MSPI..and maybe egg…

[Anonymous]

Cooper is about 4.5 months old, around three months we noticed that his cheeks were getting really red each time he ate, he is only breastfeed. Soon, his stools changed from green and seedy to a more olive brown and very mucusy, then eventually he had little dark lines the size of rice, which were tested and came back negative for blood. The pediatrician, who is an adult allergy specialist, did a skin test for milk, soy, nuts, and chocolate, no reaction to anything. He doesn’t really seem concerned about any of it. But said that if it is in fact an allergy to milk I’ll need to find out before it gets to be a bigger deal. Eventually I gave up dairy, except hidden dairy, not much of a change, so I gave up all dairy and noticed change for a few days. His cheeks tamed down in color and temperature and his stools lost the dark flecks but remained very mucusy. So I gave up soy and eggs. Now, he goes back and forth with the red cheeks, still has lots of mucusy stools, but no dark spots. I am trying to do TED but having a hard time, I have lost about 10 extra pounds and my milk is so clear there is hardly any fat, I am usually a dairy fiend and got all my fat there. Cooper doesn’t really seem any hungrier, but I am worried that he is not getting all the nutrients he needs. At what point is formula a better option than breastfeeding? And on top of all of this, lately he has been waking up around 5 AM and having a hard time going back to sleep. He has slept thru the night since he was about 2 months. He will not nap unless he is being held or if I can lay down with him, and wakes up as soon as he is put down or I try to get up. He is always tired an therefore super fussy, but, there is no pain associated with eating or bowl movements. He does go thru episodes of spitting up more than usual. I just don’t know what to do now. I expected to be able to provide breast milk for him until a year, but now I’m not sure if I am hurting him more than helping him

[Anonymous]

Ok, I have LOTS to say but may not have time to get it all in (we’re out of town & I’m online for a few min while the baby naps & the toddler watches some shows)…

Ok, anyway – I know more than I care to about stinky gas, mucousy diapers, TED, etc, etc (I’ve been on TED since June).

TED: In general, once the stinky gas is gone the offender is out of yours & baby’s system. It can take much longer for the mucous &/or blood to resolve & the color to regulate. In our case it took 5+ weeks with also some removing some TED items as well. I would stick w/ strict TED for 3 weeks. If the stinky gas is still there I would consider eliminating another item but we can address that later ;).

Weight loss: As you know, it is VERY important to not lose more than 1 lb/wk during bf’ing or it will affect your supply. It’s okay to lose weight (I’ve lost quite a bit but never more than 1lb/wk) just keep it consistent. Here are my key things to do to keep the weight on (or at least not drop too drastically):

*1500-1800+ cal/day (this sounds daunting, but is do-able – in my early TED days I aimed for more like 2000/day)

*30+ grams of fat/day (this is easy w/ olive oil)

*64+ oz/day of water

*make sure you are eating some sugar somewhere (ie: fruits, fruit juice, added to cereal or rice, etc).

Night sleep/wakings; For even a non-reflux, non-MSPI baby it is very very common for babies to stop sleeping through the night around 4-5 mths old after sleeping ‘through’ around 2 mths old. This is discussed in many diff’t baby/sleep books (ie: ‘Baby 411′, “Healthy Sleep Habits, Happy Child’, ‘How to solve your child’s sleep problems’). I will say though that most kiddos w/ intolerances’ sleep is DIRECTLY linked to how they feel. My ds’s naps & nighttime sleep are like night & day when I’m on strict baseline foods vs. a failed trial.

Naps: I kind of just addressed this, but just wanted to say that most babies wake very soon (20-45min) when intolerances are bothering them. One symptom is wakefulness & this is most certainly apparent in our house!!! I remember the days of laying down w/ Evan for every.single.nap (or wearing him) bc he just wouldn’t sleep. Until he starts feeling better have you considered trying a swing?! This was truly the lifesaver for us (still is when Evan isn’t feeling well).

