Organic dilemma.. WWYD?? I need advice

[Margot 65]

I can get ONE brand of Organic formula locally.

Since changing her to this formula she has had an intermittent rash in her cheeks. Little red and white looking pimples. They are there more often than not for the last 3 months.

I have been in denial that it was the formula causing it, but this past weekend we were away and I had to buy another brand.. not organic, but it was the brand she had before.

The rash appears to be going away.

Hubby wants me to switch back to the non-organic formula.

I am torn... I know if she IS allergic, that there is something going on inside her that shouldn't be... and the rash is only appearing as the 'tip of the iceberg'.

So, do I give up on the organic, trade off the organic for the formula she is OK with? This is REALLY tough for me, because I only have one chance with her IYKWIM. Trade off the histamines for chemicals? UGH!!! What kind of choice is that?

At the end of the month I will make the drive to try the other brand (Earth's Best... tres expensive but she is worth it).

What would you do? Thanks!

[Margot 65]

If it helps.. here she is.

My little whole foods, grain free, low carb, meat eating MONSTER!

Wanting more STEAK!!! (who needs teeth for steak?)

[DorianH]

What about ordering an organic one online? That way you'll feel better about giving it to her.

I agree with your hubby though- the rash is no joke. Clearly there's something that's reacting in her. And trust me, as allergies progress, they tend to get more severe.

You mentioned solids- is she moving to cow's milk soon?

What a little cutie! I have the same chair, lol- how old is she?

[Margot 65]

She is 10.5 months... Thanks, I think she is pretty cute too

the milk thing is another dilemma I need to address soon.

Right now she eats (besides 32oz of formula/day)

breakfast: steak chunks (or chicken or pork) and a few blueberries,

lunch: organic rice crackers with cream cheese, balkan style yogurt and maybe some gluten/nitrate free ham.

dinner: whatever we have, usually more steak (sometimes a rib bone or steak bone to gnaw on), a veggie and blueberries for dessert

she does water so far


I would like to find organic milk, but it is also a 2 hour drive that I only do every couple of months.


I am trying this 'baby led weaning' and have been doing so since 6 months. She eats only whole foods and feeds herself (except the yogurt). This way she stops when she is full, and has surpassed any other 10 month old I know in the chewing dept (with no teeth!) She also gets a probiotic, cod liver oil and coconut oil every day.


I was never a fan of giving my kids milk.. but my other 2 did at one year.. but never more than a cup or 2 a day.


Online shopping is not an option for stuff like that in Canada.. but I am going to do more research and find what I can. This is really frustrating. Thanks for replying Dorian.

[DorianH]

Oh shoot I forgot you are in Canada!!

She's doing really GREAT!! My kids are 2 1/2 and 18 months and eat the same that she does at 10 months! She's getting a lot of nutrients and calcium from the other dairy-

goods luck! I hope you find a solution, 2 hour drive for milk is very inconvenient!

[Margot 65]

Thanks Dorian

I had SUCH a bad time with DD#2 (she is 6 now).. she has allergies out the YAHOO and they are some of the most common ingredients in a lot of foods.. so I have be very diligent in reading labels.

Oats (in any form be it topical or ingested.. cross contamination is bad too)

Sunflower Oil (in EVERYTHING lately, even gluten free stuff, AND it is in the formula she had as a baby and she is also allergic to it topically)

Strawberries.. (one of her favorite fruits of course)

Fragrances too



I wonder what it could possibly be in the organic formula that is causing a rash?

[DorianH]

She may be running into the same problem. Most organic formulas contain soy, sometimes safflower or sunflower oils. Which brand are you using?

[DorianH]

Oh another thought- are you putting the probiotic in her formula? I know a couple people that just can't do the probiotics- maybe that's what she is reacting to. Just brainstorming.

[Margot 65]

this is the organic brand:

President's Choice - PC Great Food - PC Organics Infant Formula


This is the non-organic brand:

NESTLÉ BABY: NESTLÉ® GOOD START®

They are very similar, except the organic ingredients.

What bugs me, is the AND/OR when they list safflower of sunflower oil. I would rather know which is in the can I am using

The Earth's Best brand I can get online, but the ingredients are the same, and would cost me DOUBLE ($160 for 4 large cans) what I am paying for now.


