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.