No eating pain: Just wanted to comment that eventhough my little guy was MISERABLE for the 1st 10 weeks of his life (pooping blood, etc) he never had any aversion or pain w/ nursing.

Continuing bf’ing/formula option: Just hang in there… I remember the days thinking like you are. Here is one of my original posts:

https://www.infantreflux.org/forum/forum_posts.asp?TID=11256

Finally, as far as drs. are concerned- just trust your instincts. Neither our ped or ped GI were initially concerned (eventually they were though) yet I pushed to find ‘answers’ & make my little guy feel better (as you are doing as well).

Hang in there & let me know if I can help more! Also, feel free to PM me at any time for moral support w/ TED 🙂 – the support from others certainly helped me!!!erinntx2008-12-23 10:03:26

[Anonymous]

Hi there,

I’m so sorry to hear about your situation! My son also had food intolerances on top of reflux. I am wondering if your baby is taking anything for reflux or being treated for reflux in any way? Food intolerances can really mess with the sleeping as Erin stated. I agree with everything she suggested. One thing I would add is that I also lost quite a bit of weight with a restricted diet, but healthy fats will help you like: peanut or almond butter (or other nut butters), olive oil on EVERYthing, avacados (I think I was eating two a day at one point). Also, in our case, we removed all wheat and gluten and that was the final piece of our puzzle. We saw immediate improvement in sleep issues, but continued improvement for about six months. I think sometimes it takes a while for htings to fully clear their systems. Also, my cousin is bfeeding her little one who had blood in his diapers for months and she eventually was on a diet free of all the major allergens and gluten to boot. The baby still had blood for a WHILE, even when she took everything out. He’s now just a year old and she’s been able to add back in wheat, gluten, some cheeses and other things. This may truly be a temporary thing while his gut heals and he can grow a bit. Hang in there! I chose to bfeed despite a difficult restricted diet and did lose weight but was able to maintain my “supermodel” weight with careful eating. I felt very unhealthy at points, but had to learn how to eat healthier on the diet in order to maintain my own health while nursing. It is possible to do the diet, remain healthy and lose weight– and maintain weight. HEre are some links to food ideas:

https://www.infantreflux.org/forum/forum_posts.asp?TID=7715

i hope things improve!

[Anonymous]

Since our Doc hasnt really shown much concern about Coopers intolerances, I dont know anything about medications or any possible treatments. thanks for the website info…I cant imagine going without wheat..Impossible to think it could get any harder as it is….

[Anonymous]

Thanks for your response, I was reading thru your old posts…what is the caracream and the enzymes? did they help? I dont have a book or anything about the TED diet so I have only gone off dairy products and such in foods, eggs and soy. The holiday were very hard, with so many meals eaten at families houses and the cooks not remembering if some prohibited food was used until after Id eaten it, I have waivered. I am currently off dairy, but back with soy and egg, since I have never gotten a confirmation on the two of them. I am planning on going off soy and egg again starting Monday. Anyways, reading that some babies are allergic to Canola Oil is disheartening. How do you know what to take out of your diet next? I am having a hard time with all of these other possible intoerances, the list seems to keep growing,

[hellbennt]

it’s hard! so many of us (myself included) did the TEd for a good 2 weeks- there’s a TED forum and lots of help here– this way you clear everything out & slowly add back in without haveing to cut something, guess, cut something else, guess, add something in, etc…

[Anonymous]

TEd is very intimatding at first, specially if you are struggling with a sick baby and have no time for research (that how it was for me).

There are lots of gluten free easy foods availbale today. Bread was the hardest to give up for me, but i started loving salad. Homel naturals deli meat is gluten and casein free and you can get it at most grocery stores.

There is also gluten free cereals that taste good and some really good grains and vegetables to make up like : sweet potato, eggplant, quinoa, amaranth, teff, etc.

hang in there.

[Author]

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