liver problem with toddler?

[gazoo]

my grandson is 2 years old. his mother , my daughter, a single mother conceived him in alcohol and found out after 2 months of her pregnancy while drinking those first 2 months on average a 6 pack of beer or more nightly. after she discovered she was pregnant, she said she cut down tremendously during the rest of her pregnancy, (but i have some doubts on "how much" she really cut down).  my grandson was a full term baby but born 6lbs 7 oz, a little under weight for a full term baby. he looked to be fine at birth altho he was put on 24 hour respirator the first 24 hours after birth. He had excessive spit up problems and failure to thrive and gain the proper amount of weight for the first few months of his life. The babiy's peditircian recomended a specialist but my daughter didnt want to follow thru with any specialists at that time, and she didnt and after the few months, those spit up problems went away and he seemed fine, but still he still remained under weight even to this current day.His mother has nursed from birth and continued since birth to drink at least a 6 pack of beer nightly and sometimes more, but on average a 6 pack.  He is now 25 lbs and 32.5 inches tall at 27 months old and he is off the chart in his weight compared to other 24 month olds, meaning 100% of all 24 month olds weight more than he does.  He has seemed to have more bouts of sicknesses with  vomiting than seems normal in his 27 months of life. He recently got sick and my daughter told me there was some "rodo or robo" (?) virus going round and that is why he was vomiting for a week straight on and off.  it turned out that during this same time period and  only maybe 5 days after  the illness that he had subsided, his  2 yr check up was due with his pediatrician. It turns out she took a liver panel  and the results were An AST OF 100, An ALP OF 266, AND A SGPT OF 148-50. the doctor re-tested a week later (which was yesterday) and my daughter called the next day (today) and told me his tests came out all in normal range now. first of all i cant beleive that the tests taken were available the very next day. but also i am suspicious that the tests all came out normal one week later. She told me her doctor said he probably contracted some virus (it wasnt hep a cuz he was tested for hep a and came out negative), and some virus or other was probably the reason for the elevated liver tests. why am i suspicious? for obvious reasons, her alcoholic lifestyle, and i do get on her about my grandsons health becuz she nurses him still and continues to drink at least a 6 pack a day and i feel some of his health problems might be attributred to that. so my question is three fold. #1. can his liver function be as i described and then be completely normal a  week later? and she says the doctor doesn't need to see her again at all for a year. im just real suspicious of alll of this. #2. can nursing a lot of alcohol from a mothers milk affect his liver function and cause his liver to be affected or cuase health problems for him? #3. what do you think is the problem with my grandson based on what i have told you? or could he have been born with a liver or heart defect and that is what could be the cause of these liver tests being elevated and since they are supposably normal now in a week, and how possilbe is it that no one has reconized a possible link to a liver or heart defect possibly due to fetal exposure to alcohol?  it would be hard to make the link tho becuz my daughter would never admit to drinking to any doctor. i think either my daughter isnt be up front with me becuz she has become defensive, or maybe the doctor is missing something here. I feel like i have a duty to the health of my grandson but yet i cant get my daughter to be upfront with me and completley truthful with me as she is defensive about her alcohol drinking. I feel it strange that the doctor doesnt want to see him again for a year. Im not a meddling grandmother but i feel it is my duty to oversee the health of my grandson since my daughter is a single mom and in a constant state of denial about the harms of alcohol to his health. or tell me that your think her drinking and nursing isnt a factor in his health to releive my worries.  please advise and answer my questions the best you can. thank you, concerned grandmother

[cuteus]

when the life of a child is at stake there is no such thing as meddling in the US as far as child protection laws go.  You are probably right, since you have seen your daughter's behavior first hand, in assuming there is more to the story.  If in your heart you feel that your son needs someone's intervention, you must consider calling the ped's office and alert him of the alcohol situation.  I strongly suggest that you contact La leche league for the most updated information on breastfeeding and alcohol comsumption. Their website is lalecheleague.org. This way you have powerful information that you can use to make a decission on your grandson's behalf.  This could be considered child endagerment, and it is against the law.
I know you might not want to consider this, but a call to the child protective services could save his life and your daughter's.  They will investigate in detail, and then decide if they need to intervene.
Please don't wait. even if the blood tests are normal, his life and health are in jeopardy.

[thanbey]

There is no question in my mind that child protective services should be involved in this case.

An alcoholic mother who breastfeeds is feeding her child alcohol mixed with the breast milk.

Her poor judgement, irresponsibility and lack of insight have contributed to this poor child's failure to thrive. If he does not get the proper nutrition, for just one thing, to mitigate this damage by the age of three, his chances of having normal brain function for the rest of his life is reduced. He likely will be learning impaired at minimum. His IQ can be compromised and his nervous system (due to lack of B vitamins from alcohol consumption) will be underdeveloped. He may already have fetal alcohol syndrome, but it is being made worse everyday this woman feeds him alcohol through the breastmilk.

This is not a matter of meddling. This child needs someone in his corner NOW. What on earth is the matter with his pediatrician?

Calling child protective services is just the beginning of what you need to do. Stay on top of this situation so that your daughter is not able to bamboozle the professionals in this case like she has bamboozled you for so long. You are the only one that can do that.

Save this child's life, please. You are the only one who is in a position to do so. I hope you will.

thanbey