Mommy Moments

A Mom’s Story of Reaction (as in Allergic)

By Shakira Muneswar

Nine and a half years ago I gave birth to a perfect baby girl we named Sabrina.  Ten fingers, ten toes and crying like she never wanted to see the light of day.  Before having her, I made the conscious decision to breastfeed.  I was fortunate that I could be a stay-at-home Mom and therefore have the time to devote to my child, because as all parents are aware, there is never enough time.

While externally, in my eyes, my child is perfect, internally Sabrina’s immune system is in overdrive.  She has food allergies which range from being a nuisance to being potentially fatal.

From the first, she gained all her nutrition from me – a wholly and deeply satisfying feeling for me personally. I need to state here that I’m not recommending one feeding method over another. This is a personal choice and the one I made, I had the luxury of making.  My baby thrived on her diet, never once spitting up, sleeping soundly and maintaining a regular feeding schedule. 

I first knew something was wrong when Sabrina was one month old. I had to leave her for a few hours with my most trusted caregiver, my Mom. I had not expressed any milk, so that when she woke up hungry, my Mom gave her one of the pre-measured formulas we had been given by the hospital (making sure that it had not expired). As it was my Mom who was feeding her, Sabrina drank all of the formula from the bottle, rather than holding out for the breast.  Later, in the early evening, my baby girl who had never so much as spit up, who you could hold upside down (which of course we didn’t do), directly after feeding without fear of anything coming back up, threw up every bit of the formula. This was so out of the norm for Sabrina that for the next five months, until I started to introduce solids into her diet, Sabrina was exclusively breastfed.

The next sign that there was something out of the norm for Sabrina was her stall in weight gain. She had been growing in accordance to the standard growth charts until her nine-month checkup. The only thing that had changed between her six month and nine month checkup was her diet. I had started to introduce solids at six months and thought nothing of my picky eater, as all babies could be fussy when starting new foods. It did not occur to me that she would not be getting enough to eat.

It was also at this six month mark that I had decided to try to start weaning Sabrina. I chose a soy based formula, remembering what had happened the last time she had been fed regular formula. This time she was having none of it. In an effort to stick to the plan, I held out until she took some of the formula. She went to sleep and about three hours later, woke up and started to immediately throw up. A frantic call to her doctor had him trying to calm me down telling me to try a different formula. Whether Sabrina’s pediatrician suspected she had food allergies or not, the standard response is to try something else until they are older, because, according to what I was informed, babies change so much in the first year that it really is no indication of a long-lasting or even a life-long food allergy.

It is most likely that a child will outgrow a food allergy or intolerance.  What is most notable is the number of cases of food allergies have been increasing in the US.

An allergy is defined as “the inappropriate and harmful response of the body’s defense mechanism to substances that are normally harmless. It involves the immune system and particularly an antibody called immunoglobulin E (IgE)” (from www.worldallergy.org/public/allergic_diseases_center/overview.php).  The World Allergy Organization also writes that the incidence of allergies varies from country to country. The reasons for this is not known, “but are related in part to affluence and lifestyle.”

In the US, “[m]ore than 12 million Americans have food allergies … or 4 percent of the population,” according to the Food Allergy and Anaphylaxis Network (www.foodallergy.org). 

Eight foods account for 90 percent of all food-allergic reactions in the U.S.  They are: milk, eggs, peanuts, tree nuts (e.g., walnuts, almonds, cashews, pistachios, pecans), wheat, soy, fish, and shellfish (Food Allergy and Anaphylaxis Network, www.foodallergy.org).  It is recommended these foods be avoided for the first year of a child’s life.  If there is a family history of allergies to a particular food, this also needs to be taken into account when deciding to try a new food. 

One of the most important things to be aware of is that unlike environmental allergies (dust, pollen, pets, etc.), there is no medicine as yet for a food allergy.  The only way to avoid a reaction is to avoid the allergen or food that causes the allergic reaction.  This may require a lifestyle change for the whole family or something as minor as not having the food present at home. 

Just as an individual may be allergic to different kinds of food, so too, the reaction may differ. My daughter would gain an immediate rash on her face, particularly around her mouth which came in direct contact with the allergen, and on her abdomen. As the allergen worked its way through her system, she would get congested and then a day or two later develop eczema rashes particularly in the crooks of her arms and behind her knees.  I would treat the eczema with cortisone cream sparingly twice per day until it subsided.  If I did not do this, she would scratch the irritation so much sometimes that the skin would break.  At this point I could not use the cortisone cream and could only apply a cool compress or ice wrap directly on the affected areas.

Other reactions may include abdominal pains, hyperactivity, vomiting, excessive congestion or runny nose just to list a few.  In order for her pediatrician to even test Sabrina, I had to make several calls and eventually took photos of her rash to show her doctor.  I know that pediatricians do the best they can, but when it comes to the health and well-being of your child, you are their only voice and advocate and it’s okay to insist on a more in-depth examination.

Whether it’s your first child or your fourth, trite as it may sound, parents need to trust their instincts. Even if you can’t put your finger on what’s wrong, the fact that something has been picked up by your radar is enough for you to pay closer attention to your child. 

I remember when I first found out that Sabrina was allergic to common foods like milk and eggs – things I had grown up on and used frequently in cooking – I was quite upset wondering why did it have to be my child. I didn’t have any experience in dealing with food allergies and I certainly didn’t know how to take care of an allergic child. As time went on and I discovered more and more resources which helped me to manage her diet, I came to realize that my child was eating healthier and fresher foods than had she not had her allergies.  So while I would not wish this on anyone, know that it is manageable and that there are lots of food alternatives to the traditional foods fed to infants and young children with more options appearing everyday – even in the local grocery store.

Today, Sabrina is still allergic to milk, eggs, some fish and most especially tree nuts (for which I must carry an EpiPen at all times as well as provide one to her school so the nurse may have it on site in case of any possibility). She may still outgrow some, or even all of her allergies, but what’s most important is she is a healthy, happy child that is well aware of her allergies and knows how to take care of herself. She’s been taught that having allergies is no different than being better in math than in English. All it means is that you have to be more diligent when studying your English. It was a way to realize that together we can manage anything and it is through the challenges that we grow and learn and hopefully become better persons. As a mom, this was a life lesson very much worth learning.