lactose intolerant but fine bf??

[emsken]

hi there, my dd is 16 wks old and cant stomqach formula. the paedetrician has suggested sma lactose free but is it possible to be happy breast feeding (~high in lactose) bu tbe lactose intolerant???

I'd have thought she'd be more likely to be cow's milk intolerant than lactose intolerant - I believe lactose intolerance is very rare in babies, whereas cow's milk intolerance is quite common.

thats what i thought but the paedetrician has recommended lactose free formula... am trying to get her to try it but she keeps refusing... has tried mixing with breast milk so will keep trying!! If she is violetly sick again on this then he said we will try the hypogenic ones...

I may be wrong, but I thought bovine lactose and human lactose were slightly different.

Also, if they are not, the proteins in the milk will be.

maybe i should take her to an allergy specialist?

Do you need to give formula? If so, then you'll need to find out exactly what she's reacting to so get a referal to a dietician. Cow's milk protein is far more common a reaction than lactose intolerance.

There are dairy-free formulas but they taste foul, as you've found, so if you can possibly continue EBFing that would solve the problem - but I'm guessing you can't as you're trying to bring in formula?

If it's cow's milk protein you may find it beneficial to drop dairy from your diet while you BF.

But I would recommend getting to the bottom of the problem before pushing on with the horrid lactose-free stuff. A referral to a paediatric dietician should be easy enough (but I would push for an emergency appointment).

Congenital lactose intolerance is very, very rare. Sometimes babies develop secondary LI after a serious stomach infection. This is usually temporary. In bf babies, bf can continue, normally.

Why does your baby need formula, emsken?

FutureNannyOgg, there is no difference between lactose in human milk and lactose in cows milk. There are however differences in the proteins between the two types of milk.

Unfortunately however, even many medics mix up lactose intolerance and cows milk protein intolerance (or allergy), . OP, if your dd is CMPI (cows milk protein intolerant) or CMPA (cows milk protein allergic), please do not keep on trying the lactose free formula, as you risk making the reaction to the cows protein worse. If you do need a formula, ask to try Aptimil Pepti or Pepti Junior as these are the most palatable of the hypoallergenic formulas. Pepti has lactose as the sugar source, but the cows proteins are broken down to a level at which they are unlikely to cause a reaction. The advantage of using Pepti is that children do not then develop secondary lactose intolerance as a result of having no lactose in their diet. Pepti Junior has no lactose and has the proteins broken down, so is suitable for children who are both allergic and lactose intolerant.

i can still breastfeed, but i don't want to - i have done 4 months, whihc is double what i was aiming for!! I am happy to go to 6 months but not a year... so i need to find solution!!!

Hello, I agree with you that what the paediatrician told you does not sound right at all.

You say you want to get to 6 months, which is a good target. You might find that once your baby starts solids, she cuts down on the feeds so it's less of a faff.

I think you know what to do anyway: go back and ask for a second opinion. There are CMP free formulas but apparently the taste takes some getting used to.