Tag: failure to thrive

Homemade Infant and Toddler Formula

Post author By abundantpeaceandhealth
Post date November 19, 2020
20 Comments on Homemade Infant and Toddler Formula

Every new mom has high hopes of breastfeeding their infant. We know that breast milk is best for our little ones and as moms we desire to provide what is best. I personally breastfed my boy for three years on a restrictive diet due to all of his food allergies. However, supplementing with this homemade infant formula when he had trouble eating solids was a turning point for our son to gain much needed weight.

Before you try an alterative infant formula, I encourage you to check all breastfeeding resources available to you. It is possible to breastfeed a baby with multiple food allergies when the mom eliminates all allergens from her diet. There are also natural methods you can use to increase milk supply. Two helpful resources are KellyMom.com and Ellen Fisher’s e-book “Breastfeeding”.

Who is this Homemade Infant Formula for?

There are multiple infant formulas on the market, but your baby may not tolerate any of them or you may wish to find a healthier alternative. This homemade infant formula may be just what you’re looking for. It is especially designed for:

Infants whose moms cannot produce enough breast milk or need to abruptly stop breastfeeding due to a medical procedure.
Infants with multiple food allergies and mom has a hard time adjusting her diet to continue breastfeeding.
Infants who struggle to gain weight with breast milk alone.
Toddlers who, due to health conditions, struggle to eat solid food and depend on formula for nutrition.

I can say with confidence that this formula will be adequate for babies starting at 6 months of age. However, I know of mothers with babies as young as four months old who have exclusively used this formula successfully. Use your own judgment when considering your child’s condition to establish if this formula is a good option for you. My son was two-and-a-half years old when we began supplementing with this formula. He barely ate solid food and this was his main source of nutrition for a year. At one point, he drank 28 oz of this homemade formula a day. Read more about his story here.

The Issues with Store-Bought Formula

Why go through the struggle of making a homemade formula? Why not simplify life and use regular, store-bought formula? After all, it has gone through extensive testing and approval to be certified as baby formula. Let’s take a closer look:

Dairy-based formula

The most commonly prescribed infant formula is dairy-based. There’s a good reason for this. Dairy is high in lactose, a good source of sugar and calories. Dairy also has plenty of fat that babies need to develop. The problem? Many babies, if not most, cannot tolerate dairy. It causes reflux, diarrhea, constipation, eczema, and asthma. Even if an infant may appear to tolerate dairy at first, they may be at a higher risk of developing these symptoms and diseases later.

Standard dairy-based formula is also filled with unhealthy oils such as palm oil, soy oil, and high oleic sunflower oil. Most of these formulas use nonfat milk, which is more processed and requires these refined oils be added. A health-conscious adult would not eat these oils on a regular basis, so why feed them to an infant?

Lastly, dairy formulas lack healthy, living bacteria and nutrients to feed the healthy bacteria. It is well established that a healthy microbiome is vital to health. Good, balanced microbiota live in living plant organisms. Additionally, it is essential to create a gut environment that will grow good bacteria. Some formulas may add probiotics. However, it is important to note that there are many different types of bacteria in our natural environment, but only a few are used in high amount in probiotics. This in itself can cause dysbiosis – an imbalance of the gut microbiota. It is best to trust the microbiome naturally occurring in food and nature.

Soy-based formula

The first alternative formulas prescribed to babies with a dairy allergy or sensitivity are soy-based formulas.

I am a strict vegetarian; I believe in a plant-based diet from infancy. However, I would rather give my child a dairy-based formula than a store-bought, soy formula.

The first ingredient in soy formula is either corn-syrup or brown rice syrup. According to their labels, 54% of the ingredients in soy formula come from these unhealthy sugars. I don’t think I need to go into detail about why this is horrifying. Again, no health-conscious adult would ever eat a diet based on 54% corn-syrup or brown rice syrup. How are we feeding this to infants?

Yes, breastmilk is around 50% sugar, but we cannot compare natural breastmilk sugars to processed corn-syrup or brown-rice syrup.

The ingredients that follow are refined vegetable oils (26%): palm oil, soy oil, coconut oil, and high oleic sunflower oils. So far, 80% of the ingredients don’t sound healthy or nutritious. Then we have the soy protein isolate and added vitamins and minerals.

And as with dairy-based formulas, soy formulas also do not provide healthy bacteria for a strong gut microbiome.

Elemental formula

When a child is allergic to dairy and soy, an elemental formula is prescribed. It is thought that the protein in foods is what causes an allergic response. For this reason, elemental formulas contain broken-down proteins, amino-acids, to make them easier to digest and not cause an allergic reaction.

EleCare and Neocate are the most commonly used formulas for infants with multiple food allergies. Similar to soy formula, elemental formulas contain as the main ingredients: corn-syrup (55%) and refined vegetable oil (24%: comprising palm oil, coconut oil, high oleic sunflower oil, and canola oil or soy oil).

For older children, Neocate Splash is available. The main ingredient here is actually water (85%), followed by maltodextrin (6%), sugar (5%), and refined vegetable oil (high oleic sunflower oil, palm oil, coconut oil, and canola oil). At first sight this looks like a better option, and I think it is. However, maltodextrin is associated with worsening irritable bowel syndrome (IBS), Crohn’s disease, and increasing bad gut bacteria.

Sugars increase bad gut bacteria and these formulas don’t provide any healthy, living bacteria. Most infants and toddlers who have multiple food allergies already have an unhealthy microbiome, autoimmune conditions, and digestive issues. These formulas make the root cause of their disease even worse, making it harder to heal.

My son reacted to all these formulas with vomiting or diarrhea. He did best with Neocate Splash, but at the end it caused him diarrhea as well. Read about how we made the switch to this homemade infant formula here.

