Should We Repeat Allergy Tests?

My son has eczema and the dark circles. We have found that eliminating milk made a big difference with his eczema and eyes. Also, we went to someone here in Palos Park to get tested for sensitivities. She has a website to look at too. If you want more info just let me know. She is really great and a mom of 3.
Food sensitivities are a big issue for a couple of my kids. They effect them different ways. For example, my 11 year old is has a sensitivity, not allergy, to coconut. He get HORRIBLE stomach pains and cramps if he eats it. My sister who is 29 went to the dr because she was having stomach issues. He wanted her to go on long term meds for irritable bowel! She got tested for sensitivities and found out it was avacado. SHe stopped eating it and she is fine now!
SO please go get her tested for sensitivities somewhere. It will make a huge difference.

My Son AND Daughter have had issues that weren't being answered by pediatricians OR allergists. It was VERY frustrating. With the allergist he ambiguously tested my son, who has asthma, for 10 different things. Skin tests are VERY inconclusive, not to mention painful for the child, and do not show results with all the possible antibodies that can be produced by the allergen.

It was recommended to us that we go see someone who specialized in ALLERGY ELIMINATION TECHINIQUE (NAET). The website is www.naet.com

They test the child through a parent using Neuroscensory Muscle Testing (NMT). It is non invasive, very fast and painless. Instead of getting tested for an ambiguous 10 items, he got tested for 160 items - food, chemical, environmental, etc. IT turned out her had much more than "tree" and "mold" allergies - including 17 different foods.

After testing, they treat each item, finding which specific organs are affected, which antibodies the allergen produces (there are MANY more reactions that histamine!), and then treats the allergen using a combination of allopathy, kinesiology, western physiology, homeopathy, and chiropractic and accupressure. The treatment is 10 minutes, the child rests with the parent for 20 minutes, and they have to totally avoid the allergen for 48 hours.

I can't tell you how it has changed out life. My son had severe excema since 4 mo. old, allergy shiners (which MDs told me they weren't from allergies - HELLOOOO!), asthma - and he was on 7 meds from the allergist and pediatricians.

Now he is med free, excema free, allergy shiner free, and asthma free. Some people reason it away by saying he "grew out of it" - but if you saw how severe things got and then saw the difference after taking him off things he was allergic (and sensitive) to, and then treating them one by one, they would see the marked improvements in all those things, plus energy, enthusiasm, learning, everything.

My daughter who is 20 months is also getting her allergies treated, and is FINALLY starting to gain weight, something that puzzled her pediatricians for months. Everything she had been eating had caused various reactions that caused malabsorption.

Since being treated, my kids can also eat those things now they had previously been allergic to, and have NO reaction!!

We go to Dr. David Tam in Lombard. I can't say enough - he is FABULOUS!! On the 1 hour initial visit, He looks at everything from bruising, eyeball health, tongue, stools, behavior - all are components of a bigger picture.

GOOD LUCK!!

Hi M.,

I feel for you, and the responses you have been given are all very good and some I plan to look into also. Here is a book I would like to recommend that I find very helpful - "Healing the New Childhood Epidemics: Autism, ADHD, Asthma, and Allergies" by Kenneth Bock, M.D .http://www.amazon.com/Healing-New-Childhood-Epidemics-Gro...
I believe both my daughters suffer from allergies and I am trying to find ways to help them without keeping them on medicine their whole lives. My oldest was diagnosed with asthma last year and it still doesn't sit right with me. My youngest has the "allergic shiners" your allergist commented on. My asthmatic daughter had the skin test done and was shown to have reactions to dust mites and a slight reaction to soy. Dr. Bock's book also suggests the blood test that looks for the antibodies which not many allergists may want to do as they rely heavily on the skin test. The book talks in more detail about the pros and cons to the various testing for alelrgies. Another outstanding book is the "The Unhealthy Truth: How our food is making us sick and what we can do about it" by Robyn O'Brienhttp://www.amazon.com/Unhealthy-Truth-Food-Making-About/d.... Right now I am feeling completely overwhelmed to be truthful. I am in the process of taking in all of this info. for the next visit with the allergist and see what his take on it is. Of course we have been on Flovent and use Albuterol in her nebulizer for flare ups when she is congested. Good luck with your quest, I hope you find the answers you are looking for.

S.

