Baby food intolerances and allergies

Not at all. The former is mostly a non-immune reaction caused by insufficient digestive function or metabolic abnormalities, and is almost never life-threatening. The latter is an abnormal response mediated by the immune system, which may cause shock in severe cases. The intervention logic of the two is very different. Do not confuse them with random food taboos, which will delay the growth and development of the baby.

Last week, I met my best friend who came to the clinic in a hurry with her baby. She said that her baby had eaten half a mango and her mouth was red. The elderly at home insisted that it was a mango allergy and that she could not touch it for the rest of her life. I applied some mild ointment to the baby and asked about the situation carefully - she gave the baby a mango slice to chew on, and the juice was all over her face. The baby has sensitive skin, and there was no other reaction except redness around the mouth. There was no vomiting, diarrhea, rash, or cough. I asked her to cut the mango into small pieces after she went back, feed it with a spoon without touching the mouth, and try again after two weeks. Later, she reported that nothing was wrong, it was just a common intolerance to acid stimulation.

To be honest, this kind of misunderstanding is very common. Many parents treat their children as allergies when they see a reaction after eating something. In fact, the reaction patterns of the two are quite different. If you observe that your baby has touched something, even just a little bit, and reacts within a few minutes to two hours, either with wheals all over the body, swollen lips, coughing, wheezing, or even being speechless, then don’t hesitate, it is most likely an allergy. In this case, you should seek medical attention immediately, and you should strictly avoid such foods in the future. See a doctor for at least 3-6 months to evaluate whether you can slowly add them back. After all, allergies are essentially caused by the immune system being too "nervous". It treats ordinary foods as invading viruses and bacteria, and attacks them when they come up. The response is quick and the damage is great. If it is a serious allergic reaction, a few minutes of delay may cause serious problems.

If your child always has problems after eating enough, for example, if he eats one or two mouthfuls of yogurt and is fine, but if he drinks half a cup, he will have gas and diarrhea, or if he eats too many purple sweet potatoes the day before and becomes constipated and cries the next day, then he is basically intolerant. To put it bluntly, this thing is that the digestive enzymes in the intestines and stomach "take advantage of". The food is not completely decomposed, and the residue is piled up in the intestines to ferment and cause tantrums. It is just a small fuss. There is no need to completely avoid food. Just reduce the amount next time. When the baby's digestive function slowly develops, the tolerance will be higher and higher. My nephew would vomit after taking a sip of fresh milk when he was a child. Now he can drink two large glasses of milk after a meal in elementary school. This is how he gradually developed.

Speaking of which, some people must be wondering whether they should go for a test to check? There is indeed no unified statement in the industry on this matter. The guidelines of the Pediatric Branch of the Chinese Medical Association clearly state that food-specific IgG testing cannot be used as a diagnostic basis for food intolerance. Many institutions have detected dozens of food intolerances. In fact, they have no clinical significance at all. Indiscriminate food taboos can easily lead to malnutrition in babies. But I have also met many doctors with rich clinical experience who will use the IgG results as a reference - if the child has long-term unexplained eczema, diarrhea, or delayed growth and development, and other problems have been investigated but the cause cannot be found, then you can temporarily avoid foods that indicate high IgG reactions for 1-2 months to see if the symptoms are relieved. Once relieved, you should gradually add back in small amounts. You must not prohibit it for more than half a year. I met a parent last year who banned rice, wheat, eggs, and milk for eight months after listening to the agency. When the child came for a physical examination, he was 4 centimeters shorter than other children of the same age. It was really a pity.

Oh, by the way, another point that is easily confused is delayed-type allergy. There are many opinions now that rashes and diarrhea that appear delayed for 24-48 hours also belong to the category of allergies. They cannot be distinguished from non-immune-mediated intolerance by the naked eye. They must be judged based on the results of serum IgE and skin prick tests. At this time, don’t do it yourself at home. See a reliable pediatric allergist, which is 10,000 times more reliable than searching Baidu for an account yourself.

I have been in the outpatient clinic for almost 5 years. To be honest, the most effective method is not any high-end test at all, but simply keeping a food diary. Write down what your child eats every day, how much he eats, at what time he eats, whether he gets a rash afterwards, what his poop looks like, and whether he cries or feels bloated. If you keep recording for two or three weeks, you will be able to figure out the pattern of any problem. It is much more useful than spending thousands of dollars on tests.

In fact, you don’t need to be too anxious when raising a baby. Occasionally, you may have a minor reaction after eating something. As long as it’s not serious or serious, just stop for a few days and try a small amount next time. Don’t label your baby as allergic whenever there is any trouble. You can’t eat this or that. Losing the baby’s mouth will also delay the growth of the body, don’t you think?