If a child has an enzyme deficiency, proper nutrition. Digestion in the stomach

Mother's milk is a product that has been specially formulated to be ideal for babies. It contains proteins and fats that are quickly digested in the stomach and intestines. The drink contains the optimal balance of vitamins and minerals. More than one manufacturer has not managed to create a composition that would have the full range of necessary properties. However, the mother fails to insure her child from the appearance various problems with health. Lactose intolerance in infants is an unpleasant condition. Parents should know its causes and symptoms, as well as possible ways problem solving.

What is lactose intolerance?

A woman's milk contains a special component - lactose. It is essentially sugar that the baby needs for energy. He is directly involved in the process of formation nervous system.

Sugar from milk must be completely absorbed in the gastrointestinal tract. Lactase is a special enzyme that is produced by the intestinal mucosa. If it is produced in not enough, then lactose cannot be fully absorbed. In the intestine there is no necessary environment of microorganisms. Lactose intolerance leads to excessive gas production. The situation takes place against the background of pain in the tummy and stool disorders. Symptoms worsen the condition of the crumbs, so he becomes capricious.

In infants, this manifestation is called lactase deficiency. Some babies are also allergic to this product. However, experts attribute the situation to wrong work immune system. In this case, characteristic reactions do not occur in the esophagus and stomach.

The disease is dangerous, because against its background there is no possibility of digestion of mother's milk. The optimal solution is a special mixture. In newborns, this pathology causes not only severe pain in the stomach and intestines. Lactase leads to malfunctions of some internal organs and systems. Against the background of its use, acidity increases sharply, so the intestinal walls can be damaged. The disease does not allow the baby to get everything essential vitamins and minerals from food. If treatment is not started on time, then the child may lag behind in development due to the lack of the necessary nutrition.

Main reasons

Before starting treatment, it is necessary to determine the driving mechanisms of intolerance:

The primary variant of the disease is diagnosed if the enterocytes in the baby's body are normal. However, they cannot develop enough lactase.
The gastrointestinal tract is not yet fully formed. This process, as a rule, ends only by the fourth month. After that, the child will be able to absorb lactase in full.
Violation in the work of the body is a consequence of gene disorders.
Functional impairment can also be of an "adult" nature. In this case, lactase will not be digested throughout life. With age, the situation can only get worse. It is important to identify early this pathology and direct all efforts to eliminate it.
Lactose intolerance can also occur against the background of damage overall structure enterocytes. The disease develops against the background of the spread of infection in the intestines and inflammation of the gastrointestinal tract. intestinal tract.
Some children develop pathology due to an allergic reaction to cow's milk or gluten. In this case, these products should be excluded from the diet completely.

With lactase deficiency, it is advisable to feed a child with a special mixture.

Excess milk sugar is a situation in infants that is similar in all symptoms to lactose intolerance. In this case, the process of production of enzymes occurs normally. However, the body receives an excess of lactose. Against this background, there are unpleasant symptoms. The situation is quite often observed if the baby feeds only on the mother's front milk. It contains an excessive amount of sugar.

signs

Symptoms of lactose intolerance in infants become more pronounced with age. At the same time, immediately after the birth of the crumbs, they are practically absent. Only after a certain period, parents begin to notice:

Excessive gas formation, which leads to constant pain in the baby's tummy.
Moms periodically begin to notice rumbling in the tummy and its excessive tension.
Violations in the formation of the chair. You can see foam in it and bad smell. Yellow color also indicates the presence of pathology. Just on next stage development of the disease, it becomes green with an admixture of mucus.
The process of defecation occurs too often or, conversely, the baby has constipation.
After eating, the process of regurgitation occurs more often than usual.
Additionally, the baby has poor weight gain. The situation most often occurs in children on an artificial feeding option.

If a child does not digest lactose, then this most often does not affect the appetite negatively. They begin to actively eat, but after a couple of minutes they refuse to breastfeed. You can also observe periodic crying, spontaneous movements of the legs and deflections in the back.

At overuse milk sugar baby behaves similarly. Among the main differences, a good weight gain should be noted.

