| Worry Wedgie |
Weekends around are here wonderful because for two nights in a row Mark and I get to be bed buddies again (until he requires sleep to function like a coherent human being at work and returns to bunking on the futon), and Samson has someone to hump and lay on while I am busy at 4:00 am feeding Nate.
Weekends also mean that I get to hand off Mr. Mugaloon to his dad for bath time. It entertains me greatly to watch as Mark’s brows furrow in deep concentration while he scrubs away all the neck and armpit cheese hiding under the many mounds of chunky baby rolls.
Weekends also mean that I have more time to myself, which I need these days because I have an article deadline looming over my head and it eats away at me every single day that it doesn’t get done. I just can’t find it in me to focus during the day with so many other things going on, like trying to get the house in order in case we have to list and sell, like yesterday, and treading through all my worry about Nate’s red scaly face (which the doctor now thinks is seborrheic dermatitis – an extension of the crusty cradle cap flakes on his scalp - and not baby acne) and green poppy diapers that now exhibit traces of blood. No one but me seems worried about the state of his health, but it’s stressing me out with a fierce worry wedgie that I cannot shake loose because a) after digging deep into the maze of health information online, one website stated that seborrheic dermatitis is linked to Parkinson’s disease and epilepsy and b) I feel like I am somehow failing him as a mother.
We now have to consider the foremilk/hindmilk imbalance is not the only answer to his pooping problem and that he might actually have a sensitivity to the protein found in cow dairy, which is transferred to my breast milk.
Has anyone ever had a baby with a cow protein allergy, either while breastfeeding or on formula? Did eliminating dairy from your diet or switching to a hypoallergenic or soy based formula help?
And if the doctor prescribed a steroid cream for your baby’s face for something that should eventually, given time, heal on its own, and a pharmacist later said that steroid creams are not usually given to infants because their skin is so thin and the steroids get absorbed into their blood, which can do things like stunt their growth – would you put it on your kid’s face even if the dosage was the lowest available?
This mothering thing – it’s not easy. Labels: All in the Family, Baby Nate, Motherhood, The Learning Curve |
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In a word, YES.
Quick and dirty version: Alex had a dairy protein intolerance that caused bloody diapers and a scary trip to Children's Hospital in Dallas. I gave up all dairy for several months while I continued breastfeeding and he eventually grew out of the severe intolerance. I suspect he still has a slight allergy, but he's fine.
Soy formula doesn't always help because most kids who have an intolerance to dairy are also sensitive to soy. Lovely, huh? (Plus, I'm kind of wary about giving my baby boy soy b/c of its estrogenic properties. Paranoid, yeah, but you know how it goes.)
Here are the more detailed versions. There may be another post about it in there somewhere:
here
and
here
It is much more common than one would think, and you are NOT alone! Also, I wonder if his skin breakout could be related to an intolerance/sensitivity? Just a thought. Hang in there. YOU ARE DOING GREAT!
And man, oh, man, is that boy gorgeous.
Heres the deal. You are Nates mom and no matter what YOU know what is best for your son. If you want there are a few things you can try first. One is Aveeno
1% HYDROCORTISONE ANTI-ITCH CREAM. I used this on Brandon when he had excema. First I wiped it on myself and made sure I felt nothing. He actually had a good response to it. Another SUPER product that I used on Brandons circumcision scar, his diaper rash, and his excema is caled Aquaphor Healing Ointment. I actually use this on my tattoos even. At places like Babies R Us and the regular grocery store you can even find this in baby version (which is the same strength except it says Baby in cute letters). No matter what though you know what is best. About the milk, both my neice and a good friend of mine had problems with breast milk. My cousin put my niece on the soy based formula and she said everything was fine, and then when she was about 1 she was able to tolerate regular milk. The milk protien allergy might be whats causing blood in the stool, but also, if your nipples are still cracking that could be it also. You are both doing such a great job, and Baby Nate looks amazing. Doctors sometimes over think things or just wanna give out medicine to get you out of their office. So really think it through and a lot of times, you will come up with the answer all on your own.
