Food Allergy Living Blog Tagged Results

Need a quick afternoon snack or dessert for your little one? Here's a super quick pudding!

Ingredients:

• 4 scoops Neocate Nutra
• 1 fl oz water
• 1/4 medium banana, mashed
• 1 tsp maple syrup

Directions:

Mix Neocate Nutra with water. Add banana and maple syrup. Stir and serve.

Nutrition Information:

• Calories 130
• Protein 2g
• Carbohydrates 24g
• Fat 3.5g

Makes 15 servings

Submitted by: Katherine M. Hull

To get more food allergy recipes, be sure to download our new Food Allergy Cookbook!

[Image Source]

Looking for a yummy milk-free chocolate treat for your little one? This chocolate pudding recipe should hit the spot! Adding flavors like vanilla and cherry vanilla provide variety.

Ingredients:

• 12 scoops Neocate Nutra
• 3 scoops Neocate Junior, chocolate
• ~ 3 Tbsp water

Directions:

Mix until smooth, add water as necessary. Should be consistency of thin paste.Refrigerate 30-45 minutes.

Note: Add 1 dropper Wisdom Natural Sweetleaf Liquid Stevia Vanilla Creme (in health food aisle) or add scant 1/16th teaspoon of a Neocate Cherry Vanilla flavor packet.

Nutrition Information Per Serving:

• Calories 370
• Protein 8g
• Carbohydrates 50g
• Fat 16g

Submitted by: Teresa Fristoe

To get more food allergy recipes, be sure to download our new Food Allergy Cookbook!

I have many fond memories of play dates with my friends as a young child. But as a Type 1 Diabetic, my mother had to be prepared when dropping me off at a friend’s house to play. She had to make sure that my friends’ parents understood what I could or couldn’t eat (in those days, sweets of any kind were a big no-no). She also had to educate the family on what to do if I became hypoglycemic. Before the playtime fun could begin, she would always have informative discussions with the family to ensure they were comfortable and understood my condition.

Play dates are also often a challenge for families of children with food allergies. That’s why we would like to share some of our favorite tips to help parents and caregivers with food allergy kiddos plan an allergy-safe play date. Keep in mind these tips can be used for both older and younger children.

• Make play date cards. There are hundreds of choices of play date cards, and even allergy specific ones like these on the market. These cards are ideal for documenting your child's dietary and medical needs.
• Bring your own snacks (for the whole gang). Create your own allergen safe snacks so that your little one and their play date guests can all enjoy snack time together. Here are some allergen safe recipes to look through.
• Create a caregiver book. Prepare a three-ring binder with all of your child's allergy information including a list of food allergens and ingredients to avoid, a list of contacts in case of an emergency, EpiPen® or Twinject® instructions, schedules, allergy friendly recipes, etc. Having this information all in one place will make it easy to find in an emergency.
• Consider inviting parents, too. For very young children who aren't used to being away from mom or dad, and even for older kids making their first visit another family’s home, consider making play dates a family affair. Invite the other parent (or caregiver) to join you for coffee and chat while the kids play. Many kids need to work up to the "drop-off" play date, and many parents are wary about leaving their children in the home of someone they don't know very well. This will give you time to speak with the other parent, get to know them better and educate them on your little ones’ food allergies.

Communication is the most important part in ensuring that your child’s play dates are both safe and fun. What do you do to prepare for your child’s play dates?

- Christine

The first few years of a baby’s life are filled with so many exciting little milestones. One of them, of course, is transitioning your child to solid foods. Some parents find it a big relief and others feel a little sad because it’s a reminder that baby is growing up, (Don’t worry, she’s probably not ready for college quite yet!) but all in all it’s not too much of a big deal.

When you have a little guy or gal with a food allergy, like a milk allergy, this transition can cause a little angst. “How do I avoid an allergic reaction?” and “How do I make sure the baby’s getting enough to eat/the proper nutrition?” are questions we hear a lot around here.

Some parents also wonder if they should take the risk of introducing solid foods at all!

Unfortunately, it’s not that simple. Your little one actually needs solid foods so that they can start developing the necessary motor skills for chewing, biting (food, not people J) and speech development. So how can you safely begin introducing solid foods to your baby? Here are some important things to remember.

