Boys and soy formulas

Okay....this was brought up on another site I'm on...

Is it okay to feed my baby boy soy protein? 

When Gage was born and still in the hospital, he would cry and scream from his tummy hurting him. I was breastfeeding and supplementing with regular Similac then a sensitive formula Similac. For all the tummy problems he seemed to be having, and the fact that my mom, my two sisters and I all have lactose intolerance, the pediatrician's dismissal instructions were to switch to soy formula when we got home.

(Breastfeeding didn't work out). When we got home from the hospital, we switched to soy and all was fine with Gage. Now, after someone pointed out potential problems with boys eating soy formula, I'm worried. (You can Google the articles--there's plenty) Of course, you find half the articles saying it's okay, and half saying not.

I'm wondering if I should try to wean Gage to regular formula. Since his tummy is 3 months old now, maybe he could tolerate it? Would you try it, or not? I'd like to hear any advice/comments.

Thanks,
Kina

Our ped told us to avoid soy in every form, not only for our boys but for myself and my daughter too, if you can move him off of soy then you probably should.

thanks for replying..
Do you know why your ped said to avoid it?

She told us that soy has a natural estrogen like substance in it, it has been linked to increase in cancer in both men and women, and can cause hormone imbalances in young boys and girls that can increase the likelyhood of early onset puberty which can lead to all sorts of problems later in life. I looked it up for myself and some of the research is solid, so I took her advice and we cut it out of our diet almost completely.

I have Tristan on Rice milk, we opted for Rice formula too. You could try Simliac sensative RS (lactose-free, with Rice starch); it's what we used for him.

They are finding links between high quantities of Soy and breast cancer, especially in men, menopause problems in women and  hormonal problems in boys (like undescended testicles). My pedi said that sometimes the babies need the soy until their stomachs can develop. Tristan was on soy milk for a couple of months, but we get enriched rice milk now. There is still some soy in our diets... but not a ton. From everything I've found, the research is for high quantities.

What kind of ratio do you think works best to wean from one formula to another? I was thinking maybe 1/4 regular formula to 3/4 soy for a few days, then 1/2 and 1/2 for a few days, etc. How did you do it?
Thanks
Kina

We did half and half for two days then 100%. Tristan didn't have any problems. I will say that he did spit up maybe 10-15% more on the RS but he continued to gain weight/ no respiratory problems.... so we counted it as a success.

I am going to come from a 100% different prospective!!! My son has had horrible issues. Some know everything and some on here just know a little. My son sees a pediatric gastroenterologist as well as his pedi.

You REALLY need to talk to your pedi about switching and discuss the best route for Gage. You mentioned in a previous post about issues and a lot stated it sounded like reflux. So, I think it is important to really have a discuss with the pedi about every single symptoms.

It will be very hard on his system to go from soy to a formula that is not lactose free. Speaking from experience it might be a hard transition on his GI system which is what happens between any formula change but reintroducing lactose into his diet if he is really is lactose intolerant could really make him, and you, miserable.

I am not telling you what to do. But, we have tried many formulas, different reflux medicines, endoscopes, and surgey all to come to a place where my son now eats and is not a bad experience for him or me. I just want to make sure you really get the pedi to hear your concerns about soy, current issues, and your potential feelings about something you want to try.

Do you think if he only has tummy troubles once in a while at his before bedtime feeding, that it could still be reflux. I figured it would happen more often if it was reflux...may not.

I know how painful milk products are to me. I definately don't want Gage to experience that!

I almost wish I'd never heard about possible soy problems! I will talk to my pediatrician.

Thanks for your words of wisdom!
Kina

There are times that babies have colic. I am not saying that is what it is but if he is fussy then, it could just be gas. It could be that he is tired. I don't know.

Reflux doesn't have to be spit up. It can be fussy, arching of the back, etc.

Also, remember that soy does cause constipation and will cause fussiness and not wanting to eat as much (it hurts their tummy and makes them irratible). So, if he is harving formed stools or hard stools, then remember to watch for that. We give our son something every three days to help soften his stools because of soy. He just has harder stools because of soy and cereal.

Everything has a side effect. Tylenol can be bad but we give it to help our children. Antibioitics are not the best. Medications that we all take, etc. Just remember that sometimes the side effects are there but the benifits outway the risks. I am NOT condoning doing something that has horrible side effects, it is just you have to make an educated decision with medication professionals. I don't have any options right now. He can't do hypoallergenic (we tried two), he can't do sensitive, we tried everything, etc.  I won't give him goats milk so I am left with soy at this time.

Also, remember the side effcts say for long exposure. The key is to get stomachs ok - get them on solids you then reduce the amount of formula you get and hope that they don't have a horrible lactose intolerance and can outgrow some of it and have a slight issue. The American Academy of Pediatrics recommends soy in certain cir****tances and one is for diagnosed lactose intolerance.

Just talk to your doctor about all of Gage's issues and they will help you get to the bottom of problems. Aiden was on three different types of Reflux medications until Nexium is the answer for him. There are side effects for it but he lost so much weight and was really having a hard time growing until we got it under control.