[snugglebug14]

It's time to wean ds.(because of comments made on other threads i've posted the decision to wean is NOT up for discussion, if that is the only advice you have please don't respond. i'm only looking for ways to help with the direction my family is going thanks) he's allergic to dairy though. We've tried raw milk and he still seems to react. His reaction is usually on eczema. We stay away from soy, so he drinks a lot of water and some rice milk. is rice milk okay? are there other things to offer him? He really loves yogurt and cheese (we started him on dairy products before knowing he was allergic). what non-soy alternatives can I offer him? Any other advice on healing his eczema...when we first took him off dairy it completely cleared up. with the hot weather it started again and we were trying some raw cow's milk at the same time and it got bad. it's somewhat better now but defiantely still there and definately still flares up every so often. he reacts even worse to goat's milk (or at least he did 6 months ago when we first tried it). Thanks in advance

 

[tullyleague]

I hope you get some good advice, because we have a very similar situation here.

How does he react to soy? I know you said you stay away from it. My little guy seems to do ok on it, and while the breakouts aren't as extreme, they do still occur (although less frequently).

 

[Laurel723]

Does he have any other food allergies? My hubby was dx as allergic to eggs, wheat, dairy, tea(wtf?) cane sugar, beet sugar, and bakers yeast, but after we cut everything out of his diet for a while-a month or so-and added things back in slowly and one at a time, he's able to handle everything now, save for cane sugar and beet sugar. (They don't make him sick, but he gets a headache if he eats them twice without about 4-5 days in between.)

It was a blood test that alerted us to it-IgG or IgE, whichever is not the prick test.

FWIW, I guess, but I hope that gives you some options beyond soy-it's so bad for babies, and baby boys especially. Also, check out www.westonaprice.org for more info on baby food-they have a couple formula recipes that are milk free-and the one child I know (large population, I know

) that's on the liver formula wuvs it. "Just wuvs it." (And they have more info on why soy is so unhealthy....)

(she's adorable. Not that it makes a difference for you, but she is.)

HTH

 

[accountclosed3]

have you heard of or tried poi? it's a very nutritious food and great for kids. in hawaii--where it's from--it is used as infant formula (usually, traditional hawaiians use BM, and if/when there is a problem, they use poi!).

it might be a very good option for you. Soy and rice milks aren't necessary--you can use other beverages for his hydration, assuming he's able to eat 'normal foods.'

cod liver oil is very nutritious, egg yolks of course--oh, he'll be fine!

 

[Laurel723]

How do you make poi? I used to love it when I was little, but cant find it here stateside, and HI isn't exactly in our backyard...

 

[accountclosed3]

well, it's fermented taro root--so if you have a fountain (water has to stream over the taro root--you could grow taro and then learn how to ferment it. You might have to go to hawaii to learn.

in absence of this, consider tarodream.com

 

[JaneS]

Rice milk is sugar water with inabsorbable calcium added.

I would rely on bone broths for calcium.

Two things are consistently deranged in eczema sufferers: fatty acids and probiotics, so supplementing those 2 will probably help. CLO and evening primrose oil are helpful to us.

 

[snugglebug14]

how would you do probiotic in a dairy allergy? Yogurt is the first thing that comes to mind which is clearly out. Next is the fermented salsa that I make but that's too spicy for ds. What other fermented/probiotic foods are toddler friendly? Thanks

 

[JaneS]

Mine loved fermented cucumber pickles. And roasted red peppers.

I personally would seek out a dairy free probiotic though too. I know of Metagenics and Natren but haven't used them personally.

 

[accountclosed3]

for my husband's psoriosis--often related to eczema--he uses a combination of cod liver oil and butter. perhaps butter oil would work bettre than butter?

also, WAP does have a meat/bone broth based formula on their web site.

 

[georgia]

I have two children who are allergic to dairy. I'm not sure why you had tried raw cows' milk with a dairy allergic baby...an allergy is caused by the proteins present in the milk.

This link is an excellent source of information on milk allergy that I found when we first we researching:

http://www.kjsl.net/~beanmom/nomilk.html

I'm really sorry to read that you're weaning your babe because of this...from the looks of your signature this wasn't what you had planned to do

IME, breastfeeding has always been such a fundamental part of my mothering and a great source of *safe* nutrition when dealing with allergies. It's really hard.

Best wishes to you and your little one.

 

[USAmma]

I know you have already made up your mind to wean him. I just wanted to let you know that breastmilk is by far the easiest thing for babies/toddler to digest and there is no other food that will substitute for it. I did not nurse either of my babies but I pumped for them for a time. When I was ready to quit pumping for dd2, in part because she was not tolerating something in my milk and I was tired of trying to figure out what, I expected that I could just put her on soy formula and all would be fine. It wasn't. She ended up on a hypoallergenic formula that cost an arm and a leg. She ended up having digestive problems in general and I find myself with her at 30 mos old still buying formula sometimes when she's having bad days. If I could have looked to the future I would have kept pumping and elimited more things from my diet. She gets very sick over the winters and breastmilk would have helped her.

Before you wean, make absolutely sure that he can tolerate something that has the same protein and calcium and other nutritents that breastmilk offers. Rice milk is *not* a good substitute for growing toddlers. It has almost no nutrition. No fat, low protein, low vitamins. Same with soy milk, although some vegan parents will add things to make it work. It's still not as good as breastmilk.

My daughter, who has severe feeding issues, survives a lot of times on Pediasure which is lactose-free, or by ordering a special soy pediatric formula on-line for $$ when she gets really bad. Pediatric drinks are "dead" food and hard on the kidneys to digest. They are canned and manufactured and not even close to natural milk products. Certainly not something I would have chosen in my own. Breastmilk and other natural milks are alive. There are pediatric drinks that are for kids who are allergic to dairy and soy but they taste awful and are extremely expensive, like $8 per 8 oz can. Most kids who need those for survival (severe allergies, not growing or thriving) end up with feeding tubes because they won't drink it by mouth.