Such a dilemma... I think I might have to do some research on Weston Price and just bite the bullet and make my own

[Margot 65]

Originally Posted by DorianH

Oh another thought- are you putting the probiotic in her formula? I know a couple people that just can't do the probiotics- maybe that's what she is reacting to. Just brainstorming.

You could be on to something!

I do that yes.... but not everyday (some days she gets actual yogurt). Like I said it was intermittent, some days worse than others.. but she really hasn't gone that long without it, but she was without it on our trip last weekend!

Last night she DID have the PB's in her bottle (of regular, not organic formula), so if the rash reappears you may have saved me a lot of trouble.

I will not give her yogurt or the PB's for a week or so and see if that helps... it was around the same time I started the organic formula that she started the PB's.

I will finish up this can of regular formula and if the rash goes away I will put her back on the organic without the PB's.

The CLO and CO she has been doing for much longer so I do not think it is that.

Thanks, it really does help to brainstorm!

[WenB]

I don't have any advice, but wanted to tell you that your lil monster is beautiful!

[Margot 65]

thanks wen!

and you pegged her, she is a MONSTER (she weighs more than my DD#1 did on her 2nd birthday LOL)

[KajunDC]

Did you breast feed her? This is where babies get their immunoglobulins in the first year of life through your breast milk, and is the biggest reason for breastfeeding besides the bonding affect of mother-child. Without breastfeeding, her now-developing immune system is not strong enough.

Just because a product is organically made, doesn't mean it is loaded with the right nutrients or has them properly balanced. If you continue to give her something she is reacting to, the reactions will just get worse and worse over time. In other words, get her off what she is reacting to immediately.

Cow's milk, in any form, is not fit for humans. It is designed and percentaged to grow a baby calf into a hefer. It is not intended for us to consume. The closest animal milk to human is goat's milk. We all lose the enzyme lactase, the enzyme which breaks down lactose around 2 years of age. So we are all "lactose intolerant" after this time. Not everyone has symptoms from it, but none of us can break down the lactose after around age 2. All milk should be discontinued at that time. (No matter what the well paid celebs with the little white moustaches tell you.)

[TaDa!]

I also have a dd with many food allergies - from the time she was about a year and what we have been through with her, you do not want to go through. I realize that you have one child with food allergies, but for some, they can be life-threatening and a small reaction can at any time change into a terrible one. I commend you for trying to figure it out!!!!!

I hope it is the probiotics, but in answer to your original question, I'd definitely take her off the organic formula causing the problem - if that is the culprit. You do not want to chance it with a baby.

I am sorry you guys are going through this.



Pauline

[Margot 65]

Yes I breastfed her until 6 months, but I had to supplement... I had a breast reduction 7 years ago so it was VERY difficult for me, but I managed to work my way up to 70% at 4 months, and it dropped from there as her needs increased. Trust me, I could write a BOOK about breastfeeding, I know more about it than most lactation consultants and DEFINITELY more than My Doc (who suggested sugar water when she wasn't gaining) plus I took 69 pills a DAY to keep up my supply.

Anyhow, I am not a fan of cow's milk for my kids, never have been.. but my choices are extremely limited because of where I live so I do the best I can. But I can and would do goat's milk, but I will wait until she is completely on solids.. for now, I need to find something to feed her because I am NOT giving her commercial baby food (she wouldn't eat it anyway LOL)

The thing is, I am not sure it IS the formula.... it could be coincidental, but she has been off of it since Sunday when we were out of town and I couldn't find it and the rash is better. But she also did not have any probiotics since then either (until last night).


So for now, regular formula and no probiotics... I will try the organic once again without the PB's in another week. Thanks for replying!

[goohsmom]

Prozak,

Just to throw this out there---our pediatrician told me that the reason for keeping children on formula until 1 year is because most of them aren't eating much in the way of solids before then and wouldn't get enough nutrition and calories without it. Considering how well your little DD is eating, maybe it's time to talk to your pediatrician about taking her off of formula a bit early. We took my youngest off at 11 months, and he never had any problems. Maybe this is a good time to start her on the goat's milk?

Just a thought
Pam

[Margot 65]

what a great thought!!!

I don't trust my Doc (we don't have peds here they are considered 'specialist' and I need a referral)

I would love to give it a go... I plan on weaning her off the bottle by 12 months anyway, so why not now?