Chiropractic
Acupuncture
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Arctic Omega from Nordic Naturals

I agree with the other posters regarding food sensitivities. I have them, so does my daughter. A regular ALLERGY test doesn't check for sensitivities. Most MDs don't do these tests so like the others, you would have to find a chiropractor or naturopath to help you. I can tell you there is a world of difference in my health and overall feeling of wellbeing since discovering what I need to avoid. Hope this helps!

I agree with the other posts. Try an elimiation diet, espeically dairy, wheat and sugar. You can check out the Feingold diet (www.feingold.org) - it's geared toward ADHD, but it's about food allergies and food sensitivities.

Also I would add probiotics. Another thing to try is a Neti pot. They are great for any type of sinus issue. You can buy them at Walgreens with premeasured salt packets. Also, make sure the products your daughter uses are fragrence-free (like soap, body wash, lotion, etc.).

Good luck.

My dd is severely allergic to a huge laundry list of food and environmentals. I'd find a different allergist (they are NOT all created equal!) and get more testing done. Also, keep a symptom journal and a food journal. I do this for my dd and it is the only way we've pinpointed her allergens since she's among the 5% of the population that tests negative for everything in spite of anaphylactic reactions. There are some great resources on Yahoo groups (TerrificKidsWFA) and from www.foodallergy.org (the FAAN site) and www.drmomsallergyrx.com. Best of luck to you!

There could be huge difference over a few years time. Even adults can develop new allergies. Find your daughter a good allergist! Pediatricians don't know much about allergies - especially to foods. My son has the allergy shiners too - perfect skin though. We are currently waiting for the blood results on his allergy test.

Get her tested for gluten or celiac disease. Eczema is one of the MANY symptoms.
My son when through all the same stuff except he is allergic to several things so the doc. would just say change meds or that the allergies were acting up. I knew there was more to it so he was tested many times, and finally I found Dr.Fine at EnteroLab and he is soo much better! The test is done with a stool sample at home and sent in. Super easy and no needles. My son took care of it himself at 9 years old. I suggest you read through the website, it is very informative.
https://www.enterolab.com/Home.htm
Then are many links too that offer great insight and help understanding and coping with the disease.
My son's doc. didn't know anything about the methods Dr.Fine used because he is still researching and hasn't published it yet so he ordered a blood test and it also came back +. Dr.Fine explains very well the fact that the blood test is only an Ig antibody detecting test, which many people don't have so it isn't conclusive. We even took my son to a GI, on the insistence of his doc., and he said the only positive way to know for absolute sure is a biopsy of the intestine. We said no because the only treatment option for the disease is a gluten-free diet. Sounds better than surgery to confirm what we already know!
You would not believe me if I told you all that my son suffered from and is now healed from. Many doctors, allergists, and ent's later, a simple test, none of them suggested, revealed it all.
p.s. the Nordic fish oil and California lotion reccomended by other moms are great as they are gluten free and promote healthy skin inside and out:)

Does your daughter eat/drink dairy products? They are one of the causes of eczema in some people.
Have you read Disease Proof Your Child? I highly recommend that book! Also, the author of it, Dr. Joel Fuhrman, is available to ask questions to- you can get his office phone number from his website- www.drfuhrman.com.
When my son was younger, he had a cold that seemed to last forever- it was a few months.
So I did some research, and threw out ALL dairy products in our house. Within 2 weeks, his cold was gone. We have never gone back to consuming dairy (or any other animal products, for that matter) and he hardly ever gets sick anymore. My 2 daughters have been raised on a healthy plant-based diet since birth, and are as healthy as can be.
I hope this helps you!

My son has multiple food allergies, which none of them showed up on a skin prick test. I would suggest you do both the tests this time (skin and blood) you'll be suprised on what the other one says. Right now my son is so young we get him tested every 6 to 12 months. The first test we did he was moderatly allergic to milk and mild allergic to cheese. We did a test 7 months later and he is highly allergic to milk, mod. to cheese, mod. to egg whites, mild to soy and sesame. It's about time to go see our allergist again for more testing. He now has what looks like baby hives all over his cheeks, wrists, knees, and elbows. Good luck and let us know what you find out.

allergy testing can be misleading. I would do an elimination diet (take out the most common food allergens for 3 weeks and then bring them back one at a time over time to see which she reacts to) can be difficult but doable. I am doing one right now. The only thing is thier cant be any cheating so the child has to be able to understand why not. If you cheat you are back to day one. Good luck and its great you noticed these things and are paying attention to your instincts!!!! If you dont want to go that route cut out one food at a time and see if symptoms improve. If she has multiple allergies though it will be harder to tell.

