Loose stool?-it could be milk allergy
Milk is probably the second best food for a baby after your breast milk. Most mothers look forward to the time they would introduce this to their children, out of fear that maybe their bundles of joy are not having enough from breastfeeding, or because they have to resume work after maternity leave is over.
However, introducing milk to your infant may for a moment cause you sleepless nights, as the baby suddenly becomes fussy. This fussiness, doctors say, could be as a result of milk allergies. This poses the question, how then does the second best food for your baby cause him allergies?
A milk allergy occurs when your baby’s immune system mistakenly perceives one or more of the proteins in the milk as something the body should fight off. As a result, an allergic reaction develops and causes your baby to be irritable. Sometimes he may experience stomach upsets and loose stool. Usually, a milk allergy should diminish by itself as the baby grows. Nonetheless, some researchers differ with this, saying there is no conclusive evidence to support this fact because some children never outgrow it.
Signs that your baby may be reacting to milk
After your baby consumes milk, allergic symptoms may manifest themselves either immediately after feeding (rapid reaction) or may take another seven to ten hours(delayed reaction). The latter is common.
An allergic baby may experience;
• Loose stool that may contain bloody stains.
• He may vomit a lot especially after taking milk.
•Irritability and to certain extents colic.
• A skin rash may appear on his body or sometimes itchy bumps.
• Your baby may develop wheezing.
If your baby shows these reactions and you are convinced enough that he could be allergic to milk, take him to hospital for a medical examination. Most medical practitioners will look at any possibilities of family history in terms of allergies before doing a physical examination on your baby. The test includes examining your baby’s stool, a blood test and maybe a skin test.
Sometimes all you need to do to determine whether it is allergy is to stop feeding your baby with milk for a while, say a week, and then introduce it back. This way, you will see how he responds and help you determine if actually he has a milk allergy.
Treating milk allergies
There is no specified treatment for milk allergies but total avoidance of the protein that is causing the allergic reaction is in most cases the best option. Once the doctor identifies the exact protein to avoid, he will advise you on alternative foods for your baby to make up for calcium and other vital nutrients obtained from the milk.
In some cases, your doctor may discourage you from consuming such proteins especially when you are still breastfeeding, because the protein could cross into your breast milk and cause your baby an allergic reaction.
You will also be required to be keen on checking labels when doing any purchases for your baby’s food and avoid those that contain milk or milk based products.
Outgrowing milk allergies
Despite the fact that milk allergies are common among infants, most babies outgrow these allergies in time. Those who do not may suffer from it lifelong. The latter phenomenon is more rampant these days, according to an article published in 2007 on the website of the American Academy of Allergy, Asthma and Immunology.
The article says that recent research has found that the prognosis for milk allergic children developing tolerance to milk is worse than previously estimated. In a period of 20 years, various researches showed that 75 per cent of children with milk allergies were tolerant to it by the age of three years. The study found that milk tolerance ranged less than 1 per cent to 26 percent at the age of four years. The study also found out that there is no specific age for outgrowing milk allergy. Some children may outgrow it even after adolescence.
In another study, researchers at the John Hopkins Children Centre followed more than 800 children with milk allergies for more than 13 years. They found that allergies persist well beyond school years – only 20 per cent outgrow it by 4 years, 42 per cent outgrow the allergy by 8 while a whopping 79 per cent outgrow it by age 16 years.
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