Secondary lactose intolerance

[Maggie355]

My DD is 4 months old, breastfed and my 3rd child. 2 weeks ago I came down with gastro and despite my best efforts, managed to pass it on to bubs. She had it pretty mildly; a slight temp, rather unsettled and lots of green runny poo! 2 weeks later we are still dealing with lots of poo! I took her to the GP a few days ago, who wasn't too concerned and thought it would wind up in the following few days. She advised me to get DD weighed at the Maternal health centre if things didn't improve.

Have just got back from the centre and am a little upset. DD has lost weight & the nurse believes she has developed lactose intolerance. Her advice is to wait a few days, but if things don't improve to feed DD lactose free formula for a while, while I express to keep milk supply up. Have researched a little on the web and it seems I will need to do this for about 3 or 4 weeks. I'm upset as I have had lots of prob expressing in the past and I really don't want to go there again.....but I do very much want to continue breastfeeding. I'm also worried about the time and effort involved. With 2 other kids, a hubby that travels a lot for work and very little family support I just can't get my head around how I can make this work.

Has anyone else been through this? How long did you have to express and bottle feed for? Is it possible that I could do a mix of both, or do I need to totally eliminate BF for the gut to heal properly? Does anyone have any experience using LI drops which I read about?

Any advice very much appreciated. I have to get DD weighed again in 4 days and will discuss with the nurse then, but I want to make sure I've got a total grip on the facts and my options prior to this.

[~Minny~]

Hun google lacteeze, you can get it from most chemists. I started DS on these at 3months old due to lactose intolarnace. Best thing i ever did, he has pretty much grown out of it now

ETA - also means you dont need to introduce formula or express just keep feeding the way you are

[Barb Glare]

Keep breastfeeding your little one. You have both been through a lot. If a baby has secondary lactose intolerance then it will still recover on breastfeeding, and breastfeeding restores your baby's gut flora and supports your baby's immune system in a way that formula never will. There's too much to lose in formula feeding your baby. It's often a quick fix for health professionals - but much harder for the mother to manage

[MantaRay]

This article explains about lactose intolerance and breastfeeding very well - Australian Breastfeeding Association - Lactose intolerance and the breastfed baby. I think that will answer all your questions.

I hope things settle down soon

[Yeddi]

I agree, keep feeding, without the good flora from the breast milk the intolerance can actually get worse. Have you thought about switching to A2 milk? It might not be the lactose that baby is reacting to but the A1 casein.

[onthefly]

Something similar happened to my son when he was younger - he got the runs after I was on ABs and started showing signs of lactose intolerance (green frothy poos, lots of gas & discomfort, etc). It cleared up within a few weeks.
Also, the gastro itself may be at least partially responsible for the weight loss.
Al the best