Food Sensitivity

My daughter has life threatening allergies to dairy and did to eggs when she first started pre-school. We still pack her own snacks and the teachers/other parents would check with us as far as birthday treats. We would always have treats at the school should someone forget to ask and she was allergic to the item. I understand as a parent how it feels to have your child not partake in the same snacks/treats, but they do get used to it. For my daughter, who has had two unfortunate allergic experiences with epi-pens and trips to the emergency room, not eating certain snacks/treats is fine with her. The other day, though, the kids at preschool had fruity cereal and she couldn't have any because they weren't sure if she would be allergic to it. She was definitely disappointed, but we let her have some at home. Kids adapt to situations and I would just have the teachers not offer the acidic foods that you think cause the upset stomach and accidents. Best of luck and hope that he out grows his sensitivity soon.

Have you tried enzymes and probiotics?
We've had great success with both.
C.

Hey M.-
My little guy has the same issue...sensitivity to citric acid. His father had the same thing and got over it. When he wants something that will mess him up I usually say that it's not good for him and that I am sorry and give him something else. He gets over it very quickly. Just keep talking to your little guy and explaining things to him. He will understand and adapt. Hang in there!

It is hard for kids who can't eat the same things their classmates are enjoying. At his age, though, I would put the burden on the school to keep foods he can't eat away from him. Try talking to the staff, and perhaps making a list of things that may make him sick for them to refer to. Then you'll just have to give him time to grow out of it, as the doctor said. My younger boy was allergic to both milk and soy when he was born, and we had great difficulty finding an appropriate formula for him, but by the time he started preschool, he could eat anything.

hi M.,
i understand the anguish of wanting your children to have all the choices in life that other kids have. i am a mom of five and two of my babies had this issue. both have grown out of it now and can eat whatever they like now. for pineapple, to compound the acidity, some base foods like bread and milk can decrease the effects natural acids have on your stomach. For my two-year old she would get incredibly painful rashes from pineapple or even spaghetti. our periatrician had us mix 1/3 orange juice with 2/3 apple served with a bagel or toast and slowly increase the uptake from there. your little man should be able to adapt rather quickly, (a year or so,) when slowly introducing these acids with base foods. good luck and best wishes.
-E. Vance

Our son's school will not serve him any food. Ingredients change so identifying OK brands or boxes is not safe. We've been burned a couple times by expensive organic packaged food when they reformulate and don't make obvious packaging changes. They simply hand him the container I've given them at dropoff and he opens it himself. He knows he can only have what's in the box (they pour everyone water at snacktime). Birthday treat alternatives made by me are individually wrapped and frozen in a labelled Ziploc in the school freezer. Whenever the teacher is thinking of having a food "craft" or themed snack they let me know a few days in advance so I can scare up a similar safe alternative. The poopy accidents are no fun for anyone and my heart goes out to you. My offer to let nosy-folks take those underpants to hose off onto THEIR grass sure is a convenient "shut up" though :P

Hey M.,

My son had this too. He is now almost 4 (November) and he is doing much better. However, he does have to limit his acidic foods more than his sister does. He is pretty good at getting to the bathroom if he needs to, and sometimes I see that it's very loose when he's eating acidic foods, but it seems to be slowly getting better. I have noticed that with certain foods, especially tomatoes, that cooking causes them to be more likely to cause a reaction. My son's doctor told me he would probably grow out of it too and he seems to be showing some signs. One thing I do is allow him only a little bit of tomatoes, and only fresh, and if he has pasta, not a whole lot of sauce on it. The only thing that's hard is if his sister is eating oranges or berries he wants to eat a whole lot of them. I usually tell him he gets a certain number that he picks (and being 3 3/4 he usually picks something less than 20) and he gets that number and then he's done. If it's a big fruit like a tangerine it would be that number of cut pieces. I have noticed that dry granola bars, whole wheat bread, dry whole grain cereal, and bananas seem to help alleviate some tummy trouble with acid too. I don't think they really help with the acid, but they seem to help bulk up the poo so it's not so liquidy. That said, he still goes like 5 times a day! Also, if there is a fruit he really wants I let him have a limited number of those and then he gets all he wants of something else, like apple or banana pieces. I also make sure he eats a minimum of 2 tablespoons of plain yogurt each day - the bacteria in the yogurt seems to help him as well. Good luck. I hope your punkin feels better.

As a Mom of 7 kids and most with food allergies, I feel your pain. I can recommend 2 things. One as someone else said, add probiotics and digestive enzymes daily. Then reseach a natruopath in your area who does allergy testing and treatment. I have done this with my worst cases and they have improved greatly. Look up the book The Food Allergy Cure by Ellen Cutler. Many good helps for you and your son. I have several allergic to acidic foods and the older ones do tolerate it better now. But I limit their intake. Watch out for reocurrance in puberty. They get trained to say no to foods they can't eat and I always make sure she has what she needs. I send food with her. Feel free to contact me if you have more questions. Been dealing with this for 15 years.
I am a SAHM of 7 kids that I adore and home school. Married to the man I love for 17 years.
Stac

Hi M.,

Your son sounds like a smart little guy since he already knows what makes him sick and how to say "I can't"!

Reassure him that when he is at school it's a good thing, a big boy thing to still speak up and say "I can't eat that, it will make me sick." That will save him the pain and embarrassment of having an accident.

Blessings.....

M.,
My doctor recently put me on an allergy free diet. Most of what you listed up there is on my not to have anymore list.
A customer I am good friends with has a child with a citrus allergy she can't even have Sierra Mist now either as she had a reaction to that now also. Apparently it is more common than we think, and you may want to consider delayed allergy testing. It shows when you are allergic to things later, instead of immediately. It is also done by saliva, so no shots all over your body.
W. m