1. Wait until your baby is six months old to start them on solid foods, this will allow their immune system to mature a bit more.

2. Have a challenge phase where you introduce a few core foods to see what your baby can tolerate.

3. Introduce the foods least likely to cause allergic symptoms first.

4. Allow your baby to get used to the taste and texture of solid foods, as well as feeding from a spoon.

5. Introduce new textures in three stages:

• Stage 1: thin and smooth
• Stage 2: lumps and chunks
• Stage 3: finger foods

6. In the later stages, the solid foods now in their diet should provide most of your child’s nutritional needs.

If you are nervous about allergic reactions in the challenge phase, check out Neocate Nutra. It’s a hypoallergenic, amino acid-based semi-solid medical food that you can give to children over six months old. The texture is similar to yogurt and it can be eaten by itself or you can mix it with other foods (my favorite is mixed with apple sauce!).

Have any tips for transitioning to solids? Let us know what you think below.

- Sarah

With the school year back in full swing, we wanted to share with you a tasty, healthy and safe after-school snack. This “Milk-Free Shake” is made with Neocate Nutra, a hypoallergenic, amino acid-based semi-solid medical food that is a good source of calcium and Vitamin D. You can also vary the recipe by substituting other tolerated fruits for the banana in this shake. Enjoy!

Milk-Free Banana Shake

8 scoops (37 g) Neocate Nutra powder

2 fl oz water

½ cup banana, sliced

2 ice cubes

Blend all ingredients until smooth. Pour into container and enjoy.

Yields 1 serving.

Calories 240
Protein 4 g
Carbohydrate 42 g
Fat 7 g
Calcium 254 mg
Vitamin D 2mcg

For other snack ideas, check out the Neocate Nutra Recipe Guide.

-Mallory

With the heat and humidity reaching their peaks this month, we wanted to share with you a recipe for dairy-free ice cream that is both nutritious and delicious for your little ones.

Nutra Apple Milk-Free Ice Cream

Ingredients:

8 scoops (37 g) Neocate Nutra powder
3 Tbsp applesauce, unsweetened
2 fl oz water ¼ tsp ground cinnamon
½ tsp sugar (optional)

Blend ingredients. Place in a container and freeze for approximately 3 hours. Serve and enjoy.

Yields one serving.

Nutritional Information:

Calories - 200
Protein - 3 g
Carbohydrate - 32 g
Fat - 7 g Calcium - 257 mg
Vitamin D - 2 mcg

For some other ideas, including a recipe for mashed potatoes and applesauce oatmeal, check out Neocate’s Nutra Recipe Guide.

Remember, only use recipes that have ingredients that are easily tolerated by your baby or child.

Do you have a favorite recipe that you use? We encourage you to share it with us. And let us know what you think of the Nutra Apple Milk-Free Ice Cream recipe above.

-Christine

I’m excited to let everyone know about a new product Neocate just launched called Neocate Nutra – the first hypoallergenic semi-solid medical food for children and infants over 6 months of age. The product is great as a snack for a toddler with cow’s milk allergy and also for transitioning infants onto solid foods.

To learn more about the product check out the product description on the Neocate Web site. Do you think this is a product that will be useful for children with milk allergies? We’d love to hear your thoughts. Let us know by commenting on the blog, or join the discussion on Facebook by visiting Neocate’s Fan Page.

- Sarah

This allergy-friendly treat is great for Valentine’s Day!

Ingredients:

• 12 scoopsNeocate Nutra
• 3 scoops Neocate Junior, chocolate
• ~ 3 Tbsp water

Directions:

Mix until smooth, add water as necessary. Should be consistency of thin paste.Refrigerate 30-45 minutes.

Yield: 1 serving

Contributed by: Teresa Fristoe

Tip: For variety you can add 1 dropper Wisdom Natural Sweetleaf Liquid Stevia Vanilla Creme (in health food aisle) or addscant 1/16th teaspoon of a NeocateCherry Vanilla flavor packet.

Nutrition Information Per Serving:

• Calories 370
• Protein 8g
• Carbohydrates 50g
• Fat 16g

To get morefood allergy recipes, be sure to download our newFood Allergy Cookbook!

Warm up with this delicious fall soup!

