23 Feb Introducing Allergy Foods To Your Baby
Is your baby about to start on solids? Here is some important information and a heartfelt story from Mel (@noosa_mum) about her families journey with her son’s food allergy. Continue reading below for the current advice for introducing solids and allergy foods to your baby.
This is the story about our beautiful son Noah who will be 5 in June and who was first diagnosed with life threatening food allergies at 13 months old.
When Noah was 13 months old my husband prepared a salad with a tahini dressing and gave Noah a taster. We ate Middle Eastern food a lot, in fact we used to buy tahini jars in catering sizes, so this is something we consumed a lot, but we think this might have been the first time Noah had tried it.
Unfortunately within seconds of eating the salad Noah became unhappy, his skin started to become covered in red blotches and hives, the whites of his eyes turned red – it was very scary and we weren’t sure what exactly was happening.
We took him to hospital (he wasn’t having breathing issues – otherwise we would have called an ambulance) and they said he’s had an allergic reaction and would need to be referred to see a Paediatric Immunologist.
When we had our first allergist appointment Noah had a skin prick test (SPT). This is when the skin is scratched with an allergen and you normally wait around 10 minutes to see if a hive/welt develops on the skin. Noah’s were HUGE, that’s when he was diagnosed as being anaphylactic to sesame seeds and would need to carry Epi Pens at all times.
Unfortunately the next few weeks, months and years would see us back and forth at the allergist due to more allergic reactions and further allergy diagnosis with confirmed allergies to Sesame Seeds, Cashew and Pistachio nuts and dairy. He is also extremely allergic to dogs and dust mites.
Food allergies were never on our radar, no-one else in our family suffers from them. If you have a child who’s about to start on solids my recommendation would be to ensure you follow the current guidelines and make sure your child tries each common allergy as soon as possible and then rotate it within their diet.
The positive out of all this, being able to use my platform to create awareness and education and connecting with lots wonderful allergy families and businesses in the process.
👉 Do you know the current guidelines for introducing allergy foods? 👈
WHEN: Allergy causing foods should be introduced to your baby’s diet before the age of 1 to assist with preventing allergies.
HOW: Introduce one common allergy causing food at a time during meals when your baby is starting solids, so you can identify the problem food if allergic reaction occurs
✅ It is important to continue including these foods in your baby’s meals at least twice as week
🚫 If an allergic reaction occurs, stop feeding your baby that food and seek medical advice.
Allergic reactions usually occur quickly – within minutes (although they can take up to 2 hours). Other reactions to foods may be delayed.
Learn more about food allergies if your bub is about to start solids:
How to introduce the most common allergy causing foods
What foods should I feed my baby?
Follow Mel @noosa_mum