Allergy-Friendly Alternative Infant Formula

The homemade infant formula I want to share is plant-based, meaning it has no animal products. It is soy-free, nut-free, corn-free, and gluten-free. Yet, it is very nutritious. (Read the notes at the end for alternative ingredients.)

Fats
Infants and toddlers need more fat than adults to help develop their fast-growing brains. This homemade infant formula provides most of its calories from fats through coconut milk and flax seed oil.

Carbohydrates
Sprouted quinoa and buckwheat are the main source of sugars and carbohydrates in this formula. Coconut also provides a good amount of it.

Protein
For protein, this formula uses one of the most easily digestible legumes – sprouted mung beans.

Importance of Sprouting

Infants have a sensitive digestive track that has not been fully developed yet. Breastmilk provides easy-to-digest nutrition that is hard to find in solid foods. Toddlers with health conditions also have a sensitive digestive system which requires special consideration.

Sprouting the quinoa, buckwheat, and mung beans greatly increases their nutritional content and makes these foods easier to digest. Do not skip this step!

Especially if you are dealing with a baby or a chronically-ill toddler, you want to make sure these foods are sprouted. However, do not use sprouts raw! They can be filled with bad bacteria and hard to digest.

Soak the quinoa, buckwheat, and mung beans overnight and let them sprout in a strainer for two days (wash twice a day). Cook the quinoa and buckwheat in water for about 20 to 30 minutes and cook mung beans for 1 hour.

Important Nutritional Notes

Omega 3 is crucial for the development of healthy babies. For this reason, the formula includes 1 tablespoon of flax seed oil. However, flax seed oil can go rancid very fast and it can not be heated. A better option is ground flax seed. When your child is around seven-month- old, you can start mixing ground flax seed with baby food. Our favorite way is in smoothies or with avocado. Start with ½ teaspoon and increase the amount slowly as they grow. At around two-years-old, use 2 teaspoons.

Vitamin B12 is a bacteria needed for healthy brain development and it is not available in plant-based food. You will need to find a good, healthy supplement. We use Global Healing Center B-12. Just a few drops under the tongue once a week will be enough for infants and toddlers. Another great way to get vitamin B12 and other healthy bacteria is to play in the dirt! Take your children to nature or garden with them. Let them get dirty playing in the soil. This is not a reliable method of getting B12, but it has multiple health benefits.

Vitamin D is a hormone essential for the immune system and our overall health. Although Vitamin D is not found in plant foods, we can get it from the sun! Take your infant or toddler out into the sunshine daily, without sunscreen. Let their skin soak in as much sunrays as possible without getting burnt. In the winter, however, you may want to consider supplementing with vitamin D. We use this vitamin D supplement.

Homemade Infant Formula Recipe

Finally, onto the homemade infant formula recipe. Our son LOVES this formula. It tastes very good—in my opinion, much better tasting than any store-bought formula.

Ingredients:

1.5 cups coconut water (12 oz)
1 cup full fat canned coconut milk (8 oz)
½ cup mung beans (sprouted and cooked)
¼ cup quinoa (sprouted and cooked)
¼ cup buckwheat (sprouted and cooked)
1 tbsp flax seed oil (optional if child eats ground flax seeds)
2 dates (optional to sweeten)

Instructions:

Put all ingredients in a high-speed blender. Blend until smooth (about 3 minutes). Strain using a fine mesh strainer. Refrigerate in a glass container for up to 3 days. This recipe will make 26 oz.

Notes

You can substitute the coconut water and milk with 1-2 fresh young coconuts (water and meat depending on size). This will avoid the possible toxins found in the can lining. However, we have always used canned coconut milk.
Make sure the coconut water and coconut milk you buy don’t have any other added ingredients like sugar or preservatives (Guar Gum is ok). It may be hard to find pure coconut milk, but get the best you can. We buy ours at Trader Joe’s.
Substitutes in case of allergy:
- if your child reacts to mung beans, try sprouted red lentils or sprouted split peas
- if your child reacts to quinoa, try using a pseudo grain called Kaniwa or double the portion of buckwheat
- if your child reacts to buckwheat, try using Kaniwa or double the portion of quinoa
The dates are really not needed in the recipe but we did use them when we transitioned from regular formula that is very sweet. While our son adjusted to a sugar-free formula, we used 6 dates. Then, we slowly reduced the amount of dates. Now, we don’t use any dates.
Pro tip: sprout and cook the quinoa, buckwheat, and mung beans in bulk. Then, freeze them in bags to always have at hand. I made this milk daily for over a year. It can get tiring at times but having the ingredients ready to use in the freezer was of huge help.

Tags failure to thrive, food allergies, formula, infant, plantbased

Our Story

Part 7 – The Autoimmune Plant-Based Protocol

Post author By abundantpeaceandhealth
Post date October 15, 2020
1 Comment on Part 7 – The Autoimmune Plant-Based Protocol

To read our story from the beginning click here.

At the end of 2017, I was filled with hope again when God reassured His promise of healing. I was starting 2018 with faith that God was still leading us, and we were on the right path. Seeking help one more time, I reached out to another medical missionary worker who was recommended as being very experienced with autoimmune diseases and gut issues. Mercy Ballard at Years Restored was willing to work with us hand-in-hand to guide us. She warned me that it would take much effort and training, but she was confident that by the grace of God, He would show us the way to bring healing to Lucas. Mercy proposed the Autoimmune Plant-based Protocol that she has used multiple times to help individuals heal. In her experience, it takes two to four months to heal the gut. Due to Lucas’ severity, we were looking at 4 months of the strictest and most disciplined lifestyle before we would see clear improvements. Mercy prayed with me and asked God to guide us as we started this new protocol.

