Healthy As Can Be

Maggie is now fully recovered from the trots. She had her one year appointment at the pediatrician's yesterday. Our little heifer :) is now 26 lbs 5.5 oz and 31 inches tall!!! I figured she was around 26 lbs, although many 2T clothes are still loose around her waist. She scored very well on development (the only one he told me specifically was language, which she's in the 75th percentile on that... but I saw what he wrote on the rest of the page and she was past all the benchmarks). Then I was reminded why I chose this doctor...

We got on the discussion of milk. It was discovered a few weeks ago that Maggie may have a lactose sensitivity. She's been on soy formula since her first case of diarrhea in October, when we couldn't get her back on regular formula because the diarrhea would come back. About a month ago, Maggie started refusing her formula. Her doctor's office (another staff member) told me we could start her on milk then. She likes it just fine... but the diarrhea (not the sick kind, the "I can't handle this stuff" kind) came back. So the office told me to try soy milk. I'm not terribly fond of soy to begin with. The only reason why we stuck it out with soy formula is that it was supposed to be a temporary thing. I didn't want soy for the long run. So we tried almond milk, but she didn't like that. Since then, she's gone back to drinking formula, but only 12-16 oz a day. She does eat a serving of Stonyfield Farm Yo Baby yogurt every day, and some cheese, so she's not totally intollerant of milk products. It's just that she can't handle large doses of lactose.

I talked with her doctor about this yesterday and he got excited, told me to hold on a minute, and ran out of the room to get some papers for me. He came back and declared that she doesn't have to drink milk in any form. As long as she can get enough calcium from food sources (which 1 oz of cheese and a serving of yogurt exceed the calcium requirements of a child her age), we don't need to worry about it. Then he started to tell me about a colleague who had to give up dairy with her last child because he was intollerant. She had eczema all of her life, but it cleared up once she gave up dairy. She was amazed. I was thrilled the conversation went here! I commented on how many people are allergic to milk and don't even realize it, and he agreed. Then I mentioned how a naturopath had once visited one of my classes and told us how we're not designed to drink milk; how you don't see any other animals drinking other animals' milk. He laughed and agreed! He also said that in parts of the world where there's increased milk consumption, there's also increased heart disease, and they're finding a link in this. I was so happy to find that he had similar views as I do about milk!!! Our old mainstream doctor would not have been so understanding... nor would we even have had that conversation probably since he always rushed us out the door.

Anyway, she had 2 vaccinations and blood drawn (to check lead levels since we live in a house built in 1910). Poor girl! But she was just fine afterwards. They all commented on how good she was and how I should have a bunch more, right now. 8O I said "Sure, once I win the Lotto!!"

BTW, in case you're wondering, the nose piercing was saved. I had to drive a half hour to get something else to put in there, but it didn't close up! I'm sure you're overjoyed! ;)