Looking to remove dairy from DD's diet- what can/cant I give her

[blessedby3]

I am looking to remove dairy from my DD's (just about to turn 1) diet. She has had various issues (reflux, special hypoallergenic formula) and I have long wondered if she may have a milk allergy. One of the main concerns is that she never sleeps well and is up every night at least once and most times more. When I posted about helping her sleep I got some responses that people had kids with the same symptoms and their kids had a milk allergy. We are so exhausted and sleep deprived, including DD, that I wanted to see if removing dairy would make a difference.
All that said, my main question is what can and what cant I feed her. I know that if a label says it contains milk then obviously I cant give her that, but what other key words on the labels would be the same thing?
Also, what are some things she can snack on? She loves Ritz- are these okay? What about cereals? I am so overwhelmed. I did buy some rice milk today for her. She took one bottle of it earlier, but hasnt wanted anything to do with it since. Just sipped on it or refused it altogether. Thanks for any help and advice.

 

[Ellester]

I know dairy hides under many labels. You may want to post over at the DIS-abilities board. I know many over there deal with food allergies/sensitivities. Good luck!

 

[donac]

THere are a couple of websites out there that will tell you what to look on the label. Mynephew can't have dairy.

 

[KirstenB]

I found Silk Soymilk in the Very Vanilla flavor to be an easy transition for our dd. If you don't mind her drinking something a little sweet, that might work. I haven't taken our dd totally off of dairy, rather I try to restrict it.

 

[slo]

I feel your pain - my DD who's 5 still can't have a lot of dairy

When I had to take my DD totally off dairy, I had to eliminate milk, anything with cheese, yogart, ice cream, frozen yogart, pudding, custard, and stuff like that. I did continue to give her items that were made with milk, like cake, bread, and stuff like that. My DD's problem is that to much dairy makes her very constipated - it's terrible!!!!!

Good luck, and talk to your Pediatrician, hopefully they can give you some much needed answers.

Oh.....I almost forgot, I give my DD Soy Milk. She seems to like it okay, but at the same time to, she has nothing to compare it too. Take care!!!

Edited to add......
I reread your post, and you mentioned about reflux - does she have powerful spit-ups? My DD used to have projectiling spit-ups - it was crazy!!!!! Anyway, she was allergy tested, and she came out normal. So what my pediatrician said is that she's not allergic to dairy, but she has a very difficult time digesting dairy (this is better than allergic, because I know she's not going to have a fatal attack if she ingests it, she'll just be uncomfortable). Anyway, ask your pediatrician about this, and see what they say.

 

[pweyl36]

You should talk with your childs ped,before you stop giving her dairy. Young children need the fat in milk also calcium.

 

[Miss LD]

We took DS off dairy for quite awhile (we've re-introduced it slowly).
I can't totally remember what age you introduce all foods - we're just starting. But, some of the things that we had to cut included: chicken nuggets, and pretty much anything breaded because a lot of stuff is rolled in milk, many soups, cake, pancakes, waffles, some breads.
Also most sherbet has milk but sorbet doesn't.
I just started making tons of stuff at home because it's kind of easier.
If you can find a copy of the Whole Foods Allergy cookbook it's great because they have some really yummy recipes in there that don't use dairy.
The nice thing is that your baby is young enough that you can introduce/change the diet fairly easily still since she's not used to it.
My niece loves rice cheese/soy milk, etc because she never knew the alternative.

 

[Jennia]

We also have a dd who is lactose intolerant. I talked to our ped about needing to give her a supplement since she wouldn't be receiving the fat contained in milk, and was told that she's also eating many solid foods that it wasn't too much of a concern (though I do give her some fatty food throughout the day just in case).
We use Silk Soymilk's Very Vanilla flavor which is fortified for children and she loves it, but she hated the Plain flavor and wouldn't drink it. For our dd, if she even drinks a few sips of real milk, she's a vomiting mess and is out of sorts for a few hours (cranky, acts like her tummy is hurting, etc).
There are many cheeses, spreads, and yogurts that are made lactose free. Look in the produce section by the veggie burgers and hotdogs.

