Warning: this post is going to be graphic. I can’t write a post about Luke’s digestive issues without going into details about his stools. I figured if I’m going to talk about his stools, I might as well include pictures (which I’ve taken to show his doctors). I know when I was googling “blood in baby stool” I wanted to come across some pictures. I hope these will help others who are searching, wondering if what they are seeing in their baby’s diapers is normal.
You’ve been warned. If you’re squeamish about this kind of thing, feel free to stop reading and come back on Wednesday when I’ll be posting a new dinner recipe for a meatless burger.
If you’re still reading, you must be interested in what’s been going on with my little man. He’s been diagnosed with MSPI, which stands for Milk Soy Protein Intolerance. This means that his immature digestive system has trouble breaking down the proteins in milk and soy. It does not mean he is lactose intolerant or that he is necessarily allergic to anything (although he may be, it’s too early to tell).
We’ve been lucky in that many babies with MSPI cry all the time or are extremely fussy. Luke’s never been that way. The main way we knew there was a problem was through his irregular stools. Normal breastfed baby stools are mostly yellow, sometimes seedy, with a watery or creamy consistency. Luke’s dirty diapers have always been slimy and full of mucus.
Green stools is another indicator. (Occasional green diapers can be normal, but early on his were consistently green. I don’t have any pictures of his early green stools.)
Occasionally they are specked with blood, both black and red.
He was also extremely congested early on in his life, a sign of a dairy sensitivity.
Another symptom is erratic sleep patterns. Luke can easily go from an angel sleeper to a nightmare with no rhyme or reason. Over time I’ve noticed a correlation with blood in his stool and his most mucus-y diapers to his worst sleep. Whatever is going on in there to cause the irregular stools must not feel great and therefore causes sleep disruptions.
The only way to “treat” MSPI is to eliminate the culprits from my diet (since I’m breast feeding). At 8 weeks I eliminated all dairy. It takes at least a month (probably more) for all dairy to be out of your system, so it was a waiting game. The only improvement I saw was his congestion cleared up, but his stools remained the same.
At 12 weeks there was still a lot of mucus in his diapers and also visible blood, so the next step was to eliminate soy. After this his diapers turned from mostly green to mostly yellow and his projectile spitting up stopped (I didn’t know if that was related or not and still can’t be sure). The mucus and blood were still present in his stools.
This is when his pediatrician referred us to gastroenterologist. By the time we got in, Luke was 19 weeks and I’d been off of dairy for 11 weeks. The doctor still thought, however, that dairy was in my system and causing the problems. He said I could have unknowingly eaten hidden dairy. This is true, but highly unlikely given my diet. I don’t eat a lot of processed foods, which is where hidden dairy lurks. He advised me to either switch to a hypoallergenic formula or wait and hope Luke outgrows the intolerance by 9 months.
I took Luke back to his pediatrician and she said it’d be worthwhile to cut out more foods that could be causing him problems. I then cut out wheat, eggs, peanuts, and tree nuts. After two weeks his diapers were still full of mucus, but I hadn’t seen any visible blood in that time. I decided to start adding back in foods to see what the reaction would be. I added back in eggs first, and there was no change.
A week later, I added back in peanuts and tree nuts. I’m not sure why I did these at the same time; I should have done one at a time. Within days, I saw visible blood again. I can’t be sure if they were the cause, but I decided to cut them out again. I put in a call to the pediatrician and she advised me that although it could be the peanuts or nuts, wheat also takes at least a month to get out of your system, so the wheat could still be the cause.
After 6 weeks of eliminating wheat, Luke’s stools finally started to look normal. They were consistently yellow, more creamy, and without visible blood.
We had two weeks of normal-looking stools. This was the good news. The bad news was it took me eating a diet free of dairy, soy, wheat, tree nuts (except coconut), and peanuts to get there.
After 2 solid weeks of good diapers, we decided to start solids (a few weeks earlier than we planned at 5.5 months old) Details about that are a whole different post, but I will give an overview as it relates to his digestive issues. We started with yellow squash. The first two days there was no mucus or blood in his stool–they stayed the same. On the third day there was still no mucus, but there was a small amount of blood. It seems the solid food, even the very small amount, was difficult for his digestive tract to handle.
The next day I accidentally used almond-coconut milk in my oatmeal. I’d been using coconut milk and for some reason just grabbed the wrong box. Later that day, I was so hungry (snacking is the most difficult on this restrictive diet) and figured I’d already had almonds that day so I might as well go all-out and I had a banana bread Larabar, which has almonds. Later that night, his stools were back to mucus-y. I couldn’t believe how quickly they changed his stool consistency. That was on Wednesday and his stools have been full of mucus ever since. I guess it will be a while before I can have almonds. 🙁 I am just waiting for them to work their way out of my system (should be less than a week) in hopes that his diapers go back to normal.
