Baby Allergy

Take her back to the doctor, or try another doctor if you aren't getting good answers from the first doctor.

As far as the rash goes, babies usually get a rash about 4 weeks postpartum from hormone changes after birth, something to do with being removed from the mother's hormones. I don't remember what it's called, but my kids all got it.

Hi S., when my babies' diaper rash did not respond to Desitin (this suggests a yeast/fungal infection), I patted Philips Milk of Magnesia on their bottoms with my fingers and kept the diaper off as much as possible, per advice from my (old fashioned) pediatrician. Worked right away.

Not sure if it'll work for you, but worth a try.

Good luck.

:)

You ended this post with "LOL"??? Really?

I doubt a doctor said a newborn has baby acne on her butt, or that it's a heat rash in December. I doubt anyone told you to dry a baby's butt all day long. I think you should see a professional about all of this because somewhere, somehow, you missed out on something.

It's very hard to understand your run-on sentences without punctuation.

ETA: Okay, now that you have clarified that the rash was on her face and not her diaper area, that's one problem. Baby acne is common and there is nothing you can do about it - there's kind of a running joke among parents that there is a window of time when you don't take pictures of your baby because they are covered with pimples. If it's hive-type reaction that spreads to the chest and back etc., that can be a formula allergy.

The diaper rash is very common when there's a yeast infection. That can come from the formula problem, then be aggravated. Sometimes an anti fungal cream is helpful. So is not using any powder. Regular diaper creams don't help. It's just very hard to keep a baby's butt exposed to the air, especially in the winter. You have to juggle the soaking in baking soda with the idea of keeping her dry. I think prescriptions will be the way to go.

It sounds like it's really all related - if the rash is a hive-type thing (vs. the usual new baby pimples), and she has diarrhea, and she has stomach pain.

Thanks for clarifying things - your original post was just so hard to decipher.

Hi S.,
YES, the Alimentum can make their poop runny. It is messy, but no big deal. Keep with it. Both of my kids had to use it, and for my daughter we mixed it with Soy because it was constipating, to help keep her more normal, but now research and my Pediatrician say that soy formula is bad because it mimics estrogen and can change the baby's hormones. So, don't go that route. I personally would say to keep with it and it should even out eventually.

Don't let the breastfeeding people get to you, both of my kids were allergic to my breast milk, and I couldn't make enough anyway, so I had to use formula too.

As for the baby acne, yes, this is very common on newborn faces, they are just getting rid of the extra stuff they don't need anymore. But, the butt, is another story. My babe ended up in the ER because his was so bad. (The advice nurse told me to take him.) We used 40% Desitin, the strong kind, 40% yeast med like the nystatin, and 20% hydrocortizone. It cleared him up in a couple of days. Mix them all up together and then put it on her every time you change her.

The baking soda baths are to neutralize any acid left on the skin. These should not be more than 10 minutes tops. I still use these for my kiddos and they are 3 and 5.

You are doing a good job mama! Keep going. The milk allergy will really get better as she gets all the protein out of her system.

Talk to another doctor. You may need prescription cream. My DD also had a very bad rash as a newborn. One thing they told me was to use water and washcloths vs wipes, even the sensitive kind, and not to wipe her unless she was messy. If the treatment suggested is not working, you need to go back and tell them "This is not working." Be your child's advocate.

If your child has a full-body rash that is not getting better, you may need to ask for a dermatologist to see her.

Not to be a big ol B-word, but you never hear about this stuff happening with breastfeeding. Only formula. Interesting.

Anyway, it sounds like a yeast rash/infection to me. I'd make some miracle butt cream. In a jar, mix a tube of Desitin Creamy, a tube of Miconazole (available in the feminine hygiene aisle), and a tube of triple antibiotic (like Neosporin). Apply liberally at each diaper change until the diaper rash is gone.

ETA: I guess I'd better clarify so nobody jumps me. I am NOT attacking formula feeding mothers. I could only breastfeed for 4 months with each of my boys, and had to pump as much as I could to in order to slowly transition to formula. I know that we do the best we can. I was only making an observation about formula...that it's interesting that so many babies have adverse reactions and allergies to the ingredients in formula. That's all. Best of luck to you.

It is probably a milk allergy if it is giving her a rash and affecting her stomach. It can be very scary with a newborn to not know what's going on. I'm glad you made the decision to change doctors; any doctor that won't see a four week old with those symptoms doesn't sound like a good doctor to me!

Anyway, I would talk to the doctor in more detail about Alimentu. I don't know if there are different varieties, but the one I just looked up still contains casein, the milk protein that causes the allergies in many babies. It also contains soy, which is another of the 8 major causes of food allergies. I know it's made for babies with allergies and food sensitivies, but it seems very odd to me that it contains casein and soy.

Please talk to your doctor again ASAP, as it sounds like your baby is definitely struggling to process the proteins in her formula and needs to find something safer to drink.

My daughter got a rash on her face when she was a baby. Her doctor said it was because we washed our clothes in regular detergent and her clothes in baby detergent, but the regular detergent in our clothes was irritating her skin where she rested her head on us. (She was a shoulder baby, always wanted to be snuggled on our shoulders, so her face was always rubbing on us.) This had never occurred to me, so I washed all of our shirts in the baby detergent for a few months and her rash cleared up.

I'm not saying that's what the problem is with your baby, but that was our experience with an inexplicable rash.

My kids have always responded well to Desitin when they had diaper rashes, but my brother's son is allergic. The only thing that worked for him was aquaphor. Hope that helps.