Oversupply or food allergies/sensitivities?

[bouncymummy]

7 mth old DS is EBF.  Since about 4 weeks I have been dairy/soy free b/c of colic and green mucousy poos.  My first DS has several food allergies, so I was aware of what to look for with #2.  The colic got much better, but the green mucousy poos are still here 6 mths later, as is the blood in the poo.  It's not present in every poo, but I'd say at least 7 out of 10.  I recently cut out wheat, and then all gluten.  DS is still having blood in poo consistently even though I am certain I haven't eaten anything that I believe he's reacting too.  I know that wheat/gluten take quite a bit of time to clear ot of both of our systems, but the blood seems to have been worse several times after I've eliminated things.  After doing a bit of research, I'm now wondering if perhaps his poop issues are due to milk oversupply instead of food allergies.  Has anyone else experienced these sorts of symptoms in relation to oversupply instead of food issues? I'm just trying to figure out any other possible causes before I start eating just turkey and rice (as per Dr. Sears).  Thanks!!

[silversparrow]

I had over supply which caused foamy and mucousy green poo, but it worked itself out after 6 weeks. Your supply should definitely be regulated by 6 months I would think. But my son also had the blood spots and bad abdominal pain on 2 occasions after I ate curry.

From the research I did, oversupply can't cause the irritation of the bowels that results in bleeding, so it is probably some other food. The good news is that whatever it is he might get used to it later. I slowly started eating curry again after he started solids, and now he can eat it too! Something else to try is probiotic drops, he might just need the good bacteria to help him digest whatever it is... good luck, I know how upsetting it is to have a sick baby :(

Also, you don't need to worry about the green poo if there are no other symptoms, so if you can get the bleeding to stop but the stringy poo continues, it's ok as long he is eating and growing normally.

[andaluza]

My son is younger (4.5mo) but we've had similar issues. Plus eczema. For a time I was dairy, soy, tree nut, egg, oat, seafood and probably a few more free. Plus I don't eat meat except for fish/seafood. We went to a pediatric gastro-intestinal specialist who looked at the poop and examined my baby and said to keep breastfeeding because he is healthy and the blood is minimal. Also he was pretty convinced dairy was the culprit (it does provoke more blood in smaller quantities consumed when I've had some accidentally). He said too that my nutrition was more important than cutting everything out to get perfect poop. Neither he nor my son's regular pediatrician were concerned with color or mucus in poop. I too wonder about oversupply but the poop is not frothy.

We just came back from 10 days visiting relatives in Spain and there was no blood and mostly yellow poop the whole time we were gone and just a bit if blood in one diaper once home. My mil observed that the poop seemed more liquid than she thought was good, and I also find that he poops quite a bit still, although less than when he was very little.

I tend to eat half of my meals frozen, prepared, etc. (but avoiding all suspect ingredients so eating things like Annie's cheeseless pizza and Whole Foods prepared dishes). Given that my mil was cooking a lot from scratch, I do wonder if the small traces of blood here and there just have to do with contamination in the production process. Another observation was that while there I ate things containing soy, nuts, and shellfish and he had some eczema appear but no blood. There are clear food correlations to the poop, but I also still kind of wonder about oversupply.

So maybe none of this is relevant, but just knowing we aren't alone is sometimes helpful. I haven't seen blood since the small amount the other day, but his poop seems greener here in US.

[dawnberries]

My (now 6-1/2 yo) son's first symptoms of food allergies were blood and green mucous in his diaper too, along with eczema.  He had IgE blood testing at 5 mo's and we found several food allergies.  When I eliminated these from my diet, the symptoms went away.  Will your dr not do testing at this age?  I just like to eliminate as much guess work as possible.  I know that it is totally possible to have allergies or symptoms that are not picked up by this test, but we found it really helpful. 

Edited by dawnberries - 1/10/13 at 4:30am