Breasfed 11-Month-old Diagnosed with Milk and Egg Allergies

I'm currently trying goat's milk for my son who just turned 1. I want to start weaning him too but want him to get used to drinking milk before I wean completely. From all the research I've read, goat's milk is actually better in a lot of ways than cow's milk. Also, so kids are not allergic to cooked eggs or products with cooked milk in them. I think if she doesn't have a reaction it's probably safe, but I'm not a doctor. Also most kids tend to out grow food allergies with age. I hope this helps some.

I totally am with Michelle on this. My son also has severe food allergies, dairy, wheat, nuts and eggs. I breastfed him for 2 years. You need to take this seriously. Some people don't get the seriousness of this issue and dismiss it as an intolerance. You have evidence that this is not the case. My advice is first of all to ALWAYS carry benadryl with you everywhere. And get an Epipen prescribed ASAP if you don't already have one.

My son was also diagnosed at 6 months old and at nearly 3 still has all his allergies. He also used to break out randomly, just like your daughter, I know how frustrating it can be. That's we we always have Benadryl. they make the single dose now, that is premeasured and can be thrown in your purse, diaper bag, glove box, etc.

You can buy an egg substitue at Sprouts or Central Mkt. It's in the baking aisle in a box. It's a powder that you mix with warm water. It really only works as a binder for baking. I already never ate eggs, so that was an easy elimination for me. I gave up baked goods while nursing too. All cakes, cookies, etc. will have eggs in them. It was hard at first, but I got used to it. Plus, Sprouts has plenty of egg free treats. Also, the flu vaccine has eggs in it, so make sure she doesn't get that vaccine.

You will need to read ALL labels from this point forward and learn the different words used to describe eggs and milk. Albumin (eggs) is one I remember off the top of my head. Most labels will tell you at the end of the ingredient list what allergens are in the product.

My son drinks non-GMO soy milk and eats Silk soy yogurt. My pediatric allergist told me that goats milk and cows have a high crossover rate, Meaning if she's allergic to cow's milk, then it's highly likely that she'll be allergic to goat's as well. Butter and margarine both have dairy too. We use Earth Balance now.

Sorry if I've overwhelmed you, it's just that I remember how scared and lost I felt when I first got the diagnosis and want to help you. I have an allergist I love in Richardson if you want the #.

Good luck to you.

I don't reccommend soy as it increases the early breast in girls, early periods, etc. But rice milk or almond milk is great. Usually cooked eggs are fine-watch cheese and yogurt. Soy yogurt is ok. The good news is by 3-4 they usually outgrow it. She will get protein from other foods now that she is almost a year. Breast feed as long as you can and dillute juice 1:3 or at least 1/2 water and just once day. Water is so good for the rest of the time.
If she is symptom free I'm not sure I would stop, maybe just watch one food at a time.

I don't understand WHY she was tested if she is not having any problems???

If she has already had some of these foods with no problems, I would continue to feed them in small amounts. I would NOT eliminate them from her diet unless she is having problems!

As for after she weans. Goats milk is supposed to be very good for you so I would see how she does on that. Of course, continuing to offer water as well! Do NOT use soy! It is linked to many different problems. I just read in a parenting magazine that they are warning parents not to give their kids soy products! (I even heard that it may be linked to the rise in reproductive problems when people get older! Don't know if it's true but still.......)

I do not know what sparked the IgE test, but my DD (now 8) was diagnosed with an egg and milk allergy at 6 months old. Now I am going to give you advice as a mom..... I think if it is a true allergy, you should take it serious as she can out-grow them if you do. I breastfed my daughter until she was 2 1/2 years as I had to learn how to cook egg & dairy free before introducing her to a lot of foods. I very quickly got rid of all of the dairy in my diet, using soy and rice as a substitute. Actually dairy is very easy to replace, so I did it first. Eggs were a bit more of a challenge, so I got rid of all direct eggs. So I did not eat anytype of cooked ones at all. I continued to eat them cooked inside of foods. So as I learned how to cook without eggs, I started to merge that way of cooking into my diet. I then learned how to cook for her. With that said, to this day she is very very allergic (anaphylaxis) to eggs. She can not eat anything that was cooked with or brushed with eggs. She even once reacted to an hamburger that was cooked on a griddle next to eggs. It still is a true allergy too as she ends up about once a year in the hospital from a reaction from an unknown exsposure. She has now outgrown her dairy allergy; even though she has become so use to the other that she could care less, but it sure makes it great that she has out-grown it enough she can partake in some normal dairy indulgences. Now the egg reaction is so bad, they claim she most likely will NEVER outgrow it. They say it has partially to do with the fact she was exsposed to eggs for so long through my breastmilk. So, yes the foods you eat are passed through your breastmilk. So I suggest, if you want to continue to nurse her, you get rid of the allergens in your diet, if not you will have to go to Soy, Rice, Goat or Potato Milk. Know that the nutrition value is a lot different in these other milks, but you will then have to learn how to cook for her anyway. Because once you stop breastfeeding her, unless you go to a a formula, you will have to make up that nutrition through food still eliminating eggs and dairy. You can message me if you want to talk. Good Luck!