The Autoimmune Plant-Based Protocol

The Autoimmune Plant-Based Protocol recognizes that the root cause of autoimmune diseases is found in the gut. Therefore, the focus is on healing the digestive system. This is achieved through a very strict, predominantly raw, plant-based diet. In addition, natural remedies are catered to each individual to restore the microbiome and heal the gut. The principle is to remove inflammatory foods, replace harmful foods with healing foods, and repair the digestive system with natural remedies. This healing process incorporates a wholistic look at the person. Consequently, all-around healthy lifestyle habits are essential. You can read about these lifestyle principles here.

The Autoimmune Plant-Based Diet

The Autoimmune Plant-Based Diet is rich in raw vegetables, legumes, pseudo grains (quinoa, buckwheat, amaranth), seeds, and low-sugar fruits. It avoids all animal products, gluten, grains, soy, nuts, oils, and high-sugar fruits such as bananas, oranges, grapes, etc. Additionally, the legumes, pseudo grains, and seeds must be soaked and sprouted to decrease antinutrients such as Lectins. The sprouting process makes these foods easier to digest and gives the body the ability to absorb more nutrients—something critical for those suffering with malabsorption or gut issues.

Natural Remedies

One unique aspect of this protocol is that no supplements are used. All-natural remedies come from foods. My husband and I had spent a fortune on multiple supplements with no results. This protocol was certainly a different approach. Natural Remedies are based on powerful foods such as onion, garlic, herbs, aloe vera, turmeric, and ginger. In addition, charcoal, hydrotherapy, and enemas are used in specific cases.

Adopting the New Protocol

Mercy was right when she told me that it would take a lot of training and effort to adopt every aspect of the Autoimmune Plant-Based Protocol. It was a whole new way of eating and cooking. Lucas was still mostly nursing. Because my breast milk was his main source of nutrition, I also had to implement these changes in my own diet. I was already plant-based. Additionally, we had eliminated what seemed like a lot of foods: gluten, soy, rice, oats, peas, most nuts, squashes, and nightshades (potato, tomato, eggplant, bell pepper). Now, we also had to eliminate corn, almonds, millet (all grains), and most fruits. I had to learn to cook with buckwheat, quinoa, sunflower seeds, pumpkin seed, chia, flax seed, legumes and as many raw vegetables as possible.

Another challenge we faced was feeding Lucas. In the two years of unstoppable allergic reactions, our son had learned to associate food with pain and illness. Because of this, he often refused to eat. Furthermore, he had developed sensory problems that led him to not eat certain food textures. One of the few foods he loved was homemade corn chips with avocado. But now we had to find a way to replace the corn chips and add more raw vegetables in his diet.

We immediately implemented these changes into our diet. I bought foods I had never heard of such as buckwheat and mung beans. We purchased a food dehydrator which helped us add raw foods in our diet. The foods we had to eliminate we replaced with other, more healing foods and began experimenting in the kitchen. Mercy guided us and we thought of recipes that could work for Lucas. My mom and I created raw crackers from sunflower seeds and veggies. I started blending avocado with cilantro, parsley, basil, spinach, green onion, garlic, and lemon into a pesto of sorts, which helped us add more raw vegetables into Lucas’ diet. We made raw buckwheat granola with fruit for breakfast and lentil/quinoa crackers with the pesto for lunch.

It was not easy to convince Lucas to try these new foods but with lots of prayer and persistence, Lucas started accepting these changes.

Natural Remedies Implemented

We knew that Lucas’ health struggles all started in the gut. He had a severe case of leaky gut and dysbiosis (imbalance of the gut microbiota). It was crucial to heal the lining of the digestive track, remove the bad gut bacteria, and add good gut bacteria. The diet would certainly help in this process, but more work was needed to help his body heal. There were three remedies we implemented with success:

Onion/Garlic Broth
The purpose of this broth was to reduce inflammation of the digestive track and kill the bad gut bacteria. Lucas was to drink it three times a day before meals.
Aloe Vera Juice
We blended fresh aloe vera gel with water and stevia leaf—a drink which coats the digestive system and promotes healing of the gut lining. Lucas was to drink this before each meal and at nighttime.
Enemas
There are a number of purposes for enemas. In our case, enemas helped to stop Lucas’ diarrhea and restore his microbiome. We used garlic broth enemas to kill the bad gut bacteria and vegetable juice enemas to introduce good bacteria.

It was not easy giving Lucas these natural remedies. There was a lot of trial and error. We started with the onion/garlic broth and aloe vera juice. We were not always able to give it to him three times daily but we did our best. Juicing would have been beneficial but Lucas refused to drink it. I tried giving him charcoal to drink with water to also help his digestive system. However, because of his sensory problems, he could not tolerate the sandy texture and always threw up.

We quickly realized that drinking the broth and aloe vera would not be enough to balance his gut bacteria. Although Lucas’ vomiting was improving, he still had severe diarrhea. He needed something that addressed the gut more directly. This is where the enemas came in. The thought of doing enemas on my child was not pleasant, but we tried it and Lucas did amazing! It caused him no pain or discomfort. He realized that the enemas brought him relief and never fought us.

We tried onion broth enemas first to stop the diarrhea but that did not work. We moved on to something stronger—garlic broth enemas. Garlic is powerful and can burn. Therefore, we had to be careful to have the right strength. I cooked three garlic cloves in 1 cup of water and strained it to use the broth for the enema. We performed the enema, and, for the first time in two years, his diarrhea stopped! However, 24 hours later his diarrhea returned. We had to do garlic broth enemas daily to keep the diarrhea away. We were excited to find something that worked to stop the diarrhea, but we had no way of knowing how long we would have to keep up with the daily enemas. Furthermore, although Lucas was now having only 2-3 bowel movements a day, it was evident from his stools that he was still not digesting food well.

