the list of allergies are growing help!

[joshuaamelia]

Hi, Very new to having to deal with a baby with allergies was hoping someone might have some advice as I'm finding it all very stressful!
DD is 7 months old she was bf for 4 1/2 months and once she went on bottles her skin started to get bad, didn't think much of it at first as the same happened with my son for the first couple of months (he has no allergies) so just got some cream from GP to help clear it up. Long story short now her skin flares up in a rash if she has dairy, eggs, peanut butter, pineapple, red lentils or chickpeas and possibly black eyed beans (although not 100% on that one) so far having no luck getting her an allergy test the doc keeps giving different reasons not to refer her, so I don't know what to do. They won't prescribe the hypoallegenic formula so I've put her on soya which as far as I'm aware isn't very good but I don't want to keep giving her dairy formula when it makes her bad. I'm veggie and I've never cooked meat so I'm reluctent to start but I feel as though I'm running out of veggie options for her I've got her eating quinoa for protien which so far she's being ok with and i'm using fortified rice milk to keep her calcium and B vits up and giving her her healthystart mutli-vit.
does anyone know if there are other foods I should be watching out for? very disheartened as it feels like everytime I try her with something new she gets poorly. :(

You are of course worried and probably wondering, "Why her", some things might be a lifetime allergy but others she could grow out of. There are often substitutes you can try later on when she's older, I am sure more knowledgable posters will be along soon but as an example, my DH finds he can take goat's or sheep's milk or cheeses, whereas he can't have cow's milk products.

You mention dairy and eggs, that is a combination that often crops up. Also peanuts so be wary of cooking oil.

Tomatoes and strawberries can also provoke fierce reactions as well as certain E numbers. I know you will be very keen to find out what your little one can or can't have, part of the battle is imposing dietary vetoes as she interacts with people outside home. It will probably be a slow process but good luck.

thanks I know, you try to do everything by the book but I guess sometimes there's nothing you can do to stop an allergy, the worst thing is trying to isloate whats causing the reactions gave her boiled red lentils today to make sure it was the problem and not something else she had and her face went bright red felt dreadful doing it but I don't know how else I'm gonna find out what she's allergic to. gonna ring the docs again tomorrow morning try to get her seen it's so frustrating they just don't seem to be bothered because the reactions aren't too serious but I worry to more she has the foods the worse her allergies will get

Your dd sounds like my ds with same list of allergies. I am vege and wanted to keep him vaguely so too but impossible as vomits on fish to have had to resort to chicken cooked by dh!

We were referred straight away and have appt next week. Dont know if its because have dd also dairy and wheat allergies.

He is 9 months and like you say it's so hard to pinpoint the exact allergen. Hs skin was great when started weaning on veg and fruit. The trouble started when protein was introduced. He tends to get stomach cramps and severe congestion with all over body rash so sometime reaction isn't instant so lose track of it all!!

I want allergy testing but will let you know what consultant says. It is on the 5th so pm me after and I will let you know what is said as allergens are very similar!!

You have my sympathy, its not easy with a little one with allergies, especially when your GP is not being particularly helpful. My DS is similar and has a dairy allergy but also reacts to some E numbers. I had to go back to my GP several times and demand to see a paediatrician who then prescribed neocate, a non dairy formula so be persistant. You can buy neocate over the counter at large Tesco's. The only other thing I thought I should mention is I've read here that rice milk is not suitable for children under 2 years. I use Kara milk with added calcium for my DS which you can buy from Waitrose. Good luck with your GP.

god I didn't realise about rice milk told my HV I was giving it to her and she didn't say anything but will check properly thanks. karensb I was looking up about fish last night, I don't eat fish but was thinking of trying to get something pre cooked for her but I'm reluctant to now as I found out it can be quite bad for allergies too and there were so many fish that were advised not to feed to children. I find it frustrating that the GPs just seem to fob us off and get annoyed that we keep making appointments about the same thing, if they'd just referred her straight away we wouldn't be taking up loads of appointments. grrrr

Here's a link to the NICE guidelines: publications.nice.org.uk/food-allergy-in-children-and-young-people-cg116/guidance. babybarrister's right, you need to go back to your GP, wave the NICE guidelines in their face and DEMAND a referral to a specialist. Do NOT be fobbed off. Sadly, most of us on here have learnt that you have to fight to get your child the right medical help when it comes to allergies. You also need to demand a prescription for hypoallergenic formula as soy based formula is not recommended for babies under 6 mths due to high levels of phyto-oestrogens (plus up to 50% of those allergic to cow's milk are also allergic to soya anyway). Here's a link to the British Dietetic Association statement on soy-based formulas: www.steppyorks.nhs.uk/presentations/unit-1/PaediatricGroupGuidelineSoyInfantFormulas.pdf. As mentioned, rice milk contains arsenic so it also not recommended for children under 5. Get in touch with the Anaphylaxis Campaign for more advice and support.

thanks yeah I looked up about rice milk, don't know why I thought it was good as it seems to lack alot of things so won't give it to her anymore, I was only using it cos I didn't want her getting too much soya and it tastes nice. freefrommum it's funny you say about the formulas the doc insisted she wouldn't prescribe the hypoallergenic milk unless she was confirmed with an allergy but they now won't give her the test. The next GP I saw wouldn't prescribe it either but said he would see about getting her referred (although that was over a week ago and nobody has confirmed its happening or given me any idea how long it will take) he told me mine and my HV concerns about Soya based formula were unfounded and I should put her on wysol if I was concerned about the skin reactions, by this point I just wanted her to feel better so went straight out to get some. I've decided to keep a proper food diary, to show the doc if I ever get an appointment, so she can at least give me some idea if she's getting all the food groups from the limited amount of food I can give her. I know it might take a while for a test but I really want a dietician just to make sure she's eating okay. thanks for the links Dx

hope u managed to get some allergy testing when u go back to GP with the guidelines.

Also if ur on fb there are a few good allergy support groups.

(CAN - for children with food allergies and issues)

Definitely demand the hypoallergenic formula. When we were still in the UK and needed it for cereal/cooking (DS was BF but there was no way I was pumping all the time for milk for other things) from about 7 months until he could have Alpro Junior at 13 months, I did get pushback from our GP once. He said it wasn't him but a practice decision not to prescribe formula as it discriminated against those who chose to FF and therefore had to pay. I was livid, not least since I had continued BF from my sons diagnosis at 4 months without dairy in my own diet. I also pointed out that they were still happy to prescribe food for coeliac sufferers despite there being a good range of foods available in most supermarkets yet you couldn't easily buy hypoallergenic formula. It took a letter from the dietician at the hospital to basically tell them to prescribe it.

I'm afraid it is a constant battle with food allergies to get taken seriously and to receive acceptable and appropriate care.

I suspect some people initially thought DH was just being precious about being dairy intolerant, it's not like it's a fad he just picked up to be difficult.

Hi everyone, I got a phone call from a dietician yesterday and she's booking Amelia in for the skin prick tests, she also called my GP and insisted she prescribe the other fromula (looks like my HV has been really fighting our corner). Such a relief as I looked into buying the formula but it's so expensive, there was no way we could afford it, it made me feel so guilty for ever stopping bfing but I did do it as long as I could manage.
Anyway just wanted to say thank you for everyones support and advice it's been such an emotional week for me but at least we've got them listening to us now.

That's great news joshuaamelia! It's great when a member of the medical profession finally starts taking you seriously isn't it? Good luck.