Re: Breastfeeding confusion......opps!!

[Guest guest]

> One of the girls is having a hard time producing enough milk to

> satisfy her little one. Do celiac moms struggle with enough milk

> production?

> Thanks, Sandy

My experience was I had trouble producing enough milk when I was too

tired. There was a real connection between sleep and milk production.

It also helped to drink as much fluid as you can possibly tolerate.

Milk, water, juice - they all helped.

Maureen

[Guest guest]

> One of the girls is having a hard time producing enough milk to

> satisfy her little one. Do celiac moms struggle with enough milk

> production?

> Thanks, Sandy

My experience was I had trouble producing enough milk when I was too

tired. There was a real connection between sleep and milk production.

It also helped to drink as much fluid as you can possibly tolerate.

Milk, water, juice - they all helped.

Maureen

[Guest guest]

> One of the girls is having a hard time producing enough milk to

> satisfy her little one. Do celiac moms struggle with enough milk

> production?

> Thanks, Sandy

My experience was I had trouble producing enough milk when I was too

tired. There was a real connection between sleep and milk production.

It also helped to drink as much fluid as you can possibly tolerate.

Milk, water, juice - they all helped.

Maureen

[Guest guest]

Hi Sandy,

I'm a mom to 10 breastfed kiddos. I have celiac (diagnosed 2.5 years ago). I

definitely struggled with milk supply issues the few years *before* diagnosis

while I did not have supply issues with my older kids. My baby is 3.5 months old

and we seem to be OK now as far as supply goes.

When I have had supply issues, I've successfully used the herbs fenugreek and

blessed thistle to increase supply. More information about this can be found in

the excellent book by Jack Newman, MD titled The Ultimate Breastfeeding Book of

Answers or online at http://www.breastfeedingonline.com/24.html and

http://www.breastfeedingonline.com/fenugreek.shtml. There are a few other ways

to increase supply that are discussed at length in this book (the library

probably has it).

There is also great information about how to know if the baby is getting enough

milk and what to do about it. Is the baby gaining weight? That is the best

indicator of adequate supply. Sometimes baby is not gaining because their latch

is incorrect and they are not effective at getting the milk that is available.

Since breastfeeding operates by supply and demand, if baby doesn't remove milk,

the body stops producing enough. Fortunately the reverse is true, the more the

baby " demands " , the more milk is produced. I'd be happy to help your daughter

directly if she desires. Just e-mail me privately.

Breastfeeding confusion......opps!!

> Thankyou to all of you that wrote your advice to me on breastfeeding

> my twins. Actually, I didn't make myself clear. I have recently been

> diagnosed with celiac disease, as have my twin daughters. They are

> both new first time mothers, and trying to breast feed their babies.

> One of the girls is having a hard time producing enough milk to

> satisfy her little one. Do celiac moms struggle with enough milk

> production? She follows as close a diet as she knows how, to stay

> gluten free. Any thoughts on this? What age do you all consider

> having your children checked for celiac? Do any of you have the

> genetic marker test done on your children? I don't know the name f

> the test...only heard from our local support group that there is such

> a test. Again, thankyou for your help. I have so much to learn about

> this illness and way of life. Thanks, Sandy

>

>

>

>

>

>

>

>

[Guest guest]

Hi Sandy,

I'm a mom to 10 breastfed kiddos. I have celiac (diagnosed 2.5 years ago). I

definitely struggled with milk supply issues the few years *before* diagnosis

while I did not have supply issues with my older kids. My baby is 3.5 months old

and we seem to be OK now as far as supply goes.

When I have had supply issues, I've successfully used the herbs fenugreek and

blessed thistle to increase supply. More information about this can be found in

the excellent book by Jack Newman, MD titled The Ultimate Breastfeeding Book of

Answers or online at http://www.breastfeedingonline.com/24.html and

http://www.breastfeedingonline.com/fenugreek.shtml. There are a few other ways

to increase supply that are discussed at length in this book (the library

probably has it).

There is also great information about how to know if the baby is getting enough

milk and what to do about it. Is the baby gaining weight? That is the best

indicator of adequate supply. Sometimes baby is not gaining because their latch

is incorrect and they are not effective at getting the milk that is available.

Since breastfeeding operates by supply and demand, if baby doesn't remove milk,

the body stops producing enough. Fortunately the reverse is true, the more the

baby " demands " , the more milk is produced. I'd be happy to help your daughter

directly if she desires. Just e-mail me privately.

Breastfeeding confusion......opps!!

