how do you go about getting an allergy test?

[nappyaddict]

i want to get ds tested for a nut allergy. his dad has a nut allergy so i have never given him nuts but i feel it is a shame to ban him from nuts for the rest of his life if he might not actually be allergic. can you get tested without actually having had a rection yet? if so how do i go about it?

go to your GP, explain and ask for a RAST or ELISA test

We are in the same situation. Our GP was happy to refer DD for blood tests, but not until she was five. She did have a suspected allergic reaction to a bee sting when she was a toddler, which may have helped our case, but I had the impression that it would have been fine to have the tests just because of DH's allergy.

FWIW, all the tests came back negative, but we were advised still to tread carefully and introduce nuts to her slowly, one at a time, early in the morning and watch for any symptoms. DD is very excited that she may soon be able to go to parties without being "all worried".

it is always reccommended though that even if a child tests negative for nut allergy, if a parent or other close relative does have a nut allergy, not to introduce nuts to thier diet till thay are 3 years old

Just to clarify - DD is now six and the GP would not refer her until she was at least five.

you can become allergic at any time, so a test without a reaction first is pretty meaningless, especially if they have never been exposed to nuts.Reactions occur on the second are any subsequent exposure.
DH has nut and various other allergies
DS nut allergy (he like DH has a lot of allergies including animals and hayfever) didn't start until he was nearly 5.
DD is 11 and never shown any signs of allergies and I have always allowed her to have nuts but not when ds is about.

sorry smithagian, I was referring to nappy as her child is younger.
I find that strange though that your GP wouldn't refer till she was 5, very unusual and not standard practice form what I know of!!

I practically arm-wrestled my GP to get milk allergy testing for my DS when he was under 1. She looked at me with those patronising 'you're a 1st time mum' eyes. I gave her an almighty verbal wallop and hey presto! Got him tested.

So you might need to push and push and push and make yourself a nuisance.

Guess who was right about the allergy in the end?

(me, of course! )

DS has egg allergy but consultant said no point having blood tests as was only exposed once and tests only show up when exposed to the allergen repeatedly. Also said wouldn't subject young child to blood tests unless absolutely nescessary. We were advised to avoid nuts till 5 if at increased risk.

Misi - I think waiting till five was partly so that there was a reasonable probability that she had had some indirect exposure, despite having been fed a nut-free diet - and therefore there would be some antibodies to detect.

some children react to peanuts on the first known exposure.

Unless you are already dealing with nut allergy by the time a child gets to 3 they are likely to have been exposed to peanut.

it is peanut allergy that his dad has. i have never knowingly given him a peanut/peanut butter etc but he has probably had other nuts in chocolate/cakes etc.

In a household strict about avoiding nuts you may have managed to avoid exposing them to peanut protein. Most children probably get their first contact with it via foods that don't obviously contain nut - like ice-cream or chocolate - so aren't avoided.

It's pretty hard to get tests, unfortunately. Does no harm to ask but you may have to DIY with a bottle of piriton handy. We were told blood tests were effective even if a child hasn't had nuts but I'm not really sure I believe them!

Oh is dad doesn't live with us so i'm not that strict about avoiding nuts. he just doesn't eat anything that obviously contains peanuts.