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Are you breastfeeding and have been told to give up dairy? This advice may have come from your doctor, a good friend, or another breastfeeding momma. I hear this advice given regularly as a solution to solve certain symptoms in babies- especially in mom groups! As a lactation expert, this is one of the most frustrating pieces of advice people give to my clients. Gassy baby? Give up dairy! Baby spits up? Give up dairy! Fussy baby? Give up dairy! Giving up dairy seems to be the "cure all" to everything these days- when it's actually usually NOT the answer.  If you're new to my blog, welcome!
Please make sure to check out one my other awesome posts: How to Use Paced Bottle Feeding with Your Breastfed Baby My Top 7 Tips for Going Back to Work Do I have the Legal Right to Pump at Work? Do I Really Need to Pump and Dump? Before you go, grab my FREE Tongue Tie Symptom Checklist below! 
So, if a dairy intolerance in your baby isn't the solution, what is? Lactose overload. A sneaky breastfeeding problem that more of you may have than you realize. Lactose overload can appear to many (even pediatricians!!!!) to be a dairy sensitivity in your baby. And it's not surprising why that is, they do share similar symptoms, HOWEVER when these symptoms arise, you should always seek the expert advise of a lactation professional. Doing so could save you a ton of headaches, and save you from having to unnecessarily give up cheese! Before we get into the nitty gritty details, let me tell you a little story from yesterday..... This is me. You're about to have a short photo journey of my own lactose overload experience. This is me. You're about to have a short photo |
That picture, with the big milk leak was taken about an hour after my 5 week old had nursed.
I was soaked, and my milk was still leaking everywhere. I went to my kitchen and grabbed my Medela Harmony hand pump (I love this pump by the way) because my milk was literally spraying. I squeezed the handle ONE TIME to create some suction to collect the leaking milk and THIS was what I caught......
Then, I nursed my 5 week old, who still got sprayed in the face. 
While nursing her, I decided to text Allison (who is one of our lactation experts) and sent her these pictures. She had the brilliant idea of taking a picture of my pumped milk AFTER baby was done nursing. So I did. And I think it captures the lactose overload beautifully.
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Reflux
Gas
Fussiness
Sudden bursts of crying from gas pain
Green poop
Mucous in the poop
AND even blood in the stool
How could a pediatrician misdiagnose this? Well, there are several very similar symptoms (especially bloody stools), and a pediatrician is not an expert in breastfeeding, they are experts in pediatric disease. They may not be familiar with lactose overload, or know that a moms milk supply could be a concern at all. It happens often! Unless they are also a lactation consultant, your pediatrician is not who you should turn to for breastfeeding advise, you should always go to a breastfeeding expert.
Something to understand, when a baby is reacting to dairy (or any food for that matter) they are reacting to the proteins of that particular food in your milk, not your milk itself. When baby is having symptoms from a lactose overload, they are having symptoms from the volume of lactose in your milk, and removing dairy products from your diet will not do anything to make it better.
Lactose overload happens if you have an oversupply of breastmilk or over active let downs (OALD). It means that when you have an abundance of milk, you will naturally have more lactose (and more of all the milk). So, when your baby is nursing they are being overwhelmed by the high lactose milk that typically babies only get at the beginning of a feeding.
Is it possible for your baby to have a dairy sensitivity/allergy and lactose overload? Sure! But you'll see some very specific symptoms when dairy really is the issue; some examples include extreme bouts of crying, skin rashes, congestion, eczema, acidic stools that cause bad diaper rashes, projectile vomiting, and these babies tend to look sickly, and are very often struggling to gain weight or are failure to thrive.
How do you know if you have an oversupply or OALD? Here are some signs.
In addition to the symptoms your baby may have, as mentioned above, you may also notice the following:
Your baby may come off the breast and choke/cough while nursing.
Nursing sessions may be very short, less than 10 minutes.
You can hear your baby swallowing rapidly/gulping.
Your breasts may feel full often, or you may experience clogs and/or mastitis.
Your breasts may leak, alot!
Your baby may be fussy at the breast, especially if your milk isn't flowing easily for them. (Usually because they don't know how to "work for the milk")
Your baby may occasionally refuse to nurse.
Your baby may clamp down on your nipple, or pull their head back when the milk flows.
Your milk tends to spray out when you have a let down.
