My 5 week old has had a rough start and my online research has led me to suspect CMPA. I am thinking about eliminating dairy and soy from today for 6 weeks to see if that helps as he is exclusively breastfed and I would like to continue with it. He needs to be held upright for large portions of the day and feeds non stop all day and I’m wondering if that is to soothe his discomfort. When he is not feeding or sleeping he is mostly crying. He is gaining plenty of weight due to round the clock feeding and doesn’t have blood or mucous in stool but does seem to have a lot of other uncomfortable symptoms:
- Unsettled and irritable after every feed, stiff and back arched, crying. Roots almost immediately to be fed again.
- Straining to poo until red in face after every feed. Runny poo, either grass green or mustard in colour but not foamy of mucousy. Every single nappy is dirty, 10+ times per day.
- Silent reflux and regular (but minimal) spit up after feeds. Sometimes we spot big globs of greenish mucous in mouth. Won’t lie on his back, makes gargling/choking sounds and we can hear him swallowing mucous but he is fine on his side so we have adopted co-sleeping.
- Persistent stuffy nose, sniffling, snorting and sneezing
- Baby acne which was initially hormonal and went away but has returned this week
- Persistent sticky eyes since birth and now conjunctivitis
- Mild skin rash all over body, looks a bit like heat rash (see picture)
- Bad nappy rash despite me changing regularly and drying the area, applying aquaphor or bepanthen cream.
Does the above sound typical of CMPA? I have his six week GP check up next week and wondering whether to raise all this or just get on with the elimination diet. When I raised silent reflux in the past I was told most babies have reflux and it’s just part of the newborn phase.
Many thanks!