• 4 oz (1/2) cup pureed butternut squash, such as Earth’s Best 1st Squash
• 4 fl oz (1/2 cup) chicken broth, such as Pacific Foods Natural Free Range Chicken Broth, which is dairy, soy and gluten-free (check the ingredients if you use another brands, some broths may contain soy or wheat products); If your child does not tolerate broth, water works well too!
• 1/4 tsp Italian Seasoning, such as McCormick’s Italian Seasoning Blend but you could use any brand; be sure to always double-check the ingredients for hidden allergens!)
• Salt/pepper to taste
• 8 Tbsp Neocate Nutra

Directions for cooking:

- Mix chicken broth (or water) and squash into medium saucepan & bring to rolling boil.

- Reduce heat & add seasonings, salt & pepper & simmer for about 10 minutes covered.

- After simmer, remove from heat & allow to cool for 5 minutes.

- Add Neocate Nutra to mixture 1 Tbsp at a time to prevent clumping.

Important Preparation Notes:

*Do not directly heat the Neocate Nutra; add Nutra to the soup AFTER it has been removed from heat. *Small amounts of hot water can be added to the soup to adjust the temperature and/or consistency.

Nutrition Information:

Calories - 210 Protein - 7 g

Carbohydrate - 31 g

Fat - 4 g

Calcium - 265 mg (53% daily value for kids 1-3, 33% daily value for kids 4-8)

If you’ve ever tried to prepare a meal for a picky eater, you know that the process can be a handful. But what do you do when your little one has a very limited diet and they do not find the things they can eat appetizing? That’s just one of the many things we here at Nutricia have in mind, so we try to offer as many options to our customers as possible. Our goal is to make meal time as stress-free as possible for a diet that is difficult, but necessary. One of the easiest solutions we offer is our Flavor Packets.

What makes our Flavor Packets so great? They come in 3 flavors (cherry-vanilla, grapefruit and lemon-lime) that are different from the Neocate Junior and Splash flavors. Each packet adds only about 15 calories and contains no protein, making them perfect for an elemental diet. This gives more variety to a formula-based diet for children over one year.

The best feature of the Flavor Packets is that you can use as little or as much as needed to match your child’s flavor preference. For instance, some children who start using Neocate Infant at a young age and then transition to unflavored Neocate Junior make the switch with no problem. However, as they get older and experience new tastes (like fruit juice) they may not like the taste of an unflavored elemental formula as much. But it’s also possible to find one of our flavored formulas a bit overpowering. In this case, you can add just enough flavor to help mask the taste of the amino acids, but not so much that the flavor or sweetness is overwhelming.

Not sure how much of a flavor packet to use? Each flavor packet is designed to mix with about sixteen ounces (or two cups) of prepared formula. For a child who is accustomed to unflavored formula, a good suggestion might be to start out at half-strength and see what they think. If your child is old enough, you could set up a blind taste test “experiment” for them with a few different concentrations and flavors to see what they like best and make the experience more fun! Also, for children over a year old you can use Flavor Packets with Neocate Nutra. We suggest experimenting to see how much flavor is right and a good place to start might be ⅛ or ¼ teaspoon per serving of Nutra.

Have you found the Flavor Packets to be helpful with keeping your little one interested in their elemental formula? Let us know in the comments section below.

- Rob

We’ve written a few blogs in the past relating to fiber and prebiotics. One of them discussed what fiber is, and why it’s good for us and another touched on prebiotic fiber. In a previous blog that I wrote, I mentioned that I decided to supplement my all-Neocate diet with fiber. If you feel your child might benefit from a fiber supplement, we have some tips to help you choose the right one!


Know what your child needs

Before exploring the options, make sure to check with your child’s health care team to be sure that additional fiber is needed. As we’ve mentioned in previous blog posts, fiber can help to improve gut health. For many folks, adding fiber can mean being more “regular,” which would be a decrease in constipation, diarrhea, or both. Your child’s health care team will consider the symptoms your child has, his or her medical condition, the amount of fiber he or she is getting, and whether or not more fiber might be helpful. Nutricia already has the only amino acid-based formula with fiber (Neocate Junior with Prebiotics), which can help meet your little one’s fiber needs.


Know what’s available

Fiber comes in MANY different forms, and is found in a variety of foods. The best sources of dietary fiber are fruits, vegetables, beans (or “legumes”), nuts, and whole grains. However, many children on an elemental diet are limited in one or more of these food groups. They may be especially limited in processed foods, or foods that might include fiber but also have an allergen (such as whole grain bread, which can often have dairy or egg ingredients). Again, be sure to check with the health care team to see if the foods your child is eating meet his or her fiber needs.

While there is a lot of variety in the types of fiber in whole foods, the types of supplemental fiber tend to be an isolated single type of fiber. For instance, many fiber supplements are bran-based. They use the outer husk of a grain to provide both soluble and insoluble fiber. Since insoluble fiber tends to speed digestion along, it may not be the best choice.

Another common form of fiber supplement is an isolated fiber, either soluble or insoluble fiber. Soluble fiber dissolves easily, so it mixes well into Neocate Junior, E028 Splash, or Neocate Nutra. It can help slow movement through the gut, and can help add bulk to stool. This is the type of fiber we include in Neocate Junior with Prebiotics. Many of these isolated fiber supplements are inulin, which is derived from the root of the chicory plant, which poses low risk for most children with allergies.

Know what questions to ask

One of the best questions to ask is what the source of the fiber is. For children with a wheat allergy, a fiber source which is derived from wheat, barley, rye, and possibly oat might not be appropriate. For those, a parent should look for a “gluten-free” claim or contact the company for more information.

Some fiber supplements carry the label “non-allergenic” or “hypoallergenic.” It’s always best to contact the company and ask them exactly what they mean with these terms. Also be sure to ask what the source of the fiber is and whether or not the product poses any risks for your little one’s specific allergies or sensitivities.

If your child’s health care team recommends supplementing fiber, make sure to ask how much to add and how to start using it. It’s best to introduce more fiber to the diet slowly and increase it gradually instead of adding the full dose all at once. This gives the body time to adjust to the change. Fiber should also be spread out throughout the day.

Do you have questions about choosing the right fiber supplement?  Let us know in the “Comments” section below.

- Rob

[Image Source – D Sharon Pruitt]

As summer winds down and the school year approaches, parents of children with allergies might be wondering “What will my child eat for lunch?” If you have a child for whom school lunch is not an option, here are some ideas for balanced and nutritious meals that are free of the top eight allergens. They take some time to prepare, so you might consider serving them for dinner and sending leftovers for lunch the next day. If your child drinks our E028 Splash or Neocate Junior, you can use these menus to get ideas of items or dishes that can supplement their meal-time drink.

Monday
Black Bean and Rice Burrito Bowl
                with Guacamole
Hummus and Cilantro or White Bean Garlic Dip
                with Carrots and Celery
Vanilla (Coconut Milk) Pudding or Nutra Banana Maple Pudding
 

Tuesday
Turkey Chili
                with Rice Cheese
Sweet Potato Casserole
Green Beans
Peach Slices
Cranberry Apple Cobbler or Banana Muffins
 

Wednesday
Grilled Chicken Breast
                with Mango Peach Salsa
Steamed Broccoli with Rice Cheese
Watermelon Cubes
Gelatin Dessert or Chocolaty Nutra Pudding
 

Thursday
Sautéed Sausage
                with Peppers and Onions
Oven Fries
                 with Honey Mustard Dipping Sauce
Apple Sauce
Pineapple Rice Milk Smoothie or Chocolate Peppermint Smoothie
 

Friday
Veggies and Meat Pasta Sauce
                with Corn or Rice Pasta
Salad greens
                with Cucumbers and Dressing
Frozen Fruit Bar or Frozen Neocate Treats

 

Over the past few weeks, we’ve provided you with tips for recycling or reusing your metal Neocate cans. But what about the accessories: the lids and the scoops?

In our recent recycling blog, we mentioned that the lids from Neocate (and Duocal!) cans can be recycled. This might vary, though, based on where you live. To be sure you can recycle the lids, check with your local municipality or curbside recycling pickup company. The key thing to look for is whether they accept number 4 plastics – the lids we use on our cans are number 4. As more localities continue to accept a bigger variety of plastics, we hope many of our customers can recycle their Neocate lids! You may also be able to find a nearby drop-off location by using the search feature on Earth911 with the term “#4 Rigid Plastic” and your city or zip code.

