I’m going to gloss over this because I want to update you all (so when I reference dietary things in the future you know why and what is going on) but I don’t necessarily want to discuss the details because it’s my son’s life and I want to respect his privacy.
His blood work revealed several allergies, including peanuts and sesame seeds.
Additionally, he’s allergic to wheat, soy, cashews (therefore, tree nuts), and dairy.
He is NOT allergic to eggs, fish, shellfish, or walnuts.
So yeah, this is crazy. At first I was really overwhelmed, seeing as we are vegetarians, and that eliminates a lot of food options. I’m still kinda taking it all in.
The doctor is optimistic that he can grow out of the wheat, soy, and dairy allergies, but it means completely avoiding them now (apparently this increases the likelihood that he will be able to tolerate them later).
The nuts and seeds are more confusing. Did you know sesame seed allergies are the new thing? They are climbing in prevalence and are often associated with peanut allergies. It’s weird that walnuts are okay but cashews are not, since both are tree nuts. I’m not sure why they are differentiated in the blood work and what that means for other nuts, but our MD felt it was important to omit all nuts and seeds from his diet for now. Which means zero hemp, flax, chia, sunflower, etc. I made the mistake of googling myself down a rabbit hole and got scared when I discovered mustard and poppy seed allergies exist too. And seed oils are in EVERYTHING!
As you can see, I have a million thoughts on this and it’s hard to get one sentence written out before another thing pops into my head. Our allergist is fantastic but I get the sense he doesn’t want me to get super focused on the yes/no list right now because it’s all subject to change (fingers crossed!). That’s fine, but I’m really just trying to educate myself. I wish there was a way to test every nut and seed. That said, I guess there’s not a point since we are still supposed to avoid them all.
Do you know how hard it is to make creative vegetarian food without all these foods? Every peanut allergy replacement is made with either seeds or soy. And don’t get me started on all the vegetarian proteins that get knocked out without hemp, soy, and dairy.
Thank goodness for quinoa, beans and eggs. And fish, I guess, although I’m not really loving all the mercury and radioactivity that goes along with it. Soooo, yeah…our kitchen is looking different nowadays.
To make things even more confusing, P is going through a picky phase. He eats bananas 100% of the time. And that’s the only thing I can rely on. He eats eggs 50% of the time. Quinoa has a similarly mediocre average, even when made into pancakes (I’ve tried a sweet banana plum quinoa cake, a savory pea and egg cake, and a squash variation…all with a range of acceptance).
I have tried every fruit and vegetable under the sun with a 2% success rate. I swear without bananas the kid would starve.
It is really frustrating. It also has Kyle and I reevaluating our own diets. In the venn diagram of our threesome, the middle section has very little overlap right now, which will certainly make things hard for family dinners going forward.
And even though the MD told me my breast milk wouldn’t be affected by the foods he’s allergic to, I have to say, I’ve seen a noticeable difference in his eczema since I stopped eating (or seriously reduced) nuts, seeds, and soy in my own diet.
But you know me. I’m not about to give up any time soon. I want to raise an adventurous eater with a diverse palate, in spite of the new limitations. If he lives off of avocado and corn puffs until he’s 2 years old…well…maybe it will make for an interesting childhood story when he wins Top Chef season 46. 🙂
Some of his faves (for now at least): apple (slices that he can gnaw on), banana, celery (again, he loves gnawing sticks), corn puffs (the plain Arrowhead Mills cereal), steel cut oats (made in the rice cooker with less liquid so they are clumps), avocado, pear, and melon (I froze a bunch of cantaloupe chunks in the summer so I just thaw them).
What the [bleep] is with the allergies in kids today!?!?!
I was thinking the same thing!! I hear about allergies SO MUCH nowadays. It could just be an increase in awareness? The “colicky” babies in the past (although I know colic is a real thing) could have been allergic to something and miserable digestive-wise until they grew out of it. Correct me if I’m wrong but I don’t think our moms thought about food allergies/sensitivities too much unless the reaction was severe.
Also, it seems like more and more people are starting babies off with “real” food pretty early instead of the classic rice cereals all moms used to start off with, so maybe kids are exposed to stuff earlier than they used to be? It seems like you had an awesome upbringing with food, but my mom probably only gave me rice cereal/processed purees and breastmilk until I was a year old or so. I didn’t even know what an avocado was until I was in my teens, ha!
