One Child with and One Child Without Severe Egg/dairy Allergies -- Advice??

I too have one with dairy/egg allergies and one without. To add to the chaos I am a vegetarian and no one else in the family is. I have to tell you I try to eliminate some dairy from my son but not totally. It isn't fair to him. In order to keep some sanity I will only make two options for each meal. My husband and I each eat the same thing as one of the children. I tried the 3 to 4 meal thing and almost lost my mind.

There are great cookbooks out there for dairy free meals. Be careful several of them don't eliminate eggs. I have learned to adjust recipes to work. The rest of the family has adjusted their tastes a bit as well. Good luck this is such a challenge.

Hi S..

If I were you, I would go talk to some non-traditional allergists (e.g., Eastern medicine, homeopaths, etc.) and see what they say. Allergy, and its rising incidence, is a more complex business than modern medicine likes to admit.

Good luck!!

S.,

I know it's overwhelming to find all this out and sort through how you'll deal with this new lifestyle. We didn't see any allergy symptoms until our son was 7 months and then the changes began. He's now over 2 and continues to have egg, dairy and nut allergies. We're expecting our 2nd in December so we may have the opposite situation or our 2nd could have the same allergies.

At any rate, the first adjustment will be for you since you'll have to cut food categories out from your diet. I know when I had to do it, I was constantly hungry for awhile until I figured out how to cook and bake differently. Just learning how to adjust for yourself will help when your baby gets ready for other foods. I'm glad I continued nursing b/c I learned so much about what to eat and not eat and felt like my son's "first line of defense".

Sunbutter is actually pretty tasty (made from sunflower seeds) so that might be your first replacement option for the beloved peanut butter. I would guess you could manage keeping some regular dairy around for your son.

We found that our son is allergic to the egg white and not the yolk so that has helped with many recipes. When he turned 1, the allergy specialist did a blood test and luckily the results showed that soy was not a problem and he could tolerate almonds too. Rice milk and coconut milk were our main choices prior to that.

This is a more common issue than I ever imagined so the resources and food choices on the market help tremendously. All my best to you and your family.

Hi S.
What I have learned in my search for better health(for whatever it's worth) is that food allergies are a sign of an overactive Immune system. So my advice would be to take supplements, of course a organic Whole food liquid one would be better,because your body can absorb 90% of it right away. So your baby would be getting it through you for now, but you could also start giving it to her now, it will not hurt her at all. And start balancing out her system. Babies and children LOVE it. I have seen and experienced awesome things regarding health issues. If you have questions just contact me at ____@____.com-luck to you
J.

My boy has several allergies. One thing you should do - talk about it alot. "Oh, J can't have peanuts - he's allergic to peanuts...it'll give him owies." opening a new food? "Oh, does it have peanuts in it? J can't have peanuts."....both J and his sister learned which foods J can't have...and they ask if new foods have peanuts in them...even at other people's houses.

I give J similar items that only he can have. Jelly instead of peanut butter. Cream of wheat instead of oatmeal.

I tell his friends' parents about his allergies when I meet them and again when they go over to their house to play. I *always* ask parents first if it's OK to give their kids a snack...but I don't expect everyone else to ask first.

Hi S.,

Getting the news that your kiddo has food allergies is very overwhelming, as everyone eats food, several times a day, and the reactions can be so severe. Good for you for choosing food elimination and continuing to nurse your daughter. It is a huge sacrifice on your part. Be very careful to eat enough calories to keep up your milk supply. It helped me when my husband suggested I think of it as an adventure and trip to a foreign country where I'd have to try all new foods. :) My son, now 22 months, is allergic to dairy and egg.

I don't have older kids in the house, but we have to deal with it every time we visit with friends and especially their kids. The biggest thing I'd caution against is food that can crumb onto the floor, like corn bread (that has eggs), scrambled eggs, grated cheese, etc. My son is allergic on contact, so sweeping the floor thoroughly doesn't do much - I have to mop, too, and sometimes you just can't be fast enough. I would definitely not allow kids coming to visit to have the offending foods in my house - they just don't understand, and their parents, however well meaning, aren't thorough enough in making sure the kid doesn't walk around with offending food or wash hands.