 

[princessmom29]

You really should talk to your ped before you remove all dairy. My DD had a lot of the same symptoms so we tried the no dairy thing and it didn't help. It was actually a malformation of the eustation tubes in her ears and not the dairy causing her poor sleeping habits. Once we took her off a bottle and gave her a sippy at a year it got MUCH better.

 

[Pinkee77]

The Food Allergy and Anaphylaxis Network is a great resource. You can try this link ...... http://www.foodallergy.org/allergens/milk.html

When my daughter (now 8) was a year old I began to suspect she had a milk allergy. We went through the process of eliminating dairy (it's not as easy as it sounds). Just read the labels on everythng and in addition to things that say "milk" watch for ingredients like casein, caseinate, and whey - they are all milk by-products.

My daughter also like the Silk Very Vanilla soy milk. And she prefers the Silk brand of soy yogurt. You can also find recipes at their website: http://www.silksoymilk.com/AppetiteAppeal/Recipes.aspx

Hope this helps. Feel free to pm me if you want to know more about our experience with milk allergy.

 

[jacksmomma]

Get yourself to a natural foods store! Places like Wild Oats and Trader Joe's are full of options for people who are LI or have a Dairy Allergy. My son is LI. He has soy milk, yogurt, and ice cream. He is fine with cheese and milk in cooked foods. When I was breastfeeding I had to watch my dairy intake too.

Also look at vegan cookbooks or websites. You will find TONS of recipes that will be great for your daughter! (Vegans do not consume any meat, dairy products, or eggs.) www.vegweb.com www.veganchef.com www.veganlunchbox.com Are all some good ones.

As far as it being bad for your daughter to not consume dairy, it is perfectly fine as long as she eats a balanced diet otherwise. Talk to your child's doctor, but all of the things she gets from milk can be found in other sources. (for example: Calcium can be found in dark greens and fortified juices, cereals, and soy milk; fats can be found in olive oil and avacado)

Good Luck! It seems daunting at first, but really cutting out dairy is pretty easy.

 

[fortheluvofpooh]

for milk, you could also try rice milk, it is sweet. Not to sure on the rest though. good luck

 

[Mouse House Mama]

I found Silk Soymilk in the Very Vanilla flavor to be an easy transition for our dd. If you don't mind her drinking something a little sweet, that might work. I haven't taken our dd totally off of dairy, rather I try to restrict it.

Be careful with soy and girls. Too much can elevate estrogen levels and that
is not good for girls. This is one of the main reasons we use Rice Milk instead.

You should talk with your childs ped,before you stop giving her dairy. Young children need the fat in milk also calcium.

This is actually partially false. Young children do need fat and calcium. However they do not need to get it from milk. There are many foods that are calcium rich. Your body has to use so much energy to process cow milk that the calcium that it actually absorbs is minimal.

You really should talk to your ped before you remove all dairy. My DD had a lot of the same symptoms so we tried the no dairy thing and it didn't help. It was actually a malformation of the eustation tubes in her ears and not the dairy causing her poor sleeping habits. Once we took her off a bottle and gave her a sippy at a year it got MUCH better.

I am glad that your DD is feeling better!

The Food Allergy and Anaphylaxis Network is a great resource. You can try this link ...... http://www.foodallergy.org/allergens/milk.html

When my daughter (now 8) was a year old I began to suspect she had a milk allergy. We went through the process of eliminating dairy (it's not as easy as it sounds). Just read the labels on everythng and in addition to things that say "milk" watch for ingredients like casein, caseinate, and whey - they are all milk by-products.

My daughter also like the Silk Very Vanilla soy milk. And she prefers the Silk brand of soy yogurt. You can also find recipes at their website: http://www.silksoymilk.com/AppetiteAppeal/Recipes.aspx

Hope this helps. Feel free to pm me if you want to know more about our experience with milk allergy.

Again- while soy is great - and we do eat some, you do have to not overdo it because too much is not good for girls.