My daughter had cradle cap that would NOT go away after months, so I used a steriod cream the dr prescribed. It went away after two treatments and I have seen no stunting :)
Also if your son does have a protein intolerance, this same protein will be found in the soy formula. There is a formula by Emfamil that a friend of mine gave her son because he was allergic to milk and soy protein, it worked great but it made his diapers extra stinky..here is the product info
Nutramigen® LIPIL®
Hypoallergenic Protein Hydrolysate Formula
Description
Nutramigen® LIPIL® is a hypoallergenic formula for infants who are sensitive to intact protein found in milk-based and soy-based formulas. Nutramigen LIPIL contains extensively hydrolyzed protein proven effective for colic due to cow's milk allergy. The formula includes docosahexaenoic acid (DHA) and arachidonic acid (ARA), nutrients also found in breast milk that promote brain and eye development.
Our daughter had super bad "baby acne," and our doctor told us to just leave it alone and it would go away on its own, which it did about a month later. As far as the steroid question, I used a super duper butt cream for bad diaper rash that had steroid and anti fungal medication in it and noone ever mentioned that it could be harmful to the baby. Although it is hard to do, I think it will all work out in its own as these are pretty normal baby issues. Take care :)
Sorry, I should have said try not to worry in the last sentence!
My son had an allergic reaction at 9-10 weeks old, and I used Aveeno
1% Hydrocortisone anti-itch cream on the advice of his paediatrician. (The rash was only on his face.) The rash went away quickly, and my son had no negative reaction to it.
My grand daughter had a "rash" on her face and I used cocco butter butt balm on her face and bacitracin antibiotic cream on her and in about three days it was GONE!!! as for the cradle crud...I used baby oil gel on my chillins many moons ago, and scrubbed with a VERY SOFT nail brush type brush..seemed to help BUNCHES
hope you find some help in this ole Southern Belles advice!! TRY to not worry so much from the outside lookin in i think you are DOIN A GREAT job!!! HE IS ADORABLE and GETTING more so minute by minute.
First of all my son had cradle cap and it went onto his face also. Now at almost two years old he still has rashy skin during the cold months that never goes away. But he shows no other signs of any problems. He also had dairy problems. I had to eliminate all milk products from my diet. When he weaned at 15 months and we tried cow milk with him we quickly found out the child can not have any cow milk, cheese, yogurt, ect. But as long as when I was breastfeeding I stayed away from it and now as long as he stays away from it he is fine. IF he eats it the diapers are horrible and yes we have seen traces of blood in them. I would eliminate the milk/cow protien products and see how he does. IF it fixes his problems then you know it was the problem. I drink rice milk now and eat veggie cheese and really I am so use to it that I have kept it up.
My son also has a dairy protein intolerance. We had just battled the difficult task of getting him to breast feed when he started having some serious poop issues. I cut dairy completely out of my diet and within days he was a new baby. We also use Similac Alimentium formula when we supplement because he also seems to be a little sensitive to soy.It was hard at first but now, five months later, I am a pro and reading labels and am completely used to the dairy free diet. I have chosen to not reintroduce dairy in my diet until I wean him and at that time we will also slowly begin to introduce diary to him as well. Almost everyone I know that have had babies with this issue have kids today that do just fine with dairy.
You are doing a great job as a mom. I spent the first two months worrying about every little spot, poop, cry my guy let out and now realize that it is just fine to do so, I am his advocate and need to speak up about all these things to make myself feel better. I do admit I still worry a lot, but have learned to to do so much online research and just go straight to the doctor when I have a concern.
He is precious--enjoy being his mom!
mmm...neck cheese....:)
We've been on a quite a roller coaster with our eldest twin daughter (6MONTHS)...I won't get into the complete craziness of it, but yes, she has a protein sensitivity. We have her on a $50 a can formula called Elecare, and it's nasty crap. Same goes for Nutramigen, and Alimentum. However, that being said Soy milk is different that cows milk. Our youngest twin is on soy milk after having serious issues digesting cows milk, it's all good now. There's no similarity between the two. But I will say it's a massive and drastic difference between breastmilk and formula like nutramigen. Those formulas are horrible tasting, whereas breastmilk is fabulous. So I would eliminate ALL dairy from your diet if that's what you're suspecting. I had to do it as well, and it turned out, all I ate was dairy :).