I've heard great things about almond butter, but it would still be wise to have son wash hands thoroughly, as nuts of any kind aren't recommended because of reaction until a year. A wonderful cheese substitute is Manchego cheese, which is made of sheep's milk, and has none of the offending cow's milk proteins. Costco carries it, but check the particular brand they carry, as one brand has egg in it. Whole foods has an excellent one, El Trigal Manchego. It is a hard, mild, white cheese. You should be able to eat it, too! Whole foods also has a water buffalo yogurt that is yummy.

Washing hands is just going to be part of your life. Have wipes on hand at all times, to wipe down the table at restaurants, wipe daughter's hands that stray to pick up food off your plate, etc.

If you did the skin testing, I'd recommend you get another test, as there is a 50-70% chance of a false positive, and I was told to eliminate 6 big things after the first test, but a second test later confirmed he was allergic only to two items, and reintroduction of food in my diet and exposure to items, confirmed the second test results and confirmed the fact that there were four false positives in the first.

If you haven't found a La Leche League group yet(www.llli.org - look under resources, find a group or find a leader), I highly recommend you check out their website and find one close to you, as you will probably find another mom who has dealt with food allergy in her family, and the leaders have information to assist with solid food introduction and reassurance if your child holds off on solids for a longer time. My son and several kids with food allergies tend to nurse exclusively and be more picky with solids for a longer time. My son wouldn't even try food until 8 months. He then didn't eat food several times a day on a regular basis until 14 months. So, the nursing journey *may* be very different than what you experienced with your first. Learning that your child is doing what is best for her at her own pace is reassuring. I say *may* and mention this just because every kid is different.

If you want more information or just want to connect with someone, please feel free to email me and I can give you my phone number. It can feel very lonely having to worry every day about what your kids are eating, and watching other mothers feed their kids anything and everything. It does become part of your life and you adjust, but it is hard, especially in the beginning.

Good luck,
H.

Oh, this is hard and you will probably have a few tears along the way..and that is okay. My son is intolerant and not allergic but this is what I did: I tossed or gave to neighbors all my foods with these items in them (I am lucky we can have egg still.) I appointed my mom as internet researcher as I just ahd enough on my plate. I got Allergy Friendly cookbook (my favorite so far). then I put to gether a list of what we can have and which stores carry what item (I can forward to you if you e-mail me...though I don't know how to do attachments theorugh this site). Then I shopped by myself and educated myself. I went once a week to a grocery store and then the Vitamin cottage at night without kids so I could read labels, etc. Vitamin cottage has a dietician you can meet with but I mostly e-meiled back and forth since I have the little guys with me during the day. I would say all this took around four months to feel good about stuff. then we just started cooking and eating the okayed foods. My older one just got used to it. i buy her boxed Horizan milks and order it at school if she wants it. But frankly, she doesn't really want it any more (now 4 yr old). She also has cheese sticks and i freeze yogurt tubes and send it in her lunches. You are so lucky with this happening now as you will learn to eat as a family like this now before you are serving foods to your baby. You are also teaching your family the language. My som is turning three and he knows that when we say it has soy or dairy in it..."it will make me sick mom so I don't want it." My daughter also knows and pertects him. School is tough but they should be going to peanut butter free zones mostly. Try hummus for your son. Mine likes it with apple butter. Pumkin butter is the best too1 Get that at the Rocky Mountain Pumpkin Ranch this fall. we bought eight jars and just ran out last week. I use that for pasta sauce as my son can't have tomatoe. He loves it!

And the final line of my pep talk: It isn't the end of the world, you are going to learn to eat whole foods, feel better, and even loose weight. Do it as a team, get your parents involved and friends too. So many are allergic today that you will learn in your community that there is a ton of support for you.

Oh, just ordered Sofie Safe Cookbook too...pretty good. and when you are reading labels, read them from the bottom up, learn to identify dairy and dairy fillers used to sweeten, and soy perservatives first. Those will show up most frequently in prducts. also, i do buy mosty organic as organic usually doesn't have corn syrup and perservatives like BHT which are my son's triggers. Naturemade (some have soy), Cascadian Farm Kaola Crunch, Back to Nature, Lundenburg Rice Cakes in apple cinnamon, and about anything fom Enjoy Life work well for us. there is even choclate chips. Oh, and birthdays...go back to old fashion recipes. I have a great grandmother apple cake recipe that uses oil. Kids love it though it is "brown" cake not white. then sprinkle powdered sugar on top through a stencil for a heart or star. this is what Our grandmothers did. They didn't have all these boxed things.

