Re: Soy Formula
By: Emily H (12:29 PM 09/08/2010)Hoping I can shed some light on why your doctor threw such a fit about leaving pregestimil. There are certain amino acid based formulas that allow for maximum absorption and nutrition for patients. The basic structure of these formulas is different, simpler, and as a result is easier to absorb. Pregestimil is one. Elecare and Neocate are others. They're the kind of go-to formulas for patients with Short Gut because they're proven to be able to be absorbed when the gut can't absorb anything else.
The intestine is actually made up of different segments, each designated to absorb different types of nutrients. When parts are missing and you're trying to adapt, you may need a special formula that's more basic and easier to digest.
Soy isn't amino acid based, it's not one of these simple formulas... which is probably why your doctor freaked out. That said, if your child is allergic to lactose, you're may have to explore non-lactose options because you're obviously not going to get anywhere if the body rejects the formula outright and it never makes it into the system.
If your doctor is pushing for you to try different lactose-based formulas, you probably need to go simpler, not more complex. Pregestimil is the only short-gut friendly formula I know of that you can get in stores. So if that's not working, you might see if you can get samples of Elecare or Neocate. (I know my hospital's dietician always has samples or sample request cards on hand for these products.) But I wouldn't go to another off-the-shelf brand.
You may need to involve an allergist and/or dietician in this case because you're dealing with something much more complex than your average parents of an otherwise healthy child discovering a lactose allergy. Your child has different nutritional needs and it may be that you need to experiment with different brand or concentrations of formula to find something your daughter can both tolerate AND absorb. And the solution may not be something you'll find on your own in the grocery store.
Hope this helps.