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Breastfeeding/Milk Protein Allergy
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Question
Hello,
I have been told that my son has a milk protein allergy. He is now 8 months old. I have cut milk out of my diet completley since the protein can pass through breastmilk. I read the lables on everything. My son's doctor said that I could eat butter. He stated that butter is just milk fat and does not contain milk protien. Have you seen this advice before?
Does this mean I can also eat things that are labled Milk Fat?
Thanks!
Dear Heather,
First, congratulations for giving your son the best start in life by breastfeeding him!
Neither Dr. Marks (the pediatrician I am consulting on my book -- see below) nor I has ever heard of a dairy-free diet on which the mom can eat butter. We recommend that you stay away from butter too for a while.
I'm attaching an excerpt from the book that deals with this issue -- I hope it helps.
Best wishes,
Sally
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Sally Wendkos Olds
Author, THE COMPLETE BOOK OF BREASTFEEDING: Eiger & Olds, 3rd edition 1999, published by Workman Publishing & Bantam Books, and available in most public libraries, bookstores & La Leche League chapters. Now in revision for a fourth edition, with pediatrician Laura M. Marks, M.D.
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Research points to substances that a nursing mother eats, especially cow’s milk, as a cause of some colic. When mothers eliminate dairy products from their own diets, their babies’ symptoms sometimes go away, often within one week. However, it does take two to four weeks for the offending food to leave both mom’s and baby’s systems completely. Some mothers have been pleasantly surprised to find that giving up dairy has had good effects on them also. Other foods in the mother’s diet that may cause trouble are eggs, citrus fruits, wheat products, nuts, peanuts, caffeine, and chocolate. None of these foods is indispensable. As the charts in Chapter 8 show, many different foods are good sources of essential nutrients.
If you do remove dairy or other foods from your diet, try them again a couple of weeks later. It’s possible that your baby’s digestive system will have matured, and you will no longer need to deprive both of you of the good nutrients in those foods. If not and if you decide to stay away from these foods, check with a nutritionist to be sure that you are still receiving adequate nutrients from other foods or, if necessary, from supplements.
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Answers by Expert:
Sally Wendkos Olds
Expertise
What do you want to know about breastfeeding? I can tell you what`s good for the baby, what`s good for the mother -- and the father, how it`s related to a woman`s sexuality, how working moms can nurse, how to overcome obstacles, and lots more. As the author of THE COMPLETE BOOK OF BREASTFEEDING and author or coauthor of 8 other books and more than 200 articles about child and adult development, I can offer sound, sensible advice on breastfeeding, child care and family issues.
Experience
I nursed my 3 daughters and am the grandmother of 5 breastfed children. My book THE COMPLETE BOOK OF BREASTFEEDING (written in consultation with pediatrician Marvin S. Eiger, M.D.) was first published in 1972, and in 1999 came out in an updated 3rd Edition by Workman Publishing & Bantam Books. It is now a classic, with over 2 million copies in print. I am now revising this book for a fourth edition, consulting with pediatrician Laura M. Marks, M.D. This new edition will be published September 2009. I welcome any and all suggestions for the new edition. I coauthored college textbooks A CHILD'S WORLD: INFANCY THROUGH ADOLESCENCE, and HUMAN DEVELOPMENT; both are leading texts in their fields and have been read by 2 million students. I am the coauthor of HELPING YOUR CHILD FIND VALUES TO LIVE BY and RAISING A HYPERACTIVE CHILD, and author of THE WORKING PARENTS' SURVIVAL GUIDE & THE ETERNAL GARDEN: SEASONS OF OUR SEXUALITY. My newest book, A BALCONY IN NEPAL: GLIMPSES OF A HIMALAYAN VILLAGE, published in 2002, tells the story of the way of life in a remote village in Nepal, where all the women breastfeed! My book, SUPER GRANNY: COOL PROJECTS, ACTIVITIES, AND OTHER GREAT STUFF TO DO WITH YOUR GRANDKIDS, will be published March 2009. I speak often to professional, parent and general audiences and make many radio and TV appearances.
Credentials I received my B.A. in English Literature from the University of Pennsylvania, where I minored in Psychology, was elected to Phi Beta Kappa and graduated summa cum laude.
Other points of interest
I have received national awards for my writing, and am a former president of the American Society of Journalists & Authors. I am listed in the World Who's Who of Women, International Authors & Writers Who's Who, and Contemporary Authors, and am a member of several professional and civic organizations. I believe: that all parents are working parents; that parents employed outside the home need special support; that mothers' well-being is crucial to their children's welfare; and that the family is the best institution in the world and the one for which we are least prepared. My thrills come when parents or kids tell me they were helped by my writing or speaking or just understanding.
To find out more about me, go to
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