When our 19-month-old son Graeme was diagnosed with food allergies, our allergist sent home excellent documentation on what foods to avoid. Her goal: Prevent the kind of reaction that results in Graeme scratching himself bloody (see photo).
She told us what he couldn’t eat. But she didn’t tell us what we should feed him. When your child has multiple food allergies, the list of dietary options shrinks. I knew things were going to be a challenge as soon as corn, soy, and wheat popped up on his chart. Still, I was dumbfounded by the response of our allergist.
“Well, I guess he can eat rice cakes,” she said. Technically, this could be true—if we lived in a place where rice cakes were made by traditional methods. All the rice cake brands in our grocery store contain corn or soy. After her joke the appointment was over, and we were sent on our way.
By the time we got home, it was obvious to my wife and me that it was going to take effort to feed Graeme and make sure he got all the vitamins a growing boy needs. We scheduled an appointment with a child nutritionist at the children’s hospital where my wife works, but it was weeks away.
We researched Graeme’s allergies on the Internet and delved into books. We knew from his current diet he would get enough of some nutrients: protein (the boy loves cheese, ham, and roast beef); vitamins A and C (lots of bananas, strawberries, cantaloupe, and sweet potatoes); E, K, B6, potassium, copper, manganese (all from carrots); and calcium (thankfully, he is not allergic to milk).
But we’re not nutritionists; in fact, until we had to learn how to feed Graeme, I hadn’t considered nutrition beyond counting carbs for my diabetes. Suddenly I was worried my child wouldn’t get enough thiamin or riboflavin. Were we going to stunt his growth? Would he develop some strange disease formally relegated to 19th-century sailors?
We carried these concerns to our meeting with the nutritionist, who listened intently as we detailed Graeme’s diet.
Turns out, we’re doing all right. Graeme is getting almost all of what he needs. She asked us to boost his calcium, a request I found ironic since Graeme is not allergic to dairy products.
So it appears that Graeme is benefiting in one crucial way from his allergy. His diet is getting much closer scrutiny than it would if he were an allergy-free kid, and he is getting his nutritional needs met better than he might if we were loading him up with processed food.
We left satisfied that Graeme would be just fine, but newly worried about our daughter. Elise is allergic to nothing and still enjoying the guilty, easy pleasures of processed food. Chances are she’s getting fewer vitamins and minerals than her food-challenged brother.
That’s parenthood for you—trading one worry for another until they’re both out of the house and we’re roaming the country in an RV.
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Comments (4)
I have a child with severe food allergies and a not-so rare anymore eosinophilic disease. Our first visit to the allergist was quite a shocker, but he is an unusual case. For kids with mainstream allergies of the top 8, who only have to avoid a few foods, vitamins are essential in helping round out what a growing body needs.
A good site I’ve found is http://www.supplementinfo.org
They are a non profit group dedicated to dispelling myths and providing scientific research results on dietary supplements.
Thanks for the recommendation, Leslie. Fortunately, Graeme seems to be getting what he needs without supplements. One of the benefits of his condition is he’s eating more whole foods, which tend to have more nutrients than processed foods.
I’m relieved that your son is getting the nutrition he needs, and it’s wonderful that because of these allergies he’ll have better nutrition than most other kids, but I’m very upset by the allergist’s comments: “Well, I guess he can eat rice cakes.” That’s a perfect example of medicine in a vacuum. That is, physicians are good at telling you what medication to take and what not to do, but they’re clueless about stratgies for living and functioning with a health condition in the real world.
To Leslie K.
I am a mother of 3 year old daughter and I have eosinophilic gastroenteritis and my daughter is suspected to have it. She can only eat about 15 foods, mostly fruit. She is now severly allergic to just the smell of food cooking in a mall, restaurant etc. It sets her off into a horrible 3 week bronchial mess. I would LOVE to speak with you sometime about your experiences. I have found no one else with simialar disease to help. We have been to Mayo clinic in Rochester as well as Riley children’s hospital. It seems frustrating at best that they cannot help you figure out what to feed these children! Please email me. Susanpeterson@comcast.net