Disappointing appointment with consultant re CMPI

[FlingonTheValiant]

I finally got my appointment for DS (7m) who has suspected CMPI.

Dr asked for the history etc. He asked how long I plan to BF, so I said 12 months, but I don't mind longer if that's best for DS.

He agreed it sounds like CMPI and said that the next step is to get DS started on a milk substitute asap so he's sending a letter to the GP so that they will prescribe neocate.
He'll see us again in 9 months.
He's going to ask the dietician to call me to discuss my diet as he is concerned I need help after being on a "calcium-free" diet for so long.

At that point I said that would be helpful as I need some weaning advice for DS as I want to make sure he gets enough calcium. He replied that I just need to "throw some neocate over his cornflakes".

The other problem was that like a fool I told him I'm a medical student when he asked my profession. On three occasions he sarcastically told me "but of course you medical students know everything"; and when he mentioned the dietician he said "Don't worry, I'll let her know you're a medical student so that she knows you already know everything" with a snort. And I froze like a rabbit in the headlights and was so shocked I ended up incapable of pointing out that I don't want to give DS neocate, that my diet is not "calcium-free" and that I want more help than that for weaning him.

I'm so upset with myself :( I completely let myself and DS down by being so useless and I know nothing more than I did before I went.

I don't really know what to do now.

I think he must mean you will be short of calcium if you continue bf for the next nine months. If your DS is CMPI you will not be having dairy products yourself will you as it will pass through to DS in your milk. I have DGS with CMP severe allergy and hate to say he started as intolerance. All symptoms such as excema, allergic rhinitus,bloating,wind etc disappeared when he went diary free and had neocate. Not the nicest tasting but for him a life saver and now aged 3 he actually likes it. It does have calcium and all nutrients in it of course so there is a bit of worry taken away. There is rice milk for cereal/porridge, pieces of fruit, baked potatoe, vegetable rice, dairy free Pure spread for sandwiches. There are lots of dairyfree recipes on the net, too many to list here.
It is a shock for you but this is not something you have done who knows why children are like this but there is every likelyhood your DS will grow out of it unlike my DGS. Unfortunately we didn't get an awful lot of advice from dietician except to say try soya alternatives (reaction to that as well) so get as much info you can then you will feel more informed. When he is a bit older he might need extra calcium prescribed from consultant. Your one sounds as if he was having an off day!!

Meant to say DGS was diary free from 10mths and had skin and blood tests which gave positive result. He was prescribed Nutrimigen but that was no good so it had to be Neocate. When he was about 18mths he went on to Neocate Active.

Thanks nanatothree. Sorry to hear your DGS has such a bad allergy :( Thank you for your kind words.

I've not been eating dairy or soya for about 3 months now, but my diet is not low in calcium at all. I have enriched foods and supplements, and I eat lots of other calcium rich foods. So I'm not worried about my calcium levels, not that he bothered to ask. But I am worried for DS because I can't just give him supplements and fortified rice milk or orange juice at 7months. I suppose I'll just give him a bottle a day or something so that I know he's getting a boost from somewhere.

I'm just annoyed that the consultant made a load of assumptions and wasn't very helpful at all. Maybe when the dietician contacts me I'll just divert her to talking about DS instead.

Hi flingon, posted on your other thread.

Think it seems like odd advice from your paed. Perhaps he's just presuming that you won't want to BF for any longer than ,say, 9 months. Many medics seem to think it's wierd to continue feeding for longer than some arbitrary point, god knows why. Even paedeatricians, who you'd hope would be better informed, have some very funny ideas about breastmilk and breastfeeding IME.

Neocate is completely man-made and surely any added nutrients are just that - effectively supplements hidden in something that looks like milk. I think the best person to advise you would be the dietician, like you say - there must be ways of ensuring that you and your DS both get adequate nutrients without dairy in his diet, even if it means including supplements. If you really don't want to introduce formula, then there will be ways around it for sure. The paed probably thinks this is the hard option for you, but he has obviously never been caught short without enough formula when waiting for a delayed plane (oh yes, voice of bitter experience talking there..!)

Neocate tastes absolutely awful - unless you've got an unusually accepting baby, I think you'll have a job getting an infant used to BM to take it. That's based on personal experience and also on our dietician's accumulated wisdom!

Thanks again narmada :) I agree. I think I'll just carry on as before until I can speak to the dietician, and put a tin of neocate in the cupboard in case I want to use it to make porridge for him.