But what about the scoops that come with our products? Great news: if your municipality or recycling pickup company takes number 5 plastics, you can recycle the scoops as well! Number 5 plastics are also used in yogurt cups, other food tubs, plastic flower pots, and disposable razors. Even better news: for those customers who live in an area where number 5 products are not collected from the community, you have another option with Preserve®’s Gimme 5 program. You may be able to locate a local drop-off site where number 5 plastics are collected for Preserve. If that doesn’t work, Preserve will even accept number 5 plastics by mail and turn them into consumer products. Now THAT’S recycling!

Do you have any crafty ideas for reusing or repurposing the lids or scoops from your Nutricia products?

- Rob

For the next three weeks, we’ll be posting some allergy-friendly meal ideas, starting with breakfast. While it can be difficult to come up with meal ideas for standard diets or choosy children, a diet that has allergy restrictions is even tougher! Here are some breakfast ideas that might help you add variety. As always, check with your little one’s health care team to make sure they are appropriate.

Neocate-Only Breakfast Ideas

For children whose diets are strictly limited to amino acid-based formula, it’s helpful to have ideas that add variety. For instance, mixing some of the flavors and formats that Neocate offers can help fight the formula monotony. One of our favorite ideas for children over one year is mixing Neocate Nutra with Neocate Junior Tropical, Neocate Junior with Prebiotics Vanilla, or Neocate’s E028 Splash Grape. A ratio of about four scoops of Nutra powder to every one ounce of a prepared Neocate formula provides you with what we like to call “almost-yogurt.” You can of course adjust the ratio to your child’s tastes. For children older than six months but below one year, you might try mixing Neocate Nutra with a pasteurized fruit juice that they tolerate.

Top Eight Allergen-Free Breakfast Ideas

If your child is on an elimination diet for eosinophilic esophagitis (EoE) or is avoiding all of the eight major allergens, you can try mixing a Neocate product with pureed fruit. By mixing Neocate Junior with fruit you can come up with some great breakfast shakes and outstanding flavor combinations. Or by mixing Neocate Nutra with pureed fruit you can come up with a great alternative to oatmeal. If you want to serve it warm, we still recommend against using a microwave: start with warm juice instead to avoid the hot spots and lower nutrient levels microwaves can cause.

Less Restrictive Breakfast Ideas

For children who avoid dairy and only one or two other allergens, we have some great breakfast suggestions in our online Neocate Food Allergy Cookbook, a compilation of recipes submitted by families. Mallory posted her top 5 breakfast ideas from the cookbook, many of which use wheat, in a previous blog. One great thing about a lot of these recipes is that many can be made in a large batch, portioned, and frozen or refrigerated for later use. The Apple-Oat Muffins on page seven would definitely be in my top five! We’ve also had a few breakfast recipes appear in blog posts, such as Banana Bread Muffins.

If your family has a favorite “standard” breakfast recipe that involves milk but is otherwise allergy-friendly, you may be able to substitute Neocate formula for the milk. While this might change the final result a little bit and may require some experimenting, it will provide the high levels of most nutrients from Neocate that other milk substitutes (such as water or rice milk) can’t provide. Just be aware that the high heat from cooking will lower some of Neocate’s nutrient levels, especially some vitamins. Again, check all recipes to be sure that the ingredients are safe for your child and ensure that the health care team is on board.

What allergy-friendly breakfast ideas have helped your family in the morning?

Rob

The topic for today’s post in our allergy-friendly meal idea series is lunch! Just like with breakfast, a lot of the go-to lunch options for most children aren’t suitable for children on a diet that has allergy restrictions. Here are some lunch ideas that might help you add variety. As always, check with your little one’s health care team to make sure they are appropriate.
 

Neocate-Only Lunch Ideas

For children whose diets are strictly limited to amino acid-based formula, the same formula one lunch after another can become very routine. One great option Nutricia offers is the multiple flavors of Neocate’s E028 Splash. Many children find restrictive diets less of a struggle if they have a say in the flavor. On top of this, Splash is packaged in kid-friendly drink boxes so that nobody knows their drinking a special medical formula. Another option is to send your little one to school with a great Neocate-only pudding recipe such as Chocolaty Nutra Pudding. But why stop with chocolate pudding? Experiment with mixing the different flavors of Neocate Junior and Splash with Neocate Nutra to come up with different flavors. My favorites are Grape Splash with Junior Chocolate (“chocolate covered raisin”) and Tropical Fruit Splash with Junior Vanilla (“Dreamsicle”).
 

Top Eight Allergen-Free Lunch Ideas

If your child is on an elimination diet for eosinophilic esophagitis (EoE) or is avoiding all of the eight major allergens, you can offer some different food options along with one of the Neocate formulas. It may seem difficult at first, but you can still put together a lunch that looks pretty normal, even without the top 8 allergens. A few months ago we posted a week’s worth of ideas for allergen free lunches. Bear in mind that while most processed foods have ingredients derived from the top 8 allergens, dining on whole foods makes the top 8 much easier to avoid. You may even be able to find convenience foods in natural or organic food stores that are free of the top 8, such as soups or frozen items. Even though we first shared a lunch post from Allergy Moms in 2008, it’s still relevant and has some great ideas!

Less Restrictive Lunch Ideas

For children who avoid dairy and only one or two other allergens, we have some great lunch suggestions in our online Neocate Food Allergy Cookbook, a compilation of recipes submitted by families. Mallory posted her top five lunch ideas from the cookbook, many of which use wheat, in a previous blog. One great thing about a lot of these recipes is that many can be made in advance and frozen or refrigerated for later use. The Turkey Meatloaf on page twelve would definitely be in my top five! We’ve also had a few lunch recipes appear in blog posts, such as Dairy-Free, Egg-Free Chicken Pasta Salad.

As always, we recommend that you check any recipes on our websites or from other food allergy resources to be sure that the ingredients are safe for your child and ensure that the health care team is on board.

Do you have any allergy-friendly lunches that have helped you that you’d like to share with other families?

Rob

Many Moms and Dads come to us with questions about how to properly mix Neocate products.  This is why in addition to the preparation instructions on our website, our nutrition specialists have created videos explaining how to properly mix Neocate products for our blog and NeocateUS YouTube channel! 

We are excited to share with you our most recent mixing video for Neocate Nutra.     

Neocate Nutra is the first hypoallergenic semi-solid medical food for children and infants over 6 months of age.  The product is great as a snack for a toddler with cow’s milk allergy and also for transitioning infants onto solid foods. 

 Neocate Nutra is not meant to be a replacement for any type of Neocate formula, because it is not formulated to be nutritionally complete.  But, it is a great way to supplement your child’s diet with some extra calories, vitamin D and calcium!  

We hear from a lot of parents who give it as a snack, or mix it with other safe foods like pudding or mashed potatoes.  For even more ideas, we have a Nutra recipe guide with a collection of tasty recipes on the website.  

Have you tried Nutra?  Do you find this video helpful? What other mixing videos would you like to see? Let us know by posting a comment in the comment section!    

Today’s post in our allergy-friendly meal idea series is the final topic: dinner! While breakfast and lunch may tend to be rushed or eaten out of the house, a lot of families still prefer to have dinner together at home. On top of this, the restrictions and rules that come with food allergies can make dining out very difficult.  Here are some dinner ideas that might help you add variety to the evening meal. As always, check with your little one’s health care team to make sure they are appropriate.
 

Neocate-Only Dinner Ideas

For children whose diets are strictly limited to amino acid-based formula, the same formula breakfast, lunch and dinner can be difficult for some children, especially older children. As we’ve mentioned in the previous two posts in this series, Nutricia offers multiple flavors in both Neocate Junior and Neocate’s E028 Splash. Many children have an easier time with restrictive diets when they have some input. Keeping a few flavors on hand can help kids to stay satisfied with an elemental diet. Try letting them chose their dinner flavor. Just like with breakfast and lunch, experiment with mixing different flavors of Neocate Junior and Splash with Neocate Nutra to come up with different flavors and textures. One of the easiest ways to offer variety is to use a blender. Mix one part Neocate formula with one part ice, blend well, pour into a fancy container or dish, add a straw or spoon, and enjoy! Neocate Junior Vanilla lends itself especially well to this shake format, and can be mixed with the other flavors or even with a fruit juice your child tolerates.
 