We’ve decided to hold back on any more solids until his next doctor’s appointment this week. We’ll see what she advises. I can tell that the road to feeding Luke is going to be filled with twists and turns and will most likely not be easy any time soon.
I breastfed Meghan until she was 2 and assumed that I’d do the same with Luke. At this point I am just taking it one month at a time. I love breastfeeding and think it’s hands down the best nutrition you can provide for your child, but eating such a restrictive diet has been one of the hardest things I’ve ever had to do.
At this point I am just praying that Luke with outgrow his food sensitivities and be able to eat a normal, non-restrictive diet one day. Breast feeding a baby with MSPI is a crazy journey, but I’m grateful I’ve been able to continue to provide Luke with the nourishment of breast milk despite the challenges.
Curious about how this journey continued with Luke? Here’s an update at how things are going with breastfeeding with MSPI at 15 months!
Thank you so much for this post. The pics especially were reassuring. My daughter is 11 weeks and exclusively breastfeeding. I’m a vegetarian. Her weight has been slow since birth, no matter how many lactation consultants, Drs visits, le leche league meetings or change in habits or 3 hour long nursing sessions.
I did my own research after finding blood at 8 weeks (mucus since 4) and cut out all dairy, egg and soy 2 weeks ago. A trip to ER confirmed blood at 8 weeks. And MSPI was diagnosed today by a pediatric GI. She also lost 5 ozs in 3 days today.
I was accidentally fed soy after a week of no soy or dairy, when a vegan restaurant used some soy milk in a dish I ate. Sure enough , the blood and fussiness returned for 2 days.
I felt like a failure, because nothing I tried worked to help her gain weight. Being vegatarian makes it so much harder, but I am determined to help her gain. We need to fortify pumped milk with special formula, but the Dr is hopeful I can continue breastfeeding.
She also has upper lip tie as well, complicating it even more. This post gives me hope.
I’m glad you found this post–it sounds like you’ve had a hard journey. Best of luck to you!
I really feel for you hun, My lg (10 weeks now) has tongue tie. I too am a vegetarian so cutting out dairy, Soya, eggs and now wheat have been hard. Paediatrician now wants me to use a special formula milk 🙁 I am determined to keep breastfeeding so I think the formula will be used a long side breast milk. I hope it all works out for you hun 🙂
Hi Charlotte! Luke actually turned 3 in December and is doing great! I was able to breastfeed him until 3 and he’s outgrown his intolerances. 🙂 Good luck to you!
Thanks for sharing your journey! My little guy has similar issues. I first eliminated dairy from my diet, then egg and corn, then almonds, and finally wheat and pretty much all grains except oats. It is so hard being on such a restrictive diet and you are right, snacking is very challenging! My little guy is just over 6 months now. We have not started solids yet, and I am scared to do so. I just wondered when you did end up introducing solids again and how it went? Did you do purees? Does your little one have any allergies now? Thanks so much!
Hey ladies! I’m so happy I found this post. My son has had traces of blood in his stool on and off now for almost three months, I have cut out dairy, soy, eggs, wheat, tree nuts, and even rice for a little while. It seems like no matter what I eat we will get flare ups every once in awhile. It makes me wonder if it’s even food related. Our pediatrician and GI aren’t concerned as he is super happy, gaining weight and has no other symptoms. My GI suggested supplementin with formula but I decided not to go that route because it just doesn’t make sense to me.i was wondering if anyone has gone through something like this when you can’t figure out what food is the culprit. Is this sometimes just something they grow out of? I’m at a loss and my only solice is the fact that he’s soooo happy and developing perfectly otherwise. Thanks for listening ladies <3
I would say it’s a great sign that he’s happy and growing! How long have you had all the foods out of your diet? It could be that they haven’t completely cleared your system yet, especially the dairy and wheat. Have you tried probiotics at all? It was suggested to me later in the game, but I had a friend who tried them with her infant with good success. The probiotics can help balance the gut bacteria and can help normalize the stools. My son Luke did eventually outgrow his intolerances. He was 2 1/2 when I finally felt like he could tolerate all foods. He eats everything now (he’s almost 3) with no issues that I can see.
I have been off dairy for two months but the gluten for only 3 weeks…so maybe that is still lingering. We started probiotics a couple weeks ago and they do seem to be making a HUGE difference. Did you notice more normal stools after starting solids (we haven’t even gone there yet) I have a few other random questions for you – did they ever test Luke’s hemoglobin levels? Oliver is only 6 months but our doctor wanted to test because of the blood in stool and he was on the lower end of normal so they want me to start an iron supplement – just wondering if you had any experience with this??