I was think that awareness and food introduction could be a factor too but more in the sense that babies only recently had hummus and other more “exotic” foods in their diets.
That said I did a ton I research on food allergies while pregnant and before giving p various things and studies show that earlier intros lead to reduced incidence of allergies.
So weird.
I think I was a purée and rice cereal baby too – although I did get homemade stuff.
Ps just to be clear he needs an epi pen so he doesn’t go into anaphylactic shock when he eats these foods. It’s very different from digestive upset or food sensitivities that may cause colicky symptoms.
I don’t know much about allergies, so you can totally ignore this. BUT, my husband and I are expecting our first baby in just three short weeks. When we were interviewing pediatricians, we spoke with one that was saying she believed the increase in allergy issues has a lot to do with the increase in the amount of vaccinations and antibiotics we are introducing ourselves to. She was explaining how our immune systems were meant to have a job to do, so if we take away their “job”, they start looking for other things to deal with…hence, the issues with allergies. Just a theory, but I think a fairly good one.
Ugh, that sucks! Especially since you are vegetarians. I’m not sure of your reasoning for not eating meat, but have you thought about eating it, or at least giving it to P?
Ugh. I’m so sorry you have to deal with all of this. I’ve always had nightmares about my child(ren) being allergic to peanuts, so I can only imagine. I still am praying that we don’t experience many allergies with Hunter, but you never know. I always wonder the same thing too – what in the heck is with all the allergies in kids these days?! It baffles me.
I’m so sorry to hear about the struggle you are going through, but take heart! I am a 27 year old with an insane amount of food allergies (including wheat/gluten, rice, and my body cannot tolerate cane and faux sugar, among many, many other things), and I am still able to be a vegan, and a very adventurous eater. One thing I will say, if he can tolerate it, coconut oil! I completely switched off all seed and veg oils a year ago when I couldn’t tolerate them. Coconut oil is my hero!
Good luck with everything!
Wow…feeding a baby is challenging enough these days without allergies so I can’t even imagine what you’re dealing with! Just wanted to say that my daughter is 14 months old and has been a “good eater” since we introduced solids around 6 months–will try anything, eats “unexpected” foods (things my parents/in-laws are surprised by like avocados, pomegranates, brussels sprouts, tofu, salmon, etc.). That being said, she has gone through picky phases too, and then in hindsight I realize she was getting a tooth or getting a cold or something and a couple days later she is back to eating like a champ. I’m sure you know this, but don’t give up on any particular foods he initially refuses! I read that sometimes it takes 10+ exposures to a food for a child to like it, and the older my daughter has gotten the pickier she can be some days about textures, which foods are combined, and so on. I also have a banana lover on my hands, sometimes I went back to mashing banana and mixing it with other things like pureed pumpkin and spoon feeding her a few bites in between finger foods she can feed herself.
Okay this went on way longer than I meant it to, but good luck to you!
Elise,
Just wondering what kind of allergy tests you had done. My
grandson , who is P’s age, and looks similar to P, was premie, had failure to thrive, and was put on formula. He wasn’t accepting his mom’s milk at all. He has improved since. They tested for allergies, celiac, diabetes and all were neg. I think antibiotics, GMO’s, etc.. are taking their toll on our immune systems. Best of luck.
My daughter is 15 and was recently diagnosed with food allergies. And the list is LONG!!
Fresh fruit, tree nuts, peanuts, soy, wheat, corn, shellfish, dairy intolerance.
Craziness. One day she was eating fruit, the next day she bit into a pear and we were in the emergency dept.
Amazing how we learn to recook and change our lives.
Very interesting!! Makes sense to me! Thanks Dana. And congrats on your little one on the way 🙂
We’ve thought about both. I go back and forth 10000 times a day. In the end I want to do what’s best – for my kid, for his health, for my health, for the environment. All of it is so complicated. Parenting!!
Thanks Wendy! Do you tolerate coconut meat and the flesh as well? I’m not sure if I am supposed to avoid all coconut forms or not but it’s nice to know that you’ve had success with your allergies.
