Caleb has his appointment with the Allergist, Dr.W today. I can’t believe what we found out. Caleb is allergic, highly allergic to:
EGGS,
Milk, and…
PEANUTS!
The first column on his back is all the food allergies.(See the big red bumps). The second and third columns are the environmental allergens like dust, mold, cat, dog(no allergy there!). The last bump in the last column is the control. Notice how the food allergies are even more positive than the control! CRAZY. We got another prescription for epi-pens so we can keep them everywhere.
I feel ok for right now about what to do. But I am completely overwhelmed at what happens when my baby turns one. What to do about milk? Do I extend breasfeeding? What do I really think about soy? What about the flu shot? What about his first birthday cake? Ok, so I can make a cake, what about icing? What about eating snacks like goldfish with friends? What do I do when he can crawl around and picks something up that he is allergic to?
It makes me sad to think of all the things we love that he is not going to be able to have: pizza, peanut butter, reese cups, sour cream, cheese, lasagna, ice cream, pancakes…oh the list is endless!
I had a patient that had 6 kids, all were allergic to something. So their house was egg, dairy and peanut free. She recommended a site that I have already been looking at and bought her book. http://www.foodallergymama.com/. Any other helpful hints? I’m all ears!
Oh no! poor little guy :( I know that was no fun. At least you know now. We went to a birthday party with a cake (that had icing) that was egg and milk free- I'll get you the recipe. ((HUGS))
ReplyDeleteI have an online friend and her son is HIGHLY allergic to eggs. I can give you her contact info if you want!
ReplyDeleteSo sorry about the poor little guy's allergies! I was hoping it wouldn't be anything too severe!
looks like there are going to be lots of fruits and veggies in your future!
ReplyDeleteWhew! My nephew Caleb is also highly allergic to eggs (and maybe more??). His mother likes this site: passionatehomemaking.com
ReplyDeletegood luck
it sounds like you're going to learn a whole new way to cook!
I've been to that site you linked. It's good. I am so sorry to hear about the other allergies too. We don't know for sure if Isaac is allergic to peanuts, but we've been told to avoid them. But we don't have the egg allergy on top of it all! I know the overwhelming feeling when you first find out. It feels like you'll never be able to eat anything! It does get easier though! You figure it out. By the way, Pillsbury makes an icing that is milk free. (I don't know if it's got egg though...) And Duncan Hines has milk free cake mixes that you just add water and oil. (again, not sure if there's eggs in the dry mix though...). Here's hopefully an encouraging thing: In all my research with the milk allergy I have come to find that milk is totally not necessary. (breastmilk is a different story). But all the hype about kids getting milk is totally hype built up by the milk industry. Doctors will agree, they can get all the calcium and other nutrients from veggies and fruit. And they will be so much healthier. I really truly believe that Isaac is a healthier kid today because he has not had all the animal fats from cheeses and milks. They can get the good fats from other sources just as easily. He will be a better eater overall!
ReplyDeleteAnd, fyi: we chose not to do soymilk because of the large amounts of pesticides used in soybean farming and also because of the estrogen in soy that is not good for little boys. We've done rice milk, almond milk and hempmilk as substitutes when baking. Isaac weaned himself from breastfeeding at about 13 months (but had hoped to keep him going a little longer) and after that he didn't get anything liquid other than water. Other than ear infections he has really been healthy.
If you ever have any questions, I would love to help. I have cared for kids with severe food allergies for many years and have done a lot of experimenting with products, recipes, kitchen org, etc. I will try to make a list of some of the biggest things that helped me and email it to you. If you think of anything specific before than, please feel free to send me an email :) amberscavo@mindpring.com
ReplyDeleteA great resource is the FAN (Food Allergy Network) site.
Hey! A good friend's son has the same allergies! Here is her allergy blog
ReplyDeletehttp://dairyfreekids.blogspot.com/
hi!! I am a friend of Shelby Groffs and she linked me to your site. My lil Alex is allergic to the same things! He turned 2 in May. I know what you are feeling. It isnt easy but I have found ways to make it all work for us and its not that bad. Certain things are hard and I know will always be- like birthday parties, eating out, and traveling. But I always try to tell myself- it could be worse. Its okay to morn the loss of those "normal" things you wont get to do (I have). I have done a few posts on my allergy blog that I just started recently- it is linked on my family blog. And there are a few links on there to some helpful sites. Please let me know if there is anything I can help you with or if you want to talk about anything specifically. Oh, and we chose to do soy milk, soy yogurt, soy ice cream. I feel like it gives us great alternatives and my allergist supported us that there is nothing wrong with soy. Also, remember that the best one to turn to in these tough times is God. My faith has been strengthened through Him.
ReplyDelete