Big trouble trying weaning onto baby rice - Has anyone else had similar problems with their reflux baby?

Replies to This Discussion

Permalink Reply by Ginny S on July 10, 2009 at 18:11

That's what my daughter did, it was a severe milk allergy, but she is also allergic to wheat, gluten and soy and probably other things we don't know. You need to go completely dairy free first, your baby should be on neocate. It will not be the baby rice. Look up information about eosinophilic conditions - gut allergy as opposed to blood allergy where they do skin prick and blood tests. Stella refused to eat at all until 9 months, just gagging every time she did. Then when she did eat she vomited or wretched every time for 2 months. It was hell. She eventually had an endoscopy and it showed blistering in the lower stomach and intestine which is consistent with food allergy. Taken off the dairy and all the vomiting stopped. I had had a problem as she vomited all the alternative milks, but not Aptamil Easy digest, so that is why she was not on neocate in the first place. Neocate is the milk that is most dairy free but a small percentage of babies are allergic to that too. In our case Stella went on to rice milk and that improved everything, but she was 12 months old by that stage. Stella was put on ranitidine as well as omeprazole and that helped it too. Good luck. T

• ▶ Reply

Permalink Reply by JoanneRider on July 10, 2009 at 18:44

Hi There Ginny!

Thank you so much for all your recent postings, which I have been reading with a great deal of interest.
I think that you are right that there is alot going on with Poppy which may indicate further allergies as she is already on Pepti Junior, Carobel and Lansoprazole and actually had a swollen eye and face for three days following my first weeks attempt to give her baby rice (I did not mention on my first posting about the baby rice, as did not want to bore people with too much information!). My peadiatition actually suggested today that the swelling may simply be because she may have just had a cold (which she does not!)- his suggestion really upset me as I know instinctively that things are not well and that she is getting worse with all the standard reflex symptoms, and acid sicks, choking/gagging/hiccups/feed refusals/sleep feeds/split feeds/screaming on/off bottle and screaming attacks lasting three hours etc - and only 1 pound put on over 4 weeks - just not good enough and my current medical team unfortunately do not seem that interested. Perhaps they just do not think she is ill enough yet. I have made a call to Dr Neil Shah's secretary, as I have been reading your information - thank you so much for all your postings - I had also seen your experience with Neocate and was looking at the website last night!

• ▶ Reply

Permalink Reply by Ginny S on July 10, 2009 at 19:21

Honestly, it is a minefield. All very complicated and exhausting and worrying. Poor you! And poor little Poppy! By the way, I found pepti junior the worst of all the milks. Stella had never done massive projectile vomits until I gave her that. I persevered for about 6 weeks and eventually switched back to Aptamil, this was when she was 5 to 6 months old. I am glad you are not using domperidone as the first time Stella actually made any improvement was when I took her off that at 7 months, although she still would not eat. But it did stop all the screaming and wailing at night (well, cut it down to about three times a night). Food allergy definitely makes them wail all night by the way. My son, a much easier case, wailed throughout the night until I got him off the allergenic foods (for him dairy, wheat, gluten, soy, sweet corn and pineapple. And I have never given him nuts, although almond seems to be fine). He is actually fine with eggs. There is also oat milk if baby is not allergic to gluten. We had a problem with STella's weight. However, I stayed at my county hospital until she was 9 months old as they said they were not worried until she actually fell off the chart! She was always bobbing around the second oror up to the ninth percentile.

• ▶ Reply

Permalink Reply by Ginny S on July 10, 2009 at 20:20

Also, one other thought - all the alternative milks are composites of dairy, so neocate the least offensive. I would not push weaning if you have all those problems. You do not want to end up with oral aversion like Stella. I would just try tastes first, after you have got her on neocate. Pureed pear is the least allergenic food. Lamb too, but that is later. Try foods without a milk component. eg carrot, sweet potato, then add in potato. If reflux is def a problem then you should start with veg rather than fruit, apple is very acidic and should not be used.

