Wednesday, April 22, 2009

My Quest

So, I'm trying SOOO hard. And this is hard.

Sorry to post about this yet again, but hey, if you don't want to read it...don't!


I went to this store on Saturday. Drove all the way to Buckhead and everything:

It really does look like this

and this inside.


I think if there were a grocery store in heaven, it would look like a Whole Foods and we would all get to shop there for free. I went in pursuit of dairy/soy free items that the local grocery store might not have.

I found the following:
pizza crust
bread
hamburger buns
cookies
and get this. NO CHEESE mac and cheese. What?

Ok, so here is my review. Cookies-disgusting. Pizza crust, buns-yum. And surprisingly, mac and cheese-YUM!! It tasted more like chicken noodle soup or something, but had the same creamy consistency that mac and cheese has. But, for $5 per serving...a little high. But hey, this mac and cheese was only 270 calories per serving. Not bad for a mac and cheese.
I also got some delicious avocados, tomatoes, artichoke and basil salsa, baguette bread, etc. there. Just to splurge. I mean, I did drive all that way. It was worth it too. I admit, I love food, and I just can't help but think, why did this have to happen to me? But, I catch myself and remember, it didn't..it happened to Kyle, poor baby.

So, I've been cutting out the soy for 6 days now, and it hasn't been too bad. However, there is still blood in his diapers. I can't seem to find any info. on how long it's going to take to get out of my system and his. Frustration! I have to admit, I have had more than one thought about giving up breastfeeding. Usually those thoughts come to me in the middle of the night at about 4am when I'm not thinking clearly. So, JD and I have been talking about maybe trying formula for a week and seeing what happens...so I went to Wal-Mart today to check out this "liquid gold" she told me about, and I got real nervous when I realized they kept it under lock in key. Yeah, like with the cigarettes.



Ironic that it has a gold label and lid isn't it? Well, it cost $25 for this little can that I hear lasts about 1-2 weeks only. I bought it, but made sure I could return it if unopened. She said I could. So, now I have this thing sitting on my counter staring at me with its $25 gold label. Not sure what I'll do yet. If I try it, and he is miraculously better, then I know it's something I'm eating and it's back to trying all these crazy elimination diets. Today I entertained the idea of doing what other moms call the TED-Total Elimination Diet. This involves eliminating at once all of the top 8 allergens which include:

* Milk
* Eggs
* Peanuts
* Tree nuts (such as almonds, cashews, walnuts)
* Fish (such as bass, cod, flounder)
* Shellfish (such as crab, lobster, shrimp)
* Soy
* Wheat

HOW? I ask again...HOW??? I just don't know what I would eat. I love food too much. Anyway, after eliminating for about 2 weeks to a month, you add stuff back in and see where the reaction is.

Crazy.

Tuesday, April 21, 2009

Frustration

It's been 6 days. Last night I had a little break down. I think it's from sleep deprivation mainly, but I'm ready to give up. I'm ready to buy that "liquid gold" and be done with all this work and sacrifice. It's just too hard.

I tested his diaper this morning, and the test came up positive for blood. I was hoping for a change by now. If I have to eliminate something else, I don't know if I can do it.

That's my complaint for today.

On a positive note, I went to Whole Foods and bought some dairy/free soy free groceries. Some were yum, and some were disgusting.

More about that later....

Thursday, April 16, 2009

oh JOY, no more SOY!

So for those of you wondering how my no dairy life is going. Pretty good. I had gotten used to no cheese, cream, butter, or all the hidden dairy in all the foods we eat. But, it wasn't really making a difference, so I was VERY frustrated and went back to the Pediatrician today. Here's how it went.

She said no more soy. Why?? Well, because at least 50% of the kids allergic to dairy are allergic to soy. I was trying to ignore this fact as I already knew this from all my research because in all my label reading realized that soy is in EVERYTHING! Pretty much anything processed has soy in. Walk into your kitchen right now, and pick up a package of anything, and I'll bet ya it has soy in it. *sigh* SOOO, I of course said, OK, well could this be something else? She said not likely. Mainly because he is gaining weight so well. The only other things that this could be are more serious issues that would involve surgery, but he would not be thriving like he is if he had those conditions. So, that's good news I guess. I mean, if my child had to have surgery...I would be a BASKET CASE!