My next plan of attack is to get organic meat (there is that 2 hour drive again LOL) but at least I can freeze it, and I can cook it ahead of time.

Brilliant goohsmom, I am really glad I asked



So, goat's milk would just be considered a drink right? Not a source of anything major? Would a cup or 2 a day be OK??

I know people who feed their kids cow's milk by the gallon all day long, I never really figured out why. Two friends had their kids off of formula at 9 months and giving them 6 bottles a day of milk instead, because their Doctor told them it was the same thing (yeah, the same Doc I use..)



Now to figure out how much food I need to give every day, she eats as much as my 6 year old in solids PLUS the 32oz of formula LOL.. I need to buy a cow.

[Beaglesaroo]

You don't need to buy commercial baby food ~ I would think you could make your own versions of it with a simple blender...you control what goes in and gets blended/smoothed/mushed...

[fawn]

You know Prozak, goats milk is supposed to be a superior choice. I would research it if I were you.

Does your little beauty eat eggs?

[Margot 65]

She does eggs well! Not raw yet though... but she has done some cooked (over easy) and she loves them!

I can actually get organic turkey burgers here, nothing added.. and she loves those too.


Goat's milk it is! My niece (15) can only drink it, and my older 2 kids have done it as well and don't mind it. Better to get them on it now so then it is all I have to buy (they currently use 3.25% but they really get it rarely)

Interesting though (some will find).. not knowing any better I started drinking milk again when I got pregnant (thought I should) and very shortly I realized that I could NOT DO ANY MILK PROTEINS at all! No cream in my coffee (used soy yuck), not even (shudder) coffee-mate! So perhaps my body was trying to tell me something back then that I need to consider now.

I was fed cow's milk as a newborn... my Mom was told it was OK so she could go back on the pill.

I am fine with dairy now thank goodness I lurves my cream

[Margot 65]

Originally Posted by Beaglesaroo

You don't need to buy commercial baby food ~ I would think you could make your own versions of it with a simple blender...you control what goes in and gets blended/smoothed/mushed...

nothing mushy for little Bam-bam, she loves to feed herself

she pretty much eats what we eat, plus her formula.

[brittone2]

WAP has recipes for homemade formula (you can also search over at MDC if you are familiar with that site). I'm not sure how comfy you'd be with that or not, but it might be an option?


The key thing no matter what is to make sure she's getting abundant fat if you switch to cow or goat milk over formula. I'm sure the coconut oil helps in that dept.

My DD (19 month old, still nursing) is a natural low carber too LOL. DS wasn't into solids until more like 15 months or so (really only at a spoon here or there before that. Like you, we do baby led weaning). DD loves steak, creme fraiche and sour cream right off the spoon, etc. She'd pick ground meat over something sweet anyday LOL.

DS was sensitive to dairy through me (through breastmilk) when he was an infant. I recall reading that a large percentage of babies that are allergic or sensitive to milk also have problems w/ beef (related proteins). (and obviously soy, etc.) I guess it depends on whether she's reacting to lactose, a dairy protein like casein, or something else entirely in the formula.

I've never really done much milk as a drink for either DC. We drink raw milk, but it mostly gets made into yogurt, etc. LIke you, we mostly have our kids stick w/ water as their primary beverage.

for trying so hard to breastfeed and for trying so hard to find a good solution for your DD. I hope you can find something that works.

[Margot 65]

I have considered the WP formula... I would need that 2 hour drive to get the ingredients though LOL

I feed my older DD's raw eggs 1-2x a week, so I am fine with that if they are organic (those I CAN actually buy locally LOL)

I might do that soon, and use it for her early morning feed (I am not getting up at 5am to cook her a steak LOL)

Good idea about the coconut oil / fat, Goat's milk is pretty skim if I recall... she eats it off the spoon with me so that is good

Thanks britt!

[pocahontas]

Lots of great advice! Please keep us posted on the outcome.

[Margot 65]

This is all so great, I feel much more relaxed.. trust me, baby boards are NOT the place to ask these kinds of questions, I would be labelled as a freak LOL

So, since my initial post, she has consumed:

1/2 organic turkey patty

then:
20 blueberries cut in 1/2's
1/4 of a banana

and she is looking at me as if to say 'what's next mom?'


Coconut oil and cod liver oil for dessert! YAY!