Talking Allergies

Hi All,
Not sure if anyone else feels this way too but...
My 18 mo old is allergic to dairy. We found out around 4.5 mos. I have been soooooooo cautious (totally gun-shy) about adding new foods. No time ever seems like the right time. He still has never had eggs, beef, pork, spinach, tomato, citrus, melon, berries, seeds, nuts, etc. Has anyone else had a similar experience? Am I nuts?

I can understand why that would be scary. What do medical folks suggest you do? (Not that medical professionals always know what's best!)

When they try them, have your epi-pen ready and be close to a hospital. That's what I would do.

I can completely empathize with you... my son is 14 months and allergic to dairy (found out at 9 months)... he's been to an allergist and was tested for soy (neg), wheat (neg - but we are going back to re-check), egg (pos), nuts (neg). I HATE trying new foods with him! I dab everything on his cheek first and wait about 15 minutes. If nothing happens, I give him a small taste. If nothing happens, I give him a bit more the next day. And so on... it is nerve-wracking!
I am still avoiding giving him the big allergens, like fish, pork, citrus, strawberries, etc. Probably unitl he is at least 2.
Let me know if you want to chat further on this issue! good luck!

My 2 1/2 year old still has a long list of foods I am to scared to try. Before we found out about her egg allergy, I rubbed some on her back and waited for a reaction. When she reacted, I washed it off and gave her benadryll. I like using the back instead of the face. If they are going to react, its not as close to their mouth, and not as likely that they will touch it and put their hand in their mouth.

I through caution to the wind, thinking I was paranoid one day and let her try chicken without doing a skin test first. That resulted in a trip to the er! She is allergic, we are just waiting for the official test, but the swollen face was proof enough already.

From now on, I'm doing the skin test on the back first.

Youngvader, you surprised me with your last post. Thats not like you to suggest something like that? Were you feeling like yourself that day? Or had your uncle hacked into your computer and was posting under your name?

Maybe I had a momentary lapse of reason. :p

I would never do and I would not advocte doing it but if you are going to do it and if you really want to try, at least be intelligent about it.

Not like the husband of a lawyer I use to work with last year. He wanted to eat Chinese food with peanut butter sauce. He brought his epi-pen and did it anyway. It took too long from the time he injected himself from the time he was brought to the hospital. He did not died. He's not a vegetable because his brain was deprived of oxygen. Good call!

I think that we were refering to new foods that our little allergy prone kids haven't tried yet. I had no reason to suspect that chicken would cause a reation. It was a new food.

The trouble with little kids is that their allergens ( my 2 year olds being to milk, eggs, and now chicken and beef) are only their known allergens. Everytime they try a new food it feels like "a food challenge". There are many foods she has not tried. Fish and all nuts are being strictly avoided until she is tested and comes back neg. more than once. Other foods like kiwi, oranges, sesame seeds, sunflower seeds...and the list goes on, I'm just nervous to try. She has lived this long without them, and it never seems like the right time to risk a reaction. If its free time, I'd rather spend it having fun with the kids than a surprise trip to the er.

Wow...am I ever glad I found this forum. My son is 15 months old and I am constantly nervous about anything he eats...He is milk and egg allergic...He is also on Neocate -an outrageously expensive formula that I am no longer covered for...Thankfully, he seems to enjoy rice milk and soy....I would love to introduce him to other things but I am so paranoid -It is like every new food is a week long challenge.....
Amags -I'm in the same boat as you...

I see this is an old thread, but I've just finally read it, and wanted to say I'm grateful to have the suggestion of "skin testing" new foods on ds's back. I too feel very anxious about trying new foods with him, so this would at least alleviate that a little. Maybe.

It's definitely a scary thing - introducing new foods. I think doing it very gradually is an excellent idea, and I would probably do only 1 new food a week.

If anyone wants it, I have a copy of a protocol called "Introducing New Foods to Allergic Infants" that was given to me by a hospital dietitian. It describes how to introduce new foods, and saved us a major reaction when I (slowly) introduced my youngest to barley. He was wheat-allergic at the time, and I was a bit leery of barley because it cn be cross-reactive with wheat. He did react, but I had only given him about 1/4 tsp (as per the instructions) and so likely saved us a larger reaction. A skin prick test later confirmed Dr. Mom's diagnosis of barley allergy.

Anyway, if you want the doc, just PM me.

K.

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Karen, proud Mom of
- DS1 (12 yrs): allergic to cashews, pistachios, Brazil nuts, potatoes, some legumes, some fish, pumpkin seeds; OAS
- DS2 (1o yrs): ana. to dairy, eggs, peanuts; asthma