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Allergies and intolerances

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Original poster

DS might have nut allergy - did i give it to him?

52 replies

jimmyjammys · 31/10/2008 22:28

I stupidly gave DS 15 months a tiny bit of walnut today which he spat out immediately. within 10 minutes he started to go blotchy and red and his face puffed up. I gave him some piriton which calmed it down slightly and then took him to the hospital. He is to be referred for allergy testing. He has been exposed to nuts in food though i have never given him a peanut or any other nut before directly. i feel really awful and guilty because of what I did. Did i give him the nut allergy by giving it to him so young? And what should I do now?

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strawberrycornetto · 31/10/2008 22:39

Hello. My understanding is that no one knows what causes allergies but I don't think giving your DS one piece of a nut would cause it. Hopefully the allergy testing will come through quickly but the advice I had (for DS's milk allergy) was to carry piriton with us so I guess that's what you should do until you get your appointment. Oh, and avoid giving him more nuts too.

I feel guilty too but apparently its common but misplaced. Try not to feel bad.

Original poster
jimmyjammys · 31/10/2008 22:46

Thank you strawberry, i just feel now that if i had waited to give him a bit he would not be allergic?

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Weta · 01/11/2008 12:24

As SC says, there are lots of theories (including that it may be better to expose a child early to different things, and that it's better to avoid all potential allergens!) but no one really seems to know. I think when you have an allergic child it's very easy to beat yourself up about it and blame yourself, but you'll never know the truth. He might well have been allergic even if you had waited, and I wouldn't have thought 15 months is that early anyway, is it? Not sure as I didn't try my DS1 on walnuts until he was 5 because he has a serious dairy allergy. But I'm sure DS2 (14 months) has already had some in cakes...

I think you just have to tell yourself you did your best with the knowledge you had, and then get on with dealing with it.

christywhisty · 01/11/2008 23:06

DS didn't show any nut allergies until he was nearly 5 and had been eating nuts for years before that. Allergies can show up at any time of life even in adults, so there is no way of knowing whether a child will be allergic at all.

wb · 02/11/2008 07:51

Don't waste your time feeling guilty - honestly, that way madness lies.

Ds1 was diagnosed w. peanut allergy at 10 mo - I had avoided peanuts in pregnancy and while breastfeeding and he'd never had even the tiniest bite of peanut. I spent at least a year mentally beating myself up about what I could have/should have done differently. Total waste of time.

Weta sums it up nicely -

Original poster
jimmyjammys · 02/11/2008 14:12

thank you so much for your replies, i am really devastated at the moment - we haven't even had the tests done yet so will wait and see what the doctors say, i hope i don't have to wait too long to get an appointment. Its just like this thing will hang over my DS head forever and affect the quality of his life.

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2manychips · 02/11/2008 14:24

jimmyjammys a similar thing happened to my dd. I felt bad too esp as I gave her a piece of my choc that contained hazelnut just to keep her quiet whilst I did tea one eve. she had her test this week so we're just waiting for results now. Her appointment came within a month. Hope its sorted quickly for you.

Original poster
jimmyjammys · 02/11/2008 14:33

i hope everything is ok for you chips. if they have a reaction does it mean that they are def allergic to the nut or could it be a one-off thing?

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2manychips · 02/11/2008 14:54

Well there was a lady who posted the other day-sorry cant remember which thread (I'd link if I could but I'm rubbish at that!) who's dc had had similar experience with peanuts but all tests were negative. So fingers crossed!

VictorianSqualor · 02/11/2008 15:02

I just want to agree that although there are all sorts of theories as to what causes allergy, you can never know exactly why your child has one, so it really is a worthless exercise blaming yourself.
I hope it turns out ok.

Original poster
jimmyjammys · 02/11/2008 15:05

Fingers crossed for both of our DCs then. how much longer til you get your test results?

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Original poster
jimmyjammys · 02/11/2008 15:07

thank you VS, i will keep everyone updated with tests and results in case anyone else going through the same thing.

