ADVICE RATING |
 4.68 (Highly recommend) from 12 votes (445 Visits) |
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Lactose Intolerance |
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by avanliamsmum  (September 2007) (rank 116th) |
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Primary lactose intolerance is an extremely rare genetic condition. I have brought this subject up as when my daughter was young, I had a couple of comments that she 'must be lactose intolerant', as she wasn't gaining weight very fast and was quite windy. I ended up getting a 
lactose intolerance test done at my GP and it came back positive. I was then referred to a paediatrician who told me that lactose intolerance tests can come up positive wrongfully in breastfed babies (especially ones under 3 months). Secondary lactose intolerance, which is more common, is caused by damage to the gut lining and can be caused by a bout of gastro, coeliac disease, following bowel surgery or a food allergy. The intestine produces an enzyme called lactase and if the baby suffers from any of these it can reduce the enzyme production. The usual time period for babies to recover from gastro is around 4 weeks. In this time they may show symptoms of lactose intolerance. This is only temporary.
There are two ways to test for lactose intolerance. The hydrogen breath test and the more common poo sample test.
A lot of mother's are advised to stop breastfeeding their baby and put them onto a lactose free formula. If you are breastfeeding and your baby's test comes back positive, you don't need to stop breastfeeding as the tests (as my paediatrician told me) aren't 100% accurate, especially for babies under 3 months who normally test positive for the condition regardless. If under special circumstances your baby has been advised to have a temporary low lactose diet, you might be directed to combine breastfeeding (if you do breastfeed) with lactose free or soy formula.
Lactose is a type of sugar only produced in mammalian breastmilk. It is produced regardless of whether the mother consumes lactose while breastfeeding or not.
What are symptoms of a true (primary) lactose intolerant baby:
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Failure to thrive FROM BIRTH. Would NOT gain any weight.
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Obvious signs of malabsorption and dehydration, would need to be on a special diet from birth.
Secondary lactose intolerance can be identified by these symptoms:
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Liquid, green, frothy poo
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Passing wind often
Lexi xxx
