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Allergies and intolerances

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Lentil allergy and peanuts

9 replies

Sunflower100 · 24/09/2007 15:06

My 7 month old has vomited twice after eating lentils - second time was instantly. She has tolerated them in small amounts about 6 times previously.
She has an egg allergy and has eczema. Does the lentil allergy mean she will have a peanut allergy as both are legumes?
Very worried

OP posts:
ComeOVeneer · 24/09/2007 15:07

Not sure for certain, but dd had a friend in nursery who was allergic to both so I would get it checked out.

Kewcumber · 24/09/2007 15:11

I don;t think it necessarily follows - is there a Spanish link in the family? Apparetnyl lentil allegries are more common than peanut allergies in Spain.

HannahandSeb · 24/09/2007 15:37

My ds had eaten lentils about 4 times before they caused his lips to swell and hives to appear when he was about 10 months old (but no breathing probs, I just gave him piriton). My allergy consultant didn?t believe it could be lentils until I took a pot of cooked lentils to her clinic and had him skin prick tested with them and yes it was positive. Interestingly the more you cook them the more allergenic they become.

He is also allergic to all dairy, eggs, sesame and isn?t very good with fish and has eczema. We now have epipens.

I am sorry to say that he has since been diagnosed with a peanut allergy but we don?t know to what extent as he has never come into contact with nuts, we only know through skin prick (2 out of 3 skin pricks were positive) and then we had confirmation via a blood test which also showed weak positive to brazil nuts, almonds and hazelnuts. Funnily enough I have just posted a reply in the thread below about peanut allergies with some of this info. We also avoid peas (caused small amount of hives last time he had them) and green beans (made him very sick twice) as they are part of the same legume family.

We are taking part in the LEAP study and one of the consultants there said that there is some (although not clinically trialed) evidence to suggest that giving soya can help strengthen his immunity to peanuts as soya is also related but not in the same way legumes. Some children do grow out of it and so I am ever hopeful. I have to admit that although scary and upsetting peanuts are easier for us to avoid than eggs or dairy.

Hope that helps and I am not in any way saying that your dd will develop an allergy to peanuts, I really hope I haven?t made you worry unnecessarily but I just wanted to share my experience with you.

chloesmumtoo · 26/09/2007 13:09

Hannahandseb thats interesting. I have a dd with allergy to peanuts. She rarely has eaten lentles because of the worry. I know it has been in a soup she had a while ago and she did have very loose bowels around that time so I tend to avoid now just incase. She also has been declared having an allergy to green beans! Been told to avoid for two years. Not sure she reacts to peas, seems ok but it sure is a pain. she has many many others allergies but tends to get hives very often. Having a few more tests on friday to try to discover what else to avoid. The lugume question I definately want to ask'should I be avoiding them'. so many questions and such little time I expect!!

essbeehindyou · 26/09/2007 13:11

Message withdrawn

tatt · 26/09/2007 13:33

my child with nut allergy can eat peans and beans but I am concerned about lentils because they were is something that caused a mini reaction. Haven't risked trying them since.

Lentil allergy doesn't automatically mean nut allergy but probably worth asking for a test later on.

Mustdobetter · 02/10/2007 23:28

My DS has lentil allergy and this is the first time I've ever come across anyone else with the same problem, other than in medical reports on the net! He broke out in hives the first time he had split peas, and the same with lentils of any variety (including poppadoms, which are made with lentil flour -- something I was unaware of until after he had eaten them and broken out!) and garden peas. We always carry antihistamine with us.

The allergy clinic told us that there is no way to say if an apparent first exposure to an allergen is actually the 'first' exposure, as many foods could be contaminated with the allergenic food, etc. For example, DS developed severe swelling on one side of his face after hading around a bowl of pistachios to adults -- he didn't eat them, but he must have got some of the oil on his fingers and then touched his face. As far as we were concerned, this was his first-ever exposure to pistachios.

He can now (8 yo) eat peas with no problem, but I kept him off them for several years. The spilt pea and lentil reactions were so severe that we never have them. The allergy clinic couldn't test for lentil allergy as they don't carry specific tests unless they are quite common, but I need to test him by putting a small dab of lentils in olive oil on his back, then if no reaction do the same with a small dab near his mouth, then if no reaction a tiny pin-prick amount in his mouth, gradually increasing the amount if no reaction. Of course this process is spread over a number of sessions.
Because of his allergy to both lentils and pistachios, the allergy clinic told us to avoid all nuts and that he is at 'increased risk' of peanut allergy. They also told us to treat soy as a nut and to avoid sesame and other items such as sunflower seeds, but he was already having them with no problems so they said that was okay. He is now fine with sesame and soy.

Kewcumber, lentil allergy may be more prevalent in Spain simply because they might eat more lentils there rather than the fact that they are Spanish per se -- I don't know enough about Spanish diets to say for sure though.

And as Tatt says 'lentil allergy doesn't automatically mean nut allergy', as it really would depend on what enzyme or whatever within the food is causing the reaction.

Sunflower, I would suggest staying well clear of lentils for a couple of years or so and talk to the hospital clinic about the testing method that I mention above, with a view to doing it when your LO is say 3 yo. Good luck.

sKerryMum · 02/10/2007 23:31

This reply has been deleted

Message withdrawn at poster's request.

MegBusset · 03/01/2008 18:08

Bump -- DS (10mo) has started coming up in hives in contact with lentils (he was previously OK with them but seems to be becoming more allergic, he also gets hives with cows' milk though is OK with other dairy).

We have got a paed appointment in a few weeks for his eczema so will see if they will give us a blood test, but wondering if the OP had found out if her LO is allergic to peanuts and/or other legumes too?

Also is it OK to try DS on a bit of soya milk (as he can't have cows' milk) or should I wait til he's been blood tested or has an epipen?

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