You are luck you can have flour and you are luck it is now. so take your time and take baby steps. teach your son the language, be honest with him, and let him help you help the baby. you will be surprised that he may learn to like ham, turkey, and chicken. Use lots of honey. Oh, and Brianna is a good salad dresing line to look into.

I could go on and on so let me know if you want to know anything else. PS My name is S. too.

I almost forgot. Look for Vegan labels as you know it will not have an animal by-product of dairy or egg. Also, I have had good luck with many Jewish food lines.

My husband has a severe allergy - the kind that even the smell of the offending food can send him into anaphalaxis (sp?). More often it makes him wheeze and gives him a major headache. But will still try to keep the food away from our environment as much as possible. That meant that I had to make certain dietary adjustments, as did my kids.
My advice: make those adjustments for your entire family. Ban peanuts and tree nuts from the house, and limit the amount of eggs and dairy. Nuts are notorius for causing the severe lifethreatening reactions like my husband has, sometimes just from the scent. Talk to your doctor about suitable substitutes to make sure your son gets proper nutrition. It will be easier to make the change now than in a few years.
You also need to carefully read all ingredient lists of anything you eat. Eggs especially sneak in to many foods - cookies and sweets, salad dressing, and much more. Learn how to quickly recognize early symptoms of a reaction in your baby and make sure you know how to use the epi-pen. This isn't something to take lighty - you probably know that.
It sounds like your daughter isn't for sure allergic to all the foods you listed, but the doctor is making sensible precautions. So in the future, some of these restrictions may be lifted. Good luck!!

I also have one child with and one child w/o severe egg/dairy allergies.(sounds exactly the same, epipen, literature, still nursing and cut dairy and eggs out of my diet) My daughter w/o is 4.5 years old my daughter with is 10 months. I didn't find out until she was 7 months old. We had to endure a trip to the ER after giving her Rice cereal for Nighttime at 5 months old (hint, NEVER buy products that say good morning or goodn night/evening because they usually have whey or some form of milk products in them). And then after another SEVERE allergic reaction when I gave her oatmeal with a dash, I mean a dash of evaporated milk (suspected it was milk but didn't know for sure and doctor never suggested it was that or to go to allergist because she was so young, blah, blah). After that episode I made appointment for allergist and sure enough, Milk and eggs are off limits. Soy, too until she's one just so she doesn't get sensitized and then she won't be able to have soy products either. She tested not allergic to Soy so we're "saving it" to use later, the allergist said.
We still have dairy and egg products in the house but I'm constantly sweeping up the floor due to husband's desire for grated cheese on everything. We don't get powerdery chips anymore though (Lay's cheddar and sour cream, cheetos...). You can buy good tasting bread that is w/o milk. Granny's Pride is a soft wheat bread we use. My 4.5 year old and husband still eat PB&J, omlets, yogurt, granola bars, powered protein, really everything they ever did. I make them wash their hands and mouths off after eating these foods and like I said am always sweeping and mopping up the floor. It is hardest when guests come over and bring food or we serve things with dairy and eggs. We have to tell them to wash their hands and mouths off, too, especially if they plan to hold the baby. It just becomes habit though.
Also, I was completely off dairy and eggs for two months and that seemed to finally help my baby stop having a constant rash on her neck and behind her ears. However, after two months I made some lasagne and ate a little bit just to see what would happen when I nursed later. There didn't seem to be any effect. So, I've added back into my diet breads with dairy in them, an occasional swipe of sour cream on my fajitas, stuff like that, and still no rashes. This is just for the nursing part. That being said, just yesterday my baby was put down for a nap but just cried. (She still doesn't sleep though the night waking every 3-5 hours to nurse). I let her cry it out for almost an hour and when she still wasn't asleep I went in to get her and she was covered in hives, huge welt-type hives, swollen eyes and was wheezing. I immediately gave her a large dose of the Allegra we keep on hand (don't use benedryl because of drowsiness/sedation properties and allergist said studies show that can hinder learning ability). I had the Epipen out and ready but wheezing subsided. I immediately put her in a bath to wash off whatever may have touched her skin. I changed my clothes, made my 4 year old change hers. Changed her crib sheets and blankets and kept a close eye on her. Her hives were still there though reduced in size at bedtime 4 hours later but she was better. I laid her down and realized I couldn't let her cry through any nighttime feedings because who knows what could be going on. I have no idea what she got into. Maybe something off the floor. My 4 year old had Wendy's chicken nuggets and a frosty for lunch after preschool. Both have milk in them. I made a decree no more grated cheese! I'm guessing she could have allergy to apples. I gave her peeled diced ones for the first time today. And she ate tons and tons. The hives didn't show around her mouth like they did that first time with Good Evening rice cereal though so I don't know. And, she eats those apple flavored wagon wheels for toddlers alot and has never had a reaction and she eats some baby food with pureed apples in them. Maybe it's only fresh apples? Anyway, you always have to be ready to administer allergy medicine, wipe off with a wet cloth or bathe them and clean everything. So, maybe it's worth it to not have it in the house but milk and eggs are in most everything. Oh, you could start your 2.5 year old on soy milk and egg-free products now so he doesn't complain about the difference in taste. Smith's and Albertson's have many products (frozen waffles, baking mixes for cookies, brownies, breads...)Do you live in Utah? I haven't tried cheese substitutes. If you have any info please share with me.