Ack, maybe that wasn’t the best example. I was in NO WAY trying to downplay his allergic reaction symptoms, I know you would never exaggerate something like that.
Best of luck, he is so lucky to have such an attentive, informed hippie momma!
Goodness! I hate you all are going through that. I have had severe food allergies since I was a baby too. I have several similar allergies. Feel free to pick my brain anytime. I know it is tough, but once you figure out what is safe it is much easier!
No worries! I just wanted to be sure to clarify for others reading the comments section who may be looking for advice. Since my blog posts usually deal w intolerances or sensitivities of the digestive nature I just wanted to be sure to distinguish those issues from a true allergy which is an immune response.
Thanks! I have heard the same 10+ time statistic!
I won’t be giving up on fruits and veggies any time soon 🙂
Thank you so much!!
Aw Elise my heart goes out to you and your family! When I saw on Instagram that P had an allergic reaction, it immediately brought me back to my childhood. My brother was severely allergic to peanuts, eggs, dairy, and shellfish so the entire household grew up w/o ANY of those foods. I think its a tough adjustment, but thankfully these days there are more allergy-free options than ever. I have no doubt that your mad skills in the kitchen will prevail and you will whip up some wonderful allergy-free dishes!
Did you ask any of the doctors if any of the allergies could have been formed while you were pregnant with P and related to anything you ate/didn’t eat while pregnant? For example, I remember you saying that you didn’t eat a lot of wheat while you were pregnant. I am asking this purely out of curiosity because I am pregnant with my first child and wondering if I don’t eat x, y, z certain kind of food, will that increase my child’s chances of an allergy? I know these allergies make feeding P more of a challenge, but I like your attitude of focusing on all the foods he can eat and explore!
oh my gosh, that’s crazy! Seriously, why are there so many allergies in kids these days?! Poor P 🙁
Hi Elise – just wanted to comment on the diverse eater thing. I don’t usually like labels but our approach to food is in the spirit of Ellyn Satter’s philosophy (see Google…). Anyways, my daughter’s caregivers were amazed by what I sent with her to eat at daycare. She ate anything (except fish and avo) during her infant and toddler stage and I wore the “my child is a diverse eater” badge proudly during that time. Once their growth slows around age 3 and they become way more active, their food intake needs change and there are days when she isn’t shoveling down heaps of broccoli like she used to. But food is not a power struggle for us (ages 4 and almost 2). So I’ve retired my “diverse eater” badge (and stuck it in the drawer next to “my kid sleeps through the night” and “I am a full term nurser”) and instead I have a “food is not a power struggle in our house” badge.
So glad you found an allergist you like and yay for also hitting at his excema. Excema is like the canary in the coal mine – something’s not right when that’s around. Hang in there!
I really feel for you. Having two Celiacs in the family, one who is a vegetarian, I know how hard it is to deal with multiple dietary needs in one house!
Don’t worry about your baby’s picky habits, either. My son ate nothing but bananas for a long time, then he wanted nothing but peanut butter, and so on. He’s still growing and healthy.
They actually used to put babies on a 100% banana diet when food sensitivities were suspected, leading to a generation of people known as “banana babies.” They all ended up having Celiac disease, but the banana diet saved them.
Good luck!
Do I know how hard it is to create inventive , veggie food with all your limitations? Umm, no.
Do I know anyone else , better suited n’booted to tackle the job than Elise, AKA TheHungrieHungrieHippie? Definitely not!!
Xxx
So sorry to hear that you need to deal with food allergies. My 36 year old daughter had wheat allergies. When I stopped eating wheat & nursed she was better. Don’t care what doc says. She did grow out of it and her children don’t have food allergies.
Good luck. Love your blog.
Oh my goodness, I’m so sorry that you’re going through this.
I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again- P is so lucky to have a mom like you. Not many other women are as knowledgeable and patient to work through this and maintain a healthy-diet for him, despite the allergies. You’re seriously amazing.