> Thankyou to all of you that wrote your advice to me on breastfeeding

> my twins. Actually, I didn't make myself clear. I have recently been

> diagnosed with celiac disease, as have my twin daughters. They are

> both new first time mothers, and trying to breast feed their babies.

> One of the girls is having a hard time producing enough milk to

> satisfy her little one. Do celiac moms struggle with enough milk

> production? She follows as close a diet as she knows how, to stay

> gluten free. Any thoughts on this? What age do you all consider

> having your children checked for celiac? Do any of you have the

> genetic marker test done on your children? I don't know the name f

> the test...only heard from our local support group that there is such

> a test. Again, thankyou for your help. I have so much to learn about

> this illness and way of life. Thanks, Sandy

>

>

>

>

>

>

>

>

[Guest guest]

Hi Sandy,

I'm a mom to 10 breastfed kiddos. I have celiac (diagnosed 2.5 years ago). I

definitely struggled with milk supply issues the few years *before* diagnosis

while I did not have supply issues with my older kids. My baby is 3.5 months old

and we seem to be OK now as far as supply goes.

When I have had supply issues, I've successfully used the herbs fenugreek and

blessed thistle to increase supply. More information about this can be found in

the excellent book by Jack Newman, MD titled The Ultimate Breastfeeding Book of

Answers or online at http://www.breastfeedingonline.com/24.html and

http://www.breastfeedingonline.com/fenugreek.shtml. There are a few other ways

to increase supply that are discussed at length in this book (the library

probably has it).

There is also great information about how to know if the baby is getting enough

milk and what to do about it. Is the baby gaining weight? That is the best

indicator of adequate supply. Sometimes baby is not gaining because their latch

is incorrect and they are not effective at getting the milk that is available.

Since breastfeeding operates by supply and demand, if baby doesn't remove milk,

the body stops producing enough. Fortunately the reverse is true, the more the

baby " demands " , the more milk is produced. I'd be happy to help your daughter

directly if she desires. Just e-mail me privately.

Breastfeeding confusion......opps!!

> Thankyou to all of you that wrote your advice to me on breastfeeding

> my twins. Actually, I didn't make myself clear. I have recently been

> diagnosed with celiac disease, as have my twin daughters. They are

> both new first time mothers, and trying to breast feed their babies.

> One of the girls is having a hard time producing enough milk to

> satisfy her little one. Do celiac moms struggle with enough milk

> production? She follows as close a diet as she knows how, to stay

> gluten free. Any thoughts on this? What age do you all consider

> having your children checked for celiac? Do any of you have the

> genetic marker test done on your children? I don't know the name f

> the test...only heard from our local support group that there is such

> a test. Again, thankyou for your help. I have so much to learn about

> this illness and way of life. Thanks, Sandy

>

>

>

>

>

>

>

>

[Guest guest]

I wasn’t

GF when I nursed my children, but I did notice a big decrease in milk

production if I didn’t drink enough water. I tried to drink one gallon per

day. Have your daughter increase her water intake to see if her milk volume

increases.

[Guest guest]

I wasn’t

GF when I nursed my children, but I did notice a big decrease in milk

production if I didn’t drink enough water. I tried to drink one gallon per

day. Have your daughter increase her water intake to see if her milk volume

increases.

[Guest guest]

Sandy,

Slight confusion there, eh? Perhaps you and your daughters got a good laugh from that?

I breastfed three children before I was diagnosed, but can identify symptoms of celiac in myself reaching back to childhood. My husband was diagnosed between baby #1 and baby #2, so although I was not gluten free, I was cooking gluten free for most family meals. All three kids were later diagnosed with celiac. I did not have trouble producing enough milk, and have not heard of others with problems. All three of my kids were born prematurely, and I nursed on demand, which was quite often. That may have helped with milk supply.

All my kids did well with growth while breastfeeding. Baby #1 and Baby #2 were at one point diagnosed with anemia, but I can't remember how old they were at the time, but my guess is about a year old. They have not had a problem with this since going gluten free. My older two were diagnosed with celiac at the same time when they were ages two and four. The youngest one was kept gluten free until two years old per her doctor's advice, then diagnosed when she was unable to tolerate gluten at two years old. My children's doctor diagnosed the kids more on their response to going gluten free. Their lab work was inconclusive, but with our family history, he felt that their improvement on the diet was enough for a diagnosis.

HTH,

Breastfeeding confusion......opps!!

