Food Allergy Living Blog Tagged Results

We’re excited to announce that those of you in Canada can now purchase our newest product — Neocate Junior with Prebiotics. As many as 55 percent of children don’t get enough fiber and if they are on a restricted diet, it can be even more difficult!

This is why we have added prebiotic fiber to our Neocate Junior formula. Why is prebiotic fiber important? Prebiotics promote digestive health by supporting healthy bacteria in the gut and inhibiting bad bacteria. Studies have shown that prebiotics can help decrease constipation, diarrhea, gas and vomiting.

If you want to learn more about how prebiotics work and the importance of fiber in your children’s diet, be sure to check out this blog entry.

- Sarah

FPIES, or food protein induced enterocolitis syndrome, is a condition that I’ve been hearing about more and more lately. It is not particularly well-known, so I thought we could cover some of the basics in today’s blog.

What is FPIES?

FPIES is a disease that typically affects infants and young children. While it can mimic food allergies, the difference with FPIES is that it is a non-IgE mediated immune reaction in the gastrointestinal (GI) system to one or more specific foods. This means that the IgE antibodies associated with other food allergies are not involved in an FPIