snacks to bring for 13 month old with allergies

[minnie1012]

Hi My daughter has just been diagnosed with food allergies based on reaction. The doctor can not test her yet because she first has to come off medication she is on. So it looks like we won't know before we go do Disney what she is really allergic too. We think eggs, milk, soy and possible wheat? So I don't think she can have Cheerios or those Gerber puffs? I'm at a loss what can I bring her for a snack in the park? I want to bring something small that she can feed herself since she only has 2 bottom teeth and tends to shove things in her mouth rather than bitting. So I'm looking for something the size of Cheerios or puffs? Thanks!

 

[ireland_nicole]

you need a cereal that is rice or corn based, I believe cheerios have wheat in them. You might want to check out a group that is GFCF (gluten free cassein free) as that will eliminate any wheat or dairy. If your child is allergic to milk, she's probably allergic to other dairy, too. Many GFCF kids also have other food intolerances, like soy and egg, so people following those diets would be a good resource for you. Any raw food vegan foods would be safe from most of those as well (except soy, which you'd have to screen for). I'd recommend you join a yahoo group gfcf kids. There you will find a lot of parents who have already found a lot of what you're looking for and are willing to share knowledge. If your child is sensitive to the gluten in wheat (which is the most likely allergen in wheat) then there are a lot of other things which contain that as well, including stickers, glue, and a lot of products you wouldn't think of. Good luck as you start your journey. Note on your reservations that a member of your party has those allergies, and a chef will be able to help you determine what's safe for her. FWIW, because of a rise in Autism and therefore kids who are GFCF, there are actually some packaged foods that will be safe for her. There are rice and spelt alternatives, other thickeners and binding agents, it will be ok, but it's just going to be complicated for a while.

 

[HETRICKL]

I know it's a lot to comprehend right now, but it will get easier. My DD was diagnosed with multiple food allergies 1.5 years ago and we're starting to get used to it. Two websites that really helped me get started are; www.foodallergy.org and www.kidswithfoodallergies.org

Good Luck.

 

[staceyhzoo]

My dd has been dairy allergic since birth (as far as we can tell) She is also wheat sensitive and allergic to corn (among other things). Envirokids brands make some corn and oat based cereal that is great finger food. Puffins also are pretty soft (dd ate them under 1 yr) If you have a whole foods they have tons of dairy, soy, and wheat free snakes in their baby aisle. Hope this helps-we took dd to disney when she was just under 2 and she was fine foodwise. Have a great time!

 

[ekatiel]

I think Perky-O's (found at Whole Foods or other health food store) should be safe, Here's a link to their websites, so you'll know what you're looking for: http://www.perkysnaturalfoods.com/perkyocereal.asp My 5 YO DS just (like last week!!) outgrew his wheat allergy, and he is still allergic to eggs, tree nuts and peanuts. Rice Chexs are another alternative (these just went gluten free a few months ago) that you can find at the regular grocery store. If your little one can handle oats (they are cross contaminated with wheat-- some people do ok with them (my son did), some do not), then Captain Crunch is another choice. I hope this info helps! BTW-- What did your LO have a reaction to? Allergy testing is known for false positives, so I wouldn't test for something unless you think it caused a reaction (needlessly avoiding foods is no fun). --Katie

 

[minnie1012]

Thanks! We don't have a Whole foods so I have to try to find a store that has some of these items. We are driving so I'm worried about feeding her in restaurants on the way down especially breakfast!

She hasn't been tested yet. We went to a gastroentrologist because she had such terrible gas for so long and she lost weight (peditrician wasn't being helpful). I had no idea it was allergies. He said it was allergies based on examing her and my descriptions. We can't test yet since she is on Zantac for acid reflux so that has to be stopped. We are leaving next week so even if I got into the allergist not sure the results would be back in time. I couldn't make an appt yet since she had a urologist appt (different problem) this week my other daughter and husband have been ill (so its been nuts!) At this point we are just guessing based on her screaming crying after she eats or hours later. Milk was the worst, eggs gave her hives and I thought wheat was ok but she didn't get better eliminating milk an eggs so we just stopped wheat. She had rice milk tonight which she has had for a few days now and she spit some of it up. Not sure if that is the acid reflux, a fluke or a problem with her drinking the rice milk! Nothing can ever be easy!