Also, I postponed vaccines for the past two months because I didn’t want to overload his system. I know I need to get that started again but I am just scared to upset his already sensitive tummy.
Thank you SOOOO much for taking the time to write me and all these other Moms…it’s so encouraging to know others have gone through this.
We tested his iron as scheduled at 1 year. They were on the low side of normal but still within the range of normal so I chose not to supplement. I read of a lot of side effects that can come with iron supplementation so I decided I’d rather focus on iron-rich foods.
His stools really didn’t become totally “normal” and solid until around 2 1/2. He didn’t have a solid stool until then! But they mostly didn’t have mucous and no blood for over a year.
Hi! Thank you for this post. So my son is the exact same way. He is 5 months old, and has had small traces of blood in his stool on and off and he generally had a lot of mucus too. I’ve cut a lot of foods out of my diet but it’s been hard to pinpoint what was causing the blood. He gets fussy sometimes breastfeeding so I think something in my diet is bothering him but not sure what. But then I changed the probiotic I was taking a month ago and his stool changed completely – no longer mucousy. A lactation consultant told me that working on my gut health would help him. In case you want to try that. Just recently though he had a little blood again and I’m thinking it may be due to citrus and some fruit I ate (cherries, grapes, strawberries). Again not sure but the pediatrician said to reduce and watch out. It’s been super tough but the doctor hasn’t been concerned either. So I guess as long as baby is happy and gaining weight it’s good! Just an ongoing puzzle 🙂
This is the first article that I have actually been able to relate to entirely. How did you know what to eat? I have read the Dr. Sear’s elimination plan, but I am just not sure how to get enough calories on that. I feel like my milk supply has dropped already, but I want to continue breastfeeding. My son is ten weeks and I completely eliminated soy/dairy 5 weeks ago. I had to do the same thing with my daughter, so I am pretty well versed in label reading and getting it all out. I did slip up by accident yesterday, but regardless, he has still had issues the past few weeks. It is better, but still has some mucous and tonight it even looked like small turds in his diaper. Anyway, I was wondering when you completely elminated everything, where did you get your calories from? I still eat nuts often because I have a traveling husband and a 3 year old as well. I need to get more organized, but was wondering if you had any tips on where to go from here. Thank you so much for posting this!
Now that I have read more of the comments,
I see where you posted your daily eating habits. Thanks again for this!
You’re welcome, Lori!
Hello,
Like everyone else I arrived here after googling “mucus breastfed stools.” My son who is now 2.5 had mspi which cleared up after I removed dairy. I now have a sweet and happy 2 month old daughter who at 1 month old traded her perfect seedy bf poops for mucus slimed ones! She is EBF and her poops are yellow and mucusy, not green at all. As soon as I saw a speck of blood and mucus I pulled dairy and soy. 2 weeks later I pulled all other allergens plus rice and oats. Needless to say there isn’t much left for me to eat and her poops haven’t changed. We have an appt with a GI in a couple of weeks.
I know someone asked this, but not sure you answered. The last poop picture you showed you said was normal. It does still look a bit shiny. I ask bc my daughters poops are similar. When I see mucus I know by squishing the diaper together and seeing what sticks – gross I know.
Hello! Thanks for sharing your own experiences with your baby! I just saw a lot of comments of little babies having mucusy diapers. My baby is 3 months and he has the same problem. My question is, how bad can it be for a baby to have that kind of stools? My baby seems to be ok except for his watery stools. What could happen if I don’t do any changes in my diet? I see that generally everybody is cutting off certain foods and still have the problem, so is it worthwhile? watery stools may be not normal but they are not harmful neither. What do you think? Since I would have to cut off a lot of food, I think, how nutritious will be my milk at the end if I’m not eating a balanced diet. I’m a little bit worried because I’m not sure what to do. It is tricky to tell the difference between a normal stool from a not normal stool since breast feeding stools are so liquid.
Is it harmful for my baby to have mucusy, watery stools, bad odor stools?
I actually brought a dirty diaper into Luke’s doctor so she could analyze it. I would encourage you to do the same. It’s really hard for us to judge if they are normal or abnormal just based on your written description. Good luck!
Hello! I’m writing on behalf of Parents magazine, where I work on the digital side. I’m putting together a visual guide to poop, and I’m sourcing photos from various outlets. I came across your photos and would love to know if you’d be willing to grant us permission to use them. Please email me and let me know — thank you!
Hi Sherry–I take email requests for such things at thehappyhealthymama {at} gmail {dot} com. Thanks!
