Lactose Intolerance

When Ryden was about 7 months old, we found out he was lactose intolerant. Not a big deal, he hadn`t had much dairy before then anyway (while he was in the NICU, the drs had tried some different formulas that made him sick & they told us about the possible intolerance then). By the time he was 2 and a half, he outgrew the intolerance & LOVES anything dairy! Cheese & yogurt especially.

Fast forward to the last couple months. Ryden`s asthma has just been kicking his butt. He has been coughing since April. Have you checked your calendars, dear bloggers? It`s AUGUST. That`s a LOT of sleepless nights!!! We`ve been to hospital a number of times. We were told it`s croup, or it`s a viral `thing`(which comforted me oh so much!!). They told us to try steaming him, or to put a humidifier in his room & take the carpet out. Done done & done. Guess who`s stilllll coughing. He was on Biaxin & Pediapred, both of which worked for about a week. My 6 year old is non FIVE mow edicines! I find that crazy! It`s not even helping!

I took him back to the dr last week. He is the one that put him on the allergy medicines. He added ANOTHER inhaler (now we`re up to 6 meds a day). When I asked about seeing a specialist in the city, I was told he isn`t a severe enough case to need one. Are you KIDDING me?! The child has been coughing for MONTHS, & is currently on 6 medications a DAY. Good grief.

A couple weeks ago, I noticed that he had a very bad night (bad to the point that we pulled out the nebulizer to give him his emergency medication & then I sat up & held him all night so he could sleep), and that right before bed, he had a dish of ice cream. Hmmm, perhaps it`s dairy! I told G my little thought process, & he said no, it wouldn`t cause an asthma attack. The dude has had asthma & allergies since birth, so I figured he would know. So we just kind of forgot about it. Yesterday, Ry had quite a bit of dairy (cereal with milk, a couple cheesestrings, pasta with cheese, cake, salad with Feta, cheese toast & ice cream). Wow. That kid. Man can he let em rip. Fill him up with dairy & the results are (quite literally) explosive. My darling husband now agrees with me that our baby boy is lactose intolerant. A bad way to be right, but at least we know! The child can easily win any farting competition his older brother starts!!

And now, my mission. Find lactose free foods. In our very small town. It should be interesting! I can hardly find common groceries in town!! I do know, from talking to a neighbor whose daughter is anaphylactic to dairy, that there are a couple brands of dairy free things in town, so that helps. I also know that if I can find vegan products, they`ll be safe for Ry (vegan foods are free of animal proteins). Let`s just hope I am able to find something to replace his beloved cheese!! And now, off to the grocery store!