Unfortunately,I think Kyle has a true milk allergy or milk intolerance. When I first got him from the orphanage, we brought him back to our bungalow in Danang and later realized he has massive and stinky diarrhea. Course, no one mentioned this and we didn't know how long he had diarrhea. None of the other babies in our group had diarrhea. When we got back to the states, we had his feces tested for parasites which came back negative. Kyle's pediatrician went ahead and treated him with Flagyl "just in case". I decided to go ahead and switch him to soy formula b/c had a mild rash on his face & body and b/c he was a restlous sleeper. I noticed an immediate improvement in the odor after switching him to soy. The diarrhea took another 10 days or so to resolve. Since then, he has the occasional diarrhea which has been difficult to figure out.
Last week, I gave him Lactaid at his cousin's house one night, the next day his feces were loose... and then he got bad diarrhea for 3 days. When I say bad... I mean blow out the diaper all over your clothes, up your shirt, on your bed & sheets BAD. I told Kyle... don't move... Mommy's gonna go get a towel... I wrapped him (& sheets) and clothes and carried everything to tub and stuck him under the faucet! It was so gross. He also got diarrhea the day after his birthday. I did give him chocolate cake & icing. Now that I look back... it was probably milk chocolate icing. I have also given him a few bites of ice cream... and then he got diarrhea the next day. He usually doesn't get diarrhea right away but the next day. He also still spits up a lot... that's gross too. Gotta love nasty partially digested soy milk up-chucked on your clothes EVERY DAY. It stinks. Thus, I stink.
I looked up milk allergies on the internet and some studies say 100% of people from Southeast Asia have milk intolerance some time in their lives. They are not lactase deficient, but rather have intolerance to some milk proteins. Not surprised, there was hardly any milk in Vietnam when we were there. No dairy cows either.
I have already discussed this with Kyle's pediatrician before...but have another appt in a week to discuss in more detail. Don't know a whole lot about food allergies... but I am learning.
2 comments:
I just stumbled across your post from a google alert, and it is possible that your little one has a mild soy intolerance too. It happens sometimes in little ones, and soy formula is rich with soy proteins. It might not be an allergy, but soy can be a problem sometimes.
Definitely sounds like a milk allergy though! I have never read any fact about all Vietnamese having a problem with milk protein, definitely lactose intolerance though, I would be curious where you found that fact!
I have a milk allergy. I was "diagnosed" with it as a baby because I didn't tolerate formula, but my parents forgot to mention it as I grew up. All through school I had horrible pain and diarrhea after eating lunch because the lunch lady always made us drink our milk before dumping our trays. It wasn't until I was in my mid-twenties that I was diagnosed again. Eliminating milk made a huge difference. I still eat dairy on occasion, but I also medicate and I am aware of the consequences.
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