Features of the diagnosis

Lactose intolerance is important to recognize in time. For this it is necessary to carry out the following activities:

From the mucous membrane small intestine you need to take material for research. The procedure is called a biopsy. It requires the introduction of anesthesia, so it is extremely rare in young children.
For correct diagnosis you will need to make a lactose curve and hydrogen dough. This will require an oral dose of lactose. After completing this procedure, you will need to donate blood for analysis. A curve will be generated based on the results. The method may also involve the study of inhaled air. Unfortunately, the procedure in infants can only cause discomfort. Additionally, it should be noted that today there are no indicators that would allow to correctly analyze the amount of hydrogen.
The analysis must be carried out with feces. At the same time, the content of hydrogen in them is estimated. Unfortunately, research in this area is not distinguished by a high degree of correctness. To date, there are no uniform rules and regulations that could be applied to all infants. Such an analysis does not make it possible to study carbohydrates for all the necessary indicators.
The coprogram is used to identify hyperacidity or an excessive amount fatty acids. Lactose intolerance is diagnosed if the indicator is several times higher than normal.

A blood test is required to make a diagnosis.

The diagnosis is most often made on the basis of the whole complex of symptoms. Signs can only be properly assessed by doctors. Parents should not self-medicate, because it can only lead to an aggravation of the situation. When diagnosing a baby’s insufficiency, it is advisable to transfer to a special version of the mixture, which does not contain components harmful to the body.

Features of treatment

Allergies to lactose and its intolerance are incredibly dangerous for the baby's body. To prevent the situation from worsening, the following measures should be taken:

Breastfeeding should be arranged in such a way that the baby has the opportunity to get not only to the fore milk, but also to the hind milk. To do this, you should express a little lactation product before the process itself. For one meal, the baby should completely empty one breast. Equally important is the capture of the nipple. Due to this, the sucking of milk becomes more active. Mom should not take the breast until the baby himself decides to let her go.
A woman should be careful about her own diet. Animal milk is completely excluded from it, because it is at its expense that the provocation of the disease occurs. If the situation has not improved, then you will additionally need to exclude other products from milk. Allergies often occur due to sweets and chocolate. A negative situation can be observed against the background of regular consumption of red fish and caviar.

As a rule, by constantly fulfilling these points, a woman saves the child from discomfort. Otherwise, you will need to contact medical method treatment.

It involves the use of the following drugs:

The child will need to be given the artificial lactase enzyme regularly. The component is mixed with breast milk. The procedure is important to perform every time you feed. Only a doctor can choose the right dosage. Self-medication in this matter is not considered acceptable.
Some babies will need to switch to a diet that is completely or partially lactose-free. This option is used only as a last resort.

If the insufficiency is secondary, then it is advisable to direct your efforts to eliminate the underlying disease. The situation can develop against the background of allergies, dysbacteriosis or other pathologies in the work of the gastrointestinal tract.

The full course of treatment should be continued for several months. As a rule, after this, the process of digesting milk sugar in a baby returns to normal. If the defect is genetic, then the child will have to adhere to a lactose-free menu all his life.

Today, lactose intolerance in children occurs quite often. In this case, the primary variant of the disease is rarely recorded. Most often, the situation becomes the result of an improperly established lactation process. That is why doctors do not recommend that the baby immediately transfer to a lactose-free menu. At the first stage of the fight against the disease, it is advisable to try other methods. Otherwise, the crumbs increase the risk of developing serious problems with health.

Lactase deficiency is a common disease. It is especially common in infants. With insufficient production of the enzyme lactase, the child does not digest lactose, a protein found in milk. What to do with indigestible protein if your baby has such a problem? How such a disease is treated, will tell "Popular about health".

Lactose is not digested in a child - symptoms

By what signs can a mother assume that her child is lactose intolerant? In infants, this problem usually manifests itself as follows:

1. The baby takes the breast with appetite, but after a couple of minutes he stops sucking, starts crying, tucking his legs to his chest and wriggling.

2. The baby often spits up.

3. The stool acquires a specific sour smell, it contains lumps and foamy inclusions, the color of the feces is predominantly mustard, with a green accent.

4. The tummy is almost always swollen, a loud rumbling is heard.

5. Weight gain is absent or slow.

6. Small rashes may appear on the skin.

If you see similar symptoms, most likely, they are related to the so-called lactase deficiency. In the intestines of the baby, not enough enzyme is produced, which is designed to break down lactose. However, it is impossible to make a diagnosis on your own, since many of the listed symptoms can be a sign of other diseases. Diagnosis is carried out only by pediatricians.

How is lactase deficiency diagnosed??

by the most simple method diagnosis is laboratory analysis feces for carbohydrate content. Normally, their content in feces does not exceed 0.25 percent.

To clarify the diagnosis, a diet that excludes milk is used, and in older children, other products containing lactose are also used. If the child's condition gradually returns to normal, then lactase deficiency is confirmed. What to do with a child if milk protein is not digested?

How is lactose intolerance treated in children??

Treatment is always aimed at eliminating the cause of the disease, and there are two of them - an inflammatory process in the intestine (with allergies, for example), when enterocytes are damaged, this is the first reason. The second is insufficient production of the enzyme or its low activity. In the first case, the treatment will be aimed not only at filling the lack of lactase, but also at eliminating the inflammatory process of the intestinal tract, relieving allergy symptoms. Also important proper organization mother's nutrition, because everything she eats goes with milk to the baby. If allergens are present in her diet, the child's intestines will be injured, which means that less lactase will be produced.

Infant treatment

The first thing that pediatricians recommend, if the child does not digest milk, is to reduce or exclude it from the crumbs menu. But what if we are talking about breast? Not always confirmation of lactase deficiency means that you have to give up breast milk. The pediatrician may recommend that you make up for the lack of an enzyme in the body of the crumbs with the help of Lactase Baby or Lactase Enzyme.

Some children are restricted from drinking milk and dairy products. Grudnichkov is temporarily transferred to dairy-free formulas soy-based or combined nutrition. Sometimes it is advisable to use for feeding mixtures to which lactase has already been added. Mom is recommended to express the front milk, because it contains the most lactose protein.

Treatment of a child from one year and older

If lactose is not digestible in older children, their treatment involves avoiding foods that contain milk sugar. What applies to them:

Whole milk of goats, cows.
Cheese.
Cottage cheese.
Yogurt.
Smetana and others.

With secondary lactase deficiency, which occurs when inflammatory process in the intestines, it is recommended to first eliminate the main problem - an infection or an allergy. In this case, treatment includes whole complex measures:

1. Apply antihistamines.
2. Enterosorbents.
3. Antibiotics or intestinal antiseptics.
4. Probiotics.

When the main problem is solved and the work of the intestines is restored, they are gradually introduced into the child's diet. dairy products while observing the reaction.

It is important to note that there is a hereditary lactase deficiency that cannot be treated. Such people produce little or no lactase, but there are very few such people. All other types of the disease can be treated. In premature babies, lactose begins to be absorbed as the intestines become more mature. Usually, the symptoms of the disease cease to bother these babies by the sixth month of life.

So, what to do if the child does not digest lactose? First, you need to make sure that your assumption is correct. To do this, you need to contact a pediatrician, pass an analysis of feces for carbohydrate content. Then you should follow the doctor's recommendations regarding the diet prescribed for the baby. When it comes to babies, mom should also be excluded from own diet dairy products, as well as sweets, fatty foods, citrus fruits, chocolate, smoked meats, in general, everything that can adversely affect the baby.

Most natural way feeding children up to a year is breastfeeding, however, in some cases, the baby's body cannot absorb either mother's milk or milk formula made from cow's milk. This phenomenon is often called lactose (sugar) deficiency, although it is necessary to talk about the symptoms of lactase deficiency.

Statistics show that every 5th newborn suffers from this disease. Symptoms appear very quickly and are usually pronounced. When the first signals appear, measures must be taken to establish good nutrition baby.

The body of some children cannot digest the protein contained in milk - this is lactase deficiency.

Terminology. Do not confuse!

Two similar terms: lactose and lactase mean completely different things. Lactose is milk sugar, which contains up to 85% in breast milk. It stimulates the absorption of trace elements, promotes the formation of intestinal microflora, and is necessary for the construction and proper functioning of the immune system.

In the gastrointestinal tract, milk sugar decomposes to form glucose and galactose. Glucose is the main "fuel" of the body, it covers 40% of the body's energy needs. Galactose is necessary for the development of the central nervous system, as well as for the formation of the retina.

Lactase is not sugar, but an enzyme that decomposes milk sugar into glucose and galactose in the gastrointestinal tract. It is produced in the intestines of the newborn. The reason for the poor absorption of milk is just the lack of the lactase enzyme in the baby's body, because he receives a lot of milk sugar with mother's milk. Insufficient production of lactase leads to what is called lactase deficiency, which is the same as lactose intolerance, which is sometimes mistakenly called lactose deficiency.

Lactase - an enzyme human body. Its task is to break down the lactose contained in milk

Causes and types of disease

This article talks about typical ways to solve your questions, but each case is unique! If you want to know from me how to solve exactly your problem - ask your question. It's fast and free!

Whether a child is breastfed or receiving artificial formulas, the same factors lead to lactose intolerance. Milk sugar can not be absorbed by the body for 3 main reasons:

First of all, you need to pay attention to heredity. genetic features can lead to the fact that the production of the lactase enzyme does not reach the required level. This type of disease is called primary lactase deficiency.
Diseases of the gastrointestinal tract can also lead to impaired lactase production. Such consequences are possible with various infectious diseases, enterocolitis, as well as with allergic reactions or the appearance of worms. This type of lactase deficiency is called secondary.
A premature or debilitated infant may suffer from transient lactase deficiency.

There are 2 types of lactase deficiency: alactasia and hypolactasia. Alactasia is characterized total absence lactase production, hypolactasia is a lack of an enzyme produced by the body.

Dr. Komarovsky about lactase deficiency

The well-known pediatrician Komarovsky believes that the disease does not occur as often as they say. In many cases, milk is not digested because children are overfed. Lactase is enough to digest the amount of milk the baby needs, but overfeeding leads to an extra load on the body. Diet, which consists in some restriction of food intake, can help in diagnosis and treatment. To establish exact reason events and definitions appropriate measures treatment, you need to visit a gastroenterologist and pass a series of tests.

How can you tell if a child is sick?

The disease can manifest itself already in the first days of life, so mothers need to carefully monitor the health of the baby, pay attention to his behavior. Ignoring characteristic manifestations milk intolerance, you can start the disease and cause significant harm to the health of the crumbs. Characteristic features are:

A child's quick refusal to suck, if the baby willingly takes the breast, but after a few minutes stops sucking, shows anxiety, cries - this should alert the mother.
Abdominal pain and colic that appear during feeding or immediately after it are easy to recognize by crying, accompanied by a twisting of the legs, they can also be signs of lactase deficiency.
, turning into vomiting.
Bloating, loud rumbling.
Disorder or, as well as a change in the consistency, color and smell of feces. When the chair has, it foams. There is a heterogeneity of the stool, it contains lumps, the smell is sour. Up to 12 bowel movements per day can occur - this phenomenon is called fermentative dyspepsia.
signaling the occurrence of atopic dermatitis. Since this disease is hereditary, parents should be prepared for such a reaction of the baby's body to milk.
The child is not gaining weight or is gaining more slowly than expected. It is also possible the development of malnutrition, when the baby is losing weight instead of getting better.

Spitting up and vomiting after drinking milk can be a symptom of lactase deficiency.

Whatever the manifestations of the disease, you should not make a diagnosis yourself. Signs of lactose intolerance are easily confused with symptoms of other gastrointestinal diseases. Similar manifestations can give dysbacteriosis, and intestinal infections. An accurate diagnosis is made only by a doctor based on the results of the necessary tests.

How is the disease diagnosed?

To determine whether the above signs are due to lactose intolerance, proceed as follows:

The doctor examines the baby, gets acquainted with the peculiarities of his behavior, studies the order of feeding.
The next step is diet diagnosis. Products containing milk are excluded from the baby's diet, or their amount is sharply reduced.
A laboratory analysis of feces for the content of carbohydrates in it is carried out. At healthy baby the content of carbohydrates in feces is 0.25%. With the disease, the feces become acidic, the pH is less than 5.5.
It is also possible to conduct a study of the small intestine for lactase activity, but this is a very complex analysis, so without sufficient evidence it will not be performed.
A genetic test should be done if similar cases have previously been observed in the family and there is a suspicion that the disease is hereditary.

For diagnostic purposes, the baby may be temporarily switched to a formula that does not contain milk.

Help for a child with lactose intolerance

After establishing accurate diagnosis and finding out the causes of the disease, the doctor prescribes the appropriate treatment, and the treatment is not lactose deficiency, but lactase deficiency. When secondary lactase deficiency is detected, it is aimed at eliminating the cause of the disease. With primary, hereditary, therapeutic exposure will be required throughout life. Scheme medical measures must be developed by a specialist.

The baby is intolerant to milk. What do they do in this case:

give lactase during breastfeeding;
a lactose-free diet is established: depending on the form and severity of the disease, lactose intake should be reduced or stopped altogether;
combined feeding replaces breast milk, up to 6 months milk should be alternated with that recommended by a doctor;
when breastfeeding, the first portion of milk, as it contains the most a large percentage lactose;
the choice of the mixture is agreed with the doctor, he can recommend a special diet: based on soy, with the addition of lactase.

Preventive actions

The hereditary form cannot be eliminated by any preventive measures, lactase deficiency is not treatable, but parents in this case know about the danger in advance and must be prepared. In other cases, prevention can get rid of the onset of the disease.

Moms need to pay attention to infectious diseases gastrointestinal tract. Their prevention consists in observing hygiene requirements, monitoring the quality of products and excluding contact with patients.

Forecast

The prognosis for the disease is as follows:

hereditary primary form of lactase deficiency is not cured;
with a secondary, resulting from past illness, it is possible to restore the production of lactase partially or completely, the result depends on the severity of the disease and the correctness of the chosen treatment regimen;
the transient form is cured completely, it passes as the gastrointestinal tract develops, and may disappear by 6 months.

If lactose intolerance is hereditary in a child, he will have to put up with it all his life

Attentive attitude to the state of health of the baby is a guarantee successful fight with a disease. Availability even mild form, accompanied by insufficient weight gain, can further lead to rickets, dysbacteriosis, developmental delay, muscle weakness and even seizures. Ignoring the symptoms of lactase deficiency is fraught with dehydration, sudden weight loss and mental retardation, you should not ignore the increased excitability of the baby, sleep disturbances, frequent crying, especially if they are combined with defecation disorders and stool changes.

The disease cannot be eliminated by a special diet, a lactose-free diet of a nursing mother. Her nutrition should be complete and sufficient. A nursing mother should only abandon regular milk in favor of fermented milk products.

It is better to express the first portion of milk in order to reduce the amount of sugar that comes to the baby with mother's milk. In addition, if there is a lot of milk, the baby will fill up before he gets to the “back”, the most fat-rich milk. You should also not change breasts during feeding for the same reasons. Fatter "hind" milk is digested longer, which helps the baby develop large quantity lactase. Symptoms suggestive of lactase deficiency require immediate appeal to the doctor.

We were allegedly diagnosed with intolerance, as a result we got to a competent pediatrician, who explained that problems with stools, pain in the tummy, cramps are the result of a lack of lactase, I fed the baby too often, she applied to her breast every hour and the body did not have time to produce lactase. The situation returned to normal when she began to feed by the hour. But the nephew has congenital intolerance, they were on a lactose-free mixture for up to a year, at 6 months the daughter-in-law began to give both milk and sour milk. She makes yogurt and cottage cheese at home.

Hello! The baby is 4 months old, the symptoms are liquid stool while constantly pooping feeding time, feces are constantly lumpy, as soon as he eats he starts to cry a lot and press his legs to his tummy, often the feces are green, spit up every other time, during feeding, the tummy rumbles strongly (Often refuses to breast (Now I generally eat little, as I give breasts right away screams. What is it? Lactase deficiency? I heard that the analysis for carbohydrates is not informative (
Hello, in September 2018 the whole family got sick intestinal infection including a 4 month old baby. After an illness: the stomach grumbles after feeding, restless near the chest, can suck and scream for a few seconds, arches, then it can attach again, the stool is straight liquid, but not always frequent (from 1 time per day to 6 times). Sleeps restlessly, wakes up from gas formation. This is the third month in a row! Several times I saw blood streaks in the stool! The pediatrician doesn't know what it could be. Puts only dysbacteriosis. But he cannot explain the cause of dysbacteriosis. Can blood streaks be the result of prolonged lactase deficiency? Should I switch my baby to lactose-free formula? The gastroenterologist prescribed lactazar. Since then, there hasn't been much improvement. We accept a week. The child is 6 months old.
Good afternoon Tell me, please, what can it be. A child of 5 days old, gw, began to spit up almost after each feeding, 50 grams fresh milk, sometimes curdled mass. The stool became liquid, straight water is dark yellow color and disturbs the tummy, often pushes and grumbles in it. All 5 days I ate dietary food in the maternity hospital + ate green apples.
Hello. My daughter is 4 months old. She has been eating Malyutka since birth. I didn't have milk. When she eats all arches. Grunts. She does not eat more than 90 grams. After feeding, the eructation departs. When you hold it in your hands, it bends all over. A nightmare kicks in. we cannot do without Espumizan and Motilium. Please tell me what to do, can the mixture be changed.
Hello, the child is 1 month old, the stool is liquid and frothy almost from the first days, mucus was found today, transparent, in small quantities. What can it be and how to fight? Thank you.
My baby is 1 month old, breastfed. The baby spits up after feeding, the stool was first flakes, then liquid foamy water, then mucus with blood. Now we are in the hospital, I follow a dairy-free diet for a while, I stopped breastfeeding the child, they put me on an amino acid mixture for 3 days. They started breastfeeding again slowly, the symptoms recur, loose stools, undigested milk. Rented for occult blood in the feces, the analysis is negative. The doctor said that breastfeeding is not possible, puts us on a mixture of amino acids for 6 months. Tell me what is it? And how can you keep breastfeeding.
The child has for a long time constipation, goes to the toilet only with the help of Micralax. With the release of feces, I see a lot of rather large grains, as if milk was not digested. Could it be that we are lactose intolerant? We are on iv.
Baby 2 months old Breastfeeding and formula feeding. From the very birth. at home we have a very liquid yellow chair until now, it reaches 15 times a day. Pediatricians prescribe a bunch different medicines for the digestive tract, but nothing helps. With all this, the baby does not spit up and there is no temperature. What could be the reason?