Do any of these symptoms seem familiar to you? If so, what you're likely dealing with is not a dairy intolerance, but a lactose overload from having an oversupply of breastmilk! If you think this is you, please contact a lactation expert ASAP! We're open 7 days a week and offer same day appointments. (We support mamas anywhere with our virtual sessions!)
Generally speaking foremilk and hindmilk is not something you need to worry about! I've been hearing mommas talk alot about foremilk AND hindmilk over the years and there are soooooo many misconceptions.
Foremilk and hindmilk are terms coined by researchers. Foremilk describes the milk at the beginning of a feeding, and hindmilk describes the milk at the end of the feeding. They are usually not dramatically different types of milk. HOWEVER, when you have an oversupply of milk, or OALD, the foremilk can be a problem. NOT because the foremilk and hindmilk are dramatically different, but because you have TOO MUCH milk. When you do not have an oversupply, babies are naturally getting a great balance of milk, and there is no need to even put a second thought to foremilk/hindmilk.
See what happens, when you have too much milk, is your baby will fill up on the foremilk instead of getting a good balance of foremilk and hindmilk. Foremilk is more watery, and has more lactose than hindmilk, which is fattier. If your baby is getting a larger volume of that foremilk then your baby is getting more lactose than they would if you made less milk, hence the lactose overload.
The high lactose content can be irritating on baby's tummy which is what causes the symptoms listed above. It can be so irritating on baby's gut that it even causes specs of blood in the stool and/or mucous stools, and green stools.
This stool is mucousy (see the snot like consistency), and the little "black specs" are bits of blood. Is this what your baby's stool looks like?
Normal breastfed baby poop is yellow, almost hummus like consistency, and has little round dots that almost look like sesame seeds.
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This picture shows a more normal breastfed baby poop, before my supply had fully come in. You can see the little "curds" of digested fat. This is what more normal stools look like after the meconium stage.
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If you're thinking your symptoms, your milk, and your baby's symptoms sound like this, then what you're dealing with is probably a lactose overload and NOT a dairy intolerance and giving up dairy will absolutely not help your situation. If you suspect you have a lactose intolerance, contact your local lactation consultant, or reach out to us for a private session so your baby can start feeling better today.
Keep in mind, there is not a one size fits all approach to managing oversupply, OALD, and lactose overload. Every breastfeeding relationship is different, and you should seek expert support. Trying to manage it on your own could make it worse, or result in a loss of milk production, which is why we are stressing that you work with an expert in lactation. Get your personalized proven plan to correct lactose overload when you work with our experts.
Your baby can start feeling better today when you work with the lactose overload experts at Successful Breastfeeding
Get your personalized proven plan to correct lactose overload when you work with our experts.
We offer same day appointments. Get yours now.
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Check out what Danielle had to say about fixing
lactose overload with our team in this short video: |
Yes! This totally sounds like me and my breastfeeding journey so far. 3.5 months postpartum. My baby has mucus like poop and very green in color on occasion. She has short feeding sessions, not gaining the way she should. She will get upset during a letdown and then refuse the breast. I can hear her gulping vigorously as well. My breast milk will shoot across the room during a letdown. I’ve trued laid back nursing, side lying, and squeezing some milk before the feed. It’s not working and baby seems to dislike feeding now. Dream feeds are amazing though with zero issues. She refuses a bottle, another issue 🤦🏼♀️ The IBCLC thinks I need to feed her more forbthe weight gain, but she’s not wanting me that often. Weighted feed was 3oz from one side in 10 minutes.
Hey Cheri!
I'm so glad you found our blog and this post, and so sorry to hear you're having such a hard time. ❤️
What you're struggling with is something we see all the time. Oversupply is our specialty. It sounds like you could use some support from experts (us) who know how to handle this complex situation.
If you're open to hiring us to support you, it's very affordable and insurance reimbursable. Plus you have access to ask us questions 7 days a week.
We support moms everywhere. So it doesn't matter where you live.
Sign up by clicking on the Virtual Breastfeeding Support option in our services menu.
Or email me Kelly@successfulbreastfeeding.org
I hope to see you soon to help get you on the other side of this. ♥️
My baby suffers from all of these symptoms except green poop. It’s very much like the picture you posted. Could it still be lactose overload without green stools? She is almost 9 weeks old now and I had to see a lactation consultant week 1 because I had an oversupply and she couldn’t latch properly due to engorgement. Now, I still have a very forceful letdown but I’m not overproducing nearly as much as I was. I’ve begun limiting dairy and it has helped with her excessive puking but has done absolutely nothing to help her very watery stools.