Please see an allergist! My daughter tested positive to wheat, eggs, soy, dairy, peanut, and some environmental factors. I freaked when I got the results. Just went to see the allergist who told us you can have false positives from the blood test for food allergies. One needs to see the total IgE level to determine the severity of the allergy according to our allergist. The higher the IgE the more likely the food allergies can be false positives. It's very complicated. Before you drive yourself crazy with a stric elimination diet ( I did dairy and so elim, can be done but a big challenge) please consider seein an allergist. Good luck!

If your daughter does have a milk/egg allergy you do have to eliminate ALL items, including those with any milk protein. My son is allergic to Milk, and our allergiest told us it doesn't matter the amount because even the smallest amount will result in an allergic reaction. That being said, I would have your daughter evaluated by a pediatric allergist. Our's is Dr. Sugerman at Medical City. They are awesome!

Good luck!

Hi,
If she is not showing symptoms outwardly and is not experiencing ear or respritory infections, I would not take her off the foods right now. Is she losing weight? One rashy incident without the milk or eggs eaten would not deter me. However, why stop breastfeeding now. Breastmilk is so very healthy for your child. Even if she develops a problem with cows milk, she will get plenty of nourishment from the breastmilk. Many women breastfeed until the age of two. Just watch your diet while you breastfeed. If you cut out the dairy and she is really allergic to the dairy she should be fine.

K. Voigtsberger, CD(DONA), AAHCC
Certified Birth Doula(DONA)
Bradley Method® Educator
Breastfeeding Educator
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I don't think water will solve the problem. It will hydrate her, but she needs a lot more nutrients. Depending on how much solid food she eats, she may not get everything she needs.

I'm wondering what prompted them to do a blood test in the first place? Did she have some symptoms of something else and they also tested for that?

Soy is nature's protein and is power-packed with nutrients. There are a lot of soy products that cause problems (you will get responses on this site about kids with terrible soy "allergies" and be told you should avoid it). The problems are caused because the soy is either not top quality, or because of the way it is processed (stripped of nutrients, washed in alcohol, and so on). It's tough to tell what's a good product - just because it's a brand name or it's expensive doesn't guarantee quality or tell you anything about processing methods.

I have a lot of friends whose kids were diagnosed with food allergies - peanuts, dairy, soy, egg, tree nuts and so on. The problem is not that there are true allergies, but rather that the body is missing the necessary nutrient to digest the trigger foods. Recognizing this, food scientists have recognized that a really top nutritional supplement can provide the missing link and allow people to digest foods properly. One friend's daughter had life-threatening allergies (anaphylaxis) and now, after taking the right supplement developed for children, she is allergy-free. Another friend's son had 60 food allergies along with rages and learning issues, and is now living life without any of those problems. These supplements are made here in the US under top conditions with only high quality ingredients which are quarantined and tested multiple times. You get great support in using them which is why they are so different from what's on the shelves in supermarkets or "health food" stores. If you are interested in investing a little time to get the information, I would be happy to help you.

Otherwise you can go the route of eliminating all kinds of foods from your child's diet and worrying about everything she touches not only at home but as she gets older and goes to other's houses, birthday parties, and so on.

my son has many allergies Milk being one of them, I switched him to rice milk and have taken him off all the other foods he was allergic to as well. The thing was I never "noticed" any allergic reactions either, but they were there. not all symptoms are visible, in my sons case it most were internal reactions, upset tummy or really nasty diapers that I chalked up to teething, red rash on occasion around his mouth and on his cheeks once in awhile (I assumed he had the same trouble I did with getting red when he was too warm). He also had runny nose and ear infections and breathing troubles ( none of which I attributed to food allergies just regular Panhandle of Texas allergies) , I took him to an allergist before he turned two in December and that is when I found out about all his allergens. I have changed his diet and he is on allergy shots ..guess what..he is healthier than he has been since he was born.
I was told not to give him any eggs until after he was two by his Pedi, then about a month ago ( and about 5 months too late) they changed it to three yrs old because it can cause allergies since all the vaccines they give are suspended in albumen ( egg white).
I don't know if you will find this helpful, but for you little one's sake, for now avoid any direct dairy or egg products, you can always test them when she gets older, she may outgrow it.