Faith Required

In April 2018, we were entering the third month of strictly following the Autoimmune Plant-based Protocol. We finally felt we had figured out all of Lucas’ food allergies and had a list of safe foods. His vomiting had gotten much better and it was no longer a daily struggle. However, we knew we were still dealing with malabsorption. Lucas was still not gaining weight, his skin was still covered in eczema, and he still had no strength.

The protocol required the most diligent discipline, which took time and effort. It was draining. It was not easy. We were uncertain of the future. We had tried so many medicines by now that we questioned whether this would be another fail. However, God was teaching me an important lesson. Any medicine that comes from God will required discipline, obedience, and faith.

God had promised healing in 2018. He was moving quickly although we could not fully see it yet. There was one more therapy that God had prepared for us – the Avène Hydrotherapy Center.

Tags autoimmune disease, eczema, eoe, failure to thrive, natural healing, plantbased, protocol

Our Story

Part 5 – When Your Faith is Tested

Post author By abundantpeaceandhealth
Post date September 30, 2020
7 Comments on Part 5 – When Your Faith is Tested

Part 5 - When Your Faith is Tested

With the understanding that God had given me through His Word and the faith He implanted in my heart, I was determined to obey God and follow His instructions. However, the question remained, “What natural means will help my son heal?” As I studied scripture and daily gave my will to God, I stumbled upon a one-hour health lecture on YouTube by Barbara O’Neill. I was immediately captivated by her knowledge. She was teaching just what God had impressed in my heart and had so much wisdom in regard to using natural remedies for healing. I watched all of her lectures within a week, but I needed more specific knowledge to help my son, and that is when I found her email. I emailed her asking for her advice for my son’s case and to my surprise, she emailed me back the very same day. This first exchange started our daily email conversations as she began to guide me.

I knew God had guided me to find Barbara O’Neill and I immediately began implementing her recommendations—none of which could pose a risk for Lucas. Up to this point, we had experimented with several different elimination diets, but none seemed to help Lucas. I kept on eliminating foods and it felt like my son would not be able to eat anything because his symptoms continued. Barbara gave me some suggestions to change my diet one more time, for example replacing oats with millet and rice with quinoa. We also began giving Lucas some natural remedies like slippery elm.

The Decision To Take Our Son Off Drugs

Several things had happened at the same time: God revealing His plan to heal Lucas, me stumbling upon Barbara O’Neill, and the conviction in my heart that I had to take Lucas off all drug medications. Before I go on, I must be clear that none of the medications my son was taking were lifesaving; there was no imminent risk to take him off them. At this time, we were using a steroid oil on his skin from head to toe, high amounts of Hydroxyzine, and Budesonide (steroid medication) for his eosinophilic esophagitis. The only medication that maybe had some benefit was the Budesonide, because Lucas seemed to have started having less vomiting, but he was still not gaining weight. This drug, however, would not allow us to find out what he was truly allergic to because it masked the symptoms and it was not serving its purpose in helping Lucas gain weight as his severe diarrhea continued. At this time, we also decided that we would not be vaccinating Lucas at his one-year appointment.

I could give you countless scientific reasons and explanations for why we made the decision to take our son off the drugs, but at the end, it was simply an act of faith. God had made it very clear that He would heal our son but His way, without drugs. God had promised to reveal to me “great and might things which you do not know” to heal my son, but I had to take the first step of faith (Jeremiah 33:3).

To be honest, the decision wasn’t hard. It came naturally as a progression of everything God was revealing to me. It also helped that the drugs did not seem to help, and countless advice given by the physicians had only made Lucas get worse.

As we weaned Lucas off his drugs, he began having pretty bad withdrawal symptoms. He began to be itch like never before— desperately. He just couldn’t stop. He did not want to do anything but scratch. His skin exploded in head to toe eczema like we had never seen before.We would slather him in a homemade shea butter cream I made and would do wet wrap therapy (one layer of wet clothes right after applying the cream and then one layer of dry clothes).

To prevent scratching as much as possible, we only put onesies on him and put tape around the wrist of his onesie so he couldn’t pull the sleeves up. He still found any way he could to scratch. Every diaper change was a battle to keep him from scratching. It was a horrific four weeks, but his body finally calmed down and we were able to see what his true, baseline eczema looked like. He still itched, but not as desperately. He still had eczema, but it was not as severe or inflamed.

Our Son Begins To Heal

After a month of making the dietary changes recommended by Barbara O’Neill, implementing natural remedies, and taking Lucas off the drugs, we finally began to see hope. His eczema became somewhat more manageable, and most importantly, his diarrhea stopped, and he began to gain weight after nearly 6 months of no weight gain! He began to develop quickly. All the things he had missed (from being so weak and constantly itching) he began to do. We finally had a baby full of energy ready to explore the world. He began to crawl at 11 months and quickly moved on to holding on to furniture to practice taking steps. He was not throwing up, he was eating well, and everything indicated that we had finally found healing. It could only get better from here.

Our Faith Is Tested

The future was looking bright. It seemed we had finally gotten out of this storm and could see the sunshine ahead of us. Then, out of nowhere, the storm came back stronger than we could have ever imagined. After all the progress Lucas had made, he came crashing down. The explosive diarrhea and vomiting came back, which quickly debilitated his entire system. Nothing had changed in his diet or environment, so his deterioration made absolutely no sense. Over the course of the next few months, Lucas began to lose the weight he had gained, he began to lose his hair, and his eczema was out of control. Due to the constant severe diarrhea, he had very low protein levels in his blood, which left him with no strength for his muscles to develop and grow. He went from almost walking by himself, to barely having the strength to sit.

What were we to do now? Our son was disintegrating right in front of our eyes. Most alarming to doctors was his low protein level. However, once again, instead of focusing on what was causing it and how to heal it, the Gastroenterologist (GI) suggested to feed him with total parenteral nutrition (TPN), which is a method of feeding that bypasses the digestive tract and instead uses a special formula that is given through the vein to provide nutrients. This sounded like the least natural way to feed a human. We had a long conversation with the GI and decided not to go for it and wait it out.

