what CAN'T a 9month old eat?

[micah'smom]

hi everyone,

i've been overly cautious w. our ds but i think he's getting bored. so i'd like to add spices or seasonings to flavor his food. here are some things i'm wondering if he can eat now:

tomato (too acidic?)
lemon juice (too citrusy?)
soy sauce (low sodium)
peanut butter
cilantro
fish (what kinds? the whole USFDA thing with the mercury in fish is getting me scared)

also dh is allergic to onions - should i not give ds onions?

sorry for these lame questions!
selena

[tylersmommy]

Since you do have food allergies in the family, you might want to be extra cautious with foods that are common allergens. I'm fairly certain that the specific allergy isn't necessarily passed on...ie, if your DS also has a food allergy, it might be to a different food and not necessarily onions (someone please correct me if I'm wrong here). So your best bet is to be cautious with all foods that are common allergens...these foods typically aren't introduced until 1 yr of age for that reason. With these foods, I'd wait at least that long.
- tomato
- citrus (including lemon juice)
- peanuts/nut products
- berries
- egg white
- milk
- wheat

Honey also shouldn't be offered until 1 yr of age, but not for allergy reasons. It has something in it that can make babies sick (the name of it escapes me right now). I'd also hold off on onion until at least then, given your DH's allergy. I don't know about fish, so maybe someone could help you out there. I don't think there's anything wrong with the other things from your list. HTH!

[zelda]

i don't think those are lame questions at all!

i think if you are really worried about allergies, you should wait until one year.  that being said, from what i know:

tomatoes are ok from 9mo (nightshade family w/ potatoes, etc.)...
a splash of lemon juice in cooking is ok, it's not the same as feeding lo an orange...
peanut butter is a definite no-no, wait until lo is at least 4-5yo...
soy sauce and cilantro, i have no idea...
fish is a tough call, tuna and milder freshwater fish is probably ok as long as it is not too often (mercury is also not in all fish), but i would avoid shellfish for a few years.

i agree with tyler's mommy that children usually don't inherit specific allergies, but rather the tendency to be allergic.  so i would think that onions are probably ok, and focus on staying away from the more common allergenic foods (milk, nuts, etc.)

[Katet]

The things that are good to "season" with are herbs & spices, rather than salt/soy sauce/tomato sauce etc

That said most children really like "bland tastes" best as they have about 100X more taste buds than adults, so bland food is usually really well tolerated

Just for the record Onion (I believe from working in allergy ) is only ever a "food intolerance" it doesn't have the "necessary protiens" to make it allergic & give an allergic reaction. Therefore it can't actually be "inherited" as it has to do with an individuals "gut acids" that said the gut inbalance can be inherited.

[evanskimberley]

Great advice so far ladies.

there was a thread a while back about the fish and mercury issue, I'll see if we've still got it.

As an aside, my mum went through a phase a while ago of being intolerant to onions, gave her stomache cramps ect. We were bought up on leeks as a substitute instead. I know use these instead of onions in recipes and much prefere them, you get the intial taste but they are not so over powering. May be something you could try with DH and incorporate into fmaily recipes.

[evanskimberley]

here's the link, there's a website further down the thread which may give you some advice about mercury in fish

https://babywhispererforums.com/index.php/topic,34954.0.html

[micah'smom]

wow, thanks for all the help, ladies! great info and great tips that i had no clue about. thanks for the link to the fish/mercury issue, it's very helpful.

can i ask one more question? - we have a history of lactose intolerance on both sides of the family (although i'm not, dh is) and the ped said to avoid all milk foods until one year old (including cheese and yogurt). but everywhere i read, says that the milk is cultured already or the proteins broken down in cheese and yogurt. should i still avoid these?

thanks again!

[CaedensMama]

Given the lactose issues I think I would wait till over a yeat for dairy. JMHO - Or call your dr and see what they say on dairy - I have found it vaires from dr to dr on when to give dairy.

[evanskimberley]

Yep I'd call and ask for their advice as to how else to get the calcium in him, what would they suggest for him?

[OzMummy]

My DS is lactose intolerant. I'm not sure if your DS is bf or ff but both have lactose in them. Breast milk, esp the foremilk is very high in lactose. Lactose is the "sugar" in the milk. Cow's milk has quite a bit of lactose but yoghurt and cheeses have varying amounts. Yoghurt with active cultures maybe tolerated better because the cultures tend to break down the lactose. As for cheeses, cheddar, fetta, mozarella and parmesan all have low lactose content. Cream cheese, processed cheese, cottage cheese and ricotta all have high levels of lactose.

If you want to try cow's milk, there are some low lactose (lactose free) milks available. Generally they add lactase to it(the enzyme that breaks down lactose) .

Alternatively, you can find soy cheese/yoghurt and lactose-free yoghurt to try.