I see your recipes, however I need grain free- most just focussing on meat and veg with spices. Just thought I should mention that in case you thought I didn’t realise you posted recipes. If I eliminate all grains its very hard as maltodextrin is in a lot and thickener 1422 (even a tin of tomatoes has this)
It sounds like your daughter has done great with your changes! Great job, mama! I think if her stools are normal most of the time, I wouldn’t worry too much about continuing to eliminate more foods. Sounds like she’s doing well with the diet you are following now, so I’d stick with that. I often had the same thoughts you did as I also had a completely natural birth. I also ate very healthy my whole pregnancy–lots of organic foods without a lot of pesticides, very little processed foods and limited GMOs. Sometimes I guess you just have to shrug your shoulders and realize we can’t have all the answers. It’s frustrating though!! You’re right-I don’t have a lot of meat recipes here. If you are looking for grain-free recipes, check out the blogs Against All Grain or Deliciously Organic. Both are good resources for grain-free meals. 🙂 Best of luck to you!
Hi, my breastfed baby is nearly 17 weeks. I was lucky to have a pedi/chiro who recognised symptoms of pulling legs up n crying as a food sensitivity. These poos bar the blood are similar to Isla’s. I have eliminated wheat/gluten and dairy. This doesn’t seem like much but it has been so difficult. My pedi suggested to eliminate all grains too. I may get the strength to do this soon. Her poos have definitely improved. But every now and again it gets a green tinge back in and tiny bits of mucous. I don’t really know whether to eliminate more. So I decided to have more grains (not gluten) to see if it is going to get worse. I feel so guilty doing this (having been informed about grains and how they contain phytic acid which binds to food and can cause a lack of mineral absorption).
After she was three months she began only pooing every 2/3 days (which I have been told is still normal) so its harder to inspect the poos. She does seem a lot better with tummy aches but I wonder whether when they get older do they just get tougher too?
I have to eat a lot of protein as Im quite thin but also just to feel full! So I have been having lots of meat, I don’t think I could or should eliminate that as I would fade away. I haven’t noticed a nut correlation ( I do have almond milk) but I will keep it in mind.
If I get a nice orange and very minimal mucous poo most of the time would you keep searching?
I want to know why this happens. NO one seems to be able to answer this. I had a totally drug free pregnancy and birth (yes totally- not as much as a panadol) as I researched a lot and found connections to gut health and anything unnatural. However I am the only one in my mother’s group who did, most had C-sections and their babies are fine!!!!!! Good for them but angry for me. Isla is on metagenics flora care for kids and I have recently started taking a dairy free probiotic as well. But Im not sure if these things really do much. I feel like I have jinxed her, like I willed it to happened because I was so aware of it.
Im struggling badly some days because I just wanted a normal little child and I want to talk to someone about it however if I tell them these are my worries I think they will think Im just an anxious worrier and hypochondriac for my child.
As Im writing this I can hear Isla waking and grumbling slightly then going back to sleep. This is another thing, interrupted sleep. Some people think, oh they just wake up, but I think why- my suspicion is still little belly aches.
It would be nice if people could share some recipes maybe- it would help immensely. I just want simply yet tasty ones which can be hard to find.
thanks
I just read your post and the picture of the mucus poop diaper is IDENTICAL to what I deal with from my 2 month old. He has developed a weird red rash, has the mucus poop, and has gas so bad that I’ve thought my husband did it on more than one occasion. How do I eliminate dairy completely? Also, how do I know if it’s the dairy or something more?
You really don’t know except by the process of elimination. It can be a long process. To eliminate dairy completely, you don’t eat any cow’s milk, butter, cheese, yogurt, or anything with those things listed in the ingredients. It isn’t easy, but it can be done! Good luck. 🙂
http://www.bfmed.org/Media/Files/Protocols/Allergic%20Proctocolitis%20in%20the%20Exclusively%20Breastfed%20Infant.pdf
I’m so thankful to find this blog, Maryea!