Also- if it makes you feel any better- my sister had a lot of severe allergies when she was young and outgrew almost all of them by the time she was 3 or 4. We’ll all keep our fingers crossed (:
There is unfortunately not a lot of research about what passes into breastmilk, but there is one study that showed cow milk protein does pass into it. And I suspect other allergy protein do too. Not that you have to go crazy with your own diet, but it might make sense to minimize the ones he’s most sensitive to. And the good news is that your milk continues to be chock full of nutrition for as long as he nurses, so it will fill in all the gaps (like the days he only eats bananas). My toddlers had their days like that and I was SO glad to be nursing them. xoxox
Here’s a good link about toddler breastmilk and nutrition: http://kellymom.com/ages/older-infant/ebf-benefits/
thank you thank you thank you for the info wendy
oh emily, you sure know how to pump a girl up. thanks so very much for this comment 🙂
and its also great to hear anecdotes like your sister’s!
thank you rita! its so nice to hear these stories – they give me hope and strength 🙂
you rock sarah. thanks for the amazing comment 🙂
thank you courtney! i love hearing everyone’s stories with positive outcomes 🙂
well done you! thanks for the name. ill be sure to google her philosophy. he goes through phases with trying new things and not so I’m sure its just on the down side now. in the beginning he was willing to go for anything. given what we eat, I’m sure “diverse eating” will conquer 🙂
Oh, man! So sorry to hear about his allergies. Crossing my fingers he outgrows at least some of them.
It is very alarming (to say the least) how food allergies have become so prevalent in kids today. It has to be a number of factors, and not just parents’ food choices because you obviously eat very healthfully and well. Makes me nervous for when I decide it’s time to have my own kid.
Hoping it gets easier for you all!
You’re are doing a great job Elise! It will all work out in the end. I know you and Kyle will be amazing parents figuring all this out. When my daughter got her blood work back on her food allergy test, it had a lot of false positives…so did the skin test actually (not as many though). Hope the same thing happens for you guys too, but if not, I know you’ll be amazing parents who (for sure) will provide the best upbringing for little P possible.
Nature can be so dumb sometimes. Why??? Why?!? Look on the bright side, there are these tests to give us a guide of some sort instead of complete trial/error like in the olden days. I try to console myself that it could be worse, like with anything. And Patty looks pretty happy to me so that’s what really matters!:) Before the traveling there were so much less varities of what people ate anyway, so even with allergies, we’re cookin good
I’m really sorry to hear about this. I don’t have words of wisdom to offer but I can’t think of a mom with skills to handle it better than you, Elise! You guys will get though this! All the best to you.
Sure! Here’s one good study: http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/10518086. Most studies concentrate on cow’s milk in breastmilk, but I have seen moms for whom eliminating the other allergens worked too. You can do some trial and error to see what helps. And regarding P’s diet, if you could figure out the low fodmap diet as a vegetarian, you can do anything!
I’m so sorry you have to deal with this, I really hope P grows out of the allergies.
We’re so sorry to here about your sons allergies. I read your blog all the time and didn’t know you were dealing with Tree Nut allergies.
Have you ever tried hemp seeds? Hemp Seeds are a good source of protein, essential fatty acids and minerals. We have many customers with children and they love hemp seeds. Please contact me if you ever want to know more or have any questions. I’m here to help.
It sounds like P’s diet would fit within a nut-free paleo (or autoimmune paleo, which excludes nuts and seeds among other things) framework; even if you don’t add meat, there would be a lot of pescetarian options and ideas.
Chris Kresser has some good info on his site about mercury in fish. It doesn’t address the radioactivity issue, but it’s worth a read.
http://chriskresser.com/is-eating-fish-safe-a-lot-safer-than-not-eating-fish
Sounds like quite a challenge but I know you can handle it!
I don’t think it matters if kids don’t have a huge variety, just as long as there are a few things from each nutrient group that they eat (eg some fruit/veg/protein/carbs). Especially where there are allergy restrictions.
Does he like rice? Indian recipes might be good – rice, lentils, beans, veg.
I had tons of allergies as a child but outgrew them all by age 5. Hopefully P will out grow them as well.
Just a thought though……isn’t Quinoa a seed?
Auugghhh- that’s a lot of allergies for such a small kid! I hope he is able to “grow out of” as many as possible.