My 3 year old was diagnosed peanut-allergic at 12 months. No life-threatening reactions so far, but a few random rashes.

See a pediatric allergist. Pediatricians have their role, but you need a specialist for this one. When my son was diagnosed at 12 months, the allergist didn't test for anything we didn't already suspect as an allergen, because he said at that young age, too many things would result in false positives. Talk to an allergist about your daughter's bloodwork to realistically assess the risk and find out about re-testing when the tests are more reliable.

Carry your Epi-Pen and Benadryl everywhere you go, no matter what. You'd never forgive yourself (or your spouse) if she died because you didn't bring the medicine on a quick outing. It takes a while to make this a habit, but it's really important.

If eggs and milk don't cause symptoms, I wouldn't go crazy eliminating them, but I would limit her exposure. The culprit was probably something else.

Be careful, but don't panic.

S.
SAHM of 3

The blood tests for allergies are not always accurate. Seems like anyone who has had this done is allergic to milk and eggs. I would ask to see an allergist or immunologist so that a skin allergy test can be done.

We have done Soy, Rice and Almond milk with my two boys. There are lots of things out there now that are made out of those. You might if you are willing experiment. My boys can have cheese but not any other raw milk produce. It has to be cooked for them to eat. Eggs I don't know anything about.

Good luck and God Bless.

Cow's milk is THE most common allergen. Eggs are common too because they are used in making vaccines. If you want her to drink a white liquid hemp. almond, and rice milk are alternatives. You don't say your duaghter has any behavior issues so this may not apply to you but many kids are helped with behavioral issues when removing offending foods.

my son wasn't diagnosed, but I noticed that if he ate eggs whole, he'd get a slight rash reaction around his mouth. However, he didn't seem uncomfortable with it, and acted the same. Like your daughter, he had never had any real symptoms.Thus, I didn't strictly restrict it from his diet.. he was still exposed to it (in baked goods etc). Eventually he must have grown out of it, because now he can have some egg and not react.

I think you can keep doing what you'e doing, and just monitor for any reactions. Perhaps you can just test it by giving her a little of cows milk, goat, etc to see how she does. Her system may tolerate some of it, and eventually grow out of it. (I'm not sure about soy.. might want to research that. I've been reading recently about concerns of it.. and that only pure soy (as in eating just the beans) are healthy. By products, supplements of it, etc is not so much) Another alternative is toddler formula which would probably be more nutritious than straight water (tho also more expensive!). I've also heard that raw cow's milk was somehow different (im not sure), tho harder to get.

I breast fed my daughter and because of all issues related to cow milk, her Pediatrician suggested to use Goat milk which is much clsoer to human and she loved it. The Goat milk is much better health wise as well. You can also give her kids supplement that has Brain food for growing kids. Let me know if you would like for one that is safe and very effective, kids love it.

Best Wishes.

Did your daughter have a reaction that prompted the testing?

Very, very, very few kids are allergic to breastmilk. I mean, VERY few. It's probably cow's milk that is causing the problem. You should be able to continue breastfeeding as long as you and she want to; I'm still nursing my 19m son, because he and I find it a good thing (in the morning before work and at night before he goes to sleep).

There is also a difference between a true allergy and an intolerance. For example, lactose intolerance (the inability to digest lactose and the resulting symptoms) are often misdiagnosed by non-medical professionals as a milk allergy...

Many kids have a reaction to the egg whites, which they outgrow. You can probably safely feed her the yokes, though (and kids don't really have to worry about cholestrol (sp?), thankfully).

If you're concerned regarding allergies, ask your pediatrician to give you a referral to an allergist, preferably a pediatric allergist if there's one in your area, to have screening done and get more information on how to handle allergies.

Hello LV ~ I BF'd my DD until she was 12 months diagnosed w/dairy allergy at around 8 months...I actually cut all dairy dairy derivatives from my diet after she had a strong reaction to Gerber oatmeal w/whey at 6 months. She may not outwardly show any symptoms could show as cold like symptoms, irritability or tummy troubles...
Do you know what the results of the bloodwork...what the numbers were as to the severity? If you click on my user name you can see my previous post about dairy/eggs