But, this means a HUGE lifestyle change for me as a breastfeeding mom. There is a non-dairy, non-soy based formula, but as she put it, it's like "liquid gold" (her words) because of how expensive it is. So, yeah, can't afford that in this economy, when the alternative (my breast milk) is FREE!! Plus, there is so much research on there that kids with allergies are better off being breastfed anyway because it helps to prevent further allergies.

She did refer me to a pediatric gastroenterologist that will hopefully give me a little more guidance. I need that. I'm feeling very frustrated and lost with this whole process. Everyday I think of another question I have about what to do. Today my question is: Is it really that harmful to him? Is he in pain? This I'm not sure. But, I definitely want to do everything I can to prevent that if he is. Hopefully the GI doc will be able to better answer those questions. But, a lot of you have asked me about what having a food allergy actually does. Here's a pretty good explanation:

An allergic reaction occurs when the immune system, which is the body's normal defense against dangerous foreign substances, "mistakes" a normally harmless substance for an invader, such as a virus. No one knows why this abnormal reaction occurs in some people and not others. People who have this type of unusual immune system are said to be hypersensitive, and medical scientists often use the term hypersensitivity instead of allergy.

The body's immune system reacts to an allergen in many different ways to cause the discomforting symptoms of an allergy. The process begins when the allergen stimulates the immune system to manufacture certain antibody molecules called immunoglobulin E (IgE). The antibody molecules then combine with the allergen molecules and bind to mast cells and basophils, causing the release of histamine and other active compounds. The histamine in turn affects the blood vessels and mucous membranes, leading to swelling, congestion, and leakage.



So, I'm onto more research, more food label reading, and probably a search for a whole foods store close to me. If you want to know a little more about what the heck soy is, and allergies to soy, you can go here. If you don't care, that's fine too. But, I'm throwing it in for my reference later. Wish me luck people! I thought cutting out cheese was hard. This is going to be harder.

Tuesday, April 7, 2009

Hiccup....Darn that hidden dairy!!

I found out today that some medication that I was taking had some "hidden dairy" in it. And, the bread I was eating also has dairy in it. UUGGH!!
I started getting crazy vigilant today when I fed my son about 4 hours after I had eaten, and he was SUPER fussy and just mad! Screaming his head off. I remembered I had a salad from Chick-Fil-A with chicken strips on it, no cheese and their balsamic dressing. This forced me to go to their website and make sure that their breaded chicken didn't have dairy in it. It does. So, now I am super frustrated and starting from square one again. And P.S., their bread is not dairy free either, so forget the chargrilled sandwich. Can I ever eat out safely again??

Go here and about 3/4 of the way down the page is a Hidden Dairy cheat sheet to print off and put on your fridge. Very helpful!!

Here is another list of supposed dairy free foods you can eat. This is one that I found through a friend, so definitely not from a doctor or anything like that. That's my only disclaimer. Use at your own risk!! It's in a word document, so I'm just copying and pasting...sorry it's LONG!!

DAIRY ALLERGY SAFE FOODS LIST
Last Updated March 23, 2004

DISCLAIMER: Here's a general list, but remember it is crucial to read all food labels, EACH time you buy a product & double check the ingredients on this list –– manufacturer’s have been known to change without warning.

**** PLEASE DO NOT REPOST THIS LIST WITHOUT THE DISCLAIMER!!! ****

Thanks to everyone on the Babycenter Food Allergies board who contributed to the compilation of this list.