OP- there are plenty of cereals out there that are good but have no dairy in them. I know you are probably overwhelmed right now but I can promise you that after a month you will be a pro at knowing exactly what you can and cannot feed her. There are so many great foods out there. You are doing a great job trying to help your child.

 

[SylviaL]

My oldest son was allergic to milk (he would get horrible hives). He drank goat's milk and ate goat's cheese until he grew out of it at age 4. Good luck.

 

[czycropper]

That happened to my DD (now 8 1/2) and since I'm lactose intolerant the peds were not surprised, she's also allergic to egg whites.

I gave her rice milk and Lactaid and it really helped her. But please make sure that you discuss with your ped. She also had tubes in her ears at 10 months and then again at 20 months.

Good luck but it does get better! She's now a healthy 8 1/2 year old that knows NOT to drink regular milk, she has outgrown the egg whites allergy somewhat but I'm still very careful and limit her egg intake.

 

[DISNEYFOS]

My oldest daughter was on Soy milk until she was about 3. Its calcium fortified.

My youngest (the one who had the sleep problems) really just didn't like the taste of soy...She's a little more opinionated about things so we didn't push it. We've switched to the Similac Toddler formula -Go and Grow. Its a powder that you mix with water. I met with my ped last week for her 14 month appt. and he said if the infant formula was cheaper we could do that instead..nutritionally its fine for their age. We are even doing the milk based one...He said that there are different amounts of milk proteins and lactose in cows milk vs milk-based formulas...So she could just not be ready for it. We are going to revisit again at 18 months.

She is still able to tolerate yogurt, cheese etc. So its really just the amount of proteins/lactose in Cows milk.

Good luck

 

[blessedby3]

Thanks for the replies. We are going in for DD's 1 yr checkup in less than 2 weeks and I will be talking with the ped then. I figured I would do this "test" by taking out dairy and then we would have more to talk about at the visit as to how she did. I am not too concerned about doing this without the peds advice at this point since it is a very short time.
I did buy her the rice milk-as I have heard the same stories about soy and little girls and puberty early, etc.- but she only took one bottle yesterday and then wouldnt have anything to do with it. I did get her to take an 8oz bottle of the rice milk this morning so I guess I will just keep trying.
She has silent reflux and does not vomit as a PP asked. Lucky for us I guess. The restless sleep is the huge issue in our house. We had an even worse night last night for some reason. We havent slept through the night in a year now and DH and I are just walking in our sleep during the day. We have 3 other kids to take care of and DH works long hours at his job. I just need to figure out why DD cant sleep at night without waking so much and being so constantly restless. I truely dont think that people realize how little we actually sleep. People keep saying "this will pass", but its been a year and they arent living my life!!
Sorry for the rant- Im going on a couple (maybe) hours of sleep

 

[Mouse House Mama]

Keep in mind that it can take 2 weeks for the milk/dairy to leave her body. So you may not see results immediately. I also wouldn't worry about her not taking a bottle. As long as she is drinking and eating well it is not a problem. Good luck!

 

[blessedby3]

Keep in mind that it can take 2 weeks for the milk/dairy to leave her body. So you may not see results immediately. I also wouldn't worry about her not taking a bottle. As long as she is drinking and eating well it is not a problem. Good luck!

Thanks, I figured it may take a bit. She is not a good eater, though. She is tiny- always in the 5%-8%. She was just shy of 17 pounds when I had her in for strep throat this past Sunday. She never eats much food at a sitting but I keep trying to get her to eat more. This should be an intresting 1 year check up. LOTS of questions and problems!! I better write down everything because Im so sleep deprived that I may forget!

 

[Mouse House Mama]

Thanks, I figured it may take a bit. She is not a good eater, though. She is tiny- always in the 5%-8%. She was just shy of 17 pounds when I had her in for strep throat this past Sunday. She never eats much food at a sitting but I keep trying to get her to eat more. This should be an intresting 1 year check up. LOTS of questions and problems!! I better write down everything because Im so sleep deprived that I may forget!

Maybe this will change ger eating. It's possible that she feels yucky therefore doesn't really have an appetite. KWIM? I hope it all works out.