What should I ask a Dr?

[Yuliya]

Hello everyone,

My DD is 6mo and 1 week old and she is bf. We have started solids a coulple of weeks ago and I really suspect that she could be extremely allergic. She had a reaction to everything I gave her so far (pear, banana, rice cereal. Didn't dare to give anything else.) The reactions were hives on the face, green poop, diaper rash and her eczema got worse. We took her to the clinik last week for her 6mo vaccination and a public health nurse was very worried about DD's reaction to food and the way her skin looked. Last saturday we went to the children's hospital and the doctor there referred us to a dermatologist and an allergologist. We don't know when we will see them (could be anywhere between a month to 2.5 months of waiting).
Anyhow in the meantime I want to do some research on food allergies in babies and I would really apreciate if anyone can advise what kind of questions i should aks a doctor. I want to make a list of questions and be prepared before we go to see the doctor as it takes ages to get an appointment with them (iykwim). Just don't want to miss anything and I might considering how frustrated I am now.

thanks so much for your time.
Yuliya

[Jimbob]

I would definately ask the allergiest about allergy testing. In the UK it is hard to get babies tested but I have heard its easier in the US. Where are you from? If you are able to I would stop all solids until you get back to baseline. It might even be worth waiting until you have seen the allergiest. I know in the UK most dermatologists don't believe that eczema is flared by food allergies so you may get conflicting advice. It would also be worth starting a food diary for when introducing foods so you can record the reactions. Food diaries can be very useful.

I have to go now but we carry on thinking to see if I can come up with any more information.

Kelly

[jennyh]

i can only agree with kelly.i would hold off with the food until you get an appointment for an allergist.

[Yuliya]

thanks so much for your replies.  I was not able to check your posts yesterday as Whisper was very fussy with bad naps and poor eating.
We live in Canada and I have no clue how hard it is to get the babies tested. It's hard to see your GP sometimes here not saying about the specialists.

I did stop all the solids. It's getting more frustrating as Whisper is not eating well for the past 3 weeks (about 3-5 mins on the breast and then crying/screaming and not wanting to go back to feed). Since I started extending her awake time to 2h45mins-3hrs I have to increase her feedings from 6 times a day to 8 times a day otherwise waking up earlier from the naps etc...

I read some information from websites I found in Helpful websites sticky and ... OMG!!! Allergies are such a serious issue... I mean I knew that they could be very annoying (my dad has allergy to melons and I have allergy to peaches but as long as we stay away from them we are fine) and when i read that some people suffer from allergies every day... it's so scary.  I am a bit overwhelmed right now.

thanks so much for your help.
yuliya

[Jimbob]

Karen (Marisa's Mama) is from Canada so she may be able to give you more information regarding allergy testing there.

Kelly

[Yuliya]

So we've seen the allergist this Tuesday (they had a cancellation and could squeeze us in). DD had an allergy test (skin prick) and it turned out she is milk and egg intollerant. Dr. said we can resume solids (veggies, fruit and cereal) but avoid milk & eggs until she is 18mo and then have another test to see if she outgrow it or not. Yesterday I gave her some home made sweet potato and she had an allergic reaction to it even though she ate so little may be 1/8 teaspoon or less. Within few minutes she started fussing, then her right cheeck turned red and got itchy and warm to touch. She was very misirable untill I put her to sleep.
That really freaked me out as I thought that root vegetables are supposed to be low in allergens. I have no idea what other fruit and veggies to try... It's scary. 
Another thing is that Nestle cereals contain milk and that's why Whisper (DD) was allegic to it. Today I tried Heinz rice cereal and she was okay... at least so far ...

I talked to my mom yesterday and she said that when I was a kid and had allery the doctor that treated me told my mom not to give me any fruit and veggie that is red, orange or yellow. Supposedly they trigger allergy. Like it's safer to feed a child a green skin type apple rather than red skin type. Has anyone heard about this theory?

thanks,

Yuliya

[deb]

OK, here's something else you can try feeding. It might sound a bit off-the-wall, but might be worth a try.

If you can get other grains like oats or millet or brown rice or barley, soak them (overnight should be long enough) on the countertop, rinse them, cook them into porridge, and then puree and feed, maybe dilute with some of your own milk that she's used to - a different grain might be the best bet. Josie had awful "digestive issues" with rice cereal, but barley did the trick; Natalie did best with oatmeal and rice. Go figure. The soaking helps the grains be easier to digest.

I'm actually kind of surprised about sweet potato, but that definitely sounds like an allergic reaction to me. And I hope this doesn't open up a can of worms, but are you feeding her commercial foods or home-cooked? Either way, you might want to try the other and see if it makes a difference. For example, if you're cooking in something that's been recently used to cook milk or eggs or in a bowl that's recently been used to serve them, that may be the issue rather than the food itself. Just a thought.

[Jimbob]

It is awful when you get reactions to something that is consider to be a very low allergen food. My son reacts to many foods including sweet potato. Is it possible that it could have been a cross contamination issue like the pp mentioned. It would definately be a good idea to keep a food diary at this point so that you can record what food you try and what reactions you get. I would also only introduce one new food a week and if your lo reacts to something then I would leave it another week before trying a new food so you can be sure that your dd is not still reacting to it. If the rice cereal that you have at the moment seems ok then I would stick with that for a few weeks first of all as at this stage solid food are more for learning feeding skills than actual nutrition. Then you can gradually try adding in new foods. It is hard to advise what foods to try as like you have mentioned your dd has already reacted to a food which is considered a low allergen. I have heard of that theory with the colour of fruit and vegetaables before however I don't know if there is any eveidence behing it or not. It might be worth considering though when deciding what foods to introduce first.

Kelly

[Yuliya]

Hi Ladies,

thanks so much for your great tips and help. I am sorry I didn't reply earlier, Whisper had her 6mo immunization last Thursday and since then we have all kinds of sleep disturbances (NW, EW, 40-mins naps etc)...
I talked to the allergist this Monday again and he said that it's common for babies to have allergies and it's okay to feed them food even though they have some allergic reaction as long as it's not swollen lips, troubles with breathing, sneezing 10-15 times in a row, vomiting. I asked about the rash, he said it's okay as long as it's moderate... hm...

Anyhow this week I tried to give Whisper butternut squash and she had a reaction again . It was home-made steamed and mushed with the fork squash. Well next veggie will definitely be something green.
I decided to stick with the grains for now. Today I gave her oat cereal (Heinz) and she seemed to be ok. I really want to try to cook porridge for DD but not sure if I can freeze it.

thanks,
Yuliya

[Jimbob]

I would be careful feeding foods that do cause a reaction as just because the first reaction is mild it does not mean it will continue that way, plus if your lo feels bad when the reaction occurs she may form a negative feeling towards solid foods and you don't want that to happen.

Kelly