Allergy - Bedminster,NJ

I have cats, dogs, dust mites, trees, and grass - all of which my son is allergic to according to his allergy testing. But, I did not do the official scratch test on him until he was 14 years old. He had asthma all his life, as he hit puberty he began to age out of the asthma but his allergies worsened - so he and I both decided it was time to figure it out.

His response to his doctor, upon learning what he was allergic to was "Well we are not getting rid of the pets and I mow the lawn. What do you suggest." Doctor was a little taken aback, but went on to explain that since he had been exposed to our pets for so long he was most likely desensitized to them and told him he could wear one of those little white masks when he mowed. Yeah, being a teen that was a fashion no. LOL

And so far, he hasn't had any problems above and beyond his normal allergies. Knowing what he was allergic to really only ensured me that I was not missing anything. 5, 6, and 7% allergic to something is not very high. My son was much higher than those numbers, on cats especially, but he can pet them and love on them and not have adverse reactions that his normal allergy medicine will not handle.

What I have learned is that as our children grow their bodies change and they can become desensitized to allergens that they come in contact with on a regular basis - this, in fact, is the basis of allergy shots. Small amounts of exposure that build up resistance to a specific allergen.

Since your child is so young, I would discuss standard allergy medicine remedies that treat the symptoms, and consider re-testing in a few years.

I would not get rid of the pets. What we do is sweep and mop more often and stay on schedule with his allergy meds. If he does have a bad attack he pops a Benadryl, takes a shower (to get the allergens off his skin) and goes about his day.

start 1/4 tspn of benadryl 3 times a day. that should keep her sneezing runny nose etc at bay

YIkes, I wouldn't fill a kid up with Benadryl or any other medicine on a regular basis! The more effective technique is to use a top nutritional supplement that also detoxifies with soluble and insoluble fiber (the soluble gets into the blood stream and sweeps out the allergens). You're treating the cause this way, instead of just throwing medication into the child to treat the symptoms. Do not use supplement pills - they are only absorbed 20-25% so they are a huge financial drain for minimal effect, and they usually carry warning labels (even children's vitamins have warning labels, which is a red flag). We are allergy free, take no more meds, and haven't had colds or the flu in years. The same can happen for food allergies - I have a friend whose child was severely allergic to peanuts, and another whose child had 60 food allergies. It can take about 6 months in some people, but it's worth it.

What symptoms does your baby have? 5-7% doesn't sound very serious. Ask the doctor if there is a medication he can take to treat the symptoms. Unless his symptoms are serious I wouldn't keep him away from cats and dogs tho I might limit contact if he does have some symptoms.

What did the doctor suggest?

I wouldn't panic yet. I was told by several allergists that they really aren't accurate until after age 2. Also allergies can change some. Just be sure he doesn't have a bad time around the dogs and cats and keep your house as dust free as possible. Our allergist said no rugs, carpet, drapes, blinds, stuffed animals, etc. but you could see how he does with/without some of these things. Stuffed animals are bad if allergic to the dust mites. I hope he'll become a bit immune. Allergies are not fun and I would get him retested in a couple of years by an allergist.