I have one child with severe food allergies (peanut, tree nuts, and beans) and one without. We do not bring things into our home that my allergic child cannot have because I don't feel that it is worth the risk of an anaphalactic episode (my daughter has had anphalactic episodes from other people eating nuts around her)-however, you are dealing with some different allergens than I am. You may be able to handle it differently. My best advice is to become a member of UFAN (Utah Food Allergy Network). There are many moms in the group who are dealing with similar issues (many dealing with egg, soy, and dairy allergies), and they are very helpful. Go to www.utahfoodallergy.org.

We had an infant with Dairy allergies and I was also breastfeeding. My older son & husband had no allergies. We changed our main dishes for meals to accommodate my new diet (so we would only be cooking one meal for the family), but allowed milk, cheese and snacks for my other son & husband whenever they wanted. Our biggest issue was eating out. We love to eat out and had to stop since many places don't offer good allergy information.

Don't be overwhelmed, our current society is so much better prepared for kids with allergies - Many supermarkets now have alternatives AND the government passed a law not too long ago making manufacturers specify what allergens are in a product - you just need to read ingredients.

Make sure you get lists from your Dr's office & the CDC with all the different forms of Dairy and the other products you need to stay away from. Keep several around! In the car, your diaper bag, purse, wallet, on the fridge....

Take the allergy one stage at a time. Right now you are breast feeding, so you need to be ANAL about the diet. I did it for 6 months and was fortunate that my son outgrew his allergy.

I'll try and post more later, baby is crying... complete with links to the CDC and some restaurants with allergy information. Good Luck!

The great thing is that you found out so early! Most of these allergies they do outgrow so if you can eliminate them from your/her diet as long as possible, then you might be off the hook. That means you should be absolutely diligent about keeping these completely out of your diet for now. I think that there is no reason for you to take these things from your son's diet. You might want to get him started now with good habits such as washing his hands after he eats anything, and putting his leftovers and plates away after he eats, and wiping down the area where he has been eating with a disposable wet antibacterial wipe. Just some thoughts.

I don't have children with severe allergies. But my husband is severely allgeric to eggs (which he could die from) the dairy as for cheese etc, he just welts up and has to have the shot or benderyl. I don't want to scare you with that information. He has dealt with this for 32 years now. It was hard for him growing up watching kids eat things he could never have. But now days there are a lot of things that are made with out dairy or eggs. Just recently we found a chocolate cake at the local grocery store and it didn't have eggs in it. My husband was so excited because he never has a cake. My son loves scrambled eggs and cheese. I don't deprive him of that we have it in the house and he just knows he can't touch is dad until he washes up. You just have to try and teach them and make them feel like they still special even though they have allergies. I have heard of people growing out of the allergies but some don't. My MIL would make different meals for the boys when growing up because of the allergies. You learn to read the ingredients before purchasing. They also have the soy that you might be able to use. I know I have also heard of websites now that have the dairy free foods. You might search the internet. Good luck.

I'm in a great allergy support group on Yahoo... you should look into it: TerrificKidsWFA. My son was diagnosed with a severe nut allergy earlier this year (just after he turned 3) and this group has been a *tremendous* help to me. I can hardly believe how much I've learned in the last several months! Information, support, advice on how to live day-to-day with severe allergies, etc. You can also get loads of great info at FAAN's website. Your doc probably gave it to you, but: www.foodallergy.org.