anonymously

Please tell me, a 10-month-old child cannot eat anything except goat's milk. All attempts to introduce complementary foods end in vomiting, diarrhea. Now, even after milk, vomiting sometimes occurs. Food is not digested. Nausea persists. Prescribed enzymes do not help, lacto and bifidum bacteria too. Bacteriophages drank away diarrhea. There is no diagnosis. The doctors don't say anything specific. Thank you in advance.

Remove from food goat milk and replace it immediately with Nutrilon Pepti Gastro hydrolyzed mixture. When normalizing the stool, introduce dairy-free gluten-free cereals into complementary foods, starting with rice. Then introduce vegetable and meat puree. Possible food intolerance animal milk proteins. Diseases of the pancreas and others should also be excluded. Do general analysis blood, erythrocyte indices, general urinalysis, urine diastase, blood amylase, blood, glycated hemoglobin, "Liver tests" (ALT, AST, GGT, alkaline phosphatase, fractional bilirubin, total protein, albumin), coprogram, pancreatic fecal elastase, Ig total, organs abdominal cavity. Diagnosis may require additional examinations.

Consultation of a gastroenterologist on the topic "The child does not digest food" is given for reference purposes only. Based on the results of the consultation, please consult a doctor, including to identify possible contraindications.

About consultant

Details

Pediatric gastroenterologist. Candidate of Medical Sciences.

Area of professional interests: correction of microbiocenosis in intestinal disorders And atopic dermatitis, the use of probiotics, bacteriophages, antiseptics and other drugs.

When asking a question, be sure to include:
- floor, exact age, height, birth and current weight of the child, height and weight gain,
- feeding, availability of supplementary feeding, types of mixtures and reactions to them,
- Complementary foods or food (types, volumes),
- the presence of a rash or dry skin,
- details of complaints, stool frequency, reactions to foods and drugs,
- name the drugs used, the results of the examinations carried out in full, indicating the size, structure of the organs and the conclusion of the examination,
- laboratory research indicating units of measurement or laboratory reference standards,
- dates of the submitted examinations, indicating the use of drugs in the delivery of tests.

Even the food that nature has given, rewarding a woman with breast milk, may not suit the baby and even be harmful. It's all about the enzymes that make it so that it is not digested breast milk.

There is a disease that prevents the absorption of dairy products - lactase deficiency. And the hardest thing is for those parents whose children encountered it in the first year of life, when milk is the main food for the baby.

The difference between lactose and lactase deficiency is that lactose is milk sugar, which is the main part of the carbohydrates of milk, even breast milk, and lactase is an enzyme that helps break down lactose into particles so that it is absorbed further.

The lack of an enzyme in the baby's body (lactase deficiency) leads to the fact that the absorption of lactose is impaired and foods that contain milk sugar are poorly tolerated.