Hello M.,
I am so sorry to hear you are having such severe health concerns with your daughter. My gut response is that something else is going on within your daughter's body. Given her history of poor health, I would see an endocronolgist who can test her blood for missing protiens and/or dificiencies in certain vitamins, minerals and protiens. Some undiagnosed medical conditions can be revealed through more extensive testing, like a blood test. I am not recommending the usual blood tests either. I am thinking she may need a full work up done by someone like an endocronologist who can look for an underlying medical condition that may be in your daughter. This underlying medical condition may be manifesting itself with "allergy like symptoms" but in fact is actually something else. When PROPERLY diagnosed and treated the symptoms will go away. Until then, you are simply treating the symptoms and not getting at the real cause of your daughter's mysterious symptoms.

Hi M.,

When my now 12 year old daughter was 4, her pediatrician said that she definitely had allergies based on the dark circles under her eyes and a red mark across the top of her nose (from sniffling and touching her nose). We had her tested for allergies at that time and nothing showed up. We took her to a nose, ear, throat specialist who said she had enlarged adenoids and tonsils plus the color of the inside of her nose definitely showed signs of allergies (like your daughter, she tended to be sick all the time). They put her on 4 different kinds of medication - one to help shrink her adenoids and the others to help her constant congestion - supposedly from allergies. When she was 9 we had her tested again for allergies and again nothing showed up. About a year later we took her to a different allergist for a second opinion because this poor child just couldn't breath. Again no allergies were determined but he did take a CT of her sinuses which showed that they were nice and clear. We decided to take her off of all the medication. Then about 2 months ago, we started her in vision therapy because she is extremely nearsighted and was having trouble with double vision. The behavioral optometrist took one look at her dark cirles and asked what she is allergic to. We told him the story and he insists that she is sensitive to certain foods - probably dairy - and called it "leaky gut syndrome." We have not yet started to completely eliminate dairy (although she has been cutting back) because we feel we need to deal with one thing at a time - and right now it is getting her vision to a point where she is seeing better (which has been a very interesing, eye-opening experience!). I am very anxious to see if eliminating the dairy helps as I myself have just started the "Eat for you Blood Type" diet - at the urging of my own doctor - partly because I have suffered from allergies most of my life. Although I just recently started the diet, I am seeing a difference in how I feel - for the better, I mean.

Anyway, good luck with finding what helps with your daughter. I know how frustrating it can be after our experience but I really feel there is an answer out there! We just have to keep searching and being pro-active for our children sake!

see a pediatric allergiest (again - different one). They should be doing skin and blood tests and taking a complete history. maybe keep a symptom journal along w/ food, exposures (animals, smoke etc)

i just have to say IMHO - for food allergies, don't play around with other "alternative" medicine. Not proven and can be dangerous.

Hey M.,
If you're interested in a more eastern medicne point of view- I'd suggest finding an accupuncturist and having your daughter take some herbal tintures. Western Medicine's answer to any kind of body issue is to basically slap a bandaid on it. When our bodies break out with eczema it is usually due to some kind of sensitivity- brough on my diet and/or the enviornment.
My son was diagnosed with alot of food sensitivities (I took him to a napropath) when he was 8 months old. Around the same time, he was diagnosed with asthma and was put on Flovent which is a steroid. Last winter he got an upper resp. infection (which exacerbates the asthma) so we started giving him albuterol to head off having to hospitalize him. Then a few days later he got an ear infection and was put on an antibiotic for that. Within about two days he broke out with eczema.
When I took him to see the accupuncutist she explained that when we give medicines, they suppress the symptom yes, but they also inhibit the bodies ability to heal itself. She did a bit of cupping on him and gave us an herbal tincture and within a week it was cleared up.
Since then, I do not do anything but homeopathic medicines and we keep our diet pretty clean (ie; minimal to no processed (dead) foods and lots of fresh veggies, fruits and organic meats). The homeopathics work great and allow for his system to actually heal the ailment itself. Also, he is on a chewable pro-biotic 3 times a day. I take them (an adult version) as well. We use the Renew Life brand. I just had another baby 3 months ago and I put him on a baby probiotic as well.
I believe that Ben's lungs and health have been compromised due to the asthma medication and am working towards weening him off eventually. After seeing what homeopathics can do, I am very hopeful that we can help his body strengthen them up so he can be taken off of them soon. I hope this was helpful to you!
blessings,
J.

