but can't have too much before her eczema re occurs.

Mine was only the Soy formula for 2 weeks whilst we faffed with alternative for him and then prescribed Neocate.

Have you got an appointment with the consultant or can you phone for a chat with them so you can find alternatives. There are oat milks and almond milks that are dairy free but I don't know what age is apt for little ones to have them. Rice milk is another no-go cos' of possible small traces of arsenic.

Let us know what happens won't you?

Narmada - don't start trying oat, rice, almond, soy, or goats milk. Will be very bad for your still very young DS. And if he is cows'milk allergic, you don't know what else might be going on with him in terms of dietary sensitivities. I'm sure you now this - but just wanted it on the thread!

narmada :( Sorry you're having such an awful time.

I'm just going to throw something in the mix here. Have you come across Eats on Feet? It's a facebook group where people offer/request donations of breastmilk? Many donors have been blood tested as they also donate to milk banks in premature baby units.

Now this may totally turn you off, but for some people it's an option. Some donors are dairy-free themselves so should have no cow's milk proteins in their milk.

You can heat treat the milk if you're worried. This can remove the immune system supporting components, but you're not getting that in formula anyway. It still has the gut-lining properties of breastmilk though (which is why it works to protect the intestines of preemies, and why they have milk banks).

It would taste better, and would be a way to try to keep dairy away from your baby's system for a while longer.

Just a thought, anyway.

organiccarrotcake wow, that's a brilliant idea. I will look it up. I wouldn't be at all squeamish about that, but ....I wonder how it works in terms of guaranteed continuity of supply and travelling anywhere. Thanks so much for the idea - I will go off and investigate.

cardamomginger nope, we won't be using any of those milks - I know they're not nutritionally right - at least with aptamil/ neocate they do notionally contain what babies 'need' and I get what you're saying about allergens. I really really hope there aren't any others :( but know there may be.

narmada - i know you're too sensible for that! just didn't want that advice to stay unchallenged on the thread. xx

narmada :)

There would be no guarantee of supply of course, and WRT travelling you work that our between you and the (probably several) donors. You would prob not get enough for all your feeds, but maybe enough to help? Can you BF or express anything? If you can't relactate completely, just some may be enough to go with donor milk.

Ermmmm Cardimomginger....... I wasn't telling her to use it for a baby Where did I say that?

II was trying to point out that although it's horrible now with her baby being so young and dependent on milk - it does improve and there are other options as children grow and are on solids and some of these milks can be used when cooking and baking.

I said (if you bothered to read my posts) to see her consultant and phone them. Think I said it twice.

As a mother of a Dairy-free kid I know how confusing and hard it is at first. I wish I had found support early on. All I wwanted to do was offer some hope for the future. Will keep my gob firming shut in the future.

pancake- please don't keep your gob shut! Yours was a great, sympathetic post and I really appreciated it.

We have to put a drop of vanilla extract in with Ds's neocate but BIG BUT he was 1 when he started on it and his dietician gave approval. i sometimes wonder whether hes going to end up witha vanilla allergy but we have only used one small bottle in nearly ten months so i suppose not that big a deal. Its the only way he will drink it though.

We tried aptamil pepti and he loved it and then had a reaction to it and then went on to neocate.

thanks mspotatochip we have tried and failed with vanilla extract! He is still having none of it. AND I tried significantly more than a drop . I can feel we are going to be going down the crusha milkshake syrup route if he doesn't have a sudden change of heart, bless him.

I did wonder about pepti: It would seem to me that if DS does have an issue with CMP, it can't be a very very serious one as he is gaining weight OK, no diarrhea, no skin rash. It's just the red bum, congestion and tummy pain (I think)...

Its probably worth trying. Twas the dietician suggested it for ds she said its often trial and error and patience mixed with stubboness with an element of desparation.

That just about sums it up - trial, error, (lack of) patience and stubbornness. Poor little boy, here is him trying to act as nature intended -e.g. refuse disgusting tasting things - and here are his parents trying to make him drink the yucky stuff.