Fobbed off by a dr about ds2's allergies

[Wintersun]

I'm concerned about ds2 (18months) as he has started getting swelling lips from eating grananry bread, lentils and fish.
He had exzema (only on cheeks) as a baby which cleared up after elimating dairy from my diet (due to bf) and vomited anything with dairy in it when weaned.

I took him to the gplast week who just tried to fob me off by saying tht there was no point in getting him tested as his reactions were mild and to just avoid the food. The dr said that until he was 2, ds2 is likely to outgrow certain allergies and develop others so there really is no point in testing him.

My main concern is that as he is allergic to lentils and seeds, he is most probably allergic to nuts (haven't tried nuts yet and am not going to for a while). What if he's severely allergic?
I know I may sound over anxious but was wondering if I should insist on testing or wait until ds2 is older, as the dr suggested?
Is the dr right in suggesting that ds2 won't have a severe allergy to nuts as his exzema was only ever very mild and his reactions were mild and are not likely to get worse anyway (I know from reading posts here that reactions can get worse but am just more concerned about nuts at the moment)

Over anxious! No i dont think so. you know some foods that he reacts to so do stay clear. but he does need to be tested as you never know he may have anaphelatic shocks from eating something that contains the above you describe.

The swelling of the lips can be dangerous as you never know it may travel to his throat and close up his airways.

See another GP and demand a test to be done. Its not fair on you or your DS. nuts can be v.dangerous and if allergic can kill people so dont try him on them at all until you have an all clear from the doc.

Children normally grow out of an allergy before 1yrs old, if after this the reactions still happens the likely hood of your Ds growing out of it is nil/some chance maybe.

Its in your ds's best interest to have the test done. Keep pushing till someone listens

My Godson is severely allergic to several things but they have changed over his lifetime (7 years). What would affect him as a tiny isn't what gets him now. His mum had to take dairy, wheat, and eggs out of her own diet when breast feeding but now the list has lost those things and includes birch pollen, horses, hazelnuts, peanuts and paracetamol. They live in Norway where children are checked for allergens when they exhibit allergies annually so my friend keeps track of what's in and what's out that way.

Given what's on offer with the NHS you are probably the best expert on your child. Keep a list of current allergens for your LO and keep it updated (and dated). It sounds wise to avoid nuts for the moment given the grain issues.

You can test new foods by touching them to the skin one day, to the lips the next (if there was no reaction the previous day), then to the tongue, then a tiny amount actually eaten, then larger amounts. It's finickity but should help to protect your little one.

I'm not saying you shouldn't press the doctor though. Ask if he can be tested now and then again in the future like in Norway. Any slight reaction when you're testing new foods, go straight to the GP (or A&E if necessary).

We first went to the allergy clinic when ds1 was 10 mo old. He had skin prick tests and blood tests at this time which picked up his peanut allergy. The results for dairy allergy were a little more confused, it is true that can be he case in babies.

Having said that, the support we received was great and now he's on their books he is re-tested every year, so no problems if/as his allergies change. I am very happy we were referred and if you think that this s the best course for you and your lo then go back to/change your GP and insist.

Before a child is 2 the results from blood tests can show positive to many things that the child is not in fact allergic to. However, it can be a nightmare to get a referal to an allergy specialist, so you should keep on nagging your GP now so that you get a referal earlier rather than later. We were told not to give nuts to either of our ds's until they are at least 5 because I have a close family member who is anaphylactic for peanuts. Also nuts and fish are allergies people don't tend to grow out of (they get worse with time).
Allergies such as eggs, dairy are often outgrown by the time the child hits 5-6 years old (some a bit earlier, some later, but only something like 25% of those with a baby allergy to eggs/dairy will have that allergy in adulthood).

Definitely nag your GP to get a referral.

My DS was tested at 8 months at Yorkhill in Glasgow.

TBH being tested doesn't really help that much it just really confirms what you already know. They also wouldn't prescribe an epipen for my DS as he was below 15kg and hadn't had an anaphlactic reaction.

It does however give you access to more expert advice and access to a dietician. It also means that there is a documented reaction and you will be seen once a year for re-testing. If there is no reaction in subsequent tests then they can do a food challenge in hospital.

Reactions can get worse so your GP is wrong in that respect.

DD was tested at about 8 months - and it was really helpful to know what to worry about and what not to worry about. Yes, it changes but it's a really useful starting point. Definitely press your GP for referral to an allergy clinic.

Gp did seem pretty clueless. They don't seem to understand anything about allergies let alone trying to get you some good advice and help.
Its really difficult and so upsetting when I find yet another thing I can't feed to ds2. The latest seems to be green beans. I understand they are in the legumes group of food. That means ds2 is allergic to almost every legume

It's really gutting when you find another thing that you can't feed them. beans were one of the most gutting for me as a baked potato and beans was always one of the few things he could have when we were out, but no more sadly.