Yes, it still absolutely could be lactose overload, and very likely still is. Let's work together to figure this out and get you and your baby in a happy place. https://www.successfulbreastfeeding.org/virtual-breastfeeding-help.html
You just described me and my son... so very grateful to have found your page. I was told to give up cow’s milk, nuts and eggs and I kept telling them that other than a mucusy stool the baby doesn’t show any other symptom of allergies. We found blood specks at one point too and LO was Put on 10 days antibiotics course. And yet the diaper turns up mucusy. I do have an oversupply and the additional symptoms you mentioned describes us to the T.
Thank you for your comment. I am so glad you found our blog. How are you and your little one doing? I'm sorry you're having this issue.
Currently 6 weeks postpartum and this sounds exactly like me and my son. He has all of the tummy symptoms including nursing every hour and a half to 2 hours but very fussy while at the breast. Laid back nursing has helped and he’s gaining weight like a champ but his greenish mucoid stools and tummy upset have me concerned. I exclusively pumped with my first son and we never had these issues so now that I’m EBF with my second this sounds like we have a lactose problem with too much foremilk. Your page is encouraging and we will do everything we can to tackle this oversupply and hopefully balance out soon!
I am so glad you're finding our blog encouraging. It's so nice to hear! Are you in our support group on Facebook too? You can find us by searching on Facebook for the Successful Breastfeeding Community.
oh this sound like me and my daughther. I’m 3months pp and we just had her 3rd month check up, they told me to cut out all the dairy and watch out if her stool will improve.. she have mucousy like poop but in a color yellow to yellow green. She always gulps loudly when my let down is about to come, and sometimes fussy on my breast, most of the time my milk will give us a shower because of her turning from my milk. i really dont know what to do know..
Hi! I'm so glad you found our blog and this article. I am sorry to hear your baby is having a hard time. How are you doing now? Are you and your baby still having this struggle?
My lactation specialist doesn't know anything about this. But I need help. What can I do?
Hi Vivi!
This is a great question, and one that does not come with a simple answer. There are many reasons that this can happen, and many ways to manage it.
We see moms who are struggling with this all of the time, and can absolutely work with you to start making this better. The Successful Breastfeeding Team is available to support you 7 days a week.
You can sign up for a session with us to support you through this as soon as tomorrow morning, and then we will be at your side throughout it all to make sure you're successful and meeting your goals.
Click the link and pick your time slot right now!
https://www.successfulbreastfeeding.org/virtual-breastfeeding-help.html
YES! I previously gotten trough this rough patch of breastfeeding with my son (now 3mt) and I evidently had this with my first baby too but it wasn’t an issue with her. I was recommended by my LC to pump before nursing to release the pressure of milk coming out of my breast and to soften my nipple enough for LO to properly latch and to really “work” for the milk.
Hey Maci!
I am so glad you found our blog. ❤️ Oversupply is sooo common. We see it all the time. I'm hoping you're doing well now with your little ones.
I wanted to say for anyone who is reading these comments that pumping before feeding is not how we recommend handling oversupply /OALD as it will usually just make the problem worse and increase milk supply.
There's not one size fits all solution to this issue and we work very closely with mommas who we see for this to help regulate supply and help baby feel better. ❤️
My daughter will be 4 months at the end of the month and I have been trying to figure out what was happening since she was a month old. She is gaining weight like a champ but she sporadically projectile vomited, has the same looking poop as the pictures you posted and I still pour milk almost every time I feed her. We have lots of trouble with milk spraying her in the face or causing her to get choked on it, and I thought maybe it was dairy and cut it out but that didn't help at all. Knowing what is wrong is such a relief because all the symptoms you showed are just like mine!
Hi Destiny!
I'm so grateful you found this and are feeling some relief just knowing that you're figuring out what's going on.
We would be happy to support you with this if you're open to hiring the Successful Breastfeeding Team!
There is a light at the end of the tunnel, and we're here to help. ♥️
Shoot me an email
Kelly@successfulbreastfeeding.org
Or sign up for a private virtual session by clicking the services tab above.
