is the doctor right? end of tether, advice please!!

[kateakasophsmom]

hi guys!
my 18 month old daughter is a good eater, sure she is picky over some things, but generally eats well, her weight is good too, she sis not a chunky baby however.
I started her on cows milk (full fat) a couple of weeks after her first birthday, she was fine on it for around 3 months, but then started to be up with what seemsed terrible stomach ache in the night, writhing around her cot, knees up and crying alot (in all this time her eating habits had not changed)
i first tried going back to slow flow teats, no help, then medium flow, no help again,
i took her to our GP, who insisted that she be put onto follow on milk, due to a lactose intolerance, so i bought some the same day (cow and gate - the same brand as when she was on cows milk)
ever since - approx 4 weeks, she has had diarreah, or very very sloppy poo's. sometimes it is once a day, some times every half an hour or more, she seems quite happy in herself, but has now developed nappy rash for the first time ever. she is back at the doctors again monday, i have taken her already about this problem but the gp seemed so disinterested, she is seeing a locum doc this time.
Have any of u had the same experience as us? this is so distressing and i am filled with worry for my girly!!
thanks in advance!!

You mention teats. She is still drinking milk from a bottle? How much milk is she drinking? How much solid food does she have?

She may have developed nappy rash as she is pooing more often. Why don't you think she is lactose intolerant? Has she improved since dropping cows milk?

It's horrible when they are in pain and you don't know what to do :-(

Err follow on milk will have lactose in it unless it is a special one as formula milk is made with cowz milk.

If the dr wants her to have lactose free milk he should presribe it.

hi thanks for your reply,
she was drinking from a bottle at the time when her stomach aches began - whilst on cows milk, she has a sippy cup in the day though,
her stomach aches have stopped in the nights now she is on follow on milk but now the diarreah has replaced that, yeh she is really sore, i thought it was because she was pooing more, i just dont seem to be gettin any answers :/
xx

What 5madthings said.

Did she have a tummy bug? That can often trigger temporary lactose intolerance.

5madthings,
i have been told by both my doctor and the pharmacist that follow on milk, is lactose free, it is 'growing up milk' that has lactose in it?!

redwelly bluewelly,
no she has never had a tummy bug so far, thanks for your reply.

follow on milk contains lactose too so no point in putting her on that instead of cows milk. You could try lactofree milk (it is cows milk with no lactose-can get it in the supermarket) and see if that helps

all normal formula has lactose in it, it's made from cows milk. You need specialist lactose free stuff if she really is lactose intolerant. Have you cut out all other dairy?

if it is bog standard follow on milk then it is made of cows milk and will have lactose in it.

Unless it is a specific allwrgenic formula (generally only available on prescription it will have lactose in it)

Follow on is pretty much the same as first stage formula just with added iron and sometimes its sweeter, its just a way for formula sellers to get around the advertising rules re formula.

ohh sorry she has 3 meals a day with light snacks in between, her eating habits have always been fine and has no problems with solid food x

what is her growth like?

not sure if you seen my other post- have you cut all other cheese/yoghurt etc out of her diet?

well gosh, ive asked around a few moms on here and u seem to have helped so much more than all visits to gp, maybe he gets commission from cow and gate, thanks ladies, i will having it out weith the doctor on monday morning!! and i will try lactofree milk tomorrow! xx

www.tesco.com/groceries/Product/Details/?id=253076848 - this page shows that there are 8.3g of lactose per 100ml of prepared feed. Lactose is the sugar present in all milks so if it is made of cows milk it will contain it naturally.

There is a difference between Lactose intolerance (milk sugar not agreeing) and cow's milk protein allergy. Depending on what it might turn out to be, you'd need different and v specialist formula. Or avoid dairy products altogether, now that she is a toddler.

Either way, or even if it is something entirely different, I'd ask to be referred to see a paediatrician. They have access to paediatric dieticians as you should not attempt an exclusion diet without a diagnosis and some guidance on how to do it to avoid missing out on vital nutrients.

And yes, all formula is made from cow's milk, so full of lactose and cow protein.

yes no other dairy, sorry x
her growth is fine like i said she is not chunky, but all her weigh ins are fine, she is very tall also x

I found the formula manufacturer help lines really helpful when I wanted to understand the lactose content of their products (we used lactose free small). The switchboard put me through to a child nutritionist - the health visitor told me I'd have to wait 6 months for a referral. And their advice was far easier to understand than the rubbish my gp gave me. And the helpline was open long hours while it takes days to get to see a gp...

do you mean lactose free SMA? (autocorrect?)

thanks for all of your help x

If she's getting other calcium rich foods (chickpeas, dried figs, almond butter etc) and balanced diet then she probably doesn't need much additional milk. I'd give here a calcium enriched rice/oat milk on cereal etc and just give her water to drink.

didireallysaythat...thank you very much i shall call them tomorrow, if u dont mind me asking, what was the reason for your call to them?

What was she drinking before you put her on to cow's milk at a year? Was it breastmilk?

If so, and she didn't have substantial amounts of dairy as weaning foods, then you might suspect cow's milk protein allergy as breastmilk is full of lactose.

It is not right that she has diarrhea every half an hour. Something is bother her as you clearly know.

Rather than us guessing, I think the GP should arrange some further tests. One you might want to consider asking for is Giardia Lamblia (Giardiasis) parasite infection. It's not uncommon and we have all had it; it's really easily treated with specific antibios and can cause weeks-long diarrhea.

Ooh that sounded strange, " as you clearly know"! What I meant was you know best as her mother and you should trust your instinct.

Agree with mamageek, it could be time to cut down on milk. My DD had similar reaction and it was solved with extra solid foods; buttered bread, finger foods, rusks, baby food jars etc.