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Hi Everyone!
I am nursing my daughter (Reidun) who is almost 8 months old (born 7/10/06). When she was a month old we found out she had food allergies/intolerances. Looking back, when she was a week old she started showing symptoms. Her main symptoms were blood and lots of mucus in her stools (blood showed up when she was a month old, green mucus filled stools, that were a bit foul smelling, started earlier), acting constipated (grunting, decreased amount of BMs, but stools were always soft) behavior that seemed like severe colic and skin problems like severe cradle cap (eczema?), acne and a mean looking diaper rash. At times she had problems with “spitting up” a lot and had to be propped up by pillows after she ate. Before she was diagnosed, I also felt she might be autistic. She wouldn’t make eye contact, showed no social interests, and would want to stare all day long at this orange plastic toy she had. ALL of these symptoms went away when I removed allergens from my diet (see list below), she is now the most social baby I have ever seen
!Reidun continues to have red rings around her eyes and blue/red bags under them (aka “allergic shiners”) that come and go in severity. She has an extra skin fold/line under her lower lid (aka “dennie lines”). She also seems to get a runny nose a lot (aka “allergic salute”). Many of these characteristics (aka “atopic face”) are common to children who have allergies. Here is a link to more information on this: http://www.drpaul.com/library/ALLERGYSIGNS.html And here is an article from Dr Sears on the common signs of food sensitivities: http://www.askdrsears.com/html/4/t041800.asp
She continues to have sleep problems. Perhaps the most frustrating aspect!
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Below is some information I have been collecting on Reidun:
Foods Reidun has been unable to tolerate through breast milk:
•All dairy (including butter)
•All soy (including soy bean oil/margarine)
•Almonds (only nut trial) (only food that has caused a rash so far)
•EggsFoods Reidun has been unable to tolerate directly:
•Nutramagin (blood in stools after 24hrs, severe mucus, took 2 weeks for stools to return to normal)
•Alimentum, both powdered and prepared liquid (immediate crankiness, small amounts of blood and mucus in her stools, took 2 weeks for stools to return to normal, seemed to respond worse to Nutramagin)
•Oats (took 24hrs to notice blood in her stools, severe mucus, crankiness—took 2 weeks for stools to return to normal)
•Rice? (OK as long as she is not given over 1T daily—she was given more once—had blood in her stool, even with small amounts she acts constipated)Foods Reidun has been able to tolerate:
•Rice? (OK as long as she is not given over 1T daily—she was given more once—had blood in her stool, even with small amounts she acts constipated)
•Winter squash
•Sweet Potato
•Apple
•Green Beans
•Chicken•Pears
Family History
Paternal Side
Father had severe eczema, lasted into his late teens. (We have found that “Urea Cream” works wonders for dry skin.) Both mother and sister have eczema. He is severely allergic to <ST1:COUNTRY-REGIon>brazil</ST1:COUNTRY-REGIon> buts, moderately to walnuts, mildly to peanuts. Might have allergies to cashews and macadamia nuts. Is OK with almonds and hazelnuts.He had GI difficulties as a child—unknown cause, possibly related to stress. His sister was in the hospital frequently as a child due to GI Problems?
Maternal Side
No food allergies. Multiple skin allergies: rug freshener, pesticides, grass?, fabric softener, lavender, some deodorants, soaps, shampoos, conditioners and fragrances.Had to be placed on massive doses of prednisone for almost 6 months after an allergic reaction (raised, weepy rash to entire body, one eye swelled shut) to a rug freshener with a pesticide in it in 2001.
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We have not been to an allergist yet, when we go, we would like to talk about the possibility of performing various allergy tests:
•Skin prick testing (SPT)
•Total IgE
•Allergen specific IgE
•CAP RAST blood test (better for determining reactions to certain foods-tests IgG and IgE?)
•RASP blood test (more sensitive to food allergies-tests IgG and IgE?)
•ELISA/ACT blood test (tests for delayed hypersensitivity, type II, III, IV)
•Secretory IgA Assay (measures the functional state of mucosal immunity)
__________________________Some things I have learned that might help other nursing mothers out there–it takes “a couple” to “a few” days for allergens to leave your milk after you have consumed an allergenic food (based on information from “Colic Solved: The Essential Guide to Infant Reflux and the Care of Your Crying, Difficult-to- Soothe Baby” by Bryan Vartabedian). Some mothers with MFPI/MSPI have reported it can take up to 2 weeks!
From my own experience, it seems to take about 4 days.
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Some things I wish I could go back and change: (1) try harder to limit myself to organic whole foods while pregnant, (2) try to avoid all high allergen foods while pregnant, (3) take omega 3 supplements or cod liver oil (1 teaspoon daily) while pregnant, (4) try to avoid taking antibiotics prior to birth ((I was given PCN (which my husband is allergic to—Reidun might be sensitive to via genetics) due to being diagnosed strep B positive) there is also a theory that antiobiotic use may lead to allergies), (5) take probiotics while pregnant and then continued taking them while breastfeeding, started Reidun on probiotics right after birth, and finally, (6) instead of eliminating foods one by one when she was diagnosed with “food allergies”, I would have started the TED diet and then reintroduced foods one by one, and kept a food journal.
