Monday, October 26, 2009

Food allergies

My poor little Atticus has a horrible rash all over his face, neck, ears, and head. It's red and bumpy and I thought it was just baby acne but it's got to be something worse. It looks itchy and he even scratched himself today with his too sharp fingernails that I'm too lazy (and nervous) to cut.

I'm thinking it's a food allergy because he was having tummy troubles the past few weeks (like mucus-y poop and screaming pain one night). I'm cutting out the dairy to see if that helps at all. If that doesn't help, I'll cut out other things that causes this (I've read gluten, eggs, soy, and beans can all spark allergies). Then there is the TED (or total elimination diet), it seems a little extreme for a little rash and a tummy ache every few days because he definitely isn't colicky, so I'll only do this if it gets worse. At the same time, if it makes him never have tummyaches and the rash disappears, it's probably worth it, right? Experience with this anyone? Advice?

For now, let's see if getting rid of the dairy does anything. Luckily it's winter, which means soup. My soups are generally vegan, so I won't have to change too much in my diet.

6 comments:

  1. Try cutting out anything processed or refined first - especially sugars and flour. I couldn't eat any chocolate the entire time I was nursing either. Poor little guy - good luck.

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  2. We ARE psychic. I was just thinking about suggesting this to you! I would cut out dairy for a week, then wheat, soy, eggs, citrus, nuts, etc. and see what happens. Keep a journal about the rash, poop, fussiness, and spit up.

    Eat lots of veggie soup. I ate a lot of chicken and rice/potatoes when Megan and Gavin were little.

    And Aquaphor is great for the rash. Soothing and moisturizing.

    Love you!

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  3. This may in fact be a rash, but my little nephew Noah (Rebecca's little one) had a baby acne like I have never seen before. It looked a lot like what you are describing. She was really worried about it and talked to here doctor, and he assured her it was only baby acne. He also had a lot of gas, and screaming fits, turns out he gets constipated really easy. If you can't get rid of all of the sympmtoms by chaning your diet, etc, then I suggest you talk to your doctor. A nurse might be able to help you over the phone.

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  4. I had terrible eczema when I was little! I had the rosiest cheeks because of it.

    I was allergic to milk and couldn't drink it for the longest time, I grew out of it, but my mom used oatmeal paste to ease the itch.

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  5. Aidan is allergic to oatmeal, both what I eat and the baby food oatmeal. He gets welts and rashes and vomits and has bad diapers. he couldn`t tolerate even mildly spicy foods when he was nursing, but then neither can I. Try the journal like Lauren suggested, and keep a record of what you eat, and if he has what looks like a reaction more than once, maybe that will help you narrow things down. I have an area right below my wedding rings on my palm that breaks out and gets itchy and dry. Aquaphor clears it right up. Bad news is there is no generic. Good luck!! oh, and it isn`t it amazing what becoming a father does to our husbands?

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  6. Have you found the source of Atticus' misfortune yet? i hope you do soon if you haven't. I have no experience, therefore, no insight into the situation but I hope everything will be ok with him. Keep us all updated.

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