Breakfast
Bacon (Wellshire Farms Uncured Bacon, Louis Rich Turkey Bacon, Applegate Farms Turkey Bacon)
Bagels (read labels)
Bisquick - original and reduced fat
Cereal: Kix, Cheerios, Product 19, Raisin Bran, Rice Chex, Corn Chex, Life, Wheaties, EnviroKids Gorilla Munch (may contain peanuts, treenuts and soy) EnviroKids Koala Krisp (May contain peanuts, treenuts and soy), EnviroKids Orangutan-O’’s (may contain peanuts, treenuts and soy), +HealthValley Rice Crunch-Ems, Rice Krispies, Puffed Rice, Alphabits, Barbara's Breakfast O's*, Barbara's Honey Rice Puffins*, Barbara's Shredded Oats*, Barbara's Wheatines*, +Pacific Grain Nutty Corn Cereal, Post Shredded Wheat, Heartland Granola Cereal (orig. and raisin), New Morning Oatios, Organic Kidz Koala Krispies, etc. check labels of other cereals
+Cascadian Farms Hash Browns (http://www/cfarm.com)
Chorizo
Cream of Wheat (I make mine with soy milk instead of water for added nutrition.)
French Toast made w/ safe milk
Hungry Jack Microwave Ready Syrup
Fruit salad
Hash –– Libby’s or store brand
Hash browns (most are cooked in oil, not butter; ask) –– Store brand or Ore Ida
Hodgson Mill Buckwheat Pancake Mix
Malt O Meal
Nature's Choice Cereal Bars (may contain traces of nuts)
Ore Ida hash browns
Pancakes made w/ safe milk
Pop-tarts (read labels, as some are not dairy-free!)
Price Chopper Instant Oatmeal - maple & brown sugar, cinnamon & spice
Quaker Instant Oatmeal – plain, apple/cinnamon and cinnamon/spice
"Safe" bread (try wheat bread from a health food store; beware Pepperidge Farms, which has milk in almost all varieties - read further, list of milk free breads)
Sara Lee Bagels (plain & cinnamon raisin are definitely okay –– double check any other flavors)
Sausage (lots of sausages have milk in them) Jimmy Dean and some store brands are safe
Vans Mini Waffles (only the Wheat free ones are dairy free, the package clearly says dairy free on the ones that are!)
Whole Kids Waffles

Lunch/Dinner (and easy prep ideas)
Applesauce
Applegate Farms store-sliced deli meats (all varieties)
Armour Original Meatballs
Hamburger
Poached, roasted, grilled chicken breast (skinless if you want to watch calories)
Pretty much any roast meat (if dining out, make sure they don't put butter on it)
Turkey, roasted or as a sandwich, with fixings of your choice (lettuce, cranberry, bacon)
Bean salad (good protein)
Pasta, rice and potatoes are also okay for your carbo fix so long as you prepare them without the butter (use safe margarine!!).
Pasta salad, with chicken, peppers, etc. (if you can't have egg, careful about the pasta...most dry pastas are OK)
Salad in general.....California (fruit and chicken - careful if the chicken is breaded), spinach with bacon...the possibilities are endless!
Steamed, boiled, or baked veggies
Rice
Tunafish (check label to be sure it is free of hydrolized caseinate) - Starkist and Trader Joe’s are safe
Van de Kamps Crisp & Healthy fish sticks-(not verified directly, box looks safe)
Baked beans
Veggies – Canned, Frozen or fresh. Beware of the veggies in sauces in the frozen section. Beware of the
creamed varieties in the canned.
Chili – Hormel or Dennison’s chili
Franks N Beans – Hormel or Kid’s Kitchen, Kid’s Cuisine
Vienna Sausages – Libby’s
French Fries (some frozen or store brands are safe; McCain FF and Smilies (confirmed safe); Ore-Ida Cottage Fries, Ore-Ida Country Style Hashbrowns, Ore-Ida Golden Crinkles, Ore-Ida Golden Fries, Ore-Ida Golden Patties, Ore-Ida Shoestrings, Ore-Ida Pixie Crinkles, Ore-Ida Steak Fries) McD’s fries are safe! And so are most restaurants. Be careful – they might use some form of milk to coat them. They could also fry in the same oil as other foods – cross-contamination issues.
Tater Tots – Ore Ida and Store brand
Chicken Nuggets – Tyson, Ian's
+Ian’s Sweet Potato Fries
Taquitos – Delimex, Chicken
Amy’s frozen meals –– some do have milk in them, read labels
+Amy’s Roasted Vegetable Pocket Sandwich (http://www.amys.com)
StoveTop Cornbread stuffing
Mrs. Cubbison’s Stuffing
Tomato Sauce
Cento Tomato Puree
Spaghetti Sauce – Hunt’s or Store brand (in the can) Traditional or Mushroom, Barilla, Francesco Rinaldi ("Sweet and Tasty Tomato", "Tomato and Basil" and "Marinara" only)
Refried Beans – Rosarita and Taco Bell
Green Chiles
Red Chili Sauce (enchilada sauce)
FrancoAmerican Gravy –– Turkey and Beef (*verified)
Hot Dogs – Yorkshire Farms, Shelton turkey dogs (they also make chicken ones), Armour Jumbo Beef
Hot Dogs, Applegate Farms, Hebrew Nation, BallPark Beef Franks (and singles), Nathans Beef Cocktail Franks (great w/ the Pillsbury crescent rolls wrapped on them!!).
SoyBoy Mini Ravioli (found in the HFS, these are mini ravioli stuffed with Tofu- they come in 3 different flavors, Reg, Spinach and Roasted Pepper - they are awesome!)
Soy Nut butter – I.M. Healthy
365 Tater Tots
Cascadian Farms Country Style Potatoes
Chef Boyardee Rice with Chicken & Vegetables
Dinty Moore Beef Stew
Dole Tropical Fruit Salad
+Road’s End Organic Mac & Cheese
+Yukon Gold Rissole Potatoes
+Yukon Gold Julienne Fries with Sea Salt (http://www.alexiafoods.com)
Rice-A-Roni (chicken flavor, chicken and garlic, chicken and broccoli)