My 5mo old son has all these symptoms... and the dairy-free diet our pediatrician put me on doesn't seem to be making a difference... but I don't have the symptoms. I get clogged some times, but don't tend to leak and rarely feel super full. I have the harmony pump & have pumped for 10+ mins each side & gotten less than 5ml of watery milk after breastfeeding. My doctor has been treating my son's symptoms individually rather than evaluating them as a whole-picture & I am unsure of what to do. My husband is lactose sensitive & Celiac disease runs in my family. (I gave up gluten before I gave up dairy & the red spots around baby's booty hole went away within 10 days) But my doc says it can't be gluten because he isn't eating it in solids. 😑 Doc wants him on solids & Pepcid but baby won't take either. Any help you can offer would be great.
Hi Becki! I am so glad you found us and our blog. It sounds like you're really having a hard time. ❤️You're in the right place, as this is one of our specialties. You can schedule a private virtual session with us by clicking on the services tab. Or you can email me directly. Kelly@successfulbreastfeeding.org
I'd love to provide you support through this. I look forward to doing a private session with you and then providing you with unlimited private support for a couple weeks after.
We provide affordable support to breastfeeding moms. Virtually. Anywhere.
I do have some of these things happen to me and my 3m old daughter. She is not a spitter upper though and her stool is pretty yellow. She does however nurse shorter periods of time and when I pump I can see that light color before the more full milk comes out. Usually we nurse 10-15mins and she seems content. She has more than doubled her birth weight. I’m not sure how to tell if she’s getting to much lactulose.
Hi Hannah!
I am so glad you found our blog post, but so sorry to hear you think you may have an oversupply.
The most obvious sign is baby's poops. Are they green or mucousy? If so, then your baby may be struggling from too much lactose due to an oversupply.
This is our specialty, and we see it all the time. If you're concerned, scroll back up to the post and click the button to sign up for a session with us now.
I took my 2 month old daughter to the doctor on Monday because she was spitting up a lot, crying a lot (which was not normal for her personality), and having a really tight tummy, but has had normal diapers that aren't mucousy. The pediatrician thought it could be reflux and also told me to cut out dairy out of my diet. She DOES NOT have a rash or bloody stools, or mucousy diapers so I was shocked she when straight to cutting dairy out (which is so hard, loving a glass of milk with dinner) When feeding though she eats about 15 mins, but is gulping, coughing/chocking, and a lot of the time I spray her. There are some days I leak through my shirt but not as often as it used to be. Definitely feel full a lot of the time.
Thank you for this post! This sounds exactly like what my 10 week old is experiencing. I started off trying to pump to bottle feed since she’s my second and felt engorged all the time. We’re now EBF but I feel like I made the problem worse with pumping exclusively in the beginning. We’ve started block feeding and it’s made a. Huge impact with not spraying her in the face but I still see some green mucousy poop here and there. She’s only 10 weeks old and I’ve been able to freeze 300 ounces already. I’m wondering if that milk will continue to give her a stomach ache or if she will outgrow the lactose. Really I want to know if I can use all the milk I’ve collected.
Hey Ashley!
Thanks for commenting. How amazing you were able to go from pumping and bottle feeding back to the breast. That can be tricky to do. Way to go momma! Sounds like you're still dealing with some of the affects of oversupply. We can support you through this. Check out our support options in the services tab above. This is our specialty.
Kelly
Successful Breastfeeding Expert
Hello-
My name is Stefanie and I think I am dealing with this problem. I've been thinking it's a diary intolerance of sensitivity for my baby and I have a call into a pediatric GI specialist and I'm waiting to hear back. I was thinking I was going to have to cut out dairy. I EBF my 4 month old. She doesn't fuss to often but sometimes she is fussy due to gas and or pooping. She does poop quite often most days. And it looks like the pic above most of the time. Shes never broke out in a rash or had breathing problems etc. That an allergy would cause. She was gaining weight great for the first 2 months at about an oz per day, but then after 2 months old, her weight gain has slowed way down. She is only gaining about 4oz a week now. And she only weighs about 11lbs 11oz and she turned 4 months old yesterday. She was only 6lbs 9oz at birth. She is my fourth baby, and all my other babies chunked way up and she is so tiny. She is usually content and happy, smiling and squealing. Her Pediatrician said she is hitting all her milestones and seems happy, she's just small. Her height and head growth were great. I want to keep EBF! Please help!! Thanks so much!
