I make the effort to limit the amount of processed foods my family eats. We do eat some. I am not perfect. I rarely let my kids have sweets or junk food, but there are times when I find it unavoidable. Most of those unavoidable situations revolve on being outside the home.
Preparing for our vacation this summer was one of these events. Being that my son is so picky and sometimes given to tantrums during meals, and the fact that breakfast at our hotel didn't begin until an hour after he was accustomed to eating, I hoped to find a few healthy-ish things that he would eat that were portable and didn't require refrigeration. I tried pre-made PB & J crackers, a strawberry filled cereal bar, and granola bars. Knowing this Peanut so well, I decided to introduce these things before leaving. He seemed to like the cereal bars, but would only eat half. I noticed that he would be drooling and playing with his mouth a lot after eating them. I attributed it to his 2 year old molars.
The granola bars were alright, but he wouldn't eat the kind with raisins.
I tried the PB & J crackers right before we were leaving. He ate three, started drooling and rubbing his mouth. I went to change his diaper before getting in the car and discovered hives. The doctor recommended giving him Benadryl and monitoring his appearance. I gave him the meds and the hives went away, but the drooling and itchy mouth were more than ever. His tongue wasn't swollen and he was breathing regularly, so we were told it was ok to proceed. We arrived at our hotel and let the kids run around a bit. The drooling had subsided, but he was more reserved than normal and still pulling at his tongue. At dinner, he chewed a piece of chicken for over an hour without swallowing it. I finally took it out. We wound up giving him some of my daughter's purees for dinner and gave him more Benedryl. This was immediately followed by heavy drooling and more tongue pulling and mouth rubbing. Looking at the ingredients in the things he ate, red dye was in the cereal bar, PB & J cracker AND the Benedryl!!! I had also noticed this reaction another time he had a granola bar with nuts.
I eliminated all nuts and the red dye and for three months, we had no issues. The doctor mentioned that I could try reintroducing tree nuts in a very small amount. I tried a very small amount of cashew butter and he had no reaction. A week later, I gave him a bit more. Not so lucky. Drool, tongue pulling, mouth rubbing, hiding in a corner, and crying. After a call to my doctor, I had to stab him with the EpiPen. Worst. Feeling. Ever.
We went to an allergist for a scratch test for nuts (they don't test for chemicals like red dye) and nothing appeared. The allergist described it as a histamine reaction similar to seasonal allergies. He is allergic to a component and since he is ingesting it, it is his mouth that reacts. Even though he doesn't have anaphylaxis now, he may eventually. Now I am even more obsessive about the things going in his mouth. Especially hard during birthday/ Halloween time! I find the nuts easy to avoid. The red dye is in things that you would not expect. Things marketed as "healthy."
Do any of you have food allergy issues? Please share your tips!! Especially how to keep a grabby toddler from taking something he shouldn't in a public situation or when you cant monitor him closely.
As a side note, my Peanut turned 3!!! How is that possible? Anyway, this is the nut-free, dairy-free, egg-free, chemical dye-free cake I made. He wanted a front-end loader cake. I colored the frosting with turmeric. One of the guests said it tasted better than the professional, celebrity made cake they had eaten earlier in the day!!