Like so many other mommies who posted, I found your blog through poop image search…
I feel encouraged and comforted to read that I’m not alone and your perseverance in diet restriction to breastfeed inspires me…
I wished I found it earlier though…
My daughter and i went through this about 3 years ago… We noticed minor blood streaks, gassy explosive poop, mucus etc starting from when she was about 2-3 weeks old, but drs said it was normal. Needless to say, i didnt know to restrict my diet etc…This was till one morning, she shot out major amounts of blood looking like red currant jelly all over my blouse during a diaper change when she was 6 weeks old. We rushed her to the children’s emergency, and she was investigated for merkel’s diverticulum, infectious diarrhoea, ultrasound for intussuception… Finally, and thankfully all those were negative and the specialist diagnosed as milk protein allergy and asked me to strictly cut out dairy and soy, to breastfeed and see if improved. During the 1 days that my baby was placed on IV and gut rest (ie. no breastfeeding), she miraculous sleep through a 5 hour stretch (, when she has never barely slept through a moment at night during her first weeks. She would cry to nurse, can’t sleep unless carried in arms, would cry the moment we put her down. After this ordeal at the hospital, we attempted a diet restriction, which was very hard because it meant no processed food with all the hidden dairy and soy in virtually EVERYTHING. Over the next 2 weeks, baby’s mood improved dramatically, she slept MUCH better, (though it was just for 3-4 hour stretches), and actually started smiling for the first time (she was a rather frowny baby), terrible eczema on her face improved… However, every diaper still contained mucus and smaller amounts of blood… I googled, researched everywhere on my own, and wanted to restrict the top 8 allergens, even almost trying the total elimination diet on askdrsears website… It was very hard and I felt nobody would understand as I’ve not heard any friends who went through this. I was very determined to breastfeed and didn’t mind eating such a restricted diet. I guess I can say, we mommies will die for our baby if it helps. But alas, the blood still didnt go completely away. My heart went up and down during each diaper change (no blood… Yay, blood streaks… :(…).. It was the longest 2 weeks of my life. My life became isolated cos we couldn’t eat with friends at restaurants, and needed to cook everything from fresh materials at home. Husband was supportive and lovingly ate the same diet as me as moral support. Funny thing is, my husband had always had irritable bowel syndrome, get unexplained cramping, gas and mucus stool now and then. After eating the dairy and soy-less diet, suddenly he was CURED from his ibs. Mother in law then recounted that he also had terrible constipation, bloody stools and was very hard to settle as a newborn. Oops, think husband also had Mspi, only it probably didnt even have a name at that time. (Now hubby completely cut out dairy and his intestines had not given him any trouble since).
Baby however still bled, so i progressively cut out all 8 allergens (milk, soy, peanuts, tree nuts, shellfish, fish, eggs, wheat) , and as baby can be allergic to anything… I think I almost went crazy trying to figure out what else could be the culprit (corn? Citrus?…). Unfortunately, my baby probably bled too long and too much, she became anemic. I felt terrible that while I wanted so much to give her breastmilk that is best for her, I felt terrible that my milk was “poison” to her… It broke my heart. We switched her to neocate, and she hated the taste, and I had to slowly mix it with breastmilk in increasing amounts till it was finally all neocate. I continued to restrict my diet and pump and discard for a month more, hoping that once she improved we could go back to breastfeeding. She improved over the next few weeks till finally there wasn’t bloody detected in her poop at all. I finally decided to continue with neocate as I didn’t want to risk the blood coming back as I didn’t know how long the allergens would persist in my milk. It was terribly expensive, but it was liberating for me too though I was very sad to give up breasrfeeding. My son was just born in march 2014, and is now about 6 weeks old… Sad to say he started getting greenish yellow stools with mucus in it from 2-3 weeks and then last Sunday we noticed small streaks of blood in his poop. But this time round, he is much less severe in symptoms then his sister, at least he can sleep and has no eczema, no projectile vomiting, much less fussy too. That could be bcos I stopped taking obvious dairy 2 weeks before delivery. But reading your post made me think, maybe in should’ve stopped dairy even earlier in my pregnancy, as you said dairy can take 8 weeks to clear out of my system.
So now, I hope I need not go into neocate… And reading all the experiences of yours and other mommies inspires me to continue the “battle”.
A few things to share:
1) my daughter did well on neocate. She developed well, and is healthy and intelligent. After she turned one, we challenged with soy, and she was ok so we awitched to isomil (Abbott). Now she is able to eat everything except milk,nuts and peanuts, shellfish. Cos I wanted to delay introducing these into her diet. Well, I would say, if any mommy need to switch to amino acid based formula, you need not feel bad. Neocate isn’t bad apart from the price tag.
2) I read something interesting… There is anecdotal experience in lactating mothers taking pancreatic enzymes with the meal (eg creon) to help breakdown food protein before they get into mommy’s body. So this can help if mommy needs to eat at a restaurant or at a friends’.
Hopefully I can breastfeed my son this time.
Cheers to all the mommies here.
Gracie–Thank you so much for sharing your story! You’ve really been through a lot with your two little ones. That’s especially interesting about taking the pancreatic enzymes. It definitely makes sense! I hope breastfeeding goes well for you, but like you said, if you have to switch you know he’ll turn out great either way. Thanks again for your comment.