The importance of lactose for the child's body
lactose is very important element for the gastrointestinal tract, it affects the growth healthy microflora intestines, acting on the principles of a prebiotic.
Lowers the pH level of the contents in the intestine
Accepts Active participation in the processes associated with the formation and development of the brain in the first month of life
Participates in the synthesis of B vitamins
Helps the absorption of magnesium, calcium, manganese

Lactose increases the activity of its own enzymes

- baby's anxiety when feeding

- bloating, gas formation

- diarrhea appears after each feeding, this is due to the fact that strong fermentation begins in the tummy, and diarrhea manifests itself with great strength, the name is yellow foamy color, sour smell, the amount is directly related to feeding the baby (8-10 times a day)

- poor weight gain, unexplained weight loss

- begins to lag behind in development

Symptoms begin to increase with the amount of milk consumed. In the first days of life, it is impossible to notice any symptoms, but in the following days they begin to appear: increased gas formation, pain in the tummy, and a little later, loose stools.

Symptoms may vary from child to child, but there remains a clear link between feedings and diarrhea.

A type of lactase deficiency

The variety manifests itself depending on how active the enzyme is, which contributes to the breakdown of lactose (lactose)

Primary lactase deficiency

Appears due to congenital absence enzyme. Primary lactase deficiency is a hereditary disease.

transient lactase deficiency

Very often it occurs in premature and weak babies, and after a while the baby begins to feel better and recovers. Enzyme activity is normalized short term.

Secondary lactase deficiency

Symptoms of lactase deficiency can also be found with other enzyme disorders. Very rare and difficult to tolerate is a violation when fructose and glucose are poorly absorbed. The child starts severe diarrhea, after taking products that contain these substances.

Another disease that can be hidden behind the symptoms of lactase deficiency is galactosemia. It's rare genetic disease, which is inherited and is associated with metabolic disorders. As soon as any product that contains lactose enters the child's body, they begin to appear. severe symptoms that are life-threatening for the baby (jaundice, vomiting, drop in blood glucose, the presence of sugar in the urine).

The main difference between lactase deficiency and galactosemia is that with lactase deficiency there is no vomiting, only regurgitation can be observed. If the child has vomiting, you should immediately contact a specialist.

How can you tell if your baby is not digesting breast milk?

If the child has diarrhea or other symptoms of the disease, you should consult a specialist. To do this, you need to know exactly when the child began to have diarrhea, whether it is associated with feeding or with a change in the mother's diet.

The doctor will prescribe a series of tests and examine the baby. The easiest test that will show if a baby has carbohydrate intolerance is whether there are carbohydrates in the feces.

Since in children in the first six months the diet is only breast milk, this analysis will show whether the child has digestive disorders and how carbohydrates are absorbed. It is done quite quickly and easily.

For the most accurate diagnosis, this is a biopsy of the mucosa. But this is a very complicated procedure, which is performed under general anesthesia.

IN this moment doctors diagnose lactase deficiency, prescribing a special drug that contains lactose. If, after taking it, the child has symptoms, then this is lactase deficiency. If the medicine did not cause any reactions, then the child needs additional examinations and tests.

Lactose deficiency with timely diagnosis responds well to treatment.

One of the stages of treatment is special diet. If the baby is breastfed, the doctor prescribes special preparations that contain lactase. For babies who are on artificial feeding prescribe mixtures with the minimum amount lactose or those that do not contain lactose at all.

It is very important for parents to understand that it is impossible to refuse breastfeeding or combine it with artificial. It is just necessary for the baby to give special preparations added to the expressed milk, and then calmly give the breast. Drugs must be given before each feeding. The drug and its amount are selected individually by a specialist, and as the baby's own enzymes mature in the body, the amount of the drug decreases. If the drug has caused constipation, then it is necessary that the doctor lower the amount of lactase.

First food

Babies who have lactase deficiency are best to start the first complementary foods with cereals that do not contain gluten (rice, corn, buckwheat). You can cook it on mixtures that do not contain lactose or on water. If the child does not have problems with the work of the tummy after the introduction of cereals, then vegetable purees can be introduced.

Due to the fact that children who have lactase deficiency do not gain weight well, they need to introduce meat complementary foods earlier, at about 7 months.

All other products must be introduced according to the complementary foods calendar.

After the introduction of a new product in children with lactase deficiency, it is necessary to carefully monitor the reaction of the body and, in which case, contact a specialist.

For children who are one year old, it is necessary to replace dairy products with fermented milk products, which are better absorbed and easily tolerated.

Doctor Komarovsky will tell about lactase and lactose