Lactose problem or cows milk protein problem?

Question

When my baby was 7 weeks old I noticed that I could express an entire bottle of breastmilk (had an overabundant milk supply) but about 95% of it was watery (foremilk) and now that she's 11 weeks old I noticed there is no obvious foremilk just that lovely thick white breastmilk. What stage is the milk suppose to change? I thought it was before 6 weeks because each of the 4 lactation consultants I saw told me foremilk/hindmilk imbalance always sorts itself out before 6 weeks.

I wonder if my baby was just getting too much lactose because my body did not shift into hindmilk mode. I wonder if she was diagnosed incorrectly (the paeditrician diagnosed my baby as Cows Milk Protein intolerant) and she really just had too much foremilk (maybe my foremilk , hindmilk balance happened a lot later.

She is breastfeeding now with no green poos and no lifting the legs in obvious abdominal discomfort but I have cut out the dairy too from my diet so I can't tell and I'm a bit scared to reintroduce it too. Any suggestions. Any similar experiences?

Answer 1

Breastmilk color and consistency varies form woman to woman, so analyzing your milk is not really thee best way to tell if your baby is getting what she needs. Sometimes your daughter may get more foremilk, sometimes more hindmilk, but her growth is really the only thing that would indicate a problem. As long as she is gaining weight steadily, don't worry about the fore/hindmilk ratio at all.

I do not think that a lot of foremilk would cause your doctor to misdiagnose your baby as milk protein intolerant. If you do reintroduce dairy, do so very slowly and allow your daughter to adjust as she grows.