When my son was first diagnosed, we had some nuts in the house (I'm nursing a baby who doesn't tolerate milk--negative SPT but he gets GI symptoms--so I was using nuts to make up for some of the protein I've lost from skipping dairy) and I would just wash carefully and all that. But over the next few months I started feeling weird about them, like it *so* wasn't worth having them in the house when they're so dangerous to my son. So we've gone nut-free. And I really don't plan on ever giving nuts to my DS2. If he wants to try them when he moves out of the house, fine. ;)

Did they test your daughter for the top 8 or just dairy & egg? I'd suggest that you consider removing any allergens from your household that are likely to cause her an anaphylactic reaction. You probably don't need to be that cautious with things that are only potential allergens. You will need to be careful about crumbs...like maybe only having your son eat at the table, from a plate so it's easier to confine crumbs to a known area.

Oh, I almost forgot. My DS1 was a peanut butter fiend before all of this and he's only moderately allergic to peanuts... we still avoid them on the off chance he'll outgrow. And even though he'd had PB pretty much every day for a year, we switched to soy butter and he's taken it really well. At the beginning he would sometimes say that he missed PB but he's stopped. It helps that he remembers getting sick from nuts, but you might be surprised how well your son would adjust to, say, rice milk.

Anyway, best of luck. I'm sure you're reeling right now... it gets less overwhelming as time goes by. Try to shop w/o the kids for a little while, 'til you get used to all the label-reading and find some brands that you're comfortable with. You'll cry some days, but you'll get through it. :)

By "severe" do you mean life-threatening allergies? If it's life threatening, I would say to be conservative and get rid of all offending foods from your house until your baby is old enough to understand.

However, my fifth baby had food allergies. His manifested with terrible eczema, asthma and itchy, red, swolen eyes. He just wasn't allowed to eat any food at all because of his allergies (eggs, dairy, wheat, peanuts, strawberries, citrus, corn). So he was exclusively breastfed for 14 months. That was h*** o* me because I didn't particularly like the substitutes and frankly, I felt hungry all the time for my favorite foods. Well, actually ANY food! LOL!

But all of my older kids got in on it and we taught them all that they had to ask before giving him food. And that if they saw him eating food, they needed to verify with me that it was okay. I don't know how that would work with your baby since your toddler is so little. I had older to kids to help watch out.

But if it makes you feel any better, my allergic son is pretty much okay with eating different things from the rest of the family. He knows to ask if he can eat something. He's just grown up that way and it's not a big deal. Occasionally he gets really sad about something--maybe only once a year. But he also knows NOT eating those things makes him feel better and he'll be miserable if he does eat those things. He's 6 now and has outgrown all of his allergies except dairy.

I think for us it was easier as it is our oldest child with all the allergies. We cut everything he couldn't eat out from our whole family though because it was too difficult for him to see us enjoying foods he thought were good. He'd eat them even though he would feel bad just because they were off limits. I'd say start now because your son is so young that his tastes will change quickly. It will be more difficult when he wants to do things himself and you find him sharing his favorite snack with your younger one. It's not so much about the food but that we build relationships around food.
There are other kinds of non-offensive butters, almond is a favorite around here. Rice milk does not have the fat or vitamins as dairy milk so it is possible that maybe your son could start on goat milk. That's an easier one to control unless your sleepy in the morning and mix the bowls of cereal up on accident. Something I've done before we went to just one kind of milk. In any case it's easier to change now than when eating offending food becomes a habit. Maybe since he's big enough you too could go through a cookbook and he could help choose and prepare some of the new foods that you will be eating. Then by the time your younger one is eating solids you'll have a big selection of go to foods.

My youngest of 3 is allergic to peanuts/tree nuts. My oldest child is underweight and lived on PB & J until we found out about the allergies. At that point we decided the life of one child was far more important than not changing the older child's diet. Your younger child will love his younger sister and will want to keep her safe, IF you set that example. I agree that until your baby is mobile, you do have a "grace period". Just realize that you aren't depriving your older son of food he enjoys, you are saving your daughter's life. Would you send her away to live somewhere else due to your son's love for peanut butter sandwiches and his need to gain weight? Many other foods are high in good for you fats and not in your daughters "dangerous" food list. A good resourse to start is FAAN. Food allergy and anaphalaxis network.

Good luck.

Hi S.,
I would suggest that you look into NAET for your youngest. The treatments would be done through you at this time...as they probably would later if she is allergic enough to have an epi pen - the poor little lady! They do not hurt, do not involve needles... Find a practitioner that practices the technique to the letter because deviations from it sometimes lead to less effective or even no effect treatments - I want you to get your money's worth! I know of two people I trust to do treatments here in Colorado Springs if you'd like the info. Be sure to tell them the level of sensitivity your daughter exhibits as it does make a difference on how they do the treatments to keep her safe.