I see you have commented that the poo is the main identifier for EBF babes, but what about supplemented or babes who gave begun solids? My guy is almost 7 months. He gets one Alientium bottle approximately every 4 days, on average. I was hoping to drop the supplement bottle completely but, with 5 kids, rately make time to sneak away to pump and even when I do pump it seems I have the worst timing lol
LOL sorry for the ramble, frustrating situation. My going dairy free has helped immensely but we still have a bit of reflux and regurgitated milk. I don't mind dairy free me, as I was terribly sensitive to lactose to begin with.
So again just wondering how to assess after baby starts solids :)
Hi Kelly, I'm really struggling to know what's going on. I have all the above and have been putting it all down to oversupply or fast let down, my little one is so unsettled crying all the time between feeds or will have a very short period of calm time. I had the same with my first and we ended up cutting dairy and soya out.
My little one is three weeks old, gassy, crying, wriggling, writhing, arching back, groaning. I was using a haaka to catch the let down and have tried to stop doing this as little one is starting to manage a bit better. But still coughing spluttering on it. Shell only take one side at a time and so they get very full between feeds at night she goes 3-4hours but early hours of morning she wakes as if uncomfy but will want to feed and seems to want to feed to make her more comfortable. It lasts a few minutes of comfort then starts over again. Health visitor thought maybe silent reflux as she's not ever sicky, gaining weight well. You can see it come back up in her mouth but if this is because of oversupply would you still treat it?! Just really uncomfy and I don't know how to help her feel comfortable. At a loss or what to do. Did you baby cry a LOT? I feel like it's just my little one that cries all the time we can't go anywhere.
my babygirl is 2 months & i honestly wanna keep breastfeeding ... but she been having a hard time where she even eats a little & get diapers throw like the one above with some blood stools i was told she was lactose sensible ... i have try so many stuff and my milk when i pump comes out whitish like the one in the pictures above
My 6 week old has poops like this, green, snotty looking, no blood. He has signs of reflux and was started on medicine. He is congested at night and recently developed a rash. Could this still be related to high lactose or is this more of a true allergy?
My 4 week old has some of these problems how do talk to someone?
Is it possible to have this issue but not have issues with weight gain? I’ve been dairy/soy/egg free for 8 weeks. I pump twice a day on average (but just went back to work this week so will be more) and in those two sessions got 18oz or more total a day. I used to have to pump more because in the middle of the night I’d get engorged. My LO only needs to eat off one breast per nursing session. Despite the dietary restrictions her poop is still mucousy and always green. Sometimes still has curds. Her reflux is better and she is less fussy but I’m scared to add dairy back in!
I have this problem! If I’ve already frozen milk like this do I need to toss it?
Besides the bloody stool, this describes me and my 3.5 month old son to a T! I mentioned it to my pediatrician and she mentioned I probably just have a powerful letdown and she gave me feeding positions. My son doesn’t have weight issues (he’s actually 95th percentile) but he chokes she coughs during and after feeding, spits up in large volumes, has been chomping on the nipple, has very quick feeds, has mucus diapers which are sometimes specked with green. I also noticed while pumping this past week that I have two very different looking results all within the same session. I’m stockpiling for when I return to work and so I’m doing 3 or 4 oz increments. When I compare my pumped pouches, the 1st 3 to 4 oz pouch is more cloudy and clear and the second is whiter and thicker!
Would love your advice because I’m especially worried about the choking/coughing and mucus! I feel like our Ped dismissed the issue since my LO is in a high weight percentile!
I highly encourage you to seek support with my team and me. Weight gain alone doesn't mean things are going well. Please do sign up for a same day appointment with us. It'll take some time, but our methods are incredibly effective, and we'll be by your side everyday while we work through this together. Sign up at this link right now: https://www.successfulbreastfeeding.org/virtual-breastfeeding-help.html
Can you manage oversupply if you are an exclusive pumper?
This sounds so familiar. My very peaceful sleeper baby suddenly turned really cranky and frequent feeder at about 2 weeks of age. He has been gaining weight very well but had terrible gas pains and green runny mucusy poop. He also started having rashes on his face. No puking as such but i feel he has reflux issue. I have been off dairy for about a month now per my ped’s suggestion and I have seen improvement. Although my son still grunts and moans for hours especially in the early morning time. I do have a heavy letdown but it has not as bad now at 6 weeks. I am so confused whether this could be lactose intolerance or dairy allergy. Our ped confirms he has dairy allergy but my gut is not willing to accept it. Help!!
Can lactose oversupply be an issue if I'm exclusively pumping?
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Kelly Maher, CLC, CLE
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