Hi, Maryea
Iam also on same track like other moms.. i just want to know that have you ever tried Goats milk or water buffalo milk? Iam from India and we largely consume buffalo milk. Both buffalo and goats milk are very very less allergic and has higher digestive proteins.. in couple of days iam going to try Goats milk as my baby is just 4.5 months.. and would let you know the results.. Its hard to find buffalo milk were i stay..Good luck
I havne’t tried either, but thanks for the suggestions!
Oh thank you so much – your detailed post is just what I needed to read! My son is 6 months old, and I have been going through a similar experience for 2 months. He has had mucousy diapers as long as I can remember, but I didn’t think there was problem until my daughter accidentally spilled milk on his arm, and he broke out into hives. I cut out dairy from my diet, but he continued to get hives, forehead rashes and flared eczema every time I breastfed him. It was confusing and unnerving. I decided to cut out all 8 major allergens in an attempt to calm his system down – to no avail. He was allergy tested and tested positive for milk, eggs, nuts, tomatoes and green beans. He was still reacting (and having mucousy stools), so I have been on the Dr. Sears elimination diet for 2 weeks now. (Only turkey, sweet potatoes, squash, rice and pears). We still have not seen a single normal stool. What would you do at this point? I am considering cutting out rice as well, or maybe just spending a couple days eating one food (that sounds so desperate!). I have introduced three solids (avocado, carrots, and homemade chicken stock) and he has reacted with hives to each food. We are now back to exclusive breastfeeding. I am heartbroken and unsure what to do next. We have seen several specialists…but no answers yet. I thought you might have another idea I haven’t thought of? Thank you again for sharing your experience – much love!
Oh wow! My heart goes out to you. I actually just got a comment recently saying that rice can be a common problem, so maybe you should cut out the rice? I would just cut that out first and see if it makes a difference. I can’t imagine eating only one food! I hope for your sake it doesn’t come to that. Best of luck and if you think of it, please keep me updated on your little one’s progress.
Hello Maryea
Im from China. My boy has mucus stool a month ago. Now he is 4 month old. Most of Our doctors suggest baby change breastmilk to special formula. But i really enjoy bf and think mum can give her child best nutrition. I just eat rice, millet, cabbage, lotus root and rape. At the first week the mucus was less and less. But sometimes i can find a little blood specked stools. I dont know whether ddrops and Broccoli can be an allergen. Cause i add the two things four days ago, Matt then has a little blood in his stools.
Dairy and eggs are absent in my body more than 6 weeks and wheat soy 3 weeks. One of doctors even said Matt is alergic to my milk. I should give up bf completely. Interestingly, I gave Matt cow milk twice one day, and the stool became normal. No mucus and no blood. Then Matt is not alergic to cow milk?
You know how I am frustrusted. So i just wonder how long i should insist the diet. I worry that my milk will become no nutrition. Thank u so much!!!
Your milk will definitely not become void of nutrition. Why are you only eating those 5 foods, though? Certainly there are more foods you can include in your diet. One of the doctors I took Luke to suggested I switch him to special formula. I chose not to. Yes, it took some time to get his stools to normal and a lot of trial and error, but continuing to breast feed was important to me so I did what I could to continue it. What are ddrops? Broccoli certainly CAN be an allergen, but I don’t think it’s the most likely candidate. I wouldn’t suggest giving cow’s milk to your infant again as it can be harmful for small babies. But his reaction is very interesting. The thing is, you really don’t know the timing of the damage food does to his system and when it shows up. So really, the cow’s milk could have caused blood that showed up a week later. It’s not always the food consumed that day that causes immediate issues–it can be delayed. I hope this response helps you some, I apologize that it’s a bit scattered. Good luck!
Hey Maryea!!!! Your posts have been extremely helpful! Thank you so much for taking the time to share your experience. My bubby is about 7 weeks old, and its been a tough journey so far! Has had the green, mucusy, blood specked stools for a while now, and ive been off dairy, nuts, soy and eggs for about a week now… Only the blood has stopped. He started having blood in his stool when he was only 10 days old, and i immediately stopped dairy intake- things went fine, and returened to normal… Until I took an elevit tablet which contained milk!!! Since then things started again, and thats how I ended up on the dairy, soy, egg, nut free diet 🙁 I was just wondering if Luke had runny/ watery diapers. Our little boy Samuel has had very loose mucusy ones- that sometimes explode up his back or run our the sides of his diaper. Any advice whould be much appreciated. We have yet been able to find a good doc, and I truly believe mums knows best 🙂 thanks zanie
Yes, he did frequently have runny/watery stools. He still does sometimes. 🙁 It’s so hard trying to figure out what causes what! Just keep up with the diet you are on and I’m sure that his stools will improve. Unfortunately it just takes time. Good luck with finding a good doctor!
