Does anyone out there have a nursing baby with multiple food alergies?

Sharleen - posted on 09/02/2012

Ladies I dont know where you all are but in england we have children who are ALLERGIC to foods BUT we also have children who are INTOLLERANT to foods



Allergic should NEVER be eaten again

INTOLLERANT is remove from diet for 3-4months the TRY in SMALL amounts



Have you thought about reducing the times you feed him and putting him on more solids instead as you dont say in your post if hes on any solids



Just found your second post .....wooooooooooooooow I am allergic to Olive oil!!!

Nicola - posted on 08/27/2012

HI my daughter is 11 months and the only solid foods she has is rice pumpkin and potato everything else she has a reaction to. I tested her at 6 months as I suspected food allergies even when exclusively breastfeeding as she would scream and cry. She is allergic to milk eggs soy nuts shellfish. Also she gets a reaction if I eat those foods so even I avoid most foods and have lost weight and am tired all the time. its so frustrating as I dont even know what food to try next. It is a very difficult situation. So do try and watch ur diet as well as he might be reacting to it

Melanie - posted on 11/12/2008

Hi Jennifer, Neocate makes a hypoallergenic formula. I'm not sure where you're living, but I know that in New Zealand (where I live), Canada and the UK if a Dr. prescribes it you can get it quite cheaply. Otherwise it's about $120NZ a tin (yikes!). I'm in the same boat (nursing an 8 month old with allergies). My naturopath also said that I could have goat's milk or A2 milk - that they are both different from regular cows milk when it comes to allergies. My little one seems to be okay with goat's milk. Best of luck.
Melanie

Jennifer - posted on 11/12/2008

Thanks Tiffany for your advice. My son loves avocado too and he eats 2/3 of one every day with a little olive oil on it. And he eats lots of beans too. I don't know why he only gained 3 lbs. in 5 months. He doesn't look skinny to me but when I think about how chubby my daughter was at his age then he does seem a little skinny. He is in the 20th percentile for his weight but I hope that will change. He hasn't had the eczema but my daughter did and still does. She only gets it on her sides. Our poor children. I sure hope your son and mine grow out of their allergies. Thanks.

Tiffany - posted on 11/12/2008

I'm not sure about the peanut oil thing - I've been too scared to risk it. I started supplementing with rice milk when he was about 1. The way I discovered his soy & dairy allergy was through introducing those milks - bad choice on my part! Even though rice milk doesn't have any protein in it it sounds like your son is a good enough eater not to worry too much about it. Also - the thing that kept me from second guessing all the time whether my son was getting enough nutrition was finding out that avocado is a complete protein. My son LOVES avocado - when he first started taking to solid foods he would eat an entire avocado a day - which made me feel better knowing it was full of vitamins, nutrition and protein. I say if you can find one food like that that he will eat - and if he's already a good eater - you don't need too worry too much about the milk thing. Pick up some rice milk and see if he'll take it out of a bottle or sippy cup? And just to put your mind at ease a little - my son is really a terrible eater - some days I can hardly get him to eat anything - he's just not interested - but he is still developing wonderfully and he's a totally fine weight - so I think it tends to all equal out in the end (though I know it's impossible to stop worrying!).

Jennifer - posted on 11/12/2008

I hope I am not drying up. I wouldn't really have anything to supplement in place of my milk since almost all affordable formulas have soy, corn, or dairy in them. Do you know of anything if that is the problem. Your poor son. I haven't eaten any peanuts since finding out he has all of these allergies just in case. I have heard that people that have a peanut allergy can have peanut oil. Do you know anything about that?

Beth - posted on 11/12/2008

I also nursed a child with multiple food allergies until the age of 14 months. It was difficult on both of us, but definitely worth it. I agree that he may not be getting enough and that may be why he is crying when he is nursing. It is also possible that there is a bit of reflux going on related to the allergies. My oldest had a type of reflux that didn't cause a lot of spitting up, but definitely caused pain. Your son is old enough for the skin testing if you are concerned that there are additional allergies, but it may be time to start supplementing with some type of hypoallergenic formula to see if that helps. I'm a huge breastfeeding supporter, but I definitely understand that each situation is different. Each of my kids had to be weaned at different times for various reasons, some of which were really difficult decisions for me. I wish you the best.

Tiffany - posted on 11/12/2008

Hi Jennifer - I also have a son with multiple food allergies - he's allergic to dairy, eggs, soy, peanuts, and most tree nuts. I'm also a vegetarian. My son is now almost 3 and still allergic to everything he was when he was tested at 1. I had a feeling allergies were going to be problem when at 3 months old he had an awful outbreak of eczema that never really cleared up. I solely nursed him for the first 13 months of his life as he was really slow to start eating any solids. When he turned one and we got him officially tested I went off of everything he was allergic to and that did wonders for clearing up the bulk of his eczema - though we still struggle with seasonal changes and very very dry skin. I noticed when my son turned 19 months - after I had cut all of the things he was allergic to out of my diet and his - he also started getting really frustrated with nursing. He would ask for mommy's milk all the time, but then scream while nursing. I decided it must have been because he wasn't getting as much as he wanted - if any at all. I was hesitant to believe that "my milk would run out" as I thought that was an old wives tale - but when I decided to wean him at about 19 - 20 months he wasn't happy for about 2 days but then he stopped getting as frustrated and I started feeling more energetic. I, like you, had also lost a lot of weight and was just feeling tired all of the time. I don't know if this helps but I thought I would post knowing how agonizing it can be trying to figure all of this out with kids who have such severe allergies.