http://www.newmediaexplorer.org/chris/2004/01/13/cod_liver_o il_number_one_superfood.htm article on cod liver oil, discusses benefits of taking it during pregnancy, breastfeeding and giving it to young children
http://www.babycentre.co.uk/pregnancy/nutr…fety/fishoilexp ert/ information on taking fish oil when pregnant
http://www.bounty.com/News.aspx?Article=18075782 article on pregnancy diet & allergies
http://www.mercola.com/2002/feb/27/probiotics.htm article titled Beneficial Bacteria (Probiotics) During Pregnancy & Breastfeeding Helps Protect Against Eczema
http://www.mercola.com/2001/apr/14/probiotics.htm article titled Beneficial Bacteria (Probiotics) May Halt Allergies In Babies
http://www.mercola.com/2001/apr/14/probiotics2.htm article titled Probiotics In Primary Prevention Of Atopic Disease
Many MSPI/MFPI mothers have recommended this probiotic: Bluebonnet Milk Free Acidophilus (Powder)
__________________________Here are two books I think any parent with children who have food allergies/intolerances should get:
1. The Whole Foods Allergy Cookbook: Two Hundred Gourmet & Homestyle Recipes for the Food Allergic Family by Cybele Pascal (I LOVE this book–really, really good recipes)
Also, check out her blog that has free recipes: http://www.allergycookbook.blogspot.com
2. The Parent’s Guide to Food Allergies: Clear and Complete Advice from the Experts on Raising Your Food-Allergic Child by Marianne S. Barber (The author includes a section on foods that are related that is very helpful)
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Below are some other helpful links/websites (many provided by other mothers with babies who have Multiple Food Protein Intolerance (MFPI) and Milk Soy Protein Intolerance (MSPI)):
http://www.emedicine.com/ped/topic1908.htm emedicine article on protein intolerance
http://www.emedicine.com/med/topic806.htm emedicine article on food allergies
http://home.vicnet.net.au/~disa/Food%20intol-alergic%20baby. html good description of MSPI, MFPI and more
http://pediatrics.aappublications.org/cgi/content/full/111/4 /829 food protein-induced enterocolitis syndrome (FPIES)
http://www.foodyoucaneat.com when this site is running, it is great and free, you can individualize your diet using their search engine
http://www.askdrsears.com search for elimination diet—for TED diet http://www.askdrsears.com/html/4/t041200.asp
http://allergyadvisor.com/Educational/December_2.htm good information on allergic reactions, provides more links
http://www.kellymom.com/babyconcerns/food-sensitivity.html web site for breastfeeding mothers, really good links
http://users.bigpond.net.au/allergydietitian/ information on food allergies and sensitivities, useful tools
http://users.bigpond.net.au/allergydietitian/fa/wean.html
http://users.bigpond.net.au/allergydietitian/fa/sympcheck.ht ml .
http://users.bigpond.net.au/allergydietitian/fa/diary.html
Here are some other topics/links I have put togther on this site:
https://www.infantreflux.org/forum/forum_posts.asp?TID=7731&a mp;a mp;a mp;a mp;a mp;a mp;a mp;a mp;a mp;a mp;a mp;a mp;a mp;a mp;a mp;a mp;a mp;a mp;a mp;a mp;a mp;a mp;a mp;a mp;PN=1 cut and pasted recipes from Cybele Pascal and BabyCakes Bakery, NYC
https://www.infantreflux.org/forum/forum_posts.asp?TID=7758&a mp;a mp;a mp;a mp;a mp;a mp;a mp;a mp;a mp;a mp;a mp;a mp;a mp;a mp;a mp;a mp;a mp;a mp;a mp;a mp;a mp;a mp;a mp;a mp;PN=1 links to other related support groups
https://www.infantreflux.org/forum/forum_posts.asp?TID=7774&a mp;a mp;a mp;a mp;a mp;a mp;a mp;a mp;a mp;a mp;a mp;a mp;a mp;a mp;a mp;a mp;a mp;a mp;a mp;a mp;a mp;a mp;a mp;a mp;PN=1 information on NAET, an alternative treatment
https://www.infantreflux.org/forum/forum_posts.asp?TID=853&am p;am p;am p;am p;am p;am p;am p;am p;am p;am p;am p;am p;am p;am p;am p;am p;am p;am p;am p;PN=1&TPN=1 a very informative posting by Laura, a “Self-Proclaimed Volunteer Moderator” of this site, provides good information on medications, many of the links I have listed are from her
https://www.infantreflux.org/forum/forum_posts.asp?TID=8121&a mp;TPN=1 stool pictures
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Has anyone ever tried to follow a rotation diet for allergies? Rotation diets seem like a good thing to follow. Unfortunately, the recipes in the food rotation book I have seem so boring and lacking in variety. I would think it would be even more important for a person with multiple food allergies, who becomes sensitive to foods he/she eats over and over again to have a diet rich in variety?
__________________________Below is a table I put together based on the fundamentals of a 4 day rotation diet and the information I gained from the table “Sequence of Adding Solid Foods for the Allergic Infant” in the book “Managing Food Allergy & Intolerance.” This is the solid food menu I am going to start following for my 7-month old daughter. It should be used for infants 6 to 9 months of age. Before I start it, I will make sure she can tolerate all these foods first by introducing one new food item at a time (every three days to a week). It is important to cook everything.
Day 1 Pear, Rice, Sweet Potato, Green Bean
Day 2 Peach/Apricot, Turkey, Cabbage, Broccoli
Day 3 Blueberry, Millet, Winter Squash, Beet
Day 4 Banana, Lamb, Carrot, Potato
At 9 months I’ll introduce other foods based on the table in the book. This table is available on-line:
http://www.hallpublications.com/title2_sample2.htmlThis is another table titled “Joneja Food Allergen Scale” available from the same book:
http://www.hallpublications.com/title2_sample1.htmlHere is information on following a rotation diet:
http://www.food-allergy.org/page2.html
http://www.specialfoods.com/rotationdietexample.htmlI hope this information will help other parents out there!
Thank you! Heidi
Heidi T.2007-08-09 19:19:25
Oh crap…I think she does. Ahhhhhhhhh! What does this mean? She’s happy as a clam on Alimentum and hasn’t had any obvious/bad reactions to different foods she’s tried.
Help!!!!
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