How About Allergies

A lot of children under the age of 3 experience food allergies. This is more common in families with a history of allergies - food or otherwise. Exposing babies to high allergen foods at a young age also increases their chances of developing food allergies. Ninety percent of these food allergies are to one of the following 5 foods: soy - peanuts - cow’s milk - wheat - or eggs.

While it is possible to have several food allergies at once - the majority of children who develop a food allergy only experience it with one food. A reasonable percentage of children allergic to cow’s milk also experience food allergies with soy products.

Severe food allergies cause instantaneous inflammation of the lips - tongue - or throat - itching - or tingling when the child has minimal contact with the food. The worst allergies can cause anaphylactic shock and sometimes death. Nuts and fish are usually the culprits of these life-threatening allergies.

In general - though - typical food allergies don’t produce such extreme symptoms. Gastrointestinal disruption is common - causing diarrhea - excess gas - nausea - or even vomiting. Newborns may experience mucous or bloody streaks in their stool. But it isn’t always loose stool - food allergies can occasionally trigger constipation.

Other common symptoms include wheezing - hives - a stuffy or runny nose - ear infections - asthma - colic - and eczema. These last two symptoms - characterized by irritability - may be the only symptom of a food allergy. If your baby has this sign - try eliminating high allergen foods and see if the symptom disappears.

Allergies to food are usually not contagious - and most babies will outgrow any developed food allergies by the time they turn 3 years old. {Allergies to nuts and fish are the exceptions.} If the allergy continues - helping your child avoid the offending food for a year or two will likely cause the allergy to disappear.