Your blog with the pictures was very helpful for me. Thank you for posting the pictures and your story!!! My son is having exactly the same…. He is now 4.5 months but his bloody and mucousy stools started about a month ago. I’ve eliminated dairy and soy since then, and the top 9 allergens with a few mishaps due to missing hidden ingredients in some foods or from eating out. I cook at home most days and eat mainly meat (chicken, beef and pork) with rice or potatoes/sweet potatoes, salad or vegetables (carrots, celery, cucumbers, zucchini, bokchoy, kale) and shopped for gluten, nut and egg-free cereal, bread and snacks. For fruits I eat organic blueberries and strawberries, cantaloupe, bananas and apples. I use rice flour for coating meat, coconut milk and creamer, and bought sunbutter to replace my PB (although I am still not used to the taste). The fussiness has decreased and the green poo/ blood streaks in the diapers became less frequent (once a day or every other day) but 3 days ago he became extremely fussy again with more bloody diapers and I realized the margarine I used on my popcorn had soy… 🙁 I am getting discouraged because it seems like such a long waiting game to see if his poop will ever improve. But aside from the TED what else can I do? Are there any other foods I am consuming that could be a culprit?
It doesn’t sound like there are more foods that could be the culprit, but I guess it’s possible. Unfortunately it can take a long time to get the foods out of the baby’s system and then their systems take a long time to heal. I’m so sorry your son is having such a hard time. 🙁
hi maryea,
thanks once more for your post! my story is again similar to yours and many here: green slimy poo from 4 or 5 weeks, blood at 7. i’ve been off dairy & soy for 8 weeks, but only 6 strictly. blood has greatly lessened, and color has improved, but traces of blood continue to crop up, and the sliminess is unabated! i’ve stopped peanuts a few days ago, after finding your post. tree nuts will be next, after i finish off a pot of carrot-cashew cream soup! wheat i will need to ramp up for,given the 6 weeks wait. but what is the wait time on eggs? can’t seem to find that anywhere…
meanwhile, i find the finnish study a very interesting counter perspective. i definitely have one overachieving breast… think i’ll take the advice of some responders and take up block feeding again (i was dissuaded by a lactation consultant who cautioned about driving my supply down, but that was many weeks ago, and here we are still!)
Hi Maryea,
I didn’t read thru all the comments because there were so many, so please forgive me if you’ve already touched on this. When your son was having the reaction to the foods, did he act uncomfortable when he nursed? I am going thru a similar situation with my 4.5 month old: dark specks in stool which turned out to be blood, dry skin on arms and legs. Been off dairy for a month, and now soy and eggs for about 10 days. dark specks in diaper have greatly decreased, but still a little blood detected in stool. And what really bothers me is he still acts uncomfortable when feeding — squirming, jerky arm movements, face rubbing, not relaxed. He’s on liquid prevacid as well. Just went to a GI specialist and he said since my son otherwise seemed healthy aside from fussyness and blood in stool, it was a personal decision for us as to whether to continue bfding or go on special formula. He really pushed the formula though… he was skeptical about me doing an elimination diet. It saddens me so much to think of stopping breastfeeding! I want to do what’s best for my son though. Do you recommend just doing a total elimination diet or cutting out most common allergens one at a time? Thanks!
No, Luke wasn’t uncomfortable when nursing. The GI we saw pushed formula as well, but our regular pediatrician was the opposite. She said that there are no guarantees that the baby will tolerate the formula well and many MSPI babies have trouble even on the special formula. She also said the special formula can be very hard to get the older babies to switch to since it smells so awful. I think how you do the elimination diet it personal preference. For me, I wanted to get Luke better as quick as possible, so I took all the foods out first and then added them back in one at at time to see which ones caused problems. If you cut out one at a time and he doesn’t get better with each food, you don’t necessarily know if he tolerates that food or not since other foods could still be causing problems. Does that make sense?