What followed was a year full of trials and endless debates whether to use conventional medicine or not. It seemed that in trying the natural way, God’s way, it caused our son’s health to come crashing down in illness. We were so strict, so disciplined, and had done our work in faith. Why was God not providing healing? He was simply testing our faith.

God had promised He would heal Lucas, but He was very specific to tell me “not yet” and I didn’t know how long that would be. However, the way God revealed Himself to me was so powerful that I never doubted my son would be healed. Therefore, when the doctors told me that Lucas couldn’t live with such low protein levels, I thought, “you do not define whether my son dies or lives, God already established that he will live and be healed.” The question at hand was whether it was ok to use conventional medicine while we waited on God. I would be lying if I didn’t tell you of the countless times where all I wanted to do was run to the hospital and let the physicians do whatever they felt needed to be done to keep him alive and thrive. However, each time I felt that way, the power of the Holy Spirit was much stronger in me and I was reminded that God’s promise of healing was conditional that we obey Him. Hebrews 10:35-36 says, “Therefore do not cast away your confidence, which has great reward. For you have need of endurance, so that after you have done the will of God, you may receive the promise.” I needed to persevere.

There were endless debates in my house, with family, and with friends about our decision to not use conventional medicine. I was judged and treated as a crazy person “hearing voices” by pastors, church leaders, therapist, and close friends. However, the conviction God gave me was much stronger than any argument anyone could throw at me. They argued I needed to hospitalize my son immediately to save his life; that God would bless the doctors and drugs to bring healing but the Spirit was telling me to “trust and obey.” I cannot put into words the divine strength and faith that God gave me. The conviction that I had to endure this trial and block out all human sense and advice, was only imparted by God. It was not human strength; it was supernatural power from the Holy Spirit. This is how I knew I was doing God’s will, because on my own I could not have possibly stood on my ground.

The year 2017 was full of pain, insecurity, and helplessness. However, at the same time, it was filled with faith, strength, and hope. I got to truly experience what it means to be closest to God when pain and trials are the greatest.

We barely slept that year. Some days, I had no emotional strength to go to work. Most days, I spent praying every hour, crying my eyes out and asking God to sustain me, my family, and my son. I look back and I can see God’s glory revealed throughout that entire year. He never left me. He was always there. He carried me, my husband, and my son in His arms. At the hardest times, I would kneel next to my son’s bed as he slept and asked Jesus to keep his heart beating through the night. I know Jesus did just that and only He sustained his life. As I saw my son’s life hanging by thread, I was constantly reminded that “the sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be compared with the glory which shall be revealed in us.” (Romans 8:18). And so it was, His glory we finally did see.

Tags eczema, eoe, failure to thrive, faith, healing, natural healing

Our Story

Part 3 – God Promises to Heal My Son

Post author By abundantpeaceandhealth
Post date September 16, 2020
6 Comments on Part 3 – God Promises to Heal My Son

Part 3 - God Promises to Heal My Son

My whole life, I had been taught that God leads doctors to provide you the best health treatment, that He blesses science to give us more knowledge, and that He blesses us through new drugs to treat illnesses. So when my son became chronically ill with all of these symptoms – severe eczema, vomiting, diarrhea, and failure to thrive – I naturally thought that what I needed to do was not to ask God for healing or inquire about how He would provide healing but rather simply follow doctor’s orders and ask God to guide them.

My beliefs were challenged when I was faced with watching my child’s health continue to deteriorate, in spite of strictly following doctor’s orders. What was most disheartening was that the medical community was not offering any true solutions, hope, or healing. Throughout those first 9 months, I was filled with anxiety, yearning for help so that my baby could thrive and be healthy. For months, I went from doctor to doctor, from one specialist to the next, only to see my child get worse from each drug or formula recommended. I felt desperate, helpless, and increasingly hopeless.

The turning point came when we received the diagnosis of Eosinophilic Esophagitis (EoE) and the only solution given was to give him an oral steroid. No trying to find his allergies, no dietary changes recommended, no addressing of his diarrhea, no trying to figure out the root cause, and no view of him as a whole person instead of individual symptoms.

My motherly instinct screamed inside. I did not want to patch the problem only for it to return. My child needed healing. The idea of simply increasing his caloric intake instead of trying to figure out what was causing the chronic diarrhea made absolutely no sense. Covering his body in steroids, only for the eczema to return more aggressively, was nonsense. I knew these were not solutions. I didn’t know where to turn to or what other specialist I could contact. I was filled with immense anxiety as I saw no hope for a better outcome within conventional medicine.

Lucas, my husband, and I became very stressed from the hospital stay when they diagnosed Lucas with EoE. His little body did not take it well and we really struggled controlling his eczema once we got home. So we decided we needed a nature retreat and went to the beach for four days to recover and reflect. Personally, what I was seeking most was hearing God’s voice. I was in desperate need of His peace. My anxiety would get so bad at times that I would have full blown anxiety attacks. Anything could trigger me. My nervous system was constantly on the edge. The only thing I thought of was, “How many bowel movements has my baby had today? How many times did he vomit? What do I feed him that won’t give him diarrhea? Has he gained any weight? How do I help his frantic itching? How do I heal his eczema wounds?” Every day was a battle and although I would talk to God about it, I realized something wasn’t right because I couldn’t hear Him as I had other times in my life. I was not being filled with His peace that I once knew so well. I finally came to the point where all I wanted was to hear God and feel His peace. This retreat was the perfect opportunity.

I was truly not expecting much from God. I wasn’t seeking a new revelation or an answer to a specific question. I wasn’t even seeking healing for my son anymore, but rather that God would simply work out His will, even if that meant losing my son. I was finally in a place where, wholeheartedly, all I was seeking was to hear God’s voice, see His glory, and feel His peace.

