# foamy poop and vomiting



## pigirl (Apr 4, 2008)

Hi, folks. I'm hoping someone here can help; my pediatrician and lactation consultant haven't had any insights.

My son is 8 weeks old, about 2 1/2 weeks adjusted (he's a preemie, born at 34w 5d). He's been exclusively breastfeeding since he was 3 weeks old. Off and on throughout the past few weeks we've noticed that his poop was foamy. Like the consistency of shaving cream. Not every time, but now and then. This week he's also started vomiting up his entire feed after some feeds. It's been 3 times this week, twice on Tuesday and once today (Friday). When he vomits he's not upset or fussing at all, and then he just wants to eat again a few minutes later. Presumably because he just vomited up his whole meal. So my questions are: is the foamy poop related to the vomiting? And what on earth could be causing them?

I know I have an oversupply of milk, and he tends to choke and pop off now and then during feeds. I do single side feeding and try to burp him A LOT to try to help with that, but I'm not sure that's helping. Also, I don't eat dairy, and haven't had any in about 12 years (choice, not allergy), so I know that's not the issue.

Any advice/suggestions would be dearly appreciated. Esp. after his rocky start as a preemie, seeing him vomit up his hard-earned meals just breaks my heart.

Thanks.
Allison


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## mamareads (Jan 27, 2009)

You mentioned that you have an oversupply issue and I think that's at the heart of the problem. Did you LC or pedi mention foremilk/hindmilk imbalance and overactive letdown? (If they didn't, you might want to consider if they're the right people to turn to with breastfeeding questions...)

Here are some links you should look to:

http://www.llli.org/FAQ/oversupply.html

http://www.kellymom.com/bf/supply/fast-letdown.html

The vomiting could be from swallowing too much air. As his digestive system matures and his stomach gets bigger, he'll be able to handle his feedings better. Unless there are other symptoms (and you pedi doesn't seem concerned) he's probably drinking more milk than his stomach can hold so he's getting rid of the excess.

I hope this helps a little. I know it's tough, but hang in there! Things do get better.


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## Fly Girl (Jan 11, 2008)

It may be a dairy intolerance. My DD would have foamy green poop and would vomit up an entire feeding until I took out all dairy/soy. She'll still vomit now even if I have the slightest amount of dairy


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## pigirl (Apr 4, 2008)

Thanks, mamareads. That LLLI article is the first mention I've found anywhere about foamy poop. My pedi just said don't worry about it; my LC said she'd never heard of it. Neither had any ideas about the vomiting being related to supply/let-down either: ugh. I'll try the block feeding, maybe that will help. (I was disappointed that neither of them had any suggestions, given that Dr. Google seemed to have so many ideas.)

I know it's not a dairy issue; hopefully it's not a soy issue. But if I eat soy at virtually every meal, and he only vomits/has foamy poop every week or so, that's not likely to be it, is it?


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## LadyCatherine185 (Aug 12, 2008)

I second the foremilk/hindmilk inbalance. Try the block feeding like a PP mentioned. Good luck!


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