Top Eight Allergen-Free Dinner Ideas

If your child is on an elimination diet for eosinophilic esophagitis (EoE) or is avoiding all of the eight major allergens, you can offer some different food options along with one of the Neocate formulas. For younger toddlers, you can mix unflavored Neocate Junior with pureed foods that they tolerate. Vegetables and citrus flavors blend especially well with unflavored Neocate. If you’re putting together a full meal for the family, it may not be as difficult as you think to avoid the top 8 allergens and come up with something everyone can enjoy. You can easily build off of our ideas for allergen free lunches. Remember, while most processed foods have ingredients derived from the top 8 allergens, dining on whole foods makes the top 8 much easier to avoid. You may even be able to find family-sized convenience foods in natural or organic food stores that are free of the top 8, such as soups or frozen items.

Less Restrictive Dinner Ideas

For children who avoid dairy and only one or two other allergens, we have some great dinner suggestions in our online Neocate Food Allergy Cookbook, a compilation of recipes submitted by families. Mallory posted her top five dinner ideas from the cookbook, many of which use wheat, in a previous blog. One great thing about a lot of these recipes is that many can be made in advance and frozen or refrigerated for later use. If you decide to dine out, it’s a good idea to do some planning ahead with these tips we shared in a previous blog post.

As always, we recommend that you check any recipes on our websites or from other food allergy resources to be sure that the ingredients are safe for your child and ensure that the health care team is on board.

Do you have any allergy-friendly dinner ideas that have helped you that you’d like to share with other Neocate families?

Rob

[Image source: http://www.bonappetit.com/blogsandforums/blogs/bafoodist/2009/03/5-tips-for-handling-a-bad-wait.html] 

Ingredients:

• 8 scoops Neocate Nutra
• 2 fl oz of Neocate Junior with Prebiotics, Vanilla (at standard dilution)
• ¼ teaspoon of cinnamon

Directions:

Add Neocate Nutra powder to a bowl. Add 2 fl oz of Neocate Jr, Vanilla. Blend till evenly distributed. Add cinnamon and stir. Using a small spoon, place 5 cookie sized dollops onto a flat plate or tray. Place tray in freezer for over 3 hours. Use spatula to remove patties from tray. Serve right away as they may defrost quickly.

*Leave out the cinnamon if desired for a different taste experience.

Serving size: makes about 6 patties

Nutrition Information per serving:

Calories: 236 Pro: 5g CHO: 32g Fat: 9.6g Fiber: 0.7g

Neocate Junior with Prebiotics, Vanilla is an aspartame-free, hypoallergenic and nutritionally complete medical food for children over the age of one.  And as a reminder, be sure to consult your healthcare professional to determine if this recipe, ingredients and consistencies are appropriate for your child.

Image Source

We get questions related to starting solid foods from parents pretty often, and have blogged on topics such as how to start and some specific tips for infants with allergies. Most questions about starting solids are best answered by your little one’s health care team, since there isn’t always consensus in the medical community. Today we want to share an interesting study that was published recently in the Journal of the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics that may be helpful.


The Article and the Study

The title of the article is “Associations of Infant Feeding Practices and Picky Eating Behaviors of Preschool Children.” We can simplify it to “how feeding infants might add to picky eating later on.” The authors looked into the way that feeding patterns in infancy, when eating patterns start to develop, affect picky eating behavior later in life. We know that every child will exhibit picky eating at some point; what we don’t know is how picky they will be and how long it will last. We don’t know any parent who wouldn’t do whatever they could to lower the risk of picky eating!

The authors of the study looked at data from 129 mothers of preschool children. The focus was on how early the moms started solid foods. They compared this with how willing the children were later in life to try new foods and how much variety their diets had.


The Results

The authors found that children in the study who were exclusively breastfed for the first 6 months of life were less likely to be picky about how their food was prepared, less likely to reject food, and less likely to be afraid of new foods. By waiting until 6 months to introduce solid foods, their children were less likely to be picky eaters later in childhood.


What the Results Mean

While it’s tempting to take the results of this study at face value, waiting until 6 months to introduce solids will not guarantee no picky eating. For starters, the authors admit that picky eating is hard to define, and each parent sees picky eating differently. This study also relied on parents’ memories about feeding their infants, and the small study group may not represent the whole population.

