Help!!! I need some opinions!

[faith4u]

Every time that I go 100% my nursing baby has problems. Btw, when I am not 100% I am very close. I eat very little cooked foods and they are healthy like steamed veggies not junk food.

Anyways, I went 100% again last Wednesday. Ever since then my baby (4 months old) has been clawing at his head and face while nursing. He then will claw my hands. Normally he is very calm and relaxed while nursing. Not right now. He is very aggitated.

He also is very gassy. It isn't bothering him much but what is odd is that it smells really bad. That is NOT normal for a baby his age. It shouldn't have a smell at all. It did last time I went all raw too.

Lastly, when he had a BM yesterday it was pretty thick and almost seemed to have some almost chunks in it. That is also NOT normal for a baby his age who is exclusively nursed.

Could it be from eating so much fruit?

That is what I am wondering. I feel best doing Dr. Graham's 811 approach which is high in fruit and low in fat. I cannot eat nuts/seeds in fact if I do he gets even worse with the itching and scratching etc... I cannot digest them and it makes me feel terrible.

I also don't do well with grains, even the buckwheat isn't doing well with me.

Well that leaves me with fruit and greens which is pretty much what I eat.

When I eat high raw I eat more veggies only because if I eat cooked beans or cooked veggies it holds me longer than eating raw veggies. I also can't eat many veggies raw.

So, back to my problem...... I am wondering if it is normal for babies to react to mom eating a lot of fruit.

I am so frustrated. He was up every two hours last night...12, 2, 4, and up at 6. I just don't know what else to do. This happens every time I am 100%.

Any ideas?

Thanks so much!

[Rawkinlocs]

Hi Faith,

Well, here are my "opinions":

1. You mentioned that your baby's bm's aren't normal for a baby exclusively nursing...I think that what we have learned to be "normal" is based on cooked food-eating moms just as birth-weight charts are based on SAD-eating kids.

2. An all or mostly fruit diet is very cleansing...it COULD be that your baby's bowels are eliminating based on what you WERE eating when you weren't eating all raw. In other words, the fruit is pushing out the other stuff...the steamed and/or baked veggies, etc.

3. It could also be if you're consuming any raw cruciferious veggies that that is what might be causing him to be gassy and his bm's to smell. You know certain veggies have certain "odors" such as collard greens, broccoli, cauliflower for example. I don't know if you've been eating any of those or not, but if so, maybe try marinating them first to soften them down a bit to simulate steamed but not stripping the nutrients. If you're eating the darker leafy greens, massage a little olive oil into the leaves to soften or if you own a dehydrator, you can marinate and dehydrate until slightly softened/wilted.

But I would also like to suggest maybe contacting Dr. Graham. I mean, I'm sure he's worked with nursing moms who follow the 811 diet and he can give you some great insight into this!

If you don't want to do a consult with him, perhaps visit the vegsource board where he posts and pose the question there. Either he or one of the other members there who follow his method might be able to help you.

[rawpriestess]

I know my mom nursed us when we were little and she said that if she smoked or had onions or chocolate that we reacted very badly to that.

When I nursed my son, he would react very badly too when I ate certain foods that were intense, such as chocolate, onion, garlic, etc.

[faith4u]

Thanks so much!

That was very helpful. It is funny that you should mention it but I have been on a collard green wrap Roll. I have been eating them every day. I'll bet that is what is happening.

I also totally understand that the BM's could be the cooked food coming out also.

As far as the itching goes I think it is because I have been eating some nuts over the last few days. I also get very itchy after eating them. In fact, my elbows are full of red, itchy bumps right now. They have been really bad in the last few days. Yesterday was my first day without the nuts. I will have to see how he does if I stop the collard greens for a little bit along with the nuts.

As far as the BM's go I will have to stick it out longer and see if they get back to normal.

I did email Dr. Graham but haven't heard back from him yet so we will see.


Thank you both so much. I knew I could count on you!!

[Rawkinlocs]

Yep, might definitely be those collards girlie! ;)

Maybe make a softer wrap like how those (yummy, though not raw) stuffed grape leaves are by, again, massaging and marinating the leaves and then stuffing with your favorites. That might help...try it and see!