Soup
Campbell’s – Bean w/ Bacon, Tomato, Chicken and Rice, Chicken Noodle (contains soy/egg), Vegetarian vegetable (contains egg)
Top Ramen – Chicken Flavor
Some Store Brands – Vegetable
Imagine Foods offers "creamed" varieties.
Pacific Foods – chicken, mushroom and vegetable broth
ConAgra - Van Camp's Pork and Beans in Tomato Sauce
Health Choice - Country Vegetable
Progresso Soup - Grilled Chicken Italiano

Baby Food
Gerber Graduates (ONLY THESE FLAVORS: White Turkey Stew w/ rice; Chicken Stew w/ Noodles; Veg Stew w/ beef)
Gerber Graduates - veggie crackers, animal crackers, vanilla snackin squares
Gerber Lil Entrees - Turkey & Green Bean Dices, Chicken & Veggies, Turkey with Green Beans & Sweet Potato
Gerbers Lil Entrees - Chicken Noodle Dinner with Oatmeal, Pears and Cinnamon; Potatoes, Chicken with Apples
Gerbers Lil Entrees Chicken Stew with Noodles and Green Bean Dices
Gerber fruit wagon wheels (but only the fruit ones - the veggie ones have cheese)
Gerber apple wagon wheels
Healthy Times Teething Biscuits
Kid Cuisine Franks & Beans
Stage 1 Fruits and Vegetables (Gerber or Beechnut)
Most of Stage 2 Fruits and Veggies (Gerber or Beechnut)
Cereals – Rice, Oatmeal, Barley & Mixed (Gerber and Beechnut); Beechnut has a SOY FREE version
Fruit Juice
**NOTE: Gerber and Beechnut First Foods are made on their own lines, separate from other foods. However, Gerber and Beechnut 1st and 2nd Stage Foods are made on shared equipment with dairy products.