Very nice post, and exactly what wewent through and many moms posting here. LO is 6 mosand we jyst figured out it is Not food sensitivity but milk oversupply and overactive letdown. I was stubborn and refused to believe that sensitivity would start at 3 months, with all the other symptoms such aascongestion, and it wouldn’t be everytime. I read a Finnish study that 80 percent of babies are misdiagnosed with ccow milc allergy. Then had a fortune to run into the daughter of the first publusher on this topic. Finally it all made sense. The gut is irritated by lack of fat to the digest the lactose. THIS CAUSES fissures, and mucous production to protect the gut. Hence the congestion. The irritated gut also has issuesin thatit is more open allowing large proteins to reach it so high protein food makes it seem like food sensitivity but always ddifferent foods which is why you tried so many things and yet it was still present. It can aalsobe affected by a lot of sugar. It is genetic, and can be worse by subsequent children, causing ‘colic’
My baby girl now 10 weeks old has severe reflux, gas, diarea, and a constant stuffy nose. I have taken out top 8 except for wheat and cocnut along with the dairy and soy, and she isn’t gaining enough. I can’t seem to get enough calories to keep my suplie up and if it is up the dr. Thanks the caloric balance of it isn’t enough to allow her to grow properly. But since I have been on the diet for 4 weeks almost 5 it helps her majorly. The gas goes away, diarea is better, and rash is gone. However when I have to supplement with nutramgin we go back to square one. My dr. Says basically because she isn’t failure to thrive then she can’t write a prescription for elemental formula. We’re trying allimintum to see if she will tolerate that next.
Any food suggestions for fat and calories that I can take? I also took out tomatoes potatoes chocolate because I was allergic to those also when I was little. I haven’t been able to add anything back in because I can’t seem to keep my suplie up long enough to find out what bothers her and what doesn’t. Thanks for suggestions.
Is overactive letdown or oversupply? TThesecond stage of it is that mom reports reduced supply.
I thought that at the beging. I only have an oversupplie in the morning and middle of the night feedings and am pumping now because she would over eat and spit up more being a comfort feeder. But have a forcefull let down through out the day. Just not an oversupplie. I feed from one side in the middle of the night and morning. Which seems to help but when I took out the dairy and soy I noticed the most difference. But being on that restrictive of a diet (top 8 allergies) I can’t seem to get enough calories to keep my supplie up. I think it’s just because I don’t have the knowledge of how to not eat prepackaged foods and eating items with out being afraid it’s going to make her worse.
How did you fix your forceful letdown where it wouldn’t effect your babies reflux? Since I don’t have an over supply I don’t know how to slow it down. She also seems to get upset when it does slow down now that she is use to it.
Food intake has nothing to do with your supply. Women in Africa produce the same milk as well fed women in Europe and USA. In fact, a woman can starve, and be thirsty, and stop urinating, but her body will continue to make milk to sustain her baby. So your food intake does not have anything to do with the amount of milk you make. As for fixing the reflux, I was fortunate that my baby learnt to cope. What she does is unlatches during the letdown, and then relatches back, but doesn’t scream. She just figured it out. I was lucky. I suggest you contact Maria at http://helpinghanddoula.wordpress.com/contact/. I am not sure where you live, but at any rate she does a free phone consultation first. This is in no way an advertisement. she helped me tremendously by making sense of all of this. If you don’t live nearby her, she may be able to help you at least over the phone.
What she explained to me is that with the over-irritated intestines the baby gets fissures, and hence blood. Then the mucous gets created to protect them, and hence the congestion. Over time the over-irritation results in an “open gut” and hence more proteins reach it and irritate it more since they are harder to digest. So it makes sense that some protein high foods will irritate your baby, but only because her intestines are already irritated. For us it seemed to be onset with eggs, and milk doesn’t seem to do it. I wouldn’t have known if I listened to quit dairy. I kept trying it on and off just to see. And it doesn’t seem to make a difference. I bet if I ate a whole jar of almonds she may react just the same.
By the way, what I have just started doing is returning the baby to the same breast like you are doing in the evening for the nighttime feeding. I always thought she would unlatch and wanted more, but it seems she actually just wants to suck and yet milk is still flowing.
I am also paying attention to the latch again. She latches onto the nipples so that she can slow down the flow. This has been fine ever since we both got stronger at nursing but my nipples are starting to hurt again.
And here’s a study from Finland, where 80% of babies showed follow up rectal bleeding, but only 18% truly had cow milk allergy: http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/16585287
By the way my baby still does have reflux sort of, but what she does instead of spitting up is she swirls it around, and swallows. I often see her cough when she does this. And she had to sleep on her tummy since 4 months, after we stopped swaddling.
So if this is the case and its just an over active letdown/oversupplie how do you repair there gut enough were the proteins in your diet don’t effect them, and continue breastfeeding?
Thank you for all the info. It has me thinking but I’m just not sure. I just want to be able to take away her pain and allow her to grow properly. What ever and how ever that looks is my top priority. But it gives me some insure into some conversations to have with her pediatrtion and I think you for that.
I ate a lot of sun butter during the time when I was restricted, which added a lot of fat and calories. Also hummus is a decent source of fat and calories that you can eat with vegetables. Good luck to you-I hope things get better soon!