Anyone eliminate dairy while pregnant if a previous LO had MSPI?

By catlady Oct 18, 2016

My DD had pretty severe MSPI (and likely other issues, which we never fully figured out, despite my crazy elimination diet for 12 months). I'm due with #2 in less than 2 months, so I'm starting to think about whether we will go through this all again. DD was a really fussy baby who never slept well, even as a newborn, and we discovered her MSPI at 3 weeks. I've always wondered if the MSPI contributed to her early fussiness.

I'm wondering if I should eliminate dairy a month ahead of time for this LO, on the chance that he might be affected and in hopes that he will be healthier from the start.

Has anyone done this? Worth it or not worth it? If I eliminate soon, I'd probably try to re-introduce when he's a few weeks or a month old to see if it has any effect.

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11 comments

Mrs. Microscope
pear / 1788 posts

Oct 18, 2016

I haven't had my second one yet (not pregnant, but thinking of ttc soon) but I have started to read about this. It seems like most sources say if your first has mspi, it's a 70% chance for subsequent kids. And "they" recommend starting your mspi diet about a month before your due date to make sure once your milk comes in it is mspi friendly. You can do small trials later on as you see fit.

I think starting the mspi diet won't hurt, it's just inconvenient. I think I will do it before my next baby is born, because what do I have to lose?

Good luck!
petitenoisette
pear / 1521 posts

Oct 18, 2016

I'm not pregnant again with my second but I plan to do this. It just seems like it will be worth it because it will be much more clear if baby #2 has MSPI again if I have already eliminated milk/soy.

I also eliminated SO MUCH last time and in retrospect I think it was really only dairy that was the issue so hopefully this will lead to easier dietary changes (I'm just going to assume #2 will have it too but hopefully just eliminating dairy will do the trick).
catlady
grapefruit / 4988 posts

Oct 18, 2016

@Mrs. Microscope: That's interesting about the 70% chance. Wish it wasn't so high!

@petitenoisette: Similar experience here, I eliminated so many foods but I think dairy was always the main culprit. Our pediatrician was just nuts about getting the diapers "clear" (LO's diaper always had trace amounts of blood, even if she seemed 100% fine otherwise). I'm hoping if I eliminate dairy from the get-go with this LO, we won't head down that long road of testing all the time. Do you plan to eliminate soy too? I'm stuck on that. I even did soy lecithin last time and it made it super hard.
MrsADS
nectarine / 2262 posts

Oct 18, 2016

@catlady this is interesting. We haven't even totally decided if we will have #2, but if we do, I think about this.

@mrs. microscope 70%?!?! Wow.

My son had extremely severe MSPI and reflux (had hospitalizations and ER visits for suspected aspiration)... I mean like we were at the pediatric GI twice a month. It was a nightmare. He screamed constantly, never slept, was in so much pain, spitting up/vomiting 20-30x a day. I seriously have PTSD from him as a baby and it makes me really scared to even consider having #2. I hate that I have no warm fuzzy feelings about the newborn stage. He and I cried all day. Now at almost 14 months I am still dairy/soy/nut free (still BFing) and he is on 40mg/day of Nexium (basically an adult dose) and still struggles some with reflux and I still have to be extremely careful with my diet (we are seeing an allergist), although it's so much better than it used to be.

I started eliminating just dairy when he was 2 weeks old and at a month started an elimination diet of all top 8 allergens plus corn, chocolate, tomatoes, and berries. It was rough. He was still having occasional blood and frequent thick bubble-gum mucus so at 4 months I did the Dr. Sears "total elimination diet" (only ate turkey, sweet potatoes, pears, and zucchini squash for 2 weeks, then reintroduced foods 1 at a time).

I think if I did have #2, I will definitely eliminate dairy and soy including soy lecithin (which does make it so hard) starting the beginning of the 3rd trimester. It is hard but if it helps lessen some of the hell we went through with #1 I would consider it.

And having been on the diet now for more than a year, it sucks but I know I can do it, and I have a better idea now of what I can eat. When I first started it, I was starving all the time and had no clue what to eat.
AB810
apricot / 370 posts

Oct 18, 2016

My first had mspi and it took me a while to figure it out. She was fussy, spit up a ton, and was a terrible sleeper. Because I had read that subsequent children had a high chance of also having mspi, I went on the mspi diet a month before my due date. I tried introducing a little dairy when my son was a few weeks old and definitely noticed symptoms in his poop and extra fussiness. I think partly due to personality (he's much more mellow) but also due to not being uncomfortable from dairy and soy in my diet he slept so much better and was much happier than my daughter. I definitely recommend eliminating dairy and soy a month before!
catlady
grapefruit / 4988 posts

Oct 18, 2016

@MrsADS: Oh my, that sounds so awful. I'm really sorry you have been going through all that. Your story makes me realize that our experience was not nearly as bad in comparison. She was extremely fussy and had mucousy and eventually bloody poops early on, but after I eliminated dairy, she got better so quickly. Due to the pediatrician wanting me to get her diapers totally blood-free, I also ended up eliminating soy, eggs, corn, peanuts, and treenuts for a year, and also beef, legumes, and wheat for periods of months in between as well. I was never convinced that any of those other eliminations did anything (but pedi wanted me to stay on the diet). We never had to go to a GI. We did get her allergy tested at 14 months and she came back clear, so we re-introduced everything (gradually) at that point and she did great. I hope your LO ends up growing out of his issues!

I'm thinking right now I might eliminate dairy and major soy (but probably not oil or lecithin) starting in a couple weeks. Hoping that is enough to nip it in the bud. My only regret is missing out of many favorites at Thanksgiving dinner. Lol.
petitenoisette
pear / 1521 posts

Oct 18, 2016

@catlady: Same here, my daughter kept having tiny amounts of blood even when she was otherwise totally fine. She was never even that fussy of a baby, I initially eliminated dairy because she was spitting up so much and when I added back in was when we first saw blood. I wish I had just accepted that she might have some icky diapers (they really were never "normal" even when I had eliminated all the foods) but that she was normally content.

Not sure on soy, at the very least I don't think I'd worry about soy lecithin next time either. I'd probably eliminate regular soy but test it out before dairy, with the assumption that it won't be an issue.
petitenoisette
pear / 1521 posts

Oct 18, 2016

@MrsADS: That total elimination diet is the worst
In retrospect I really cannot imagine that I did that! It's amazing what a mama will do to protect her baby
catlady
grapefruit / 4988 posts

Oct 18, 2016

@AB810: Thanks for sharing your experience. This is exactly what I'm hoping for, if we end up with a second MSPI baby. Glad to hear it worked out for you!
bees_knees
persimmon / 1064 posts

Oct 18, 2016

DS 1 had MSPI, as does DS 2 (Almost 4 months old).. If I had to do it all over again, I'd def eliminate dairy/soy at 35ish weeks! Just my two cents
regberadaisy
GOLD / wonderful pomegranate / 28905 posts

Oct 19, 2016

@catlady: I did. DD1 wasn't allergic to soy so I cut all major dairy towards the end with #2. She has no issues with milk but I'm not sure if it's related or not

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Anyone eliminate dairy while pregnant if a previous LO had MSPI?

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