Does my child have a food allergy?

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In a world where food allergies seem to be on the rise, no one wants to think it will ever be their kid.

Today I’m musing about food allergies…because we are seeking answers right now about our 3-year-old. Could she have food allergies, too?

The signs have been there for a while. And I feel bad–really bad–because I feel like we’ve ignored them. I am praying, praying, praying God leads us down the right path to figure out what is going on with her. 

And I’m trying not to worry. 

But I’m a worrier by nature. It’s that sin that always gets me. I’ve often thought it’s my “thorn in the flesh.” Oh, how I need the Lord’s help to live in peace and not worry!

The Lord is already opening up doors for us. We switched pediatricians a few months ago for a completely different reason. 

We didn’t suspect food allergies, but our daughter’s new doctor, who is an integrative physician trained in both Western and Eastern medicine, immediately picked up on some signs. 


We started milk elimination in July. It didn’t help. We started a total dairy elimination a few weeks ago. Things still haven’t changed. 


So, later today, we are going to an allergist, where she will get tested for 25 different allergens. I pray we get some answers. 

I thought it might be helpful to other moms (or future moms or grandmothers, etc.) to see a list of potential food allergy symptoms. My daughter’s symptoms are in bold:

• chronic diarrhea
• under eye circles
• frequent nose bleeds
• food cravings (Her pediatrician said many people will crave what their body cannot handle. She gave the example of children with dairy allergies who guzzle milk like an alcoholic downs a six-pack of beer. My daughter craves crackers, pretzels, etc.–which may indicate a gluten allergy.)
• mood swings/irritability
• change in hair pigmentation
• ADHD
• ezcema
• “colicky” as a baby
• diaper rash
• slow weight gain

God also blessed me this week through several posts I found in the “blogosphere”:

• Modern Alternative Mama wrote about identifying food allergies in a newborn.
• Brandy, of Living Water Health and Wellness, wrote a post at Kitchen Stewardship about her experience with diabetes. One of her readers, Melanie, wrote about her son’s recent diagnosis of type 1 diabetes and food allergies. Her comment motivated me to question my daughter’s doctor even more since we already have a strong family history of diabetes.
• One of my new favorite bloggers, Whole New Mom, devotes a lot of her blog to recipes that work with food allergy diets. 

Does anyone in your family have food allergies? How have you dealt with it?

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