I'm sorry to hear that your daughter is dealing with that. I'm a mom of two little girls and my first daughter suffered from severe hives and allergies when she was very little. We went to the doctors several times and had allergy testing and they could never really give us answers and would just tell us to medicate her. We were told to keep her on Zytek daily and they said it could be for years to come. Well like you, I was not o.k. with that. We then learned that many doctors and researchers are linking the chemicals found in our everyday products to the increase in allergies, asthma, eczema, cancer and more. We found out about the chemicals in many products and we switch to shopping at an amazing wellness company that has been in business for 24 yrs. They offer products that are much safer for our families and the environment and I love that we get them at wholesale cost, so we save money! We also save time because they are shipped directly to our door. After switching out our everyday products my daugther no longer gets hives or suffers from allergies. This company also offers an amazing lotion and body wash to relieve eczema. It has helped so many find great relief! I would love to share the full details with you and help your family like mine has been help. Feel free to visit this site and request more details and I will give you a call so we can discuss finding some relief for your daughter and protect her so this does not happen again. http://www.livetotalwellness.com/freedom

Wishing you the best,
M.

Have you looked into a food sensitivities test? I'm not in the medical profession, so am only speaking from personal experience but our situations are aimilar. My daughter also has eczema. We had the skin tests done for allergies and everything was negative. The ped and allergist just recommended creams and antihistimines. The last time I brought it up again with the ped, she suggested that we could try a stronger steroid cream. What?! So I took her to a naturopathic & Oriental Medicine practitioner. He ran some tests on her, including a food sensitivites test. This is a different from a food allergies test. Turns out she is sensitive to almonds and eggs. We've since eliminated these from her diet, gave her pribiotics (no longer doing this one), give her fish oil, giver her an oatmeal bath, and lather her up with California Baby Calendula Cream after bath. She still get patches of eczema in her elbow creases, but that's pretty much about it. Hope your daughter feels better soon! - I have eczema myself so know how miserable it can be.

I am in the same situation. My daughter was given allergy medicine for 2 years. Didn't make a difference. We were told by her pediatrician that she was allergic to pollen but the medication never changed anything. Then I did an allergy test, which showed she was allergic to dust mites. We took her off allergy medication, because they did nothing.
Then she started reacting to body lotions (burt bees), or if she put kids' make up on her face she'd get a rash around her mouth. I repeated the allergy test after talking to the allergist about her reaction to this new stuff but the allergy test showed nothing else. then he said well she might be allergic to mosquitos but we can't test for those. he also said there are some things we can't test for.
so, bottom line, the allergy test is useless, at least proved useless for us. I clean her room daily, wash her bedding every weekend, i got her the allergen mattresses and pillows and what not. she does the same as when she was using the medication.

You might want to take her to a place that does IGA testing. It's a blood test, rather than a prick test. Most MD allergists don't do it because their governing body doesn't believe in it 100%, but most chiopractors do and other holistic places do. Here is one place http://www.nswellness.com/

It mostly tests for food and other things. I've never done it, since I don't have issues, but many of my friends have, have elminiated the foods/culprits and have been doing much better. And, I'm a huge skeptic when it comes to holistic stuff, but am starting to believe in this test. And, if it is just a blood test, it doesn't hurt to try and see what the results say.

Hi M.,
I'd recommend a blood test for food allergies. My doctor requested one for me a few years back because I was having such issues. Turned out I was allergic to eggs. Since I stopped eating anything with eggs in it my allergies were so much better, my asthma practically went away.

Also, allergies can change, after being allergic to eggs for years I was retested after having my first child. Turned out I wasn't allergic to eggs anymore!

So, i'm not sure, but a re-test of basic allergies might help.

Thanks!
T.

I have similar symptoms as those you describe for your daughter. I always test negative for allergy. One allergist suggested that I have "vasomotor rhinitis," a nervous system condition that makes the nervous system react like an allergy. One of my children has the same symptoms.

What makes a difference in my life is similar to what another mom described here. We wash the bedding once a week, use only synthetic comforters (no down/feathers), dust and vacuum often, do not use ANY scented products, and keep our cleaning supplies natural and unscented. This is a pain, but neither of us are on meds and we are both symptom free. For lotion, we use an oil-based product available at our Walgreens that is mostly coconut oil. It is gloppy to put on, but works great.

If it's been a few years...and she is having reactions, then I say yes... repeat.