Thankyou to all of you that wrote your advice to me on breastfeeding my twins. Actually, I didn't make myself clear. I have recently been diagnosed with celiac disease, as have my twin daughters. They are both new first time mothers, and trying to breast feed their babies. One of the girls is having a hard time producing enough milk to satisfy her little one. Do celiac moms struggle with enough milk production? She follows as close a diet as she knows how, to stay gluten free. Any thoughts on this? What age do you all consider having your children checked for celiac? Do any of you have the genetic marker test done on your children? I don't know the name f the test...only heard from our local support group that there is such a test. Again, thankyou for your help. I have so much to learn about this illness and way of life. Thanks, Sandy

[Guest guest]

LOL!! We were way off the mark! :-D

> " One of the girls is having a hard time producing enough milk to

> satisfy her little one. Do celiac moms struggle with enough milk

> production? "

I only have trouble with supply when I don't take in enough calories!

I was so slim before, but now I must sport a bit of a belly to keep

milk production at a level my baby likes. My day includes 3 full

meals and snacks inbetween. If I skip on calories, my supply of milk

drops. Eating grains seem to increase production, too.

If your daughter is trying to stay fashonably trim, or skipping meals

and snacks, it could affect her supply of milk.

We can slim down after the babies are satisfied! ;-)

Connie

[Guest guest]

I nursed both of my kids before celiac was ever questioned in our family. Now,

both

myself and our two kids are GF. I had major production issues both times. I was

a

horrible cow ) I tried the beer thing, I tried extra sleep, and I drink

plenty of

water each day. The lactation specialists didn't know what else to do other than

to

decrease stress as much as possible.

I have found some references to a decreased milk production in untreated

celiacs. Perhaps

they are too soon after diagnosis and as they are GF longer, it will get better.

And as

far as stress goes, changing your whole diet IS stressful; even though it may

not seem

too bad. As well as being a new Mom. The fact that they are occuring at the same

time

could have something to do with it too.

Support and time may also help the situation. And remind her that she can only

do what

she can do. It is not a failure if your body just does not want to cooperate. I

know I

stressed myself out somewhat just because I was not a good cow. The doctors told

me that

with my allergies, I really should try to nurse them for at LEAST the first

year. I made

it around 6 months with each. I felt like I was failing them. Of course that was

ridiculous, but it didn't seem so at the time. Looking back now, I really wonder

if

gluten had been part of the problem - but there is no way to know that.

As far as testing the kids, there may be some truth to tests not being very

accurate at

young ages. However, I would watch them closely for signs and symptoms. I really

think

both of my children had problems right from birth. For our son, he never seemed

like he

was satiated. He was ALWAYS hungry. By 6 weeks, we were actually told to start

supplementing him with rice cereal because he was drinking over 40 ounces a day

- one of

the signs that they are ready for more food. He was actively interested in our

food, so

it seemed appropriate. Now, I question whether he had been absorbing all of the

food even

then. He had had other problems too, like a horrible rash that covered not only

his head,

but half of his face too.

For our daughter, she had horrible stomach pains from the get-go. Not so much as

to call

her collicky; she would be much better IF you could get her to burp. The

trouble was,

she was very difficult to burp - you would think you were done, but there would

always be

more. She was more comfortable in an upside-down position - we would carry her

like a

football. I found out years later that this is often a more comfortable position

for kids

with stomach upset. She also always had horrible diarrhea. I had a dickens of a

time

keeping her bottom clear of ulcers. I was told that she likely just had very

sensitive

skin like her Mom. We switched diapers, let her go naked, everything - nothing

worked.

Then they said she might have an allergy like her Mom - but again, too young for

testing

to be accurate. We " dealt with it " for so long that we had gotten used to the

tummy pains

and as she became a toddler, we thought it might be a case of " fussy child, I

don't want

to eat what you have made, Mom " syndrome. We also had come to make light of the

fact that

she would go to the bathroom at EVERY mealtime - we actually used to joke that

we could

set the clock by her. Once she had potty trained herself, I had not kept track

of her

stools so closely. And she never told me that she was having diarrhea - because

it was

normal for her, she didn't realize it was wrong. The doctors had commented on

her slower

growth, but they said she " seemed healthy " so they would just watch her - it was

probably

just the short kid of short parents. Things had been so insidious, that we never

put them

together into one bigger problem. It wasn't until she was 6 yrs old that I heard

her in

the bathroom from 2 rooms away that we finally got it. When I asked her about

the

diarrhea, she was VERY matter-of-fact, like " it's normal, why are you asking? "

That set

off huge flags for me. I guessed somekind of allergy (after all, that was MY

problem

wasn't it?). When she tested completely negative for food allergies, that was

when the

allergist suggested celiac. Luckily, he had been seeing me and both of the kids

and was

able to put the whole picture together. The rest is history. We are all GF and

healthy

now.