As for the rashy-rash... Try some topical hyrdrocortisone. It's stilla steroid, but a VERY mild one, and it should begin to clear it up. Also Aquaphor ointment is a really great mommy tip... It works really well on all sorts of things! Face rash from drooling especially!!
And good luck, it really seems like you're doing and unbelievable job.
My kids never had any milk allergies but they sure have had cradle cap and infact Ethan just had it.
I noticed it before getting his hair cut and after taking him to cut his hair I just put him in the tub and I take some baby oil and wash his hair in it and then while it is still in his hair I take a fine comb and comb it all out.
It works great and he gone in no time.
Try that cause it works great.
my mom is the queen of allergies. We were allergic to everything we were also allergic to soy so changing to soy might not be the answer. She stopped drinking milk based products and continued to nurse for a really long time.
Also i would not use the cream if the pharmicist did not recommend it but then again the peditrician would not give something harmful to your baby!
My friend's son had eczema (I know I spelled that wrong) his entire first year of life. She knew it was tied to dairy allergies, but never really thought about it coming through her breastmilk. Then, when her son reached 8 months, she started giving him yogurt and it would make him turn read immediately and his eczema would flare up. After that, she realized that he was allergic to dairy and it was coming through her milk. She quit eating dairy herself and his skin cleared up almost over night.
My friend did put steroid cream on her son's head although he was maybe 6 months old or so. It was the only thing that would clear up his skin.
The problems never cese to end!
My son had a sensitivty to dairy when I was nursing him, it was absolutely horrible! I tried and tried to nurse for 3 long grueling months, of NO SLEEP AND SCREAMING BABY. Finally after giving up the dream of being a nursing mom, I switched to soy formula, nad things quickly shaped up. We did Similac Isomil Advance. I did try to eliminate dairy, but Ethna's problems seemed to be whey protein, which is in EVERYTHING and I lacked the control to stop eating everything but fruits and vegetables. BUT I do know a few women who refrained from eating dairy and were able to still nurse their children..but from observation their kids were still teh worst sleeper I know, not sure if there was nay link..LOL.
You will make the righ decidion for Nate.
Cradle cap can last for awhile and get really yucky, so I would just use cradle cap cream and wait it out??
Good Luck!
It's definitely possible that if he has an allergy or an intorance it can be passed thru what you eat when you breastmilk. Try eliminating dairy from your diet and see what it does with Nate. He'll still be getting nutrition from your milk. It's a good trial and error without putting anything unwanted into his system (re: Rx's) and a good place to start.
As for the blood in the poop if your ped isn't alarmed at it, maybe a 2nd opinion? That would be scaring the jebebes out of me until I knew why.
Karla... I have three kids and all had the green poop diapers and cradle cap. Green poop, brown poop, yellow poop.... it all is good and all depends on what you are eating.
I had a child with a milk allergy and eczema... none of it had to do with her poop. I realize that you are still having a hard time coming to terms that you have a truly healthy happy normal bouncing baby boy... but you do. You did it. He survived, he's here and he's a doll.
There really is something to be said for NOT looking up every tiny little thing on the internet and convincing yourself that your child has every disease or medical issue known to man.
If you can... try to enjoy this time, as baby Nate is going to grow so very very quickly! The green pop will end by the time he is about 3 months. :)
karla,
i used olive oil on the boys heads..i would rub some on. wait a bit then sort of scrub it with a baby tooth brush, it came right off.
cant help with the other stuff though.. except to say this...if the "mommie guts says no then NO"
oh yeah,someone tolf me breast milk helps bad diaper rash, i got some dry ass-fo-dolf-fo-lus (sorry for the phonics) and mixed it with a scrut or 4 of BreatMilk and voila!
all gone!
your doing great sweetie, i know it sort of sux sometimes.
erika
I haven't read the other comments so you may have these same answers already.
I believe that here in the US they have stopped doing the steroid cream all together unless it is a total last resort. My best friends children were actually taken off a steroid cream and put on one without.
Yes, milk can be passed through breast milk. Try cutting it out and see if that helps. This does not mean long term milk intolerance. They can sometimes out grow it very quickly.
I'm doing this baby thing for the third time and I can tell you that I still have my moments.