So, there I was on September 3^rd, 2016, on the beach with my Bible, pursuing God. I had asked my husband to care for Lucas a little while for me to have some personal time with God. As I was sitting there, watching the waves and feeling the breeze and stillness, I poured out my heart to God. I confessed that I had not been seeking Him first. I confessed that I had let my anxiety take over my life. I confessed that I had lost complete sight of Him and that I had been trying to resolve Lucas’ health issues by myself instead of letting Him lead me. I told God I was ready to let Him take charge; I couldn’t bear this burden anymore.

I began reading my Bible with the intention to hear God and the verse that touched me most was Jeremiah 33:3, “Call to Me, and I will answer you, and show you great and mighty things, which you do not know.” I began crying out to God for this promise to be true in my life and for God to answer me. My heart ached. All I wanted was for God to hold me, give me peace, and talk to me. As I was wrestling with God and claiming this promise, suddenly, everything became still in my mind, and these words came clear: “I will heal him, but not yet.” I felt the voice of God answering my call. I began crying, full of emotion, in somewhat disbelief, and an immense peace came over me.

I took that promise to heart and never once questioned it. God would heal my son. I didn’t care what the “not yet” part meant. I didn’t start questioning, “well, but how long?” God had answered and given me much more than I could have imagined. God knew just what I needed to hear to get me through the next 2 years that would follow. The bigger the test of faith, the clearer and more certain the promise.

Tags allegies, childhood allergies, eczema, eoe, failure to thrive, faith, food allergies, god answers, prayer

Our Story

Part 2 – Conventional Medicine

Post author By abundantpeaceandhealth
Post date September 10, 2020
4 Comments on Part 2 – Conventional Medicine

Part 2 - Conventional Medicine

Before Lucas was born, I had been on my own health journey. I was raised vegetarian my whole life. Due to severe chronic migraines however, I decided to adopt a strictly plant-based diet when I was 22 years old, 4 years before Lucas was conceived. I educated myself much on diet and health principals and adopted everything I learned. I was a firm believer of combining diet and lifestyle changes with conventional medicine. Therefore, I never doubted vaccinating my child or using medications when advised by a doctor.

I was determined to have a natural birth as long as my body allowed it and to breastfeed Lucas for at least a year. By the grace of God, I was able to do both. I had a completely natural birth and we had absolutely no problem breastfeeding, it came naturally to both of us, Lucas and I. However, because Lucas was born severely underweight, I was immediately pressured to feed him formula. His glucose levels were a bit low and his red blood cell count was off. The doctors urged me to feed Lucas formula to “fix” these issues, but in faith, I refused. I spent the first night and day breastfeeding 24/7, and when they tested his blood again, everything was normal! Praise God! However, the pressure to feed him formula was unceasing from then on.

I believed breast milk was best, especially if he had any health issues or growth problems, as the food that God created for babies had to be the best. I was certainly not going to try a dairy formula, being plant-based myself and having discovered early on that Lucas had allergy problems. However, plant-based formulas were not much better as the idea of giving my baby a formula that was 54% brown rice syrup or corn syrup mortified me! Surprisingly, plant-based infant formulas are very high in unhealthy sugars.

From the time Lucas was 2 months old we began seeing different specialist but it was not until he was 4 months old that we truly began getting desperate to get answers for his allergies, severe eczema, and lack of weight gain. Lucas’ conventional medicine journey included 4 doctors and specialist: the pediatrician, an allergist, a dermatologist, and a gastroenterologist (GI). We started seeing doctors almost every week and I noted how each one treated their own area of specialty rather than seeing the problem as a whole or discover the root cause.

Pediatrician

From the time Lucas was 5 months old, the pressure was on to put weight on him as it became evident that he was not catching up and had a hard time gaining any weight at all. One of the first recommendations was to give him MCT oil. The idea was that he just needed more calories and oil was the easiest way to add calories fast. We were very faithful in giving him the oil, but quickly realized that it was giving him diarrhea. He gained no weight at all. At around 6 months old, a soy formula was suggested in addition to my breast milk. I was skeptical because at this point, I felt the issue was not the amount of milk or calories he drank. However, as Lucas had been exclusively breastfed for 6 months and I was desperate to have him gain weight, we agreed to try the soy formula. Within three days of trying the soy formula, Lucas began throwing up and having diarrhea. Again, no weight gain.

The pediatrician also tested his iron, which showed to be low, so she prescribed an iron supplement, which Lucas also reacted to, causing him to throw up. Another month of no weight gain at all. Before trying these different things, he was at least gaining a little weight! But now we had several weeks of no weight gain.

While we waited for an appointment with the dermatologist, the pediatrician gave us a 2.5% hydrocortisone cream for Lucas’ eczema, which we faithfully applied on all critical areas. At first, the cream seemed to work, but the effect quickly wore off and the eczema came back with full force.

When Lucas was 5 months old, we did regular blood work to test for allergens, about 30 in total. They all came back positive: coconut, nuts, corn, soy, wheat, dogs, cats, dust, etc. They weren’t just positive—on the scale from 1-6, 1 being least allergic and 6 being highly allergic, he appeared to be highly allergic to everything. Curiously, he did not show to be allergic to dairy, eggs, and shellfish, something we attributed to the fact that he had never been exposed to them. His IGE was close to 6000 IU/mL (standard range 0-15 IU/mL), which is an indicator that the body overreacts to allergens. So, we were quickly referred to the Immunologist.

Immunologist/ Allergist

Our first visit with the immunologist was when Lucas was 6 months old. When we received the results that Lucas had so many allergies, I was devastated and filled with anxiety. However, the allergist assured us that the test results didn’t matter because they were hardly ever accurate, and to reintroduce all foods (wheat and soy). I asked her how I would know if he was reacting to the foods I was reintroducing, and she said that I should see hives or throwing up within 2-4 hours of ingesting the food, guaranteed. I remember asking her if there could be a reaction after 24 hours and she said no. Bottom line, she did not want me to restrict my diet because I could become malnourished as a breastfeeding mom.