My point it that symptoms can be insidious and difficult to put together. So

watch extra

closely. As far as allergy testing, those tests too are not AS accurate at a

young age.

However, if someone reacts strongly enough, it can show positive. And positive

is

positive. It is only false negatives that are the problem. Our son had positive

allergy

testing to cats by a year and a half. I would think celiac testing could be

similar. If a

strong enough reaction, it would still show positive. After all, aren't there a

lot of

kids who have had positive testing and biopsy before age two? It is the more

illusive

symptomology that is tough to catch.

Just some thoughts,

Cheryl in MN

Cheryl

rxp_us@...

[Guest guest]

I nursed both of my kids before celiac was ever questioned in our family. Now,

both

myself and our two kids are GF. I had major production issues both times. I was

a

horrible cow ) I tried the beer thing, I tried extra sleep, and I drink

plenty of

water each day. The lactation specialists didn't know what else to do other than

to

decrease stress as much as possible.

I have found some references to a decreased milk production in untreated

celiacs. Perhaps

they are too soon after diagnosis and as they are GF longer, it will get better.

And as

far as stress goes, changing your whole diet IS stressful; even though it may

not seem

too bad. As well as being a new Mom. The fact that they are occuring at the same

time

could have something to do with it too.

Support and time may also help the situation. And remind her that she can only

do what

she can do. It is not a failure if your body just does not want to cooperate. I

know I

stressed myself out somewhat just because I was not a good cow. The doctors told

me that

with my allergies, I really should try to nurse them for at LEAST the first

year. I made

it around 6 months with each. I felt like I was failing them. Of course that was

ridiculous, but it didn't seem so at the time. Looking back now, I really wonder

if

gluten had been part of the problem - but there is no way to know that.

As far as testing the kids, there may be some truth to tests not being very

accurate at

young ages. However, I would watch them closely for signs and symptoms. I really

think

both of my children had problems right from birth. For our son, he never seemed

like he

was satiated. He was ALWAYS hungry. By 6 weeks, we were actually told to start

supplementing him with rice cereal because he was drinking over 40 ounces a day

- one of

the signs that they are ready for more food. He was actively interested in our

food, so

it seemed appropriate. Now, I question whether he had been absorbing all of the

food even

then. He had had other problems too, like a horrible rash that covered not only

his head,

but half of his face too.

For our daughter, she had horrible stomach pains from the get-go. Not so much as

to call

her collicky; she would be much better IF you could get her to burp. The

trouble was,

she was very difficult to burp - you would think you were done, but there would

always be

more. She was more comfortable in an upside-down position - we would carry her

like a

football. I found out years later that this is often a more comfortable position

for kids

with stomach upset. She also always had horrible diarrhea. I had a dickens of a

time

keeping her bottom clear of ulcers. I was told that she likely just had very

sensitive

skin like her Mom. We switched diapers, let her go naked, everything - nothing

worked.

Then they said she might have an allergy like her Mom - but again, too young for

testing

to be accurate. We " dealt with it " for so long that we had gotten used to the

tummy pains

and as she became a toddler, we thought it might be a case of " fussy child, I

don't want

to eat what you have made, Mom " syndrome. We also had come to make light of the

fact that

she would go to the bathroom at EVERY mealtime - we actually used to joke that

we could

set the clock by her. Once she had potty trained herself, I had not kept track

of her

stools so closely. And she never told me that she was having diarrhea - because

it was

normal for her, she didn't realize it was wrong. The doctors had commented on

her slower

growth, but they said she " seemed healthy " so they would just watch her - it was

probably

just the short kid of short parents. Things had been so insidious, that we never

put them

together into one bigger problem. It wasn't until she was 6 yrs old that I heard

her in

the bathroom from 2 rooms away that we finally got it. When I asked her about

the

diarrhea, she was VERY matter-of-fact, like " it's normal, why are you asking? "

That set

off huge flags for me. I guessed somekind of allergy (after all, that was MY

problem

wasn't it?). When she tested completely negative for food allergies, that was

when the

allergist suggested celiac. Luckily, he had been seeing me and both of the kids

and was

able to put the whole picture together. The rest is history. We are all GF and

healthy

now.

My point it that symptoms can be insidious and difficult to put together. So

watch extra

closely. As far as allergy testing, those tests too are not AS accurate at a

young age.