Snacks/Desserts
Fruit
Fruit popsicles
Philly Swirl - Sorbet Swirl Cups (made on shared equipment with dairy)
Luigi’s Italian Ice - cherry, grape, lemon, strawberry (confirmed)
Minute Maid Soft Frozen Ice - lemonade and strawberry/lemonade (confirmed)
Sorbet – Edy’s Whole Fruit
Vienna Fingers cookies
Uh Oh! Cookies and Reduced Fat Oreos (only these varieties have been confirmed free of dairy, however they are run on shared equipment)
Pepperidge Farm Apple Turnovers
Duncan Hines cake mixes (most of them; check the label - run on shared equip. with dairy and same plant as peanuts)
Duncan Hines Fudge Brownies mix (check labels)
"SHOP-RITE" Vanilla Frosting
Harvest Crisps
Potato chips – Lays Classic & some store brands (Plain and BBQ)
Tortilla chips – Mission or store brand
Veggie Booty
Rice cakes
Some granola bars – Quaker Chocolate Chip *contains nuts!, Nature Valley *contains nuts
Junior Mints
Keebler Animal Crackers (frosted, iced and plain - shared equipment with tree nuts/peanuts)
Mrs Smith’s Fruit Pies
Home Run Apple Pies (frozen singles)
Odwalla Nutritional Bars - contain soy (http://www.odwalla.com/obar2/obarfact.html)
Popcorn - Old-fashioned popcorn (the plain stuff, NOT the microwaveable kinds) - you can place plain popcorn in a brown lunch bag and microwave it, but you'll have to play around with the cook time as it varies from microwave to microwave, Kroger brand Natural Microwave Popcorn
Jello
Belsoy Pudding - Chocolate and Vanilla
Hunt's Snack Pack (4 pack) Lemon pudding and Lemon Meringue Pie pudding (confirmed dairy-free and not run on shared equipment)
Fruit snacks (Gerber, Sunkist, Nabisco, Betty Crocker - others are probably okay, too, but I've only verified these)
Presidents Choice Animal Crackers
Dominick’s Animal Cookies
Rye-Krisp
Super Pretzels (http://www.superpretzel.com/)
Healthy Times Hugga Bear Cookies
Healthy Times Teddy Puffs
Newman's Own Alphabet Grahams
Newman’’s Own Pretzels
Sesame Street Cookies - "Big Bird Barnyard Friends" and "Cookie Monster" Vanilla and Chocolate
Pillsbury Slice and Bake Sugar Cookies (the roll in the dairy isle).
Soy Yogurt – Silk, Trader Joe’s brand
Daddy Ray's Fig Bars & Strawberry Bars
Lady Stella Cookie Assortment
Sugar Kake Assorted Creme Wafers
Wal-Mart Vanilla and Assorted Creme Wafers
Chi-Chi’s salsa
Desert Trading Company Black Bean Dip
Edward & Son’s Baked Brown Rice Snaps
Jewel Oatmeal Cookies
Jiffy muffin mixes - blueberry, apple cinnamon, corn (substitute rice milk or soy milk)
Pringles (original only)
+Rold Gold Pretzels
Ryvita
Stretch Island Fruit Leather - various flavors
Sunmaid Fruit Bits
+Trader Joe’s Potato Sticks
Near East Couscous (Herbed Chicken) - has soy
Near East Rice Pilaf (Wild Mushroom and Herb) - has soy
Walmart's Great Value brand Fudge Striped Shortbread Cookies (made at a plant with dairy/peanut products)
Barbara’s Bakery Vanilla Snackimals Animal Cookies

Ice Cream
Rice Ice Cream – Rice Dream
Soy Ice Cream – Soy Dream (made on shared equip. w/dairy), Soy Delicious, Tofutti, Tofutti Cuties
Keebler Fudge Shoppe fudge pops (confirmed safe)

Crackers
Albertson's Crackers
Barbara's Wheatines (beware - may contain traces of peanuts)
Best Yet
Carr's Table Water Crackers
Good Health Quilt Crackers
Graham Crackers
Hain Wheatettes
Honey Maid Graham Crackers
Hy-Top
Kroger Original Grahams
Lay’s Chips (original, and Natural Thick Cut Sea Salt Chips)
Midel Swedish Style Snap Cookies (nut warning)
Nabisco Gourmet Crackers
Premium Saltines
Quaker Plain No Salt Added Rice Cakes
Ritz Snack Crackers - original
Safeway Unsalted
Saltine Crackers
Sesmark Rice Thins
Store brands - check labels
Triscuits (original)
Whole Foods Brand Veggie Chips
Wal-Mart Honey Grahams
Wheatables - Seven Grain Crackers
Wheat Thins (original)
Zesta (at least two kinds-Original & Unsalted)
Zips Party Crackers Ritz