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hsanders · 02/11/2008 15:29

Jimmyjammys - hope the allergy test goes okay and it's not the end of the world if your DC is allergic to nuts. MY DS is allergic to nuts, as well as other things such as egg yolks, egg whites, milk and sesame seeds, but negative for peanuts (which is the one you always hear about in the news).

It depends who you believe but one doctor told me my craving for humous and 4 pints of milk daily throughout my pregnancy may have made my DS more prone to allergy to both milk and sesame seeds (as they're in humous) BUT if that's true, then how did he get his nut allergy as I hate nuts and have always avoided them like the plague!

Just by giving your DS a tiny piece of nut, it's likely he already had an allergy of some sort. I've not heard anywhere that ust by having it makes you allergic. Surely you have to have an allery in the first place and if that substance is eaten / drunk, then it shows up - but not always!

So what I'm trying to say is please do not beat yourself up about 'giving' your DS a piece of nut andyou didn't cause the allergic reaction. I am grateful my son had anaphylaxia at aged 7 months after a pea sized bit of humous, as it meant we knew he was allergic to many things after testing and could avoid them completely.

Good luck, and please don't beat yourself up. At least now you know and are in the system for testing.

hsanders · 02/11/2008 15:30

PS. Meant to say - peanuts and nuts are NOT in the same family. Peanuts are legumes and NOT NUTS. Nuts - are from trees and as such are different compound to peanuts therefore your DS could be allergic to nuts but not peanuts, or allergic to peanuts and not nuts - or of course, both!!

Hope that helps.

2manychips · 02/11/2008 16:53

They were a bit vague on when the results will be back, I'll let you know.One nurse said about a week,the receptionist said up to 6!!

tatt · 02/11/2008 17:45

different views on whether it's good or bad to give them nut young. If the experts don't know why should you beat yourself up?

If your child has an allergy its not the end of the world, although it may feel like it at first. There are plenty of adults living near normal lives with allergies. He may grow out of it naturally. If not there are developments that offer hope for the future.

Original poster
jimmyjammys · 03/11/2008 10:44

thank you tatt, all your kind words have been a great comfort for me. I have managed to get an appointment for 24th Nov with an allergy specialist - i decided to get him tested privately as I can barely breathe at the moment let alone talk and the Dr at the hospital had indicated that he would prob not get an appt before christmas. Once i know exactly what he is allergic to and the severity i can get on with managing his allergy. Do i need to get him an epi-pen or anything else in the meantime incase he has another reaction, I feel a bit lost not being able to do anything until i know the test results. i have piriton and going to buy more today so that i have a bottle handy with me wherever I am.

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mamainstripes · 03/11/2008 11:00

You can buy small bottles at pharmacies so you can carry a measured dose of piriton with you. I avoided all nuts during pregnancy and breastfeeding and my ds had no nuts until he was 4 and he has a peanut allergy. I worry that I have made him more allergic by not exposing him. I give my ds probiotics as there is some evidence that lack of some gut bacteria may contribute towards allergies. However the studies were done on the children of women given the probiotics during pregnancy and breastfeeding but I will grasp any straw. About 9% of children will outgrow a treenut allergy and 20% will outgrow a peanut allergy. Try not to panic, you will get used to what he can and can't eat and there is a real chance of a cure in the future.

Original poster
jimmyjammys · 03/11/2008 11:24

mamain - i am the opposite - i didn't avoid nuts during pregnancy or breastfeeding - i didn't eat it them often though - less then 10 times throughout pregnancy and bf and DS exposed to hidden nuts in various foods i am sure as i was not very vigilant about it before the walnut incident. i have started to give probiotics too!!

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tatt · 03/11/2008 14:14

you can ask your gp for an epipen but some gps won't give them out at all and as he's so young most gps would probably prefer it to be a consultant decision. So keep the piriton handy and call an ambulance if there is any sign of breathing problems. Young children tend to vomit up anything that's bad for them too.

