Quick question for anyone who sees specialists/specialist nurses please!

[CasaBevron]

DS has recently been diagnosed as allergic to egg and wheat through RAST testing. He is just 6 months and was referred urgently to the local Paediatric Allergy Unit by my GP. (I pushed for this, as I am certain that there will be more to add to the list, and I think the GP was just desperate to get me off his back!)

Having tried for a fortnight to contact the hospital after attempting to make an appointment through Choose and Book (don't start me on the uselessness of that system!) I finally managed to get hold of the specialist nurse and was told that as DS is not allergic to milk, and therefore not failure to thrive, he won't be seen until January . I am not prepared to wait this long, and am considering trying to get a private appointment in the meantime.

The specialist nurse gave me some information that I have seen contradicted on here - not just as opinion but as fact that some of you have been told by specialists - ie exzema is categorically not linked to what you eat, they do not RAST test babies as the information gained is likely to be inaccurate (she advised me to reintroduce wheat into my diet as DS's score was 'insignificant' and lo and behold after one slice of toast he reacted with a hive on his face when I fed him 4 hours later). There's more but I won't bore you with it.

My question is, is the nurse repeating information that she has been given by the actual specialists at the unit? It seems to make sense to me that the nurse would be on the same page as the specialist doctors, but if this is the case I don't want to be paying privately to see someone who will not necessarily give me the best advice. It seems that the 6 to 12 month stage is such a vital one in treating allergies and preventing further ones developing, that I want to make the right choice for my son. Is there anyone with more experience than me that can advise? I'd be grateful for any info you can give.

Sorry, I made too many assumptions. And had forgotten that milk was not one of the suspicious foods (big bonus!). BTW, I've heard that chocolate is in fact a superfood, though admittedly only the dark kind...

Well I certainly think it's super!

Yes we seem to be okay with milk. I've touched it to his lips a couple of times with no ill effects, haven't yet been able to bring myself to put any on his tongue even though the RAST test was negative. Too many stories on here of false results have made me wary. I'm sure he's okay with it really, though. I keep telling myself that I eat/drink too much of the stuff not to have seen a reaction by now. Just got to get the nerve up to give him some!

Dr Adam Fox is one of THE best allergy specialists around, so that's great news! A stone is a lot, do be careful. And like you said smile and ignore your mum, 4 weeks is not going to make much difference at all. I hope things start getting easier for you soon.

I know, I feel very lucky that we are able to see him. I've already read so much about him I may have a little swoon when we finally get there! Will either update when we have seen him in case anyone coming across this thread finds the info useful or be back here sooner if we have further reactions and I need calming down .

Right, I think I need someone to hold my hand.

DD wanted some cashews at lunchtime, so i put some in a bowl for her and without thinking ate about 4 myself. This was at about 12, then when I fed DS at just before 3 I saw the same reaction again, a single hive on the back of his head. Thing is, I kissed him just after I had eaten the nuts and he shoved his tongue in my mouth! Cue me panicking in case he reacted, but nothing. This is definitely not the first time I have eaten cashews since having him, so the kiss would not have been his first exposure. Why would he have a skin reaction to me feeding him but not to traces of cashew on his tongue? Am so confused, and actually now I just feel defeated. It seems as though he's going to react to more stuff than he isn't!

So now the list is: no wheat, egg, potato, tomato etc, banana, apple, sweet potato, nuts and God knows whatever else he starts to react to. Poor kid is going to spend the rest of his life with me hovering over him stopping him from having any fun .

I'm not surprised you feel defeated! It's all very confusing. Do you think the hives might be caused by an allergy or sensitivity to something in his clothes, perhaps? Do you use hypoallergenic washing powder? Also, have you had any more frequent wakings at night, or are the symptoms now confined again to the hives?
I do hope time goes quickly until your appointment!

Washing powder is the same as I've always used, not hypoallergenic but non-bio. I would have expected a reaction where his clothes touch his body though if it was that.

My mum's theory is that he is reacting to our dog, ie hairs on my clothes possibly, because the hives only ever appear around his face, head and neck. I would love this to be the case, as opposed to an allergy to every food going, but it just seems too complicated for that to be the explanation. Why would the hives only appear when he or I eat something new/not eaten for ages? Why would they appear outside of the house? I have seen reactions sitting in a shop cafe and other places as well as at home. The connection between what I have eaten and the timing of the hive appearing seems too strong for it to be anything else.

He is waking every two hours at night. This happens whether I eat an evening meal or not, so just seems to be the norm for him. When I had sweet potato last week he was awake every hour to hour and a half, so he does seem to be affected by what I eat, if it's something that in turn affects him.

I think this wil be the longest 4 weeks ever!