Bread
Flour Tortillas –– read labels
Grissini Classic Flavor Breadsticks (from Trader Joe’s)
Mission Corn Tortillas (and store brand)
Most sliced bread will have dairy, but you can look for bagels, tortillas, pita bread, and some of the french, Italian or sourdough breads in the bakery area of your grocery
Lender's Bagels (1-800-432-3102)
Oroweat Bagels
Oroweat Country Potato Buns & Rolls
Old Country Sandwich White Bread from Oroweat Foods
Oroweat 100% Whole Wheat Bread
Pillsbury Crescent Rolls (original)
Store brand biscuits (check labels)
Safe bread brands: IronKids (not wheat), Wonder, Roman's 100% Whole Wheat, Strohmann’s 100% Country Whole Wheat Earth Grains Hogie Buns (for Sub sandwiches-not sure on the name) and maybe other products from EarthGrains, Freihofer’s Stone Ground 100% Whole Wheat Freihofer’s Sourdough Italiano, Freihofer’s Split Top Wheat, Freihofer’s Split Top White, Freihofer’s Country Potato, Freihofer’s Country White, Freihofer’s Soft Rye (no seeds), Freihofer’s Light Oat, Freihofer’s Canadian Oat, Freihofer’s Italiano, Freihofer’s Pumpernickel
Sara Lee Bagels (1-800-323-7117 9-4:30 CST)
The Bagel Bunch (from Inter-American Products, Inc.)
Thomas’ Sahara Pita Bread – Whole wheat and white

Baking/Spices and Seasonings
Baking Powder
Baking Soda
Brown Sugar
Butterscotch baking chips - Price Chopper brand
Flour
Guacamole Seasoning Mix - Casa Fiesta Mild
Hershey's baking cocoa
Hershey's chocolate syrup
Marshmallows - Kroger, Safeway, Jet Puff
Milk free chocolate chips: Sunspire, Chatfields, Tropical Source, Trader Joe’s, Baker's Brand Semi-Sweet (made on shared equip.), some store brands (Price Chopper and Wal-mart/Sam’s Club); chocolate baking chips from http://www.enjoylifefoods.com
Most McCormack Grill-Mates seasoning packets
Most spices are safe
Oil - Canola, Olive, Safflower, Sunflower
Pam Oil Spray
Pepperidge Farms Puff Pastry Sheets
Pillsbury Pie crusts (red box)
Salsa
Shake n Bake Original
Spectrum shortening
Sugar
Taco Bell Taco Seasoning Packet
Ortego Taco Seasoning Packet
Taco Sauce
Whipped Toppings (Spray) Rod's Whipped Topping (I know you can buy it at Albertson's. Look for the
"Pareve".); Safeway has a brand that is "Pareve or Parve".

Margarine
Fleischman's Light or unsalted, Benocal, Willow's Run, Smart Balance Light, Earth Balance, Nucoa,
Mother’s Margarine, Hain Safflower Margarine

Beverages
Coca-cola
Coffee (Soy Creamer - Silk)
+Dr. Pepper
Fruit Juice –– calcium fortified
Gatoraid
Kool Aid
Orange Juice –– Calcium fortified
Pepsi-cola
Sierra Mist
Sprite
Store brand sodas
Tea

Milk Beverages
Oat Milk: Pacific Foods
Potato Milk: Darifree
Rice Milk: Rice Dream (look for enriched) –– Plain, chocolate and vanilla
Soy Milk: Silk (look for enriched) –– Plain, chocolate and vanilla

Nutritional type drinks
Slim Fast Soy based drinks –– comes in variety of ‘‘fruit’’ flavors. My favorite was an orange/pineapple drink
Kashi GoLean –– in the CAN –– chocolate, vanilla
Snapple A Day Meal Replacement - all flavors (contain soy)

Condiments
Atkins Diet Condiments
Black Olives
Green olives
Hellmann’s Mayo (regular and light) *contains egg
Homestyle BBQ Sauce
Jellies and jams
Ketchup
Kraft 1000 Islands Dressing
Lipton Recipe Secrets - Savory Herb with Garlic
Most Mustards
Oil
Pickles
Relish
Soy Cheese –– Tofutti and veganrella
Soy cream cheese & sour cream –– Tofutti
Vinegar (distilled white and apple cider)
Wish Bone Italian dressing
Wish Bone Thousand Islands dressing
1000 Island, French, and Italian Dressings (Albertson's, Hy-Top, IGA, and I think Safeway)
Veganaisse Mayo (contains soy)
4C Unsalted Bread Crumbs (yellow and black canister)