I still rememeber how terrible I felt when my child's nut allergy was confirmed. But mine is teenage now and goes off on sleepovers and DofE expeditions. Life is certainly more difficult with a nut allergy but it does have its plus points - you'll eat healthier food and the army won't take him .

BalloonSlayer · 03/11/2008 14:23

We all feel guilty jimmyjammys, it can't be helped.

When my DS1 got all his allergies my DH said he felt really guilty because he must have got them from him - DH has asthma and eczema.

I thought he was mad - fancy blaming himself!

Then my nephew had an allergic reaction to a nut. I immediately felt dreadfully guilty because, obviously, the allergic tendencies must have come from MY side of the family after all.

I know that my DS1 is allergic to almonds and cashews because I ate them when pregnant. Yet I also know that I did ask whether it was ok to eat these nuts, and was told that it was, I only needed to avoid peanuts, and that was only because of DH's asthma and eczema. I also know that had I known DS1 would be allergic I would gladly have gone without eating those things. So actually, although I am perhaps responsible I don't feel guilty because I followed the advice I was given.

BalloonSlayer · 03/11/2008 14:23

We all feel guilty jimmyjammys, it can't be helped.

When my DS1 got all his allergies my DH said he felt really guilty because he must have got them from him - DH has asthma and eczema.

I thought he was mad - fancy blaming himself!

Then my nephew had an allergic reaction to a nut. I immediately felt dreadfully guilty because, obviously, the allergic tendencies must have come from MY side of the family after all.

I know that my DS1 is allergic to almonds and cashews because I ate them when pregnant. Yet I also know that I did ask whether it was ok to eat these nuts, and was told that it was, I only needed to avoid peanuts, and that was only because of DH's asthma and eczema. I also know that had I known DS1 would be allergic I would gladly have gone without eating those things. So actually, although I am perhaps responsible I don't feel guilty because I followed the advice I was given.

tatt · 03/11/2008 14:34

been thinking about this and some more suggestions for what to do now - read up on the tests so you know what is likely to happen. Have a look at the Anaphylaxis Campaign website and see if there are any meetings near you after the tests as they can be a help. If you are anywhere near Cambridge look into the study on desensitisation that is going on there (threads on mumsnet about it).

hsanders · 03/11/2008 15:01

jimmyjammys, not sure you'd be prescribed an EpiPen until allergies are confirmed and also the extent to which the allergies pose a problem. Some do not cause anaphylaxia.

Even when our DS had been diagnosed with tree nut, seeds and egg allergies at aged 11 months, the paediatrician did not want to give us an EpiPen for the simple reason that when our DS eats, it would always be checked by someone else, be it at nursery or home or MIL etc. So he would not / should not have any accidental problems with contamination. Our nursery were awesome and even didn't do messy play with real custard on the days our DS was there.

They only gave us an EpiPen once he was 3 years of age, and perhaps would be more likely to grab food on his own (birthday parties etc). They're far more independent at that age and so need more 'cover' as it were. The other thing the paediatrician said was that carrying an EpiPen is a big responsibility as you always need it with you (much like you would with Piriton) but that the thought of administering it may be off-putting for some parents. Just a thought...

Sorry for the essay answer! Good luck with your allergy testing privately. The Bristol Children's Hospital did it via a skin prick test and blood tests to confirm so do your homework on what's actually needed to be paid for, before you spend too much and maybe get sucked in due to your emotions.

Good luck

Original poster
jimmyjammys · 04/11/2008 00:03

thanks for the advice, the anaphylaxis campaign site was great and will def sign up if it turns out that DS has the allergies. good point about being sucked in - i am willing to sign a blank cheque at the moment. i will make sure to get the blood test and teh skin prick test. I am feeling more positive about everything at the moment and not feeling like he has just been served a death sentence with all the support from MN.

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