Because I don't like surprises, I will tell you that NAET treatments will probably not be covered by your insurance; however, as someone who has suffered with allergies (though not life threatening) and now can eat things like eggs on a daily basis if I choose without having an asthma attack, I believe it is worth the cost. A lifetime of dealing with those allergies is not a pleasant thought!

I also have my son to look to for the effectiveness of NAET treatments. As a baby he had a horrible allergy to soy oil which we couldn't avoid because we had to supplement. After being treated by NAET, it was like night and day - before about 1/2 an hour after he'd have his milk, he would scream and cry in pain and couldn't let out gas or burp. After the treatments, we almost didn't know what to do because he didn't have these problems! This is what truly sold me on the treatments because babies do not have placebo effects!

I hope this gives you a ray of hope and a course of action that will make things pleasant for all of you! Best wishes!

I don't have any food allergic children, but I do work for a non-profit organization that has great support and information for parents who are dealing with kids who do have food allergies - there is a lot of free information on there and the option to join as a family member for even more resources. You may want to check out http://www.kidswithfoodallergies.org - they have forums that may address this issue and how other moms have dealt with the problem. I hope that helps.

I don't have this problem, but it seems to me like you ought to be able to keep their diets separate. Those are very healthy things for your son to be eating. Depending on his personality, he may be old enough to understand when you explain what allergies are, and that certain foods will make his baby sister very, very sick. If he understands anything about breastfeeding, you can tell him that you can't even eat those foods because it will maker her sick. He'll certainly be old enough to understand by the time you have to worry about the baby eating table food. If you enlist his help by asking him to protect his baby sister, I bet he'd bust his buttons and be her biggest champion.
Think about the things he leaves around that could be toxic to your little girl. Does he leave his peanut-butter sandwich on the floor where she can get it once she starts crawling? How about yogurt or a cup of milk? Scrambled eggs? A plate of fish sticks? Probably not. And if he does, like you said, you have a grace period to teach him not to.
I totally understand why you are reeling with the news, but I'd bet you find it's not as hard as you are imagining right now.
Good luck!

I would say if it is life threatening, it is important you remove them from the house. Maybe not the dairy so much but peanut butter can leave residue where even your 2.5 year old putting his mouth or hands on something can be contaminating.
Milk can be contained into a cup, make sure he only drinks it in the kitchen then take the cup from him when he is done.
I have never heard of dairy being a severe allergon, life threatening I mean. But I know eggs and nut allergies can be life threatening. Not sure how they figured the fish and soy in there too? That is scary I am sure for you.
I am a little curious how they found this out? Did she have a bad reaction? She is very young to be diagnosed yet I would think. I had heard they couldn't diagnose these allergies until later so it must be serious. Is it life threatening with all the allergies?

She may or may not grow out of it, but with a little toddler in the house it is too hard to explain to him how to take precautions, so I would remove them for now, the specific big ones and then as he gets older he can better understand how serious it is.
There are a lot of products now that are substitutes and at 2.5 he shouldn't even really notice a huge change in his diet.
I will say a prayer that your daughter grows out of it as she gets older. The biggest adjustment will be you and your diet now I am sure. HUGS!
Better safe then sorry.

I watch a child with a severe soy allergy (EpiPen and everything). When she is at our house, I just make sure that I wash my hands before I fix food for her, in case I may have handled something she can't have, and I make sure that I only let her use utensils, plates, etc. that have gone through the dishwasher. I am very careful when she is here when it comes to what the other kids eat, and if they have something that could make her sick, I make sure they wash up afterwards. I would not take foods away that your son likes, but especially as your daughter starts crawling and putting things in her mouth, and sharing toys with your son, I would make sure that you are very careful that he eats only at the table, and washes well afterwards, so as not to contaminate the toys. It will be hard, but you are lucky that you found out now, when your daughter was so young! How did you find out about allergies in such a young baby?

