Blood/ Mucus in Babies Stool

a friend of mine had the same experience and when she cut out the dairy the situation went away. She mentioned that if you shop for kosher and parve items they are completely free of dairy. Good luck.

Yep, another mom here who had a baby with a diary allergy.

At this age, it's not so much a real allergy, but an intolerance to the milk proteins. They don't have the right "stuff" in their bodies to digest the proteins yet. Like a previous person said, if you continue to eat just "a little" you could possibly be setting your baby up for a lifelong allergy. MOST kids outgrow it by a year but you can't have ANY diary (which means a lot of label reading because a lot of things have dairy).

Another important thing to note is that about 60% of babies with a dairy allergy also have an allergy to soy so you probably want to cut that out of your diet too, at least for two weeks (we were able to add it back right away).

Dairy is generally the most common allergy at this age. What my pedi did was after I was dairy/soy free for 2 weeks, we did a diaper swab (to check for unseen blood). If it was clear (which ours was) it was most likely the dairy.

If it's not clear, you'll probably have to eliminate more things from your diet.

Good luck!

My daughter had the same thing and it was a milk protein allergy. No dairy for me and she was fine. she grew out of it and by the time she was 1 she was ok with milk. Good luck!

My DD also has a dairy protein allergy and her only symptoms were blood in her stool and a lot of spit up (but nothing that worried us). She was as happy as can be. From what I understand is that most kids outgrow this, but you (as a breastfeeding mom) have to completely cut out all dairy in order for your baby's system to heal. That means reading every label and telling restaurants, etc. Just a little yogurt or a cookie here and there will never allow her gut to heal if she does have a protein allergy. If you keep exposing her to something her body is allergic/intolerant to, she will never outgrow it. Babies can have hidden blood in their stool that you can't see. Once you see it, it is a more severe problem. Your ped can test her diapers for blood even if you don't see it. You might want to see a ped GI or allergist for medical advice Good luck.

Dear M.:

Sounds like your pediatrician is right on with the dairy suggestion. I would take it a step further and suggest getting enzyme tested. This will help you to put back the appropriate enzymes in your body, which will help your digestive system and your breastfed baby's overall health.

Feel free to contact my office as we specialize in Enzyme Therapy.

My Best,
N.
Holistic Maternity Care Provider
www.wholecreations.com/wombfull.html

Why did your pediatrician suspect dairy? This is a common sign of allergy, but it could be for any food. In my daughter's case it was soy, I know others that have gotten this from gluten, nuts, bananas and the list goes on and on ;-)

If you believe that dairy may be the culprit, you need to cut out ALL DAIRY even the hidden stuff in processed meat and snack food. No yogurt, etc until your baby reaches baseline (happy, healthy, no mucus in stools, no blood in stools, no skin irritation, etc)

Once you've reached that baseline, then you can test little bits of yogurt or other dairy in your diet to see what your baby's reaction is, but unless you go completely clean for a period, you won't really know how dairy is affecting your child. Also, keep in mind it can take anywhere from 2 to 6 or more weeks for dairy to completely clear from a breast-feeding pair and with every cheat/slip-up you have to start over at day one. "Just a little" is not good enough for the "test period" to see whether it is actually dairy causing your baby's reaction or not. Once you're clean test a bit of pure dairy (milk, yogurt or other dairy with very few additives (for example cheese made with salt and milk and nothing else).

Who knows, if you're lucky it was actually a reaction to something else that you ate, so going through this trial period is a good idea even if it sounds like a hassle :-D

We went through the same thing with my first son. And like previous posts mentioned, my son was allergic to dairy and soy, but also every other food you could imagine. I did an elimination diet for 3 months and still couldn't get all of the allergens out of my diet. I was down to eating very little and my son stopped growing. We ended up putting him on Elecare formula and it was a lifesaver! By his first birthday, he was super healthy and had outgrown all of his allergies.
good luck!

M.,

Congratulations on breastfeeding your baby! It's the singular most healthy thing you can do for her.

A bit late, but allergy is not going to be fun for baby if you don't cut dairy out entirely.

I had to do this to some extent - and other things were cut out too! (try ELIMINATING garlic and onion - it is excruciating when it comes to buying food!) IT is HARD! But do it. Just thinking what the dairy must be doing to her system to give her that result makes me cringe.

Msg me if you have any questions - IT *IS* HARD. Especially when other people don't understand.

Good luck,
M.

PS: be prepared for a possible allergy when she turns one and you start cow's milk. You might do well to think about continuing breastfeeding past age 1 to compensate for lack of cow in her diet. I've been reading about delaying possible allergy items and eliminating the allergy.

My five and a half month old also has a milk protein allergy. We were in the hospital for over a week because of it, but as a result I have fantastic doctors if you need any, namely a GI. I am still breastfeeding and after her hospitalization I cut everything out of my diet (dairy, soy, nuts, etc) and she has been fine since. She did develop eczema, but I'm not sure if that is a definite connection, but something to be aware of for you in the future, just incase. I agree that it may not be good to have any dairy while breastfeeding. I hope that helps.