• ▶ Reply

Permalink Reply by Clare Good on July 12, 2009 at 9:02

Hi Joanne,
Yes weaning made things worse for us. My son either wasn't ready or was just too sore with the acid but we've been trying for 3 months (he's now 8 months) and are only just seeing an improvement. And all he can manage is about 1 teaspoon a day. Yes reflux can be improved with weaning but if they are sore and uncomfortable and it makes them gag/sick, its the last thing they need. I agree with Ginny - you need to be careful you don't end up with oral aversion which is what we had. Baby led weaning sort of worked for us - just handed him bits of food so it was completely up to him what he did with it so if he was comfortable enough to try it then he did. He hardly eats anything but it has made him happy with things going to his mouth which for a while, was a big issue. I'm still breast feeding (bottles make him gag) so I'm on a dairy free diet (no Wispas! :-( ) which has helped a bit. I still think he has an undiagnosed allergy as well as the dairy though - I just haven't found out what yet. My only tip is to nag, nag and nag again. I eventually went to A&E to get him seen because he was so sick. We got an appointment the next week so it did work. I also found a health visitor who was on my side and who made sense which was rare!
Good luck with it
Clare

• ▶ Reply

Permalink Reply by Clare Good on July 12, 2009 at 9:04

Oh and my paed said not to worry too much about weaning if it wasn't working. It isn't ideal but it is ok to leave them until 8 or 9 months if that is what they need - it isn't going to do them any long term harm.
Clare

• ▶ Reply

Permalink Reply by JoanneRider on July 12, 2009 at 18:17

Thanks so much Clare and wishing you lots of luck with your appointment next week for your little boy, bless him, hope they help you and congrats on finding a switched-on hv.

I am taking your and Ginny's experiences and most helpful advice on board - I will take a break from trying the weaning for the moment and try to get an appointment in London (Im in Hampshire so a bit of a trek) to look into allergies and diary free. My lo has had eye swelling, red eye and face rash every day now after milk feeds and also after any attempt on a teaspoon of solids, I really am agreeing with Ginny that it may still be a problem with the Pepti Junior milk (based on dairy) rather than the solids. Unfortunately her milk intake is drastically reducing (she did just three feeds yesterday) as she just does not want to take her feed, I am sure, as you say, it is due to soreness and my attempts to wean her (as per hospital instructions) have made things worse for her.

Thank you so much for sharing your experiences Ginny and Clare - I am most grateful as it reinforces a little bit of confidence in my own parenting instincts! and that when medical teams say that weaning will help a reflux baby, they are NOT always right!!

Best wishes and good luck xx jo xx

• ▶ Reply

Permalink Reply by Clare Good on July 13, 2009 at 8:59

Someone said to me the other day that a baby isn't going to do something that makes them feel poorly. Obvious I know but it kind of hit home to me with my son and weaning. So if she is taking less and less milk, I'd agree she sounds like she has an allergy and it makes her feel ill. The face rash and swelling is exactly what Oliver had after dairy. They prescribed Neocate to me (not that I use it because he won't take it...) and that came from a dietician.

And absolutely go with your instincts!! I've now fallen out with 3 HVs because I've gone against Drs advice but I have been right every time in hindsight!! Very hard to do sometimes but a mummy is always right ;-)


Good luck hun
xx

• ▶ Reply

Permalink Reply by Sarah Moore on July 13, 2009 at 12:19

Hi Claire,

What do you us eif you don't use Neocate? Our daughter will not take it either.

• ▶ Reply

Permalink Reply by Clare Good on July 13, 2009 at 17:16

I'm still breast feeding Sarah. Means I am on a dairy free diet too which is hard work!!
Clare

• ▶ Reply

Permalink Reply by Ginny S on July 13, 2009 at 21:35

Hi Clare

You should also cut out wheat if you are breast feeding, I found that helped as well. Plus soya and egg. You should avoid all the main allergens. The only time my son (now three) was ok when breast fed was when I totally avoided all the things he is allergic too (dairy, wheat, gluten and soy). Weirdly he is ok with egg. Have you had her bloods tested? She might well be allergic in her blood, not just gut allergy. Stella got into gluten free pasta, feeding herself at around 10 months. The best is by Dove's Farm available in Waitrose and sometimes Tescos. Waitrose is the best supermarket for a range of gluten and dairy free foods.

I want to know what they do if you can't feed a baby neocate ..... after one year you can go with rice milk and supplements, but not before I think. Although if you can get baby to eat then the drinking is not so much of a problem. I know reflux babies who didn't drink anything after 6 months but they sweitched easily to food. Lucky them!!

• ▶ Reply

Permalink Reply by Liz Martin on July 14, 2009 at 14:07

Hi

I have an 8 month old reflux baby. We have had a lot of trouble at times with solids, I am told that reflux babies produce more mucus which makes them more likely to gag but he has always gagged terribly and been very sick. It's very hard isn't it ? He does have weeks which are better than others but can still only have totally pureed food no lumps or textures and no finger food. Have you tried very very sloppy rice ? That's what I did for quite a while.

Liz

• ▶ Reply

• ‹ Previous
• 1
• 2
• Next ›
• Page