I am a member of a forum of kids with feeding issues. I have seen and heard of kids who weaned and within months became failure to thrive and got malnourished. Kids for whatever reason could not tolerate milk or would not drink milk, and would not eat other nutritious living foods that had the same nutrients. Some ended up on feeding tubes, some just remained malnourished and developed a lot of other related problems such as constipation and behavior problems. I have seen it happen over and over again. I don't want to scare you but I want you to know what can happen.

Weaning is a personal decision and if you need to wean, I can respect that. But your child needs to be eating or drinking something that has the same nutrition he's getting now in bresatmilk in order to grow and thrive, or you may end up with a malnourished child. Nutrition is the most important thing in the early years and being malnourished will affect a child for life.

 

[snugglebug14]

We aren't weaning because of the dairy allergy...it's a completely seperate issue. I understand that he needs nourishment to replace what he is currently getting from my milk which is why I posted the thread. I'm looking for recommendations for things to feed him that can serve as proper nourishment when he isn't breastfeeding and that will also help with his eczema. I understand that bm is best, but he will probably be two by the time I am done weaning him and for our family, now is the time to wean him. Thanks to anyone who can offer healthy foods to supplement his diet!

 

[Ruthla]

Have you tried goat or sheep's milk? Some people with cow's milk allergies are also allergic to goat and/or sheep milk, but others can tolerate it. It might be worth trying, at least with yogurt and cheese (since those seem to be easier to find than milk.)

If milk doesn't work for him at all, I wouldn't try to find a "fake milk" for him, but rather a wholesome diet that meets all his nutritional needs. I'd emphasize bone broths for calcium, fermented veggies if he can't have any yogurt or kefir, etc. The only non-dairy "milks" that are really NT-compatible are nut milks, and you could add dolomite powder for calcium/magnesium.

 

[georgia]

Quote:

weaning and dairy allergy, eczema

I guess I misunderstood why you were weaning based on the title of your thread

Sorry!

The practitioners who we have seen have all said that excema is directly related to the protein allergy. I bet once the dairy (and anything else he might be allergic to) is out of his system, the skin condition will clear up

Best wishes!

 

[kdmama33]

One thing I wanted to add, since you questioned yogurt and how to get probiotics into your DS without it, is that you can make yogurt without using dairy or soy products. Coconut milk makes a very delicious yogurt, plus it would get the goodness of coconut oil into your DS as well, which would help with his nutritional requirements for healthy fats.

HTH!

 

[JessicaS]

I am just concerned about the benefits of breastmilk that cannot possibly be replaced or substituted.

Even normal children do best on breastmilk but children who have asthma or allergies, or are at risk for autoimmune conditions it can mean so much to their future health.

Not trying to be argumentative or flame, I have a dairy allergy so I completely sympathise with your current situation.

I am sorry you are having to consider this, it cannot be an easy decision.

I use coconut milk as a milk replacement when cooking (yay Chanley told me to!) and also this fake butter stuff from Wild Oats it is called "Earth Balance Whipped Spread," it isn't too bad.

Fake swiss cheese makes VERY good grilled cheese sandwiches.

I also like to use a lot of mashed avacado instead of cheese or spread on sandwiches. (but I am an avacado addict..dh calls the Good Eats avacado episode "Jessica Porn") avacado has the good fats in it.

Coconut milk yogurt sounds like a good idea (I plan on trying that) you can find a yogurt maker fairly easily.

 

[snugglebug14]

Quote:

Originally Posted by kdmama33 One thing I wanted to add, since you questioned yogurt and how to get probiotics into your DS without it, is that you can make yogurt without using dairy or soy products. Coconut milk makes a very delicious yogurt, plus it would get the goodness of coconut oil into your DS as well, which would help with his nutritional requirements for healthy fats. HTH!

It would be fantastic if you knew of the recipie for this!!! would it give him the probiotics he needs??? Yogurt is one of the things he CONSTANTLY asks for! That and cheese so if you know of a non-dairy, non-soy cheese that would be great too! Thanks so much

 

[georgia]

He constantly asks for them because he's allergic. Although it might be counter-intuitive, allergic children crave that to which they are allergic. As a family, we went completely dairy-free--nothing in the house with dairy, and my children no longer ask for the stuff they used to beg for.

I give my children a probiotic tablet which is gluten, dairy, etc. free. They love it. Can't remember the name but they come in strawberry and banana flavors.

There isn't a commerical non-dairy, non-soy cheese that I am aware of. Or one that's edible anyway

or readily available. Rice cheese has casein in it. I might suggest you check out the Allergy subforum for more ideas, too.

 

[knittinclothmama]

Laurel723 or anyone else who can answer my question.... Are you saying there is a blood test or prick that can tell if my ds is allergic to milk?? Would you recommend that route to find out? My son has eczema and it's really flaring up right now. He has been consuming a lot of milk (mostly raw) products lately. He's had eczema since he was two months old and it comes and goes. I got milk kefir grains a couple of weeks ago so we've been having kefir smoothies every day in addition to yogurt and blender pancakes, which have milk, etc.... Another issue with ds is that he only weighs about 25 pounds and he is almost 3 so I'm worried that if I take milk products away there will be problems with him gaining more weight.... I guess it could have the opposite affect if he 'is' allergic to milk though. I won't use soy products but I guess I would try coconut. I wouldn't have a problem switching to water kefir grains, is there is big difference in the benefit of milk vs. water kefir?? That may be a topic for another thread......
Thanks for anymore insight on this!