Wanting to be a good mom and patient, I did just what the doctor said and reintroduced wheat and soy. I was so happy to be eating a regular plant-based diet again! I was even happier when I saw no allergic reaction after 24 hours. We even gave Lucas bread to eat! No vomit, no diarrhea, no hives! I was ecstatic!

But the happiness didn’t last long. As we later discovered, the steroids were masking the eczema. After 3 days of reintroducing wheat, Lucas was covered in eczema and later began explosively throwing up. I was so confused. I thought we were in the clear, it had been three days! I was heartbroken and desperate.

The immunologist also prescribed hydroxyzine, an antihistamine, to reduce the itching and for Lucas to sleep better. She said to start with a small dose and keep increasing it until it was effective, up to 10 ml. We did just that. A small dose would work for a few days to help him sleep. When it wasn’t effective anymore, we would have to up the dose until we reached the 10 ml. It never seemed to help his itchiness, but simply made him sleepy. Over time, we started realizing how he was constantly sedated and not himself. Eventually, this medication became completely useless (not that it ever really helped). When we first stopped using the medication, he itched even more than he did before we started the hydroxyzine, scratching desperately all the time. We know it was the medication because after a few weeks off it, his itching went back to his baseline. We tried the medication again sometime after and observed the same thing.

Dermatologist

We finally got to see the dermatologist when Lucas was 7 months old. By this point, he was covered in eczema from head to toe (due to exposing him to so many allergens and the 2.5% hydrocortisone cream not working anymore). The doctor saw Lucas for 5 minutes and immediately prescribed Fluocinolone Acetonide, a steroid-based oil that is suppose to be very safe and effective. We were to cover his body in the oil and use it 4 days on and 3 days off. We were also recommended to try wet wrapping after we applied the steroid (one layer of wet clothes to lock in moisture and one layer of dry clothes). I asked about food allergies and if that could be contributing to his eczema and he assured me that there is no relationship between food and eczema, and that Lucas would grow out of it soon.

When I went to pick up the prescription, the pharmacist warned me to be very careful and use as little as possible as it was a very strong drug. This confused me because the doctor had just assured us it was safe and to just slather his body with it. I trusted my doctor and started applying the oil liberally as instructed. Within 24 hours, Lucas was eczema free! We thought it was a miracle drug and were so excited. But then came the 3 days off the steroid and it took less than a day for Lucas to be covered in eczema again. By the 3^rd day, it seemed to be even worse than before. We were happy when it was time to put the steroid oil on his body again expecting the same result. However, this time, it took 2 days for his body to be clear and during the days off the steroid the eczema came back even worse. We went through this for a month, and each time it got worse and worse. It would take longer for the eczema to clear and it would come back with a vengeance when he was off steroids.

We went back to the dermatologist a month after. This time, we got to see a pediatric dermatologist and we hoped to get some more insight. However, she was both very rude and dismissive of all of our concerns. She told us to try to use the steroid for 2 days on and 2 days off. I shared with her the concern the pharmacist had expressed and wanted to know exactly how much I needed to apply as I was worried it could be too much. I was also beginning to doubt the safety and effectiveness of the steroid oil. The doctor assured me again to simply apply as much oil as was needed for the eczema to clear. I asked what we would do if he didn’t respond to the oil and the answer was to keep trying a stronger steroid until he grew out of it. I wanted to know her input about the connection with diet, and again she dismissed it saying it had no correlation and to not worry, he was going to grow it out. I was treated as an ignorant person. There was no respect for my questions and concerns.

At home, we tried the steroid for 2 days on and 2 days off, but it had absolutely no benefit. Lucas ended up being constantly covered in eczema and the steroids seemed to be having no effect anymore. Even worse, the eczema was more severe than we had ever seen it.

Gastroenterologist (GI)

We were referred to the GI because of the growing concern of Lucas’ lack of weight gain, his vomiting, and diarrhea. We saw the pediatric GI for the first time when Lucas had just turned 8 months old. He was weighing only 13 lb., 5 oz (6kg) and had not gained any weight in 2 months. This doctor was friendly, caring and took her time in addressing all of our concerns. Like the pediatrician, she also thought Lucas’ weight issue was just a calorie problem and that we just needed to increase his food intake. However, because we expressed that Lucas had reacted to the soy formula and was having diarrhea and vomiting, she advised to try Elecare, an infant formula for children with severe allergies. Again, the idea was not to replace my breast milk but to add calories to his diet. Lucas was having up to 25 bowel movements a day, and yet, at no point was his diarrhea addressed. The only thing that mattered was increasing his food intake. There was little concern about the amount of solid foods he ate because they believe that “food is for play” at that age. However, we did notice that he was vomiting more frequently after eating solids, and not with my breast milk.

The doctor ordered some more blood work and told us to come back when we had the results. Meanwhile, we were to keep checking his weight with the pediatrician. Upon reading the ingredients of Elecare, I was horrified. It contained 55% corn syrup! The other ingredients don’t get much better: Safflower oil (9%), MCT oil (8%), soy oil (7%), and then came the amino acids, vitamins and minerals. I did not want to feed my baby this, but we were desperate, and I had to trust the doctor. We tried the formula for 2 days, taking it very slow, just 4 oz at the start. By the third day, Lucas began explosively throwing up and his diarrhea got worse. These symptoms lasted a few days, leading to some more weeks with no weight gain.

