I have a patient who : has a 10 month old son. Hi weighs in at 8.5 Kgs and is 75cms long. He presented with eczema at 2 weeks which the mother keeps under control with various homeopathic based creams. The child is exclusively breastfed. She has tries to introduce solids, but the child seems disinterested and pushes food away. He occassionally eats a few finger foods like rice cakes. The childs rashes seem to have got worse since he started trying a few solid foods like oats and banana and some days will not eat any solids at all. He sweats excessivley and I have read an article which states that allergic children can sweat a lot. The main problem is that her other health care professionals are freaking out that the child at 10 months is not eating a minimum of 2 solid meals a day. By the way the child also develops warm red welts after eating any food with sodium benzoate. I cannot remember where, but I read a research article on Allergies and Breastfeeding. The article stated that allergic babies often would refuse solids well into their second year until their system was ready to handle the onslaught. What do you think of this? Are solids absolutely imperative at this stage (10 months) or can breastmilk suffice? All babys milestones and general development is perfect and he is a healthy happy active little boy. His weight is a little low but birthweight was 2.8kgs and his hight and head circumference are on the 90th.(also the childs father is tall and thin, does this have a bearing?).I would not like the mother to force the child to eat from a psychological point of view that the child will associate solids with tears and frustration. The child is offered all kinds of finger foods and sometimes takes them and eats a small amount. Any ideas? Kate Byrne,LC.