Also, have you tried using chard instead for your wraps? I had some innard stuff left over from my Saturday class and decided to have a wrap for lunch today. I almost reached for the collard, but then decided to try it on a leaf of chard (I have rainbow chard) and it's really good. Collard tends to have a somewhat strong flavor, with the chard, ALL I taste is the veggies and marinade inside! The chard seems to be milder and even softer than the collard leaves...so maybe that might be better!

[faith4u]

Thanks Rawkinlocs,

I was thinking of trying some lettuce leaves too. I love those darned collard greens. I don't know why but it just hits the spot. I hadn't had them in weeks and then all of a sudden I have had them daily since going 100% again. Very funny!

I never thought about what you said before that it would affect him when I go from cooked to raw totally by showing up in his BM's. That really shows the power of the raw diet, huh?

Dr. D answered my email and asked for more information of what I have been eating. I am awaiting his opinion too. We'll see.....

[karenisraw]

Make sure you are absolutely getting enough B-12 methylcobalamin. That has to do with you central nervous system. Methylcobalamin is the only form of B-12 that is used in the nervous system. It has to do with healthy brain function and without it or enough of it, deficiency can cause neurological damage. I know because I had a deficiency and am dealing with it with high doses of B-12 methylcobalamin.

k :) :cool:

[faith4u]

Well Rawkinlocs, you were right. Big suprise huh? ;)

Dr. Graham said that collards are just too tough for my baby. He suggested I take a few days and eat really simply like all bananas and then let him know how the baby is doing. So I am going to do that and give our systems a break.

Thanks so much for your information. You are so great at what you do.

Karen,

Thanks for the B12 information. I take it regularly (not daily) and so do my children. I will have to look at what kind mine is. I am going to the hfs today so I can get something else if I need to.

[Boysenberry]

Wow I am so impressed that Dr. Graham responded! Awesome!

Thanks for starting this thread. As most of you know, I will need the advice here in a few more months! :D

[Bobbie]

Babies need fat for their growing brains and also because some vitamins are fat soluble. Human milk contains more fat than cows milk, and the more omega 3 the mother eats, the more omega 3 in the milk (unlike other nutrients which have a limit). Human milk also contains lauric acid, a saturated fat which has been shown to improve brain development in both raths and human babies - this is found in coconuts.
You may feel better with little fat, but your baby won't. Try eating coconut meat/juiced meat/oil, and see if he improves. You also need more omega 3 than the greens will give you.

Chimpanzees, our closest relative, eat 50% fruit, 40% greens, so if your diet is mostly fruit and greens, that's great :)

[Bobbie]

Do you also supplement with vitamin D?

[faith4u]

Thanks Bobbie. Yes, my diet is mostly greens and fruit. I can eat avocados but I tend to only have a little bit a few times per week.

I was trying a little bit of coconut oil in the morning last week but have stopped because I didn't know if that was part of his intense itching and clawing at his head.

His stinky gas is gone since I stopped eating the collard greens. So that is good. His BM's are better too.

Now if only I can figure out what is causing the extreme itching.

It's funny that you asked about the Vit D. I don't take it regularly like I did before getting pregnant with him.

I have extremely low Vit D levels and was diagnosed with osteoporosis when I was 30 (I am now 32). My bone dr. wants me to take very high levels of vit. D. When I asked about the safety of doing that while nursing he didn't know. He was going to check into it and then get back to me. I haven't heard anything for months. He is impossible to get information from on the phone. I know I need to pursue it but haven't taken the time.

I am trying to be more mindful of getting out in the sun more often but in all honesty I'm not doing a very good job of it.

[ambiguous]

I personally think the 811 plan is too much sugar and not enough fat and protein for most humans. Others who have tried it think so too: http://www.rawfoodinfo.com/hotline/Jan06_hotline.html You need to scroll down a little to see the 811 stuff; there are both pro- and anti-811 plan accounts there.
I respect your decision to take whatever steps necessary to make you feel your best, and I certainly understand that we all (even babies!) go through a transition period of not feeling well until we feel great when we switch to all raw, but please keep your baby's health at the forefront. Shazzie is raising an all-raw baby, and she supplements with vitamin D, among other things. You can read her journal here: http://www.shazzie.com/raw/journal/
The most recent months have lots of mothery stuff.