Elimination diet/CMPI

[LuchaGarcia]

Hi all,

My EBF DD now 8 weeks old had her weigh in and had lost weight due to silent reflux. We suspected CMPI for a while due to an array of symptoms (swallowing her spit up, excessive wind and tummy pain, crying during and after feeds, mild nappy rash and very very bubbly and frothy poo, mild patchy eczema type rash etc) and I've been advised to go on an elimination diet. Initially my plan was just to cut out all dairy for a few weeks but the more I read, the more allergens I am coming across.

Has anyone does this before and how did you do it? I am thinking of eliminating dairy, eggs, soy and wheat, as well as some specific foods which I read about (tomatoes, spices, oily foods) and then slowly reintroducing one at a time to see which the culprit is. Does this seem sensible?

Finally, will cutting out any of these food groups diminish my milk supply? I would love to hear from anyone who successfully managed to do this. It's been a rough couple of months!

Currently she has been prescribed gaviscon which I hope helps in the short term while we solve the bigger problem.

I had to eliminate dairy when bf my ds. I was told it could take 6 weeks to get it out of my system and to see if it made a difference to him. I did also cut out gluten but when we saw the gastroenterologist his told me that gluten doesn't cross through to breast milk. I think cutting one thing out at a time would be easier otherwise you are going to have a pretty restricted diet.

I didn't find that cutting out dairy (or gluten) made any difference to my milk supply.

@MoreRainbowsPlease did your LO feel better after you cut the dairy out?

It didn't seem to make much difference whilst I was breastfeeding him so eventually after 3 months I started eating dairy again and it seem to make a difference. He carried on having problems (his bowel didn't work properly). But when he was 11 1/2 months he stopped breastfeeding (he just suddenly refused me) so we gave him formula for the first time and he threw up every feed about 1/2 hour after he'd had it. So he got put on a soya formula which he didn't vomit after and then we were told to keep him dairy free and his problems improved. If he ever accidently had dairy he would either vomit or get diahorrea. He was dairy free till he was 2 1/2 years old, and then we were advised to introduce it gradually. He is now 11 years old and is fine with most dairy products, although he still doesn't eat much, and if he has too much (especially milk) he gets an upset stomach.

I was told my ds had cows milk protein intolerance, but I have always wondered whether he actually had a lactose intolerance as his bowel and stomach problems improved once I stopped breastfeeding him, and me following a dairy free diet didn't seem to make a difference to him at all.

Just realised I made a mistake in the 2nd line. It should have said that when I started eating dairy again it's didn't see to make a difference to my ds. He hadn't improved when I went dairy free, and he didn't get any worse when I started eating it again.

I'm on this road at the moment with my DS - been dairy free for six-ish weeks, abs just cut out soy and egg too. I'm already gluten free as I'm coeliac.

It is a bit of a pain diet-wise, but you quickly adapt - tbh I think gluten is the hardest one to remove, and most of the GF products I was buying are milk and soy free anyway.

There's a great FB group 'Breastfeeding with CMPA and other allergies' which I've found really helpful - https://www.facebook.com/groups/breastfeedingwithCMPA/?ref=share

I think it's recommended that you cut out one thing at a time, however I personally think it's easier to cut out all the most common allergens and then reintroduce as you're intending to. I saw a big improvement once I went dairy free (less gas, less sick, could be put on his back, better poos), but there's been a marked difference for the better once I cut out soy and egg too. Once he's symptom free for a few weeks I'll bring egg back in, then soy, then dairy and see which one/s are the culprits. I'm hoping I won't have to drop anything else!

Good luck - it's a bit of a slog, and GPs are a bit shit and often offer poor advice on this, so do tap in to the community that's out there

@4amWitchingHour I'm so glad your LO felt better! Must be a huge relief :)