I had a girlfriend who had a child with severe allergies (peanut) and she and her husband were non-allergic...they bought those plastic (disposable) placemats for their child to use put his plate on etc at the table to reduce the risk of cross contamination. They loved things like PB&J and trail mix etc and kept them in a different cabinet to avoid any risk of cross contamination....then it seems that he out grew his allergy (they felt like the luckiest folks on earth!!) and they no longer need to take these precautions. But barriers between surfaces and a seperate cabinet for the allergic childs plates and cups etc made it less likely a PB&J hand would touch something that it wasn't supposed to.

I hope this helps a bit :-)

S.,
Our situation is not as extreme but very similar. My daughter 18m is also sensative to dairy products and my son 3 in november is not. When we changed my duaghter's formula to goats milk (different than cows milk) we also took it upon our selves to start changing our eating habbits and the food in our house. When we first changed my son addicted to cows milk slowly transitioned to a Rice milk boy and loves it. I love it because I can buy bulk get a discount and I don't have to refridgerate until I use it. Because my daughter is not allergic to dairy only sensative we have not cut out everything we limit it so she can have one serving of cheese everyother day and she loves eggs so she can have 1 egg twice a week. We also do rice cream instead of ice cream because my son now is getting to the dessert stage...asking for it. If you accept the changes in the family diet the kids will accept the changes once it is normal you won't have a problem. Maybe you keep eggs in the fridge but only make them when you are doing something special for your son. Just be sure to label anything she can't have so a babysitter or family member doesn't accidentaly feed it to her. Also start checking out your vitamin cottage or wholesale food store you can find lots of foods that are dairy free, wheat free, soy free good luck and don't fret. I know at first it is overwhelming but it gets easier once you are use to it.

N.

Depending on the severity of the allergy you may need to keep it out of the house. But be careful, I have a 2 yr old. She is allergic to all most all food. She can have beef, turkey, most fruit, most vegitables. That is all she can have. I have 2 older childred that are having a hard time changeing to the diet of the youngest one. The allergys that are the worst we have removed from the house. But things like bread and pasta we keep in the house we just keep it away from her reach. She eats in her chair only. Hands, table, cupboards have to be washed often.

Well, I am lucky in regards to my kids so far. None of my older children have food allergies, and we don't know yet with the younger 2 because we just stay away from offending foods until they are older. My 20 month old has eaten pretty much everything except nuts, and we're waiting until 3 years so if there is a reaction, he's a bit older. My 6 month old has just started rice cereal and nothing else, so we have not tried other foods yet. I could take them to an allergist and have them tested, but the cost has hindered me from doing so. I, myself, have life threatening food allergies to nuts, avacodos, and a couple of other random foods. You really do have to read every label and all the fine print. Labels are your new best friend. I am an adult so I know what to watch for, but we are still extremely cautious because of the unknown with the younger kids. Any food that I have an allergy to, if we have it in the house (peanut butter, etc) is put up on the top shelf so it is out of reach of little hands. My kids only eat at the table, and they know the drill. Don't move around and fidget with things while eating, hurry up, clean up your spot, and then don't touch anything until you thoroughly wash hands and face. We explain the rules when other kids come over and some people may think it's extreme, but until a couple of months ago, I had not had a reaction that sent me to the hospital for over 15 years. I learned what I could and couldn't have growing up and it is really about teaching all the family about proper precautions. You can do whatever you feel is best in regards to changing your older childs diet, but have faith that you can also keep those things in the house and keep your child safe. I would also suggest having further testing done on your baby's allergies. I have seen many false positives with the skin testing, and it usually won't indicate the severity. I used to be allergic to dairy and eggs when I was younger, but outgrew them. Also, with the egg allergy, I couldn't have the egg white, but I could still have the yolk. Just research and prepare. The road ahead may be kinda hard, but the more you prepare, the better off your family will be. Also, society has become so much more aware of the severity of food allergies in children. There are lots of options out there. Good luck!

My sister has two kids with severe egg, peanut and soy allergies. It is very easy at home to just eliminate it from everyone's diet, but when my niece (who is 7.5) goes anywhere, the epi pens go too. It is really hard for her to understand why people don't have food she can eat when she goes to parties, events etc.... We try to bring a snack or some kind of food for the kids everywhere we go so we can avoid this dilemma. I don't even really have these offending foods at my house, just for fear that they might fall into the wrong hands. My nephew did have an allergic reaction just before he turned 2 and it was SCARY! I would never want to witness such an event again. If you can eliminate the foods all together I would suggest that, but if not just be very careful! Good Luck, and make sure you read the fine print on EVERYTHING!!! It is amazing how many foods have one or more of these items in it or are cooked with it or near it.