What should I start cutting out?

[Ilove7pm]

I have a feeling my dd2 has some further allergies that I do not know about and I need some advice about how to work out what they are.

This is because:
1.She has already had skin prick tests after some dubious reactions to sardines and peanut butter. She is allergic to peanuts. But not cow's milk and some other nuts. There was not a test for sardines so they just said to stay away from them.

1. She constantly has a runny nose (normally clear and thin). I can hardly remember a time when she didn't.
2. Sometimes eyes appear red/purple underneath
3. Her stomach is very pretruding and hard, swollen like.

She is 18months. At around 5 months developed eczema. Have been managing it ok since seeing specialist dermatology clinic with a few flare ups but recently has been really bad and I can't seem to get on top of it.

I'm thinking wheat/gluten but after trying to cut it out for a while did not seem to make much difference. I must admit I probably could have done a better job at this as I wasn't forceful enough with MIL who looks after her and her sis 3 days a week. Is there a skin prick test for wheat?

Could also be eggs I suppose? She eats a lot of fruit. Although skin prick said cows milk ok I tend to substitute with soya milk. I do give her yogurts and cheese though so I know that doesn't make sense!

I just feel I don't know where to start. I'm also reading about dust mites and environmental allergens??? Seems to be so much out there. Neither myself, husband or her 4yo sis have allergies/eczema so new and confusing. Am starting to have a lot more sympathy for other mummies with children with allergies - its a lot harder than you think.

First of all skin prick tests are just an indication. You can have false positives and false negatives. The only true test is to eat the food.

DS had a negative cow's milk SPT, it was false.

You say you are substituting with soya, that is a common allergen too. I would cut out cow's milk, eggs and soya for a bit and see how you get on. If no difference then I'd try something different.

actually yoghurt and cheese does make sense. Yoghurt contains probiotics (assuming its live yoghurt) and is less likely to cause problems than milk. Cheese causes less problems than milk. But using soy is not a good idea.

First thing I'd try would be probiotics, then lactose free milk. Dont give her a lot of sugar as I have skin problems and I can tell you it makes them much worse. If that didn't help then it would be time to try totally dairy free.

There is a skin prick test for wheat allergy but not wheat intolerance. There is a blood test for coeliac disease but you have to be eating wheat for it to work.

You need to be very careful with soap powders and what you add to her bath. Wash bedding at 60C with a non bio liquid and perhaps an extra rinse cycle. Soap powder residues can play havoc with sensitive skin.