New to Dairy-Free, Need Help!

[miss_honeyb]

Okay, so I'm putting my youngest DS on a dairy-free diet to try to improve ear infections (and maybe croup?) issues, before resorting to ear tubes.

He's 13 months old and I have not introduced cow's milk yet, so that's already solved. He has been eating cheese, so we'll cut that out, as well as butter on his toast, yogurt, and dairy in main dished that I cook.

So, I also need to know if I should stop all dairy, because I'm breastfeeding him. Will that still give him problems?

What "hidden dairy" should I be on the look out for? And how do I make sure he's getting enough calcium?

TIA for any help!!

[changingseasons]

Yes- you absolutely need to cut dairy out of your diet as well. Check my blog (link in sig) for hidden ingredients to watch out for.

I would also recommend cutting soy at the same time if you/he use it. Soy allergies usually go along with dairy allergies, and many people make the mistake of replacing all their dairy with soy... and then they don't see any improvements and assume that dairy is ok when it's really not.

If he's still breastfeeding, I really don't think you need to worry about calcium. But there's always green veggies!

[painefaria]

I had to cut out dairy for DS to stop his eczma. We read all of the labels. Actually we have started to give him less and less prepared food, it is just easier (he also has a wheat allergy). They like to sneak dairy into everything. here is a link that I just found...
http://www.godairyfree.org/Food-to-E...den-Dairy.html

[kjbrown92]

And for recipe ideas look at the Recipes thread in the stickies at the top of the page.

[kjbrown92]

isn't gluten a big mucous producer too (leading to ear infections and croup)? In case she wants to eliminate that at the same time...

[changingseasons]

Originally Posted by kjbrown92

isn't gluten a big mucous producer too (leading to ear infections and croup)? In case she wants to eliminate that at the same time...

I'm not sure. But it certainly wouldn't hurt to eliminate it at the same time. Dairy and gluten are the two top allergy triggers!

[miss_honeyb]

Thanks for the help!!

So... gluten and dairy free...

What do we eat??

I'll be sure to check out the recipes sticky!!

[kjbrown92]

Originally Posted by miss_honeyb

Thanks for the help!!

So... gluten and dairy free...

What do we eat??

everything else....
chicken mirabella, chicken marsala, roast chicken with gravy, chicken soup (bone broth preferably since it promotes healing), stir fry
pork & saurkraut, transylvanian goulash, roast pork
beef stew, spaghetti (rice) and meatballs, Swedish meatballs, beef broth
rice cakes, rice noodles, rice flour, rice vinegar
hot cereal: cream of buckwheat, cream of rice
cold cereal: rice chex, Crispy rice cereal, Koala Crisps
other breakfast: sausage, bacon, eggs, waffles, pancakes
look at deli meat ingredients to be sure (I've found some safe ones)
treats: brownie bites, sugar cookies, peanut butter-coconut oil balls, granola bars, muffins
salmon: poached, baked, pan fried
sweet potatoes: baked, boiled, mashed, fries
roasted root vegetables
that's just the tip of the iceberg!

[miss_honeyb]

Originally Posted by kjbrown92

everything else....
chicken mirabella, chicken marsala, roast chicken with gravy, chicken soup (bone broth preferably since it promotes healing), stir fry
pork & saurkraut, transylvanian goulash, roast pork
beef stew, spaghetti (rice) and meatballs, Swedish meatballs, beef broth
rice cakes, rice noodles, rice flour, rice vinegar
hot cereal: cream of buckwheat, cream of rice
cold cereal: rice chex, Crispy rice cereal, Koala Crisps
other breakfast: sausage, bacon, eggs, waffles, pancakes
look at deli meat ingredients to be sure (I've found some safe ones)
treats: brownie bites, sugar cookies, peanut butter-coconut oil balls, granola bars, muffins
salmon: poached, baked, pan fried
sweet potatoes: baked, boiled, mashed, fries
roasted root vegetables
that's just the tip of the iceberg!

Okay, I'm printing that out and putting it on my cupboard!!

Thanks. More options than I was originally thinking!

[Carita]

I can tell you from experience - I cut all of the major stuff in both our diets - this was fine for the first winter - it cut congestion considerabley, but then the second year, the ear infectiosn started after introducing yogurt at 13 months.

We went back to no cheese, so milk, nothing in our cooking and saw the chiro, and the infection cleared (we had falre-ups again when we challenged with milk or if he accidently got ahold of some cheese), but as long as he was free of the major dairy only, he still retained fluid behind the ear drum. Then any teething that swelled the ear tubes compounded that and he was in pain.

Within a few days of going to a chiro to help the fluid drain and then cutting every last speck of milk, his fluid had cleared. Within a couple of weeks, he was a totally different a baby - back to the happy baby I know and love.

It seems intimidating but it works!!