16wo just diagnosed cows' milk intolerant - feeling down about bf

[PiggyMad]

After an evening in hospital with the baby yesterday and all sorts of blood tests after finding blood in her stools, doctors think she is reacting to cows'milk through my milk.
I feel a bit like my body has let her down and I feel so guilty that I didn't take her to the doctor sooner as she has been having problems with wind, mucous and constipation for about 5 weeks. She has been gaining weight and moving up the centiles and the health visitors I have talked to just said it could be the heat, taking in more foremilk etc. I'm so annoyed with myself that I have made her ill.
We've been referred to a dietician and paediatric clinic so will see what happens there, but I just feel a lot more responsibility now that I am going to have to be so careful with my diet and one slip up affects her. Also sad that she is going to have allergies for the rest of her life, which is down to me as I have asthma and hayfever. Also feel it's my fault as I ate peanuts during pregnancy
Just need a bit of a morale boost and a moan, I think!

I think Cranks bread is dairy free but you would have to check the label.

Golemmings, glad you are now able to eat dairy but at your dietician's advice: it's a bit dodgy! You eating lactose-free milk products won't remove lactose from your breastmilk - it's full of the stuff. In any case it'll be the cow's milk protein that your baby is/ was allergic to and that is also present in lactose-free products. You can ditch the lactofree milk now :)

All three of mine HAD CMPI. Dd2 and ds were the worst, as with you even the tiniest milk (say in a loaf of bread) gave them wind, mucus (dd2 even tested foor cystuc fibrosis - before heal prick test), green poo and for ds blood in poo. Also ds had ingrinal hernia which was made worse by having wind, but the mucus meant he waited 4 months until his airways were clear enough. Were lucky it didn't rupture. Neither could have soya either, bf for 18+ months. When weaned they reacted to potatoes, wheat, oats, rice(!!). They could only really have fruit, veg, polenta, quinoa, and were fine with meat/fish.

Slowly but surely they grew out of all the other intollerances. Dd1 and 2 are now 7 and 5. Dd2 is still not keen on milk products, but has no decernable ill effects. Ds is not quite 3, he can eat anything and everything. He has just pestered me for his 3rd hot chocolate of the day, made with cows milk. I was strictest with him, as I knew that any milk could lead to a rupture, peritonitis and emergency hernia repair. He has recovered the best of the lot. My advice is to try to eliminate everything from your diet with any milk or soya. Get professional support. Take calcium suppliments and in time hopefully you will be like me complaining that you only opened a 4 pint yesterday and it is already half empty!

Have sent a pm, was so good I sent it twice (oops!)

Again, thank you ladies
Thanks for the info and pm received and replied to bunnies
I do eat mainly granary and seed breads so will just switch to the hovis one instead of my warburtons seeded batch, which seems to contain soya! I might try Cranks too.

nannyto2 and itsallgoingtobefine it's a common misconception that babies with dairy allergy are lactose intolerant. Lactose is present in all milks, including breastmilk. Babies are generally not lactose intolerant as the produce lactase the which enables them to digest it. This is because milk is designed for babies and some people as they get older produce less lactase. An intolerance is not the same as an allergy, and allergy is a reaction to something, for example in this case possibly cows milk protein, which can transfer into breastmilk. In this case mothers either have to eliminate dairy in their diet, or switch to hydrolysed formula which has the proteins broken down so they can be digested.

Please don't beat yourself up - DS only just been diagnosed as cows milk protein introlerant at 5.5 months after months of struggling with reflux and eczema. As he was gaining weight and I was breastfeeding, the GP thought it was unlikely but I tried an elimination diet and had a different baby within days. I am now completely dairy free and have started weaning DS as well. It really isn't your fault, and it does not mean that he will have any other food allergies and may well grow out of his intolerance/allergy.

A few tips for you (sorry if these have already been mentioned!).

Fry's chocolate creams are dairy free, as are Nairns dark chocolate chip oat biscuits.

I found a grated hard cheese replacement which is dairy, lactose, gluten free (and suitable for vegetarians). It is called Parmazano and I found it in the Nutri-Centre.

Tesco also do double chocolate cake bars in their Free From range and these are really yummy. Asda do vanilla and chocolate chip muffins in their Free From range and I like them too.

I use Oat milk in my tea and for cooking. Oatly do a really really yummy chocolate milk and I heat it up for 'hot chocolate'!

Hope this helps!

We mostly make bread - we have a bomb proof soy and dairy free breadmaker recipe if anyone wants it? When we didn't make bread we bought genius gluten free bread which is soy and dairy free.
Oh, and that lacti-free cheese sauce? Every bf DS had today was followed by him chucking up. Maybe he isn't as over his dairy issues as I thought... I'm still puzzled that lactofree ice cream doesn't upset him. Nor did a bit of goats cheese last week. I guess it might be a volume thing; he can cope with so much and then his system rejects it.is that possible?

golemmings Yes possible to have dose-dependent reaction to milk products although it may be (sorry :( ) just a plain old delayed reaction. This can happen with dairy intolerances - it's not always an immediate reaction, it can be slightly after the event. Don't panic, though. We had several of these false starts before DS was finally clear of his intolerance.

As I said above and as Joyful says too, lactofree stuff is probably unnecessary and your dietician misguided for recommending you introduce it in preference to normal milk UNLESS she is thinking that you may have a problem digesting lactose, which actually you might if you have had none at all for nigh on a year (your body's production of lactase steps down if you're not regularly consuming lactose). But if she is suggesting lactofree in preference to normal milk in order to somehow ease the transition for your baby - not correct.

I would keep on with the dairy-free diet for yourself for a bit longer and see if the vomiting abates.