We went back to the pediatrician, who was very concerned. That same afternoon she called the Immunologist and GI to consult on what else we could do. Because of his history of allergic reactions and a high eosinophil blood count, they came to the conclusion that, although unlikely at his young age, Lucas might have something called Eosinophilic Esophagitis (EoE), an allergic inflammatory response in the esophagus that can cause vomiting in children. The only way to truly diagnose it was to do an endoscopy and they would also perform a colonoscopy to discard any other issues. They wanted to hospitalize him for 5 days to run some tests and also to put a nasal tube (NG) in to feed more calories while he was there. So to the hospital we went, when Lucas had just turned 9 months old.

Doctors performed the endoscopy, colonoscopy, and put a nasal tube in him all while he was sedated. I was still to breastfeed and feed him as normal, and at night we would feed him through the nasal tube. They tried a different formula called Neocate, but it had pretty much the same ingredients except for the soy oil. Lucas would normally still wake up every 2 hours to breastfeed, but with the nasal tube, he didn’t want to breastfeed. The formula was not adding calories; it was just replacing my breast milk. On the forth day, Lucas began throwing up explosively; he was reacting to Neocate.

In addition, his eczema got so severe in the hospital that the tape they were using to hold his NG tube and IV, began to cut and destroy his skin. In the end, there was no way to keep the NG tube or IV in place and they took everything out. On the fifth day in the hospital, we got the confirmation that Lucas had Eosinophilic Esophagitis (EoE). The solution: oral steroids for 3 months to reduce the inflammation of the esophagus. We were free to go home.

This made absolutely no sense to me. I had done my research on EoE and learned that the best way to control the disease was with diet, avoiding all allergens. I was willing to restrict his diet and mine in every possible way to help him—why was no one working with me in that sense? Steroids were not a solution, as the doctor herself expressed that the symptoms come back when you stop the steroids. My other concern was that, at this point, Lucas was not throwing up much, at least not enough to account for not gaining any weight in 3 months. His real issue was the diarrhea, not the number of calories he took in either; it was clearly malabsorption. As I expressed these concerns to the GI, the response was to try the steroid and we would see what happened in 3 months. I knew that wasn’t going to solve anything. I saw no hope in sight. This is the moment I realized I needed to start doing my own research and find healing with God’s guidance.

“For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the Lord, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.” Jeremiah 29:11

Tags allergy, childhood allergies, eczema, eoe, failure to thrive, faith, food allergies, infant formula

Our Story

Part 1 – Diagnosis

Part 1 - Diagnosis

I had been married to my wonderful husband, Cristian, for a little over a year when we received the news that we would become parents. Our son Lucas was born in November 2015, at 37 weeks and weighing 2.365 kg (5 lbs., 3 oz), classifying him as an extremely underweight baby for his age and placing him on the 0% growth curve. Although I had not gained much weight during my pregnancy, my doctor never had any concerns as the baby and I both seemed to be very healthy. In all the ultrasounds, Lucas appeared to be growing well. No one could explain why he was born so small. I was blessed to be able to breastfeed him right away without problem, perfect latch and plenty of milk supply. He immediately began gaining weight and his blood work was normal, so they sent us home from the hospital in hopes that Lucas would catch up quickly as most babies do.

During the first two months of Lucas’ life, he gained weight well and seemed to have no issues except for some cradle cap and baby acne, which the doctors assured us would go away on its own. However, when he was 2 months old—right after his vaccinations I must add—his body became covered in eczema from head to toe, and his weight gain stopped. One doctor we consulted was convinced this was an allergic reaction, which we found strange, as I had been eating the same healthy, plant-based diet for 5 years, so clearly it was no allergy to eggs, dairy, or meat. We did some basic blood allergy testing at 2 ½ months and it came positive for both items we tested, wheat and soy, and his antibodies, Immunoglobulin E (IgE), were off the charts. Later we would find out that he would test positive to every single food, and his IgE levels continued to go up higher and higher each month.

I was breastfeeding during this time, and the moment we received the positive test results for wheat and soy, I stopped eating every food containing those ingredients so as to not pass them on to Lucas. Unfortunately, eliminating these foods did absolutely nothing for Lucas. We kept on waiting in hope that we would see his eczema improve, but this was not the case. And here started our long, very long, journey of figuring out all his allergies and sensitivities. Things would get much worse before we would find healing.

From very early on, when he was about 4 months, I suspected a malabsorption issue as he was not gaining weight well, but was constantly breastfeeding. We always thought Lucas had too many bowel movements, even for a breastfeeding baby, and he also didn’t have too many wet diapers. When we started introducing solids to his diet at 6 months old, things got even worse. He began vomiting and it became clear that he had chronic diarrhea. At this point, he completely stopped gaining weight.

When Lucas was 8 months old, Doctors suggested hospitalizing him to feed him more calories through a NG tube and to run some tests. The result was more vomiting and diarrhea, which we believed was from the formula they were feeding him. They diagnosed him Eosinophilic Esophagitis, or inflammation of the esophagus due to food allergies. This is what was causing the vomiting, but it did not explain the root cause. We were sent home with a prescription of oral steroids.

The struggle continued over the next few months and years. His eczema became unceasingly worse, his diarrhea was out of control, and he would vomit any time he ate solids. On good days, he had 15 bowl movements, and on bad days, he could have up to 30. It was impossible for Lucas to gain weight like this. His weight would fluctuate a few ounces, but for 2 years he weighed only between 14 and 15 lbs.

Can you imagine? A 2-year-old weighing only 14 pounds? We were desperate. We felt so powerless. My poor baby was in constant pain and discomfort. There were days he could do nothing but breastfeed. If he wasn’t breastfeeding, he was crying in pain. We tried everything to give him relief and health but had constant failures. No doctor seemed to be able to help. Our faith was tested to its limits. It would be 2 years of agony and suffering before we would find the right help—and see God reveal His glory in Lucas.

Tags eczema, eoe, failure to thrive, faith, healing, natural healing