My daughter had a bad case of cradle cap. I caught it early. I used Eucerin and a warm bath one evening. I gently sloughed the scales away in the tub with her. Then I greased up her head. I had to wash her head the next morning but things have been much better since.
Also, my three year old daughter still has an occasional bought with dry scalp.
I do, however, enjoy watching you find your stride in this mothering thing. Amazing how a complete stranger can be so happy for you!
Cole has had really bad cradle cap for about the last month. It's just recently spread to his face around his hairline. His pediatrician said just to use some Head and Shoulders (or whatever dandruff shampoo you choose) and put lots of lotion on until it's gone. One night I took his little hairbrush and kinda rubbed off some of the dead skin, and that helped some. It's still pretty nasty, but I have a feeling that the fact that it's winter has a little something to do w/that, too.
I was going to go get some better lotion for him last night, but I went online and searched around, and really I only found one lotion made especially for cradle cap. Therefore, my guess is that there's really no need for it. However, I remember once hearing that that Aveeno stuff was pretty good, and the special lotion they had online had hydrocortisone in it, so there may be something to that. I figure when it's ready, as icky as it is, it'll make its exit. Both our babies are cute as the dickens regardless of how crusty they are!
If you do end up having to switch to formula, just know that all three of mine have been formula fed, and they all three have been considered advanced compared to most kids their ages, so there's no fear that the formula will slow little Nate down. Plus, their immune systems and all that other stuff that is supposedly better w/breastmilk are fine, too.
Oh, and where exactly are these so-called folds? My goodness he is SUPER CUTE!!!
Hey Karla,
accdg to my fabulous lac con, dairy allergies are pretty common in infants. She actually had about 75% of my batch of moms give up dairy for the first 6 mos!!! Green poop definitely a sign of lactose intolerance. I couldn't give dairy up completely, so my son's poop was never consistently the yellow poop she liked to see.
The cradle cap does go by about 6 weeks. My son enjoyed getting oil (burt's bees) rubbed onto his scalp and then getting a vigorous brushing with the soft-bristled brush.
You may want to try Vanicreme for his face--it's a very mild moisturizer that we use on his dry spots--if you're really worried, but give it time. My son definitely had about 3 weeks' worth of acne and dandruff, then suddenly he was clear-skinned and -scalped!
fpyla
my friends babe who was born nov 28 has cradle cap badly. it wasnt getting better with using olive oil on it.
she used vasoline and then baby shampoo and that seemed to help. also stopped using hats of any kind except when out in the real cold, or would just bundle in blankets or dress in a hoodie.
that seemed to help!
No, I don't have experience with either dairy intolerance or steroid cream, but I wanted to reach out and offer you a little cyber hug and say "peace to you in the midst of your mommy worries." I never considered myself a worrier, until I had kids. Then it just seemed there were a hundred things to worry about every day.
Nate looks beautiful in the tub with daddy!
My youngest son is on soy formula due to a "suspected" milk allergy/intolerance that is related to another issue. We never had the green poop, but he did have a rash on his face which, apparently, is a symptom or sign of milk allergy/intolerance. He seems to have done well on the soy formula, but like I said, it is related to another issue so it's hard to tell what's what.
Both my boys have eczema and we have had to use topical steroid creams for them. Face, arms, legs, you name it. It isn't something we like to do everyday. It depends on how bad their skin is. But it should be fine if you use it sparingly. It really has helped my boys.
Cate
My first son had issues with caw milk formula. They (he was in the NICU) switched him to soy milk and he did great. He finally was able to take full feeds.
They told us enfamil's and similac's soy formulas are the same.
My son has cradle cap. I started using 1% hydrocortisne cream. His head looks so much better.