Miscellaneous Vitamins and Medications
Tom's of Maine Toothpaste http://www.tomsofmaine.com)
Nature’s Bounty Calcium 600 Plus D
Eckerd 500 mg Vitamin C with Rose Hips
Precare Conceive Prenatal Vitamins
Natal Care Rx Prenatal Vitamins
Nature's Plus Calcium Supplement (also corn free)
Yummi Bears Original Vegetarian Multivitamin (confirmed safe for dairy, egg, wheat, soy, peanuts/nuts and oat)
Yummi Calcium Supplement
Children's Advil (liquid suspension)
Infant Tylenol
Children's Dye-Free Benedryl
PediaCare
Mylicon
Amoxicillan (400 mg suspension/bubble gum flavor)
Augmentin (suspension & chewables)
Lorabid
Vegan Rice Protein Powder
Kirkman’s Labs Protein Powder
Kirkman’s Labs Calcium Powder

...And the list goes on and on. If you cook, just substitute "safe" margarine for butter and "safe" milk for regular and voila!

The basic thing to remember is that you can have all fruits and veggies; most meat, poultry and fish preparations (obviously without cheese or cream sauces); not many sweet baked goods (muffins, cakes, etc.); some plain baked goods (bagels, wheat bread); few desserts (maybe some fruit-based). So concentrate on the fruits/veg. and you'll be fine.

Anything with a * has a "may contain traces of peanuts" warning.

Anything with a + in front of the item also does not contain soy.

And here’s a list of ingredients to AVOID while on a milk free diet:
Ammonium caseinate
Artificial butter flavor
Butter
Butter fat
Butter solids
Buttermilk solids
Calcium caseinate
Caramel color *call manufacturer
Caramel flavoring *call manufacturer
Casein
Caseinate
Cheese
Cream Curds
"De-lactosed" whey
Demineralized whey
Dried milk
Dry milk solids
Flavoring *call manufacturer
Fully cream milk powder
Galactose
High protein flour *call manufacturer
Hydrolyzed casein
Hydrolyzed milk protein
Lactalbumin
Lactalbumin phosphate
Lactate
Lactoferrin (Activin system)
Lactoglobulin
Lactose
Magnesium caseinate
Milk
Milk derivative
Milk fat
Milk protein
Milk solids
Natural flavoring *call manufacturer
Opta (fat replacer)
Potassium caseinate
Recaldent
Rennet casein
Simplesse (fat replacer)
Skim milk powder
Sodium caseinate
Solids
Sour cream (or solids)
Sour milk solids
Whey
Whey powder
Whey protein concentrate
Yogurt

Keep in mind that dairy derivatives can be hidden in some unsuspecting places (ie., Hylands
Teething Tablets, Trident gum, some vitamins, some deli meats, some toothpastes, some soap
products, etc.) so it is crucial to read every label.

Sunday, March 29, 2009

Dairy Free Won't Kill Me

So, it's been a week without dairy. I haven't seen too much improvement, but am still sticking with it because lots of what I have read (which is a LOT) says that you have to cut it out for about 2 weeks to a month to know for sure. If you are interested in knowing more about why I'm doing all this crazy stuff to keep breastfeeding, go here. I really am amazed at all the people suggesting to just give it up, but I know that it's the best thing for Kyle! Anyway, didn't mean to pull a Le Leche League moment on everyone. :)

I realized today that I just need to start substituting things and I can still have some of the things I love (although a big huge chunk of cheddar cheese is not one of them). I have been on a lot of forums of other moms going through the same thing and found that rice milk was a good alternative to regular milk in recipes. And, that you could use oil instead of butter. So this got me thinking....about fudge. Yep, since I was an infant (OK maybe not that long) my Mom has made us homemade fudge frosting for cakes. Her mother made it for them growing up, and now me and my sisters make it for our families too. I'm a chocoholic and so I was really mourning having to give up chocolate because virtually EVERY chocolate candy (except the overpriced organic rip off stuff) has dairy in it. But, today, it was like I had an "ah hah" moment!

Could I possibly still make fudge but just dairy free??? It can't be so.

But I tried.

And I conquered.

So, I am totally fine giving up everything else if I can still make my homemade fudge. Problem solved. This dairy free thing isn't so bad after all.

And I can't even tell a difference although my Mom said she could. Go figure.

And for any of you daring enough to attempt to make this fudge that never turns out the same way twice, here's the recipe with dairy for your enjoyment.

