Could Total Change in Sleep Be Linked to Milk Intolerance?

Of my twin four year olds, one was diagnosed with an allergy to cow milk at 15 months. She did okay on formula (if seemed), but every 3-4 days she would belch this really harsh sounding burp then vomit up mucusy cottage cheese looking gunk. Like projectile vomit. Out the nose even.
Pediatrition kept saying she was having a reflux 'relapse' from being premmie. My Mom kept saying it sounded like allergy to her but the Ped didn't think so. We took her to a gastroenterologist at Childrens Hospital and she determined it WAS a milk allergy.
Anyway, sister has complained of tummy pain for about two years. We have tried all kinds of things and I finally took her to the same gastro. After blood tests and barium x-rays showed nothing, we tried lactose free, lower sugar (no sugar without fiber) and added probiotics. She is lactose intolerant and is one of those kids that stays a bit constipated. So lactase enzyme and miralax.
Both girls would have restless nights and whining in their sleep, until the problems were discovered. I asked the ped gastro why DD #1 on vomitted every 3-4 days if she was allergic and got milk every day. She said that her body was delaying absorbtion of the milk protein as it "knew" it wasn't good for her and since her body didn't want to absorb it it came back up curdled due to stomach acid and full of mucus because her body was trying to coat her stomach to protect it from absorbing the proteins.
Amazing what our bodies will do to protect itself!

Sure sounds like he cannot drink milk. His body might be handling it a little better, but if he's uncomfortable - tummy hurting, gassy, etc, sure, that would keep him up at night. There are two possible causes, one is that he's lactose intolerant - he cannot process lactose, the sugar in the milk. The other is that he's intolerant of cow's milk protein.

My son is not lactose intolerant. He is intolerant of milk protein. The difference is this - if I give him Lactaid milk, he still gets an upset tummy, even though there is no lactose in it. It's the cow's milk proteins themselves that are the problem. That said, my son can eat milk products where the milk protein is partially broken down, such as yogurt and some cheeses.

We learned this by, at our ped's advice, waiting until he was feeling good. Then, tried substituting Lactaid milk for the rice milk. It only took one day, and he was several times that night - very restless and sometimes crying, little sleep. Back to rice milk, and in a few days he was fine again.

Also, I found that pediatricians are not as open to this idea as I think they should be. Although I generally like my ped, and after 2 years repeating myself over and over, he did finally put milk protein allergy on my son's chart, I learned most of what I needed to know about milk protein intolerance from other moms.

I'm lactose intolerant and yes he could have been having difficulty sleeping because of the milk. Even tho he didn't have the outside signs of the intolerance his gut may have been hurting and he probably had gas. Stop giving him milk.

We do not outgrow lactose intolerance. He always needs to stay away from milk. Our bodies can deal with it once in awhile but if we keep drinking milk our body becomes less and less able to tolerate the lactose.

You have to stop giving him the milk for 2 weeks for the milk protein to be completely out of his system. After 2 weeks, then the lack of regular sleep patter could be attributed to something different.

I can not drink milk anymore. I had a glass last night with dinner, and my stomach was gasey/bubbley last night and this morning.

Good Luck

You already KNOW he's lactose intolerant. The milk is making him sick, so yes, it could be disrupting his sleep. Lactose intolerance causes:

~painful gas
~painful bloating
~diarrhea
~constipation
~the literal inability to digest lactose aka milk sugars which means as it goes through the digestive system, particularly the large intestines, it's VERY PAINFUL.

You have to completely remove milk, cream, and milk derivatives from his diet. I know it sounds daunting, but no matter how gradually you try to introduce it and reintroduce it he just isn't going to take to it. You have to read ingredient labels and eliminate:

milk
cream
powdered milk
condensed milk
whey
casein
caseinate
butterfat
milkfat
cheese
yogurt

Your pediatrician is not an expert in this, so you need to go to a pediatric gastroenterologist. Request a breath test where they will have him fast for an overnight and then give him a lactose solution in the office the next morning. At evenly spaced out intervals they'll test his breath for nitrogen. If he has ANY nitrogen in his breath, he's lactose intolerant. They can also test for milk protein allergy because with his inability to eat yogurt, that may signify an allergy (real yogurt is typically already 'digested' by live bacteria cultures and therefore safe to eat if lactose intolerance is the only issue). He may be "mostly" lactose intolerant and that's why he can eat some cheese or small amounts of ice cream.

You need to completely eliminate it ALL from his diet, though. Just do it. After a pedi gastro specialist tests him, they'll hook you up with a pediatric nutritionist. That's a very important step. If he does NOT have a milk protein allergy, he'll be able to eat things that are labeled lactose-free like Breyer's or Lactaid Lactose-Free Vanilla Ice Cream. Or Kraft orange American cheese slices. Or pizza made with Kraft shredded mozzarella or other products that state in nutrition information "0 grams of lactose."

A full elimination diet is much longer than "a few nights." It takes TWO FULL WEEKS for the body to rid itself of all dairy and another two weeks to figure out how to work properly without it. That means an elimination diet done properly is four full weeks or more. The elimination diet is ruined if you break down and let him have ANYTHING he shouldn't have.

I don't know too much about lactose intolerance, but milk protein* intolerances cause a thickening of mucus fluids, which leads to chronic earaches, as well as loose stools and mood changes. The mucus thing could definitely affect sleep. As far as I know, the only way to test this is to get 100% of milk products out of his diet, including cheese, baked goods cooked with milk, everything. See if that makes a difference.

* There's a very common misunderstanding about lactose intolerance and milk protein (caesin) intolerance, but lactose is a sugar and milk protein is a protein, so chemically they're very different. Most kids outgrow the protein intolerance, but lactose intolerance is usually a lifelong thing.

I think it could. This is just based on anecdotal evidence of mom's I know who nursed and went to a totally milk- free diet once kid #2 came around. The second child was always a great sleeper, in total contrast to child #1.

I think it is just hard to settle down when your stomach is in knots.

He may not be lactose (milk sugar)intolerant but casein (milk protein) intolerant. Aged cheeses become less of an issue because the aging process breaks down the protein slightly.