Hi - Starting at 4 months old, my son started getting at least a dozen bloody stools a day :(. Long story short, he was sensitive to proteins in food, but not just milk protein, unfortunately. It seemed like anything and everything would trigger a bloody diaper. I tried to wean him to a hypo-allergenic formula, but by 4 months, those little tastebuds were too developed for that nasty stuff....I ended up going on an elimination diet (on dr. sear's website - his wife developed it) for 3 months while I continued to nurse (it is a pretty drastic solution....) since just cutting out dairy was not nearly enough (i.e. at one point I had peaches and he had blood....). After 3 months, he started tolerating soy in my diet (I had some soy milk) and then I tried a very small amount of soy formula - hooray! He was ok with it, so I weaned him to soy formula at 7 months. At about a year old, I tried a bit of milk based formula, he was ok, we we did that for 3-4 months before switching to milk. He had another episode around 18 months, then another one around 3 years old (we have no idea why), but has been ok since. He did not have the skin issue, but my neighbor's son did, and OMG, I've never seen anything like it. Looking at your son's picture, he looks fantastic compared to my neighbor's poor little boy :(. His did clear up (he's 6 months now) but his case was so severe (a yellow/brown thick crust covering his entire face/head/neck, and even going down into his chest/back), he looked like a burn victim :(. I hope your son's condition does not get as bad as that. I wonder if they could be related - the skin and the intolerance issues? Anyway, Good luck!!
I have learned that the internet is a great resource, but it is also dangerous. You can find out too much information and convince yourself that your baby has a health problem. Use the internet as a resource, but don't go looking for a problem or you will find something to get worried about!
There's a difference between lactose intolerance and true dairy allergy. One of my boys had lactose intolerance, and did fine on lactose-free formula; the other two had/have serious dairy allergy. The older one, now nine, did fine on soy formula. With the baby, I fed him breastmilk for five months and stayed clear of anything dairy for the entire time. Now that he's on formula, he's on Alimentum (from Similac). I use the ready-to-mix powder, and he loves it. (I know it has a bad taste, but he doesn't seem to care.) I guess I would suggest figuring out first if it's Nate is lactose-intolerant or truly allergic to dairy protein, and take it from there.
My son's nasty cradle cap was mostly alleviated by putting vaseline all over his head after bathing. However it turned out that he had eczema too on his scalp and was prescribed a mild steriod ointment to be applied in a thin layer. The ointment worked well and worked quickly and he had no reaction to it. He certainly wasn't stunted - he's huge. I however was a bit allergic to it because on my chest and the inside of my arms where he snuggled to nurse I got a bit of a acne type rash - a known side effect of steriod ointments.
Cute baby. I use a steroid cream all the time, and I'm a big baby.
It sounds like you're doing a great job with your little Nate and he's absolutely adorable! It's so hard not to worry about our little ones ... part of being a mother for sure. Here's a link you may find helpful.
http://www.kellymom.com/babyconcerns/food-sensitivity.html
I have found a wealth of information on this site regarding everything breastfeeding. Good luck and take care!
Do you have a friend who could do internet searches for you?
I've had to quit doing them.
I become a total freak, living in fear of what 'could be'.
So, I research stuff my daughter wants to know, and she researches stuff for me. That way we can filter out the really 'out there' things for each other.
Presently, I'm researching how to get a 13 month old to sleep through the night...
Nate is SO adorable!
I didn't read all the other answers, but I'm putting in my experience. I don't eat a lot of dairy anyway, but when Alison was a baby I noticed that when I did eat it she spent a lot more time screaming. As long as I stayed dairy free she was happy. I think this last about 6 months or so and I was able to slowly start eating some cheese without ill effect. It may be something he outgrows.
I would be concerned about the steroid cream, especially since it will heal on its own. Lots of babies had cradle cap and weird rashes and sometimes it takes a long time to go away, but it doesn't hurt anything. Also, dairy commonly is bad for the skin, so if you cut out dairy for his belly it might help his skin.
I just took my 4 month old to the doctors today because of a cold (sneezing, bad cough, etc) - I saw a different doctor today and mentioned how she is allergic to both milk and soy formulas - she is currently on the Similac hypoallergenic formula when needed as I am currently almost exclusively breastfeeding her. I have eliminated dairy completely from my diet - but he mentioned that I shouldn't even be having soy. Is this true? Our normal doctor said that soy doesn't usually get passed thru breastmilk so I thought I was ok to have it - I've been having soy milk and ice cream, etc. Her eczema and cradle cap isn't clearing up and he said it is probably a food allergy. If I have to eliminate both dairy and soy from my diet - what is safe to eat? I'd hate to stop breastfeeding - but I also need to make sure that I eat what I need to maintain a milk supply and stay healthy. Any suggestions?
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Sunday, February 11, 2007
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Jezer : February 11, 2007 