What we should take away from this study is that infant feeding practices, particularly the age when solids are started, can have an impact on picky eating behavior later in childhood. This study presents evidence that waiting until 6 months may be a good start, and that further studies could be useful. Introducing solids at 6 months is in line with the recommendations of the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics (AND) and the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP). For infants with documented allergy or risk of allergy, an expert panel has also suggested that it’s best to wait until 6 months to introduce solids. This is part of the reasoning behind why we suggest waiting until 6 months to introduce Neocate Nutra, the only hypoallergenic, amino acid-based semi-solid designed specifically for infants and children with allergies.

Would you change the age that you introduce solids based on the results of this study?

- Rob

[Image Source– http://www.babybites.info/2012/03/08/forgo-the-food-fight/]

In the next part of our Neocate Product Series, we will take a look at Neocate Nutra.  As you saw in our previous blog about Neocate Infant DHA ARA, we take a look at the description of the product, preparation instructions as well as the nutrient and ingredient profile.

Neocate Nutra is a one-of-a-kind hypoallergenic, elemental semi-solid food for infants and children over 6 months of age. It is for the dietary management of cow milk allergy, multiple food protein intolerance (MFPI) and food-allergy-associated conditions such as gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD), eosinophilic esophagitis (EoE), short bowel syndrome (SBS), malabsorption and other GI disorders.

As seen on the Neocate Nutra label, Neocate Nutra is:

·         Hypoallergenic – based on 100% non-allergenic amino acids

·         High in Calcium, and a good source of vitamin D and iron

·         Milk protein- and gluten-free

·         Free from artificial flavors, colors, or preservatives

How to prepare Neocate Nutra

 Click here to find watch our video on how to mix Neocate Nutra.

Click here for recipes using Neocate Nutra

· Fill the scoop provided with Neocate Nutra and level off with a clean, dry, flat utensil. Do not press the powder into the scoop. Only use the scoop provided in the can

· Add the recommended number of scoops** of Neocate Nutra into a clean bowl.

· Gradually add the required amount of water while stirring with a clean spoon. Mix until thickened and evenly blended. To alter the consistency, add more or less water as needed.

** The suggested serving size for children (1yr +) is 8 scoops + 2 fl oz of water.  For infants (6-12 months) use 4 scoops + 1 fl oz of water.

Neocate Nutra should be prepared immediately prior to feeding. Any prepared product remaining should be discarded if not used within 1 hour. Neocate Nutra can be added to cooked dishes. Do not add to very hot foods. Store unopened cans in a cool dry place. Once opened, reseal can. Store in a cool dry place and use within one month.

Nutrient and Ingredients profile

Ingredients:

Corn Syrup Solids (42%), Cornstarch (19%), Refined Vegetable Oil (18%) (Non-Hydrogenated Coconut (6%), High Oleic Sunflower (6%), Canola (3%), Sunflower (3%)), Sugar (9%), Calcium Phosphate Tribasic (2%), Contains 2% Or Less Than Each Of The Following: L-Arginine L-Aspartate, L-Leucine, L-Lysine Acetate, CAEM (An Emulsifier), L-Glutamine, L-Proline, L-Valine, Glycine, L-Isoleucine, L-Threonine, L-Phenylalanine, L-Tyrosine, L-Serine, L-Histidine, L-Alanine, L-Cystine, L-Tryptophan, L-Methionine, Choline Bitartrate, Magnesium L-Aspartate, Magnesium Acetate, M-Inositol, L-Ascorbic Acid, Ferrous Sulfate, Taurine, Zinc Sulfate, L-Carnitine, DL-Alpha Tocopheryl Acetate, Calcium D-Pantothenate, Niacinamide, Manganese Sulfate, Cupric Sulfate, Thiamine Chloride Hydrochloride, Pyridoxine Hydrochloride, Riboflavin, Vitamin A Acetate, Potassium Iodide, Chromium Chloride, Folic Acid, Sodium Selenite, Sodium Molybdate, Phylloquinone, D-Biotin, Vitamin D3, Cyanocobalamin.

*Important: Neocate Nutra is intended as a supplement to the child’s diet. Neocate Nutra is not nutritionally complete and should not be used as a sole source of nutrition. Neocate Nutra is not for bottle or tube feed use.