Allergies are one of the most common diseases of our time, the fight against which becomes more and more difficult every year. Among the most common types of allergies, food allergies lead the way. Children are the first ones to suffer from it.
Food allergy is an immune response to ingestion of food substances that are perceived as foreign and dangerous. Food allergies are not related to metabolic disorders but are a consequence of hypersensitivity.
One of the main factors leading to the development of allergies in a child is heredity. The diet that the woman follows while carrying the baby plays an important role. For example, the use of large amounts of highly allergenic products during pregnancy or taking medications increases the risk of allergies in the baby. And these factors can provoke the disease not immediately but some time later, sometimes even years later. Other factors that influence your baby’s tendency to be allergic include artificial feeding or the early introduction of whole milk to your baby’s diet.
The main allergens and how to detect a reaction to them
By the age of one, a child is most often allergic to milk, eggs, wheat, legumes, and citrus fruits. At this age, children are often diagnosed with cross-allergies, when an allergy to some products develops hypersensitivity to others. For example, doctors say that an allergy to cow’s milk can lead to an allergy to beef or the milk of other animals. In children of preschool age, sensitization may occur in the form of allergies to grains, dairy products, vegetables, and fruits, due to the expansion of the diet. At the same time, an egg or milk allergy which has appeared at the age of less than one year may disappear before the age of 4 or 5. At older ages, the main sources of food allergies are nuts, eggs, soy, fish products, and milk.
The first symptoms of an allergic reaction are swelling of the lips and mouth immediately after ingestion. As the food progresses deeper, the symptoms increase. This can be nausea, vomiting, stomach pain, or diarrhea. Also, the manifestations of food allergies include a bright rash, redness, and severe itching. Even a runny nose and cough may occur.
The process of identifying food allergies consists of interviewing the parents of a young patient, his careful examination, as well as laboratory tests. Heredity factors play a big role, so the doctor must find out if the immediate family has allergies.
Allergies are a very insidious disease that can cause many related illnesses
Food allergies affect the digestive tract (frequent liquid stools, vomiting, stomach pain, heartburn), sometimes affecting the mucosa of the upper respiratory tract (the child often has pharyngitis, conjunctivitis, he has a constant runny nose). In some cases, these allergies lead a child to bronchial asthma.
A child with allergies very often gets sick with colds. The child finds himself in a “vicious circle” – In winter and autumn he is prone to colds, and in the spring and summer, allergic reactions to the flowering of different plants and grasses are aggravated.
The child is constantly irritable and restless. This affects the nervous system. Food allergies can be combined with nervous-arthritic diathesis when manifestations of allergies increase with nervous agitation and various excitements of the child.
It is very important to learn how to recognize the signs of food allergies because they come in many forms. The skin, respiratory tract, and intestines are the first to be affected by allergies. Irritability, tearfulness, anxiety, fear, increased excitability, and sleep disturbance is signs that the nervous system is involved in the disease process caused by food allergies.
How to choose artificial food for an allergic baby?
From the first days of life, your baby needs care, proper care, and adequate nutrition. If your baby is having problems with breast milk and you are experiencing symptoms of food allergy, then hypoallergenic Combiotic milk formula from German brand HiPP can help. To buy this quality formula, please visit the highly reliable myorganiccompany.store.
The formula contains low-allergenic, deeply broken-down protein, making it ideal for children prone to allergies. Probiotics and prebiotics control the healthy microflora of the digestive system. Polyunsaturated fatty acids ensure the development of the brain and visual organs. The product contains no genetically modified organisms, dyes, preservatives, or artificial flavors.
HiPP formula is packed with the appropriate amount of vitamins and micronutrients to ensure a balanced diet for your baby. It contains vitamin A, niacin, copper sulfate, vitamin E, vitamin B1, vitamin B2, vitamin B6, manganese sulfate, potassium iodate, folic acid, vitamin K, selenium, biotin, vitamin D, and vitamin B12. The list of these useful components helps the baby to develop harmoniously.
Food supplements for small allergic children
Children with food allergies are given complimentary food one month later than healthy children – from 7 months. Experienced mothers recommend as the first complementary food to give vegetable purée, start with a single-component purée – with potatoes, which are pre-soaked, zucchini, white cabbage, and cauliflower. Carrots and pumpkins are added at a later date and only if there is no allergy to these vegetables.
If a child often loose or has unstable stools, if the child is poor gain, as a first complementary food can be given him oatmeal – rice or buckwheat, the same oatmeal can be used for a second helping, appointed a month after the first.
Manna and corn oatmeal are better not given.
At 8-9 months of age, you can introduce meat in a natural, mashed form. If the child does not have a negative reaction, you can give beef, with increased allergic reactions to beef should be abandoned and replaced by a rabbit or turkey meat.
In the absence of a pronounced allergy to cow’s milk proteins from 6-7 months of age, dairy products can be used. Whole cow’s milk may be given to children after one year of age, and whole chicken eggs after two years.
Rules for introducing complementary foods for special children
When introducing complementary foods, the following rules should be observed: introduce a new food product only when there are no obvious clinical manifestations of food allergies, start the introduction of a new product in a small amount of 1-1/2 teaspoons, and gradually increase the amount, each new product to give 5-7-10 days in a row, looking at the reaction of the baby – only with a positive reaction of the body can begin to introduce a new product, giving complimentary food from the spoon in the morning and afternoon hours, so you can track the reaction to it. Food allergies are most common in children under two years of age.
Certain foods are excluded from the diet for different periods, which may range from 1.5-2 months to 2 years and older, depending on the degree of allergy and the severity of the clinical manifestations of the food allergy. For example, an allergy to fish, fish products, and nuts can last a lifetime.
So, if your baby has allergic reactions, the first step is to contact your pediatrician, the second step is to choose a high-quality hypoallergenic formula, and the third step is successful growth and development. Remember that any problem can be solved. The main thing is to approach it wisely. Good luck!
