tummy problems

[car17]

my 6 week old baby has been suffering from quite severe tummy pains eversince he was born. He has only been breast fed. After he is fed he screams and strains until he manages to poop. when he poops it is very runny and very green.Obviously we have consulted the doctor but so far we haven't had any answers and we are very worried

[tigilou]

I cant quite remember my daughters number 2's but seem to think hers were runny at this age and can remember it being green and worrying but sure the health visitor said this was due to breast feeding, bottle fed babies go the other way. The only thing i can think it could be is wind is he pulling his legs up to his tummy and kicking them out again? if so its probably wind and infacol or warm water will work as he is being breast fed im not sure how you get the infacol into him unless you express some and put it into a bottle and add the drops in there god it seems like a life time ago shes only 2 lol. Also you probably know this anyway but if you eat something spicy or rich food this can effect him. Hope he gets better soon

[xanderma]

Hi, just to agree with previous reply, I breastfed all 3 of my children and they all did bright green, runny poos! The screaming does sound like wind, but try a few different remedies, Infacol worked for one of mine, and Gripe Water for the others. Remember to check suitability for age tho, as I can't remember how old they have to be!! Also, I was told that if I was tense (which would be natural as you are so worried), it would pass onto my children (not sure whether its true or not), so if you can, chill (I know, I know, easier said than done!)

Good luck, and remember, these things all pass. The best advice I was given was that EVERYTHING is just a stage they go through, and once one thing passes another takes its place - this remains true now, even tho my eldest is 10!!!

[tigilou]

ive found this link quite a lot of information on there

http://www.babycentre.co.uk/expert/543050.html

[curiosity]

Hi, I'm talking 15 years ago, but our first daughter was a nightmare with colic despite being breastfed, on an evening she could never settle lying down, would scream high pitched, bring her knees up etc etc, obviously in pain. My dietician sister told me about some Swedish research about Colic and cows milk protein (usually diagnosed in bottlefed colicky babies) The research showed that this protein also passes on in your breast milk, so I went on a Cows milk & beef protein free diet, and hey presto it stopped. My health visitors asked me for the literature and told me that at least 6 other people benefitted from this, could be loads more now, cos that was within 2 years.

[curiosity]

Just to add to that, and to agree with Xandermas comment, everything is a stage, and if your child, turns out to be intolerant (not necessarily allergic) to cows milk, it brings different symptoms at different ages. First 3 months colic, after that possibly very mild treatable excema, flaring up after too much cheese & yoghurt. (which my son got, I restricted straight off feeding him, so he got no signs till finger foods) Anyway, even if you continue as the norm, it may be that these symptoms go, but others (again mild irritations) may come, and it could be dairy to blame. I met a Paediatrician on a course who totally believed that a childs gut is not mature enough to digest cows milk. That said, apart from the baby stomach pain, no symptoms have been worthy of restricting their diets ( It would have been crueler to stop chocolate etc, than to apply the odd bit of cream here and there.) But it affects people in different ways, I hope this passes quickly, cos it is physically & more importantly mentally draining. Good Luck

[Sparkles3]

My health visitor said that poos tended to be greener if the baby had wind/colic - don't know if this is true or not. Infacol worked for my first baby - but I would say it was wind rather than colic, my second didn't have a problem with wind or colic.

If none of the suggestions that ABers have suggested regarding diet seem to work, and your little one appears still to be in a great deal of pain, don't be afraid to go back to the doctor or call your health visitor. If you spend all your time worried that your baby may be poorly, you will miss out on enjoying him. The clinic is there to help you all as a family and a new baby can be demanding and stressful enough without having concerns about his health.

Good luck, hope it gets sorted soon.

[kick3m0n]

just to agree with much of the above and I would definitely try reducing your own cows milk consumption. I breastfed our wee guy who had very bad colic and just would not settle in the evening. Drawing his legs up, obvioulsy in pain, constant crying. The infacol helped a little, but the real turning point was when I stopped drinking cows milk (I seldom ate beef anyway). Within a day or so his symptoms had all but disappeared and our evenings became a much happier time all round.

Good luck.

[stoo_pid]

car17, you have my sympathies! We've just come out of the same stage with our son (he's 13 weeks now). We ended up cutting out cows milk from Mrs Pid's diet and cruciferous vegetables (parsnips, brocolli, onions etc). I can't honestly say his wind / colic improved overnight but the last 2 or 3 weeks he's been so much happier.

I don't know if this is common or if your baby suffers from the same thing, but Pid Junior also breaks wind quite frequently (has done since day one!) but he hardly ever burps. We found it easy to burp any trapped wind out of him but not when it was trapped down below. When he got really upset he seemed to be more comfortable slightly bent over my lap while I rubbed his lower back.

As he's getting older though he seems to find it much easier getting the wind out by himself (much to the amusement of visitors). He's also a lot happier and even sleeps occasionally! So hang in there, it will ease but hopefully some of the tips here might ease things a bit sooner for you.

[dancealot13]

Your baby is probably Lactose Intolerant, did the doctor mention that? Poor thing. Let us know the outcome.