Food Allergies: What They Actually Mean

I knew that there was a really high chance that our son would have some allergies. Both my husband and I had food intolerances that affected our skin as babies and children and now, we both have seasonal allergies, so the likelihood of our baby having to go through what we did was pretty high. What I didn’t know that we were entering into was the world of food allergies. I’m including a little synopsis of our particular story, only to give you what we went through in case it helps you in any way. At the bottom, I list things what it means to be a food allergy family in hopes that if you don’t experience this yourself (and I pray you don’t!), you can gain a little understanding of friends around you who may be going through this.

_____________________________________________________

At two months old, Sully started scratching his face and scalp almost constantly. We tried every cream, lotion, and medicine that was baby safe, and every once in a while, he would get relief. He lived in those mittens that keep newborns from scratching their faces, and eventually, he kept a little hat on so he wouldn’t keep scratching himself to the point of bleeding. It was truly heartbreaking to watch! A few months later, blood started showing up in his diaper, and I officially panicked. Two of my friends had babies who were intolerant to milk, so they urged me to cut that from my diet to see if it would help, and after another trip to the pediatrician, he urged me to try the same.

Cutting out all dairy from my diet did help some for a while, but then Sully’s rash came back with a fiery red vengeance all over his body. I didn’t know what it could be so I stopped eating anything with soy and gluten and egg. Finally, he stopped itching as much, but it never truly went away. We figured that, at this point, he was just a baby with eczema.

Then came Baby Led Weaning. Not knowing what Sully was allergic to was a little scary when he started eating solid foods, but we honestly thought that at the worst, he would be itchy after eating. Y’all, looking back, I could literally kick myself. He had done so well with so many foods, and his skin was still consistently itchy on a smaller level, so again, we thought he just had eczema. On Father’s Day, I suggested Sully have a bite of our scrambled eggs. He LOVED them! After lunch, we cleaned up and decided to let Sully take a nap with Cody in the recliner while we watched a movie. Sully was fussy, not wanting to go to sleep and kept rubbing his face on Cody’s shirt. I will never ever forget the look on Sully’s face when I went over to check if Cody wanted me to trade with him: his eyes were swollen almost shut, and he looked what I can really only describe as extremely tired. To my surprise, I did not panic, but looked at Cody and said, “Let’s go to the ER now.” We grabbed our shoes and out the door we went. Long story short, he had an anaphylactic reaction to the eggs.

Scary, huh? Repeat story six months later: only this time, insert cashews instead of eggs. Yep; another anaphylactic reaction. The day after Christmas, he had a part of a LaraBar. After a while of being ill and acting like his tummy hurt, he vomited everywhere and then started breaking out in welts. This time, we knew what to do, so we loaded up, this time with an extra set of hands, and flew to the ER (which I now know we should have called 911 and waited, but you do the best you can in those situations). Sully had one reaction initially and another as he digested the nut. Epinephrine, breathing treatments, Benadryl, and steroids later, we finally got to go home.

 

Two allergists appointments later, and we know definitively that his numbers are scary: avoid eggs and cashews and cross contamination; be careful with milk. We have an Auvi-Q and are armed with signs and symptoms of food allergies to watch for, but we are always just a little bit nervous. I pray daily that he outgrows the allergies. I cannot speak for what we will or will not face in the future with this, but below, I can tell you what it means for us now.

_________________________

Having a baby with food allergies means:

• Not letting Sully out of my sight at play dates and group settings if other children are snacking. Those toasted, crunchy gold fish are delicious, but terribly dangerous.
  
• Having a limited amount of restaurants where we can all eat at complete ease as a family. Especially now that he is so mobile and has an opinion, he can easily grab something off a plate.
  
• Trying your best to not snap back at comments like “oh, just give that baby some dessert already” at family functions when he’s eating fruit for dessert because it’s the easiest and safest option to pack for travel.
  
• Politely turning down a free cookie from the sweet people at the grocery store bakery when we do our weekly shopping. It’s the nicest gesture, but they just don’t know.
  
• Obsessing over labels of new foods to make sure they don’t contain our allergens or cross contamination.
  
• Spending extra money to turn basic recipes safe by using substitute ingredients.
  
• Doing a mental check of where the Auvi-Q is at all times just in case.
  
• Packing half of the pantry when traveling because substitute options are not as readily available in different areas.
  
• Questioning every single sneeze, every mark on his skin after eating anything remotely different in fear that it’s the beginning of a reaction.
• Wondering if he is meeting all of his growth goals and getting all of his vitamins in his diet because of what he can’t eat.
• Getting scared in this pandemic about feeding Sully because people overbuy at the store some of the only treats and foods Sully can safely enjoy.

Though there are a lot of “can’ts” related to food allergies, it also means:

• Our little family has this extra bond where we’ve experienced some scary stuff together but came out on the other side closer together.
  
• Having a better overall understanding of food allergies means food labels and what they mean are easier to read in terms of nourishing our bodies.
  
• Eating more balanced meals because the less processed, for the most part, the less we have to worry about a reaction.
  
• Getting excited when we find a delicious dessert recipe that actually has an edible texture or fun treat when out and about.
  
• Being able to support niche small businesses that are food allergy friendly.

Again, I write this post not to scare anyone or sound whiney, but in hopes that if you know of anyone who has food allergies, that you can better love them and care for them.