However, if someone reacts strongly enough, it can show positive. And positive

is

positive. It is only false negatives that are the problem. Our son had positive

allergy

testing to cats by a year and a half. I would think celiac testing could be

similar. If a

strong enough reaction, it would still show positive. After all, aren't there a

lot of

kids who have had positive testing and biopsy before age two? It is the more

illusive

symptomology that is tough to catch.

Just some thoughts,

Cheryl in MN

Cheryl

rxp_us@...

[Guest guest]

I nursed both of my kids before celiac was ever questioned in our family. Now,

both

myself and our two kids are GF. I had major production issues both times. I was

a

horrible cow ) I tried the beer thing, I tried extra sleep, and I drink

plenty of

water each day. The lactation specialists didn't know what else to do other than

to

decrease stress as much as possible.

I have found some references to a decreased milk production in untreated

celiacs. Perhaps

they are too soon after diagnosis and as they are GF longer, it will get better.

And as

far as stress goes, changing your whole diet IS stressful; even though it may

not seem

too bad. As well as being a new Mom. The fact that they are occuring at the same

time

could have something to do with it too.

Support and time may also help the situation. And remind her that she can only

do what

she can do. It is not a failure if your body just does not want to cooperate. I

know I

stressed myself out somewhat just because I was not a good cow. The doctors told

me that

with my allergies, I really should try to nurse them for at LEAST the first

year. I made

it around 6 months with each. I felt like I was failing them. Of course that was

ridiculous, but it didn't seem so at the time. Looking back now, I really wonder

if

gluten had been part of the problem - but there is no way to know that.

As far as testing the kids, there may be some truth to tests not being very

accurate at

young ages. However, I would watch them closely for signs and symptoms. I really

think

both of my children had problems right from birth. For our son, he never seemed

like he

was satiated. He was ALWAYS hungry. By 6 weeks, we were actually told to start

supplementing him with rice cereal because he was drinking over 40 ounces a day

- one of

the signs that they are ready for more food. He was actively interested in our

food, so

it seemed appropriate. Now, I question whether he had been absorbing all of the

food even

then. He had had other problems too, like a horrible rash that covered not only

his head,

but half of his face too.

For our daughter, she had horrible stomach pains from the get-go. Not so much as

to call

her collicky; she would be much better IF you could get her to burp. The

trouble was,

she was very difficult to burp - you would think you were done, but there would

always be

more. She was more comfortable in an upside-down position - we would carry her

like a

football. I found out years later that this is often a more comfortable position

for kids

with stomach upset. She also always had horrible diarrhea. I had a dickens of a

time

keeping her bottom clear of ulcers. I was told that she likely just had very

sensitive

skin like her Mom. We switched diapers, let her go naked, everything - nothing

worked.

Then they said she might have an allergy like her Mom - but again, too young for

testing

to be accurate. We " dealt with it " for so long that we had gotten used to the

tummy pains

and as she became a toddler, we thought it might be a case of " fussy child, I

don't want

to eat what you have made, Mom " syndrome. We also had come to make light of the

fact that

she would go to the bathroom at EVERY mealtime - we actually used to joke that

we could

set the clock by her. Once she had potty trained herself, I had not kept track

of her

stools so closely. And she never told me that she was having diarrhea - because

it was

normal for her, she didn't realize it was wrong. The doctors had commented on

her slower

growth, but they said she " seemed healthy " so they would just watch her - it was

probably

just the short kid of short parents. Things had been so insidious, that we never

put them

together into one bigger problem. It wasn't until she was 6 yrs old that I heard

her in

the bathroom from 2 rooms away that we finally got it. When I asked her about

the

diarrhea, she was VERY matter-of-fact, like " it's normal, why are you asking? "

That set

off huge flags for me. I guessed somekind of allergy (after all, that was MY

problem

wasn't it?). When she tested completely negative for food allergies, that was

when the

allergist suggested celiac. Luckily, he had been seeing me and both of the kids

and was

able to put the whole picture together. The rest is history. We are all GF and

healthy

now.

My point it that symptoms can be insidious and difficult to put together. So

watch extra

closely. As far as allergy testing, those tests too are not AS accurate at a

young age.

However, if someone reacts strongly enough, it can show positive. And positive

is

positive. It is only false negatives that are the problem. Our son had positive

allergy

testing to cats by a year and a half. I would think celiac testing could be

similar. If a

strong enough reaction, it would still show positive. After all, aren't there a

lot of

kids who have had positive testing and biopsy before age two? It is the more

illusive

symptomology that is tough to catch.

Just some thoughts,

Cheryl in MN

Cheryl

rxp_us@...