 

[pudge the fish]

you may want to hop over to the disABILITIES board. Lots of people over there with food allergies and info about who to contact about food allergies while dining at WDW

rice chex is gluten free - although I am not sure if it is casien free??
how about soy milk?

maybe rice cakes but check the lables, barley, malt etc.. are added and that is wheat- Wheat is even in Tomato soup & Some ketchups..

WDW is a wonderful place to eat with allergies.
I again suggest you check out the disABILITIES board - lots of great ideas and tips.

 

[happymommy]

It's not as accurate, but you can get a skin test with immediate results. The blood test will take a week or two to get the results in, but maybe you can get into a pediatric allergist right away to get these done. It's really important to get the diagnosis soon - any reaction has the potential of being life threatening (my DS had anaphylaxis at 8 months from a tiny amount of dairy - the again at 4). Also, you should always carry liquid benedryl and an Epi-Pen Jr. with you.

I was unaware of Zantac affecting the skin or blood tests. We are always told to only discontinue antihistamines a week prior to my son's testing (he gets the rast done annually).

When my son was little, we found steamed rice was something he loved out at restaurants. Also, plain meats (no seasoning) are good, but for snacks, hmm.... My son can eat wheat, so that is a tricky one. Maybe rice cakes, broken up? The grocery stores have more of a selection here than they used to, so maybe you can find some safe snacks there. We have a store called Roots here that I used to go to for dairy/egg free cookies - some were wheat free and you'd never know! One brand was Alternative Baking Company - they are big and so yummy!

The sit down restaurants are so good at Disney - they will help you so much! If you want any other advice, PM me - my son has had food allergies almost his whole life, is seen at Johns Hopkins annually, and was in a research study there (so we've spent lots of time with his allergist). He outgrew two of his allergies (peanut and sesame) but still has a slight dairy one and egg.

I also highly recommend a book, "Food Allergies for Dummies" by Dr. Robert Wood. He's the head of pediatric allergy at Johns Hopkins. It is so full on info for newly diagnosed.

 

[happymommy]

Oh - yes, rice chex is milk free.

 

[LuckyMamaInDE]

Dd14 is able to continue on her reflux and asthma meds when she has to go off the antihistamines for allergy testing. I cannot imagine having a kid off reflux meds.....poor baby.

Do you make an appointment made with the allergist yet? See if they can fit you in or if they can put you on the cancellation list for before you go away. Having a better idea about the allergies will make for a more relaxed trip. (My dd was diagnosed with her food allergies literally 28 days before a WDW trip. I was a mess until I learned about WDW's great food allergy policies.)

 

[ekatiel]

Clearing up a couple of things:

Rice Chex are wheat (and gluten), egg, nut, soy and dairy free. They should be safe.

Quaker Rice Cakes are cross contaminated with peanuts. I'm not sure if you suspect a nut allergy, too, but if your little one has never had nuts, i'd stay away from Quaker brand rice cakes. You might check to see if your local grocer carries another brand.

You shouldn't have to discontinue Zantac for allergy testing (maybe the doc misheard you and thought you said "Zyrtec"??). For skin testing, you need to discontinue anti-histamines (like Zyrtec and Benadryl) prior to testing. Skin testing results are immediate (within 20 minutes). RAST testing is a blood draw test where results are usually available in about a week. You DO NOT have to be off any meds to get a RAST test. RAST testing tests how many IgE antibodies your body has produced to a certain food, not your body's histamine reaction to a food (like the skin test does), so you do not have to be off antihistamines to do the RAST test. Both tests have high false positive rates.

Your child's reaction to egg sounds like a "textbook" allergy. The reactions to dairy and wheat could be a variety of things from an intolerance or an eosinophilic disorder, to a true allergy.

Barley and Rye are not wheat, but they do contain gluten. People with a gluten intolerance cannot have wheat, barley, or rye, and they often avoid oats b/c they are cross contaminated with wheat. Some kids with a wheat allergy (which is different from a gluten intolerance) can tolerate barley and rye. Others (like my son) react to all three grains.

Ok, stepping off my soap box now. --Katie

 

[minnie1012]

I already contacted Disney and filled out our dining reservations etc. and received some info from them on what is in different foods. The doctor said Zantac is a histamine which is why it has to be stopped? Its all so overwhelming especially with our trip next week! There are so many terms to learn! I am going to look for that book too!