Soya and peanuts are legumes as well wintersun. I know you will probably be avoiding peanuts, but didn't know if you knew about soya.

My Ds is allergic to all legumes although he's never been near a peanut so we don't know for definite he will be allergic to them. It looks pretty likely though .

I felt sad for ds2 today as everyone at nursery had baked potato and beans for lunch today and he had baked potato and gravy (The nursery are usually good and give him decent stuff too)

I have given ds2 the odd soya yoghurt but not for a while. He didn't react to it then but he also used to eat lentils and houmous without reacting to it too.

What else is your ds allergic too Trixymalixy? How did he react?It would just be interesting for me to compare notes.

He is allergic to dairy, egg, soya, lentils, chickpeas, beans, sesame, split peas (but ok with fresh peas bizarrely) and possibly prawns.

Dairy we discovered when he got some ice cream on his skin and came up in hives at about 6 months although we had suspected that for a while as he used to scream while I was bf him.

Egg he has never had, but had a positive skin prick test reaction.

Soya he used to eat all the time (2 yoghurts a day on the advice of the dietician!!), but then started being sick after it and then came out in hives.

All the other legumes (beans, lentils, chickpeas) he had eaten loads of times, but then one day out of the blue came out in hives after eating each of them.

The reaction to humous was the worst.I don't know whether it was the sesame or the chickpeas, but he had a positive skin prick reaction to both. He had eaten humous loads and then once he got a little red/purple patch on his face. I mentioned it to the dietician, but she said to try it again. The next time I gave him humous his lips and mouth started swelling almost immediately. It was so frightening as I thought he was going to stop breathing.

The swelling lips is very scary.
Ds2 has never had hives. His lips swelled when he had legumes and fish. It's really frightening and really upsetting to see him like that. He got very upset and cried and frantically scratched his lips.

How old is he now? I hope he can grow out of them. Any signs? The (clueless) gp claimed that ds2 is likely to grow out of all the allergies when his immune system matures.

I'm giving him probiotics at the moment as some studies claim that they may help. Especially if the birth was a cs and traumatic. Its worth a shot.

It is horrible when they are so frantically scratching at their lips.

DS is 2 yrs 3 months.

When Ds was tested at 8 months and it was just egg and dairy that he tested positive to, the allergy specialist seemed confident that he was likely to outgrow both of those by age 3.

When he was retested at 20 months and tested positive to all the legumes and sesame as well I was told it was less likely that he would outgrow them all particularly the sesame allergy.

I am still hopeful that he might outgrow some of them. He ate a kitkat that my DFIL had left lying around with no obvious reaction and given that when he was under one he would come out in hives if he sat next to someone drinking milk I live in hope.

I have bought probiotics, but I keep forgetting to give them to him and to take them myself as i am pregnant with no 2.

Congrats on your pregnancy

I have made another appointment with the gp this week and am going to insist on getting tests. Wish me luck.

Wintersun was there soy in the granary bread and does he have it in other things? If there is soy in the bread then he could be reacting to soy and lentil - both having some proteins similar to peanut. So it does suggest you need to be cautious about nuts.

No-one can tell you at this stage if your child will outgrow their reactions or if they will get worse. Skin prick tests can provide some indication but no tests are totally reliable. It's good to try probiotics and perhaps some flaxseed oil as omega 3 fatty acids help them work better and he obviously can't have fish oil. It's also wise to carry liquid piriton wherever he goes as that is often enough for reactions in very young children.

If he does have problems he may outgrow them. If not - it will be terrifying at first but will become routine. There is also hope from the desensitisation project and other people trying to find ways to help.

i think my dd was 2 when she got her tests

you could ask for a second opinion or pay for private tests if you want to know soon as possible

my dd is already growing out of allergies so please be heartened - not all doom and gloom

Thanks Tatt. I'm not sure if there was soy in the bread. It did have sesame seeds so I assumed it was the sesame that ds2 was reacting too. I will get some flaxseed oil. How do you give that? just mixed in food and at the same time as the probiotics?

Newgirl - what allergies did your dd have and which ones is she growing out of?

sesmae is also often a problem in those with nut allergy. Worth having a look at the label of the bread/asking the baker was what in it as if you get a referral the more they know about ingredients the better they can help. Also check ingredients of other food he has as soy is in lots of things and if he eats it in other things then even if it was in the bread it points more to sesame than to soy.

I give my child fish oil so I'm not sure about flaxseed but I think most people mix it with something else. A search for flaxseed oil on mumsnet will probably find some advice.