From: [log in to unmask]
Subject: Mom's diet/allergies
Mon, 7 Jan 2002 18:56:09 EST
Jan Barger wrote:
"And a nearly-newborn allergic to ALL these
things? Sounds a wee bit odd to me."
Well, it's probably not very usual, but not unheard of. There really
are 100% breastfed babies who for some reason develop food allergies
very early. And very often it's not just one or two things. But I
guess there are many countries where there simply aren't so many fully
breastfed babies that one could see how allergies are possible even
with a start like that. And then in some countries (at least in some
European countries), the children are not at all allergic, they just
have atopic exzema and a lot of red rash all over their body ;)
I lead a breastfeeding support group in our town, and last week, we
had five mothers with allergic babies. Ofcourse, these mothers are
over-represented as they seem to need more information and support for
continuing breastfeeding despite obstacles caused by the food
allergies (many of them have to avoid certain foods, some face
criticism from the allergologists who find it easier to have the baby
on a special formula etc.). (Plus they know I have personal experience
on the subject.)
Date: Mon, 7 Jan 2002 21:58:19 EST
From: [log in to unmask]
Subject: 3mos old allergy sxs???
"I am certainly in line with Jan Barger on this one - I work in a
peds office
and we do not send kids out to allergists (pediatric ones) usually
until 3 or
4 yrs of age. I have NEVER heard of skin testing in a baby. I
question
validity as well."
Well, in Finland they do test infants and toddlers, but at the same
time, there seems to be a common understanding that the test results
are not 100% reliable, but sometimes they can be useful and give some
hint of what's going on. And often they are needed for the national
health insurance. But the only way to really know is to try and see if
the baby reacts, either through the mother's milk or directly. There
are differences in mother's milks as to how easily the foreign parts
pass in the breastmilk.
In our family (my daughter, soon 3 years, still has some food
allergies) the tests at the age of 10 months didn't show anything,
even though the reactions to the same food eaten were and still are
immediate and pretty bad. She has grown out of a number of food
problems and I no longer have to watch what I eat (this has had an
effect on my weight...).
Hanna Graeffe
helping mothers to breastfeed in Finland
[log in to unmask]
www.lumenvalo.fi
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