Introducing Solids to baby with Allergies

Hi Everyone

Just wondering if someone could offer me some advice.

My 5 1/2 month old daughter has a milk protein allergy and I was wondering what food would be best to start her on once she is 6 months.

I have been told that rice may cause reactions in sensitive babies so not sure whether to try rice ceral first.

She is exclusively breastfed but cannot tolerate it if I have any dairy products.

If anyone else has been through and has some suggestions it would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks
Angie

my daughter has allergies/anaphylaxis.

but we did start on rice cereal mixed with cool boiled water.
rice cereal is really bland so it should be ok.
there is/was no lactose or milk in it

It is best that u discuss this with a health professional eg paed allergist, mc health nurse, or gp about starting solids they really r the best to guide you, they have different suggestions on how to start feeding differnt things. especially for kids/babes with allergies

I suspect my daughter has a milk protein allergy as well. I started her on rice cerial and water then added a little stewed apple. I have slowly introduced foods over the last 4 mths and found that she also has reactions to preservatives and too much wheat.
My advice is to take it slowly. Only introduce new things at 7-10 day intervals at first. Try to stick to natural, home cook products and watch out for additives in things such as bread as well as commercial baby products. There is a good rage called Bellemy's Organics which are quite good.

Angie,

Great to hear your daughter is doing well with her food. My daughter has a milk protein allergy as well as egg, oils, eggplant, onion and I am sure there are more to come!!! I have been told that every 6 months I should try her on the foods she is allergic to to see if there are still reactions. I am sure you are already careful but I have found even the smallest amount of milk protein can cause a reaction in my little one, like milk traces on your lips after coffee and my husband was eating CCs the other day and a small amount was on his 3 day growth and that caused a reaction!!! Don't think I have much chance of her growing out of it yet. Be very wary of soy yoghurt as many of them still contain milk protein - the only brand I have found that doesn't is called "alive". Also the only brand of "cheese" that doesn't contain casein (also a milk protein) is Tofutti. They make great soy-cheese slices and my daughter loves them. They also make a soy cream cheese which is fantastic for her. I hate the smell but she loves the taste so I know that she is getting enough calcium.

Regards,
Cym

I am having problems!!! My bub has had his eczema back now for about 4 weeks and i have no idea what has caused it. He only has pear, banana, kumera and pumpkin and i have been trying to introduce other things and when his eczema gets worse i just continue with those 4 foods, which he was eating when he was eczema free... I cant find anything else to feed him!!! I dont know what else to do - I am worried he will be eating these 4 foods for the rest of his life!!! I cant get the eczema to clear so cant try new foods cos I wont know if they are having a reaction... GPs are no help and tell me to use steroid cream - which doesnt clear it up, and the peadatrician said it was a dairy allergy and I must have inadvertantly given him dairy - Well - There is not much dairy in those 4 products!!! I just have no idea what to do now! Can anyone help me?

Hi there suz01,

Sounds like it can't be the foods then? I wouldn't like to be using a steroid cream either. Just a thought, but have you covered everything else that could cause a skin reaction, like laundry detergents or anything else that bubs comes into contact with?
Also, have you considered seeing a naturapath or similar, they may be able to help pin point the cause and provide a more natural approach to solving the problem. Best of luck smile

Have you looked at things like grass? My DD cannot go onto grass without having a huge reaction. Lucky for me she hates going onto it, so always stays on the blanket, except on NY Day and so that night her eczema was really bad. Never mind, the steroid cream cleared it up very quickly. I guess I am lucky that it works on her skin most of the time.

How often do you bath him and what do you bath him in? My DD is only bathed 2 - 3 times a week otherwise her skin is terrible. And all I use is sorbolene cream, anything else just seems to set her off.

Check your washing detergent as well. I know that I do react slightly to some washing powders, so it might be that. Or is he under any stress at all? Sounds silly in a baby, but if you are getting stressed, he might be picking up on that and making his eczema worse? What about his formula? Have you changed brands or types lately and if not, have they slightly changed their ingredients? Or maybe the utensils you are using contain traces of dairy?

Lots of questions to ask yourself, but hopefully one of them might help find the cause.

Good luck,
Cym

Hi Cym and Linda.
Thanks for your quick replies and advice. I was thinking of seeing a naturapath as I really dont want to do. I shall look into it today.
He doesnt play on the grass, I use a special detergent from the health shop for clothes. He is on infasoy which seems ok with him. I only bath him about every 3 days (sad cos he loves it so much)... And I moisterise him constantly with sorbalene cream! I have animals but they are always here and the eczema comes and goes so it doesnt seem like it could be related to that.
You could be right about the stress thing? I hadnt really heard of that before. After we changed to Infasoy a few months ago it came right and then came back when we were at Tresillian, but then cleared when we were home, then came back when we went on holiday to NZ, cleared when we got home, came back a few weeks before Xmas (nothing different then i dont think) but now is still bad and his Dad has been away leading up to Xmas and then before New Years to Indonesia (in the Defence Force). I dont think I am stressed but obviously something is different in his world, and he misses his Daddy... Do you think it could be related to that? Perhaps it will clear up again when he gets back? I shall make a note of when he is away etc so I can see if it is related...
Its all so confusing. But I have some more to think about now! Thanks smile