And in the meantime don’t fret if he lives off of a few favorites. Apparently i ate almost exclusively bananas, cheerios, yogurt, raisins and apple juice for about five years. Seriously. And i grew up to love every vegetable and have a very adventurous and open mind when it comes to food. (Well, within the realms of a non dairy vegetarian diet)
Poor P (and mama and daddy)! Food allergies are one of my biggest parenting fears, and I think Mini B will have to have an anaphylactic reaction like your guy did before I would suspect/believe he was allergic to anything. It’s crazy how prevalent (and over-diagnosed some of the time, probably) they are now. So scary for parents! I hope he outgrows them.
My cousin’s kids all have food allergies and one of the first symptoms that they had (especially the 3rd child – who’s 2 now) was the eczema as an infant. She cut out the offending foods in her diet while breastfeeding and it made a big difference. (She has access to some of the best doctors in Boston BTW). I think there’s more to the breastfeeding thing than some think.
Good luck!
thank you so much jen! this totally backs up what i felt in my gut. while its a bummer that i now have to cater to his allergies in my own diet, i will do anything to keep him healthy and happy 🙂
good point. it is technically a pseudoseed. hmmm…
good. i like hearing stories like yours 🙂
rice is hit and miss. so are beans and lentils. just gotta keep rotating things in and out…i def try to get something from each macronutrient in at each meal but it is definitely a challenge with the protein thing. at least there is decent protein in several grains.
definitely! thanks for the link michelle, ive actually read that post before. i like chris kresser and may try a version of the autoimmune paleo approach (with eggs and beans too though). thanks for the comment!
thanks brad! its very kind of you to reach out. i am a big fan of hemp seeds but im not sure if/when i should try introducing them to P die to the sesame seed allergy. do you know of any costumers with peanut and tree nuts and sesame allergies tolerating hemp seeds or hemp oil or hemp butter? id love to try it, but im nervous too.
thanks k 🙂
its so weird right?? ive read a few studies lately trying to figure out the evolutionary cause behind allergies. the silver lining is that those with hyperactive immune systems have lower incidences of cancer! ha. anyway, hes a happy kid and none the wiser on what hes missing out on, so its all good.
Yes we do have a few customers that are allergic to sesame, peanuts and tree nuts. They’re able to eat hemp seeds without any problems. I would be nervous too about feeding my child with allergies a new food. I’m sure your doctor can help with the best way to try hemp seeds. I recommend small amounts at first. Our smaller bags of hemp seeds are all package in an allergen free manufacturing plant and we have paper work to prove it. Contact me anytime if you want to chat more. Best of luck and happy new years.
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I followed your blog when pregnant with my little man who is about P’s age. Anyway, haven’t really been back here since (working and mothering is exhausting!) but despite my very healthy diet my little guy also has numerous food allergies confirmed by blood tests at 6 months old. Dairy, eggs, soy, peanuts, tree nuts, and a mild wheat allergy. I’m also nursing (it seems, very extended nursing given the allergy situation) so I’ve had to make big changes to my diet as well. We first noticed his constant eczema which prompted the peditrician to run an allergy test.
As an aside, we are seeing a naturopath and a DO to see how we can help his food allergies from a more natural standpoint and my naturopath recommends daily vitamin C. Several vitamins are noted for their effectiveness in reducing allergic symptoms, vitamin C being one of them.
Do you already have an epi-pen? My peditrician said he doesn’t like to prescribe them for children this young, but we meet with an actual allergist at 12 months (next month!) and my assumption is we will be getting one. Most of my little mans allergies register a 4 on the 1-6 scale.
thank you so much for your comment lindsey. I’m so sorry you’re dealing with the scary food allergy drama too 🙁
how do you administer vitamin c? are there drops that are dosed for infants? ill have to look into it. theres definitely a link between vitamin c and the immune system so i guess it makes sense that it could play a role in allergic reactions.
p was 3-4 on the scale, peanuts/sesame were the 4s.
our pediatrician gave us dpi pens and we now have benadryl on hand at all times too. id push to get the epi junior (that what we have) if you can.
so smart that your pediatrician noticed the eczema and you didn’t have to find out the hard way.
keep your head up mama. you’re doing great! its so hard being a working mom. sending extra hugs and virtual love your way.
We use Childlife Essentials Vitamin C drops. They’re dosed for infants specifically and they’re available at Whole Foods. We’ll definitely have to ask about the epi-pen junior. It seems better to have it and not need it than the reverse.
Thank you! Sending lots of cyber hugs back to you 🙂