Take 2 cups sugar and 4 heaping tablespoons of Hershey's cocoa powder and mix.
Add 1/2 Cup milk and 4 tablespoons of butter cut up. Stir together over high heat until it comes to a full rolling boil.
Let boil at full boil for exactly one and a half minutes.
Remove from heat and let sit for 30 minutes.
Add 1 tsp. of vanilla and whip until it looks like the right consistency to pour over any cake of your choosing (although a white cake is the best).

PS-It is also good to just pour in a pan, let it harden and eat at your leisure with a spoon. :)

For the dairy free version, you can use rice milk instead, and it's also good with 3 tablespoons of vegetable oil instead of the 4 Tbs. of butter.

Good luck! Oh, and this picture below is just to drool over. Don't expect it to look this pretty. :)


Tuesday, March 17, 2009

Where it all began...

So, I'm starting this blog as a way to maybe help solve the mystery for someone else. I'm in the process of trying to figure out why the heck my son has such yucky diapers. Here's my story.

I have two kids. My oldest was such an easy child. Still is for the most part although she is an almost 3 year old so that presents challenges in and of itself. Along came #2 and he is a pretty good baby. However, his poop is crazy! For those of you who are not moms, you may want to stop reading here. If you're a Mom, I'm sure you've talked about poop at some point in your life.

I exclusively breastfed my first child, and she went straight from the breast to eating solids. No bottles or formula. In fact the one time I did try to feed her formula, I think she literally gagged and spit it up immediately. She knows what the good stuff is. So, I thought breastfeeding #2 would be a piece of cake. Wrong. Well, it sort of is. He is a great nurser, loves to eat, and is thriving! However, I noticed some things that were off.

1. His poop did not smell like that normal, sweet breastmilk poop smell.
2. At about 4 weeks old, I started noticing it was pure liquid a lot of the time, and the rest of the time, really mucousy.
3. Gassy. At first, I thought, well, maybe it's a boy/girl thing. Boys tend to be more gassy in general, but this is not normal people. He has gas like a 300 lb. grown male.
4. Streaks of blood. Yes, this is what got me worried, but in all honesty, not too worried. My daughter had this to once in a blue moon, and her Ped. told me not to worry about it. So, with him, when I first saw it, I didn't.
5. Fussy. This I kind of just didn't worry about either, because some babies are fussier than others, and I knew that.

But, when I put all of these together, my gut just told me something was wrong. So what do I do? I go and ask the expert. Google.
I started seeing all these things come up about allergies in breastfed infants. So, I thought, hey, maybe. And the more I read, the more it sounded like my baby boy. I have to stop here to say, I'm a cheese addict. So the thought of cutting this out was like torture to me! But, I believe in breastfeeding, and I want the best for my child, so I'm willing. I tried it for a week, and did not see any results, so I thought that was that.

Today I took him for his two month well visit. This boy is GROWING! So, he is now 13 lbs and 14 oz which means that he has gained almost 4 lbs in a month. Whew! I thought he was getting heavier. And, he is 23 1/2 inches long now, so he's gained another 1.25 inches. So, he is definitely getting plenty to eat. But, I did get some sad news for me at his visit. No more dairy. I know!!! Horrible huh? About 2 weeks or so ago, I went online to investigate allergies in breastfed babies and was doing some reading about milk allergy symptoms. I just had a hunch. He seemed really gassy, fussy, not sleeping restfully (grunting a lot), abnormally loose stool, etc. etc. Call it mother's intuition, or whatever, but I just had a suspicion so I cut dairy out for 8 long days. I didn't really notice a huge change, but that first 24 hours, he slept for 7 hours straight. Well, I started eating dairy again thinking it was nothing, but today when I went to his visit, I casually mentioned that I had tried to take out dairy, and she asked me if I had seen any blood in his stool (in addition to the other symptoms), and I said yes. She tested his stool right there while I waited and sure enough there were traces of blood in that sample as well. So, to make a long story short, I was right. He does have a milk allergy which, frankly, makes me depressed. Those of you who know me well know how much I LOVE my cheese. But, I will probably lose weight cutting out dairy. I asked her how extreme I needed to be with cutting it out and she said, "Pretty extreme".
So, I guess I'll be going from eating tons of this:



To more and more of this:


So that is how this is all beginning and this is my journey to figure out what is the story behind all those yucky diapers...My hope is that I'll figure some of this out, and be able to help another Mom out there.