Dairy or lactose intolerance?

[daisymommy]

Joshua is nearly 15 months old, and has been on purely cows milk for the last 2 months. We switched him over from formula veeerrryy slowly (over the course of 3 months). He didn't do well at all on regular formula in the beginning, and was on Alimentum hypoallergenic formula until he was 8 months old. Our Ped. thought he couldn't digest the protein in regular cows milk based formula. But when he was about 8 montsh old, we switched to regular formula, and he did great on it.

Now that he is on real milk, he has been gassy, constipated, cranky, red "ring" on his bottom (kwim?) & cries out suddenly during the day and night all of a sudden. I have attributed all of these things (except the gas and constipation) to teething. But yesterday I realized he mostly acted upset and in pain after meal times (when he drinks milk), or nightime after a bottle (yes, I know, getting him off that last bottle is another story ;)).

So, we bought some Lactaid lactose free milk. He has had several cups of it, and guess what? No crying, fussing, gas, or constipation so far. Coincidence? Or is he lactose intolerant? Or maybe I should've tried soymilk instead?--since that doesn't have the cowsmilk protein in it.

Help or info?

[Momof3Labs]

Amy, he sounds like Colin!! Check this out:

http://www.windsorpeak.com/dc/dcboard.php?az=show_topic&forum=11&topic_id=11450&mesg_id=11450&listing_type=search

And this:

http://www.windsorpeak.com/dc/dcboard.php?az=show_topic&forum=11&topic_id=11908&mesg_id=11908&listing_type=search

And finally this:

http://www.askdrsears.com/html/3/T032100.asp#T032103

I talked to my ped's nurse this morning, and she agrees that it sounds like lactose intolerance. She is going to get back to me on what they would like me to give Colin in place of cow's milk (Lactaid whole milk, I'd imagine). We're in a slightly different boat because Colin is primarily bf'd, we just need something to give him when I work (1 day/week) so I don't have to deal with pumping any more.

This seems pretty common - how come the peds aren't warning us about it??

[lizajane]

in my non-medical but personal sufferer experience- YES he is lactose intolerant. and soy milk is less expensive than lactaid. so i say go for the soy. we used lactaid here for dh and me (both lactose intolerant) until i discovered that soy was cheaper and goes on sale WAY more often. we use silk organic or 8th continent for us, whichever is on sale or for which i have a coupon. i think you may be able to find higher fat brands for a toddler. and dh likes soy milk that he drinks it from a glass, which he never did with dairy milk (neither of us like milk, we use it on cereal.)

so when ds is old enough (ped says we can try to introduce it just for fun at 9mo) he will ONLY get soy. no dairy for us!

i am enjoying a glass of chocolate 8th continent soy milk right now.

[Momof3Labs]

Interesting... DH is also lactose intolerant and thought that the soy milk tasted awful. He also didn't like Lactaid milk, but Dean's Dairy Ease is "just like real milk" in his opinion!

Edited to add: DH loved to drink milk (he was just diagnosed last year) and would down a big glass of regular skim milk with every meal. That might be the difference.

[lizajane]

yes- that is the difference! we don't like real milk, and soy milk tastes different. but i hope that if we only give ds soy milk, he will develop a taste for it instead of dairy milk. but i think there are some soy milk options that are better than others, too. we made the switch because it was cheaper and the fact that we like it better was just a pleasant surprise!

[daisymommy]

Lori, thanks for reminding me of your previous posts. That sounds EXACTLY like Josh. He was independent adn happy, but after switching to milk became so clingy I could hardly walk. He has been hanging off my legs, crying, & whining. I kept thinking it was just a stage, or teething. But he keeps burtsing into crying for few seconds like he has gas, and does it 3-4 times at night as well. But he had a much better day today after the Lactaid!

The reason I didn't go straight to soy, is according to my reasearch, and the Ped., 50-60% of children who cannot tolerate cows milk also are allergic/intolerant to soy. Once you have problems on soy, you have created a more intense sensitivity to it. Then every time you eat or drink something with soy in it (so many things you would never guess!), you would have an intolerance to that problem as well. This is why the Nat'l Academy of Pediatrics does not suggest routine use of soy formula for babies who are lactose intolerant or protein sensitive. For some children it can make their problems worse.

So, I guess for now we are going to pay the $3.50 per half gallon of whole Lactaid milk. Sigh, just when we were so excited about not having to pay for formula anymore! But at least my day was so much better because Joshua wasn't constantly whining. Poor baby.

[etwahl]

does anyone know if rice milk is a viable option for toddlers instead of soy or cow's milk?

Tammy,
Mom to Lauren Genevieve
03/12/2003
www.evantammy.com

[Momof3Labs]

Does rice milk come in a full fat version?

[Momof3Labs]

Amy, I'm so glad that Joshua felt better on the Lactaid milk! We are trying some today, too (this is what our ped recommended) and so far Colin seems to be doing fine on it.

Our ped does think that this won't last forever - we will be able to transition to cow's milk eventually - but wants us to stick with the Lactaid for a few months at least. Fortunately, Colin is still drinking mostly breastmilk, so we only have to buy one half gallon every week!

[daisymommy]

Tammy,
I have a friend who was a pediatrician (before becoming a SAHM), and she had one of her babys on rice milk. Apparently they were so allergic to things that she gave up on breastfeeding and they couldn't tolerate formuka either. But he did great on rice milk. She suggested this to me when we were having our formula battle. Another option is goats milk.

[jra]

My son is also lactose intolerant. I made the mistake of trying soy at my doctor's suggestion and my poor son was miserable. Just wanted to offer up a suggestion since Lactaid or any kind of lactose free milk is SO expensive. Lactaid used to make drops that you can add to regular milk to break up the lactose, but of course, they stopped making them. However, you can still order the drops from Canada (called Lacteeze Enzyme Drops). One bottle costs about $6-7 US dollars and is enough for 8 gallons of milk. Now instead of paying over $2.50 for a half gallon of lactose free milk, I make my own and it only adds less than $1 per gallon. The only catch is it does take 24 hours for the drops to break up the lactose, so you do need to plan ahead a little. We have been using these drops for a year now and haven't had any problems with the milk.

Jennifer

[houseof3boys]

Tammy there was just an article in one of the parenting or child magazines this month about soy and rice milk and their nutritional and caloric contents. Rice does not seem to offer much in the way of calories from what I remember. I will try to find the article and post more facts instead of going by memory. I do remember that rice milk was really not an option for it to be used solely as a source of a milk substitute.

[KathyO]

I'm surprised you can't get the lactase drops down south - usually it's the other way around and I can't get whatever-the-product-is up here! The drops I buy are made by Lactaid, but the lab that makes them (according to the label) is located in Canada. Hm.

I do recommend them if you can get your hands on them - I am lactose-intolerant too, and I never get a reaction from milk that has been treated this way. Jennifer is right - you have to put the drops in, give the jug/carton a shake, and then leave it in the fridge for 24 hours, but it's no big deal, and it sure beats some of the prices they charge for the already-treated stuff!

If someone wants to give them a try, PM me and maybe we can work out a trade! (I need a new tether strap from Britax, and they won't ship to Canada!!)

Cheers,

KathyO