Torin has been having digestive issues that leave his diapers in Christmas colors for the past 2.5 months, and I'm very very tired of it. I have been completely off of dairy for 11 weeks so far at the doctor's and lactation consultant's request, and have done all the tests on him that can be done (but they don't do allergy testing on babies), and have seen only mild improvement.*
Say hello to TED.
And so, I'm doing a Total Elimination Diet to see if that improves things. The diet can include:
Well, what do you know... I just happen to have rice and millet in 5-gallon buckets. And we need an excuse to try out Ryan's new iGrill on a turkey!
When should we expect results?
It seems that most women report that the green and red disappear dramatically after 3-7 days, and the mucus goes away in another 1-4 weeks. So I'm expecting to stick to the diet for 2-4 weeks, then start adding in new foods at a rate of one every 2-4 days.
I'll have to keep close details about my diet and Torin's fussiness and diapers... but I like science anyway. And I'll also have to keep in mind that if he reacts to a raw veggie or fruit, he may be fine with them when they're cooked.
Some women say that by the time they returned everything back into their diet, their baby had outgrown the intolerance... I'd be cool with that!
Boooooring!
The diet sounded daunting at first. But why the heck should I not do it... I can do anything for 2 weeks, and for Torin's health I can do anything for as long as it takes. This is one situation where my biggest personal flaw, stubbornness, comes in handy.
There are a few recipes out there for some tasty TED things, like lamb pear squash kebobs, gravy using turkey drippings and rice flour, marinades and sauces using pear juice and salt. There are some substitution foods like rice milk and rice puff cereal that can be used as well. And I can make some tasty bone broth, though it'll be missing the herbs and onions.
If I find anything especially delicious, I'll share it... but to be honest I'll probably get bored of the flavor mix and end up eating the same thing every day. Maybe simplicity would be nice for a change... no decisions to make.
Ryan is going to get so bored with dinner (he has bravely said he would join me, but I will need him to empty the fridge of perishables first). I am going to miss hot sauce and tea and BLTs with avocado.
Alright... time to go find me a turkey.
*Disclaimer: The pediatrician has said that only dairy in my diet can cause bloody stool in diapers (after a few other non-diet-related things were ruled out)... if it's not that, then the only other thing he could be allergic to is me personally and formula is the answer. I feel that the dairy-only thing is a bunch of crap, since the entire internet says babies can be intolerant to tons of other stuff in their mom's diet. The lactation consultant says other allergies are so incredibly rare that she'd not recommend cutting anything else out. I have learned with Kaiser that I have to be my own advocate.
Say hello to TED.
And so, I'm doing a Total Elimination Diet to see if that improves things. The diet can include:
- Turkey
- Lamb
- Rice
- Millet
- Summer squash
- Sweet potatoes
- Pears and diluted pear juice
- Olive oil
- Sea salt
- 1000mg calcium supplement in divided doses
- My multivitamin and vitamin D (I have already tried excluding the vitamins)
- (Some add in potatoes, but that's a nightshade so I'm leaving it out)
Well, what do you know... I just happen to have rice and millet in 5-gallon buckets. And we need an excuse to try out Ryan's new iGrill on a turkey!
When should we expect results?
It seems that most women report that the green and red disappear dramatically after 3-7 days, and the mucus goes away in another 1-4 weeks. So I'm expecting to stick to the diet for 2-4 weeks, then start adding in new foods at a rate of one every 2-4 days.
- 1st: omega 3 supplement (I don't want to wait to add this back in since the fats are good for Torin's brain)
- 2nd: the least allergenic things: most veggies and fruits
- 3rd: the common protein allergens: wheat, beef, eggs, nuts, corn
- 4th: the worst offenders: peanuts, caffeine/coffee/tea, tomatoes, citrus fruit, shellfish
- 5th: the most likely secondary intolerance: soy
- 6th: the thing that I know affects him some: dairy
I'll have to keep close details about my diet and Torin's fussiness and diapers... but I like science anyway. And I'll also have to keep in mind that if he reacts to a raw veggie or fruit, he may be fine with them when they're cooked.
Some women say that by the time they returned everything back into their diet, their baby had outgrown the intolerance... I'd be cool with that!
Boooooring!
The diet sounded daunting at first. But why the heck should I not do it... I can do anything for 2 weeks, and for Torin's health I can do anything for as long as it takes. This is one situation where my biggest personal flaw, stubbornness, comes in handy.
There are a few recipes out there for some tasty TED things, like lamb pear squash kebobs, gravy using turkey drippings and rice flour, marinades and sauces using pear juice and salt. There are some substitution foods like rice milk and rice puff cereal that can be used as well. And I can make some tasty bone broth, though it'll be missing the herbs and onions.
If I find anything especially delicious, I'll share it... but to be honest I'll probably get bored of the flavor mix and end up eating the same thing every day. Maybe simplicity would be nice for a change... no decisions to make.
Ryan is going to get so bored with dinner (he has bravely said he would join me, but I will need him to empty the fridge of perishables first). I am going to miss hot sauce and tea and BLTs with avocado.
Alright... time to go find me a turkey.
*Disclaimer: The pediatrician has said that only dairy in my diet can cause bloody stool in diapers (after a few other non-diet-related things were ruled out)... if it's not that, then the only other thing he could be allergic to is me personally and formula is the answer. I feel that the dairy-only thing is a bunch of crap, since the entire internet says babies can be intolerant to tons of other stuff in their mom's diet. The lactation consultant says other allergies are so incredibly rare that she'd not recommend cutting anything else out. I have learned with Kaiser that I have to be my own advocate.
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