Mild Milk Protein Allergy

Here's my hint on this, ladies: When you're making the switch from breastmilk to formula, and all of a sudden your baby starts with the projectile vomiting and fussiness, it could be a milk protein allergy. My daughter started exhibiting hives around her mouth shortly after I made the switch, using a can of the Enfamil they gave me at the hospital. Then she started with the big-time spitting up. Then it was full on projectile vomiting. I called my pediatrician, and they said switch her to soy. 

I had a number of issues with this, namely that all my research has shown that a baby with a milk allergy is just as likely to have a soy allergy. Also, I had concerns about the hormones that are passed along with soy products. Regardless, I was preparing to go back to work, and my baby needed to eat, so I tried the soy formula. She HATED it. Went on a hunger strike for days. Refused a bottle entirely. Would do nothing but breastfeed, and here I was trying to partially wean her. 

After scouring the Internet in search of a solution, somewhere along the way I'd read a post about Nestle Good Start formula. Something about the way they process the milk protein being different than the way Enfamil does it and that it was more tolerable to babies with mild milk protein allergies.

Needless to say, it worked! I was so relieved. She still gets eczema around her little mouth where the formula sits on her face, but Vaseline on her chin before a bottle helps a lot, and when she does get a reaction, it doesn't seem to bother her at all. I figure it's a worthy sacrifice for keeping those hormones out of her system. Plus, it doesn't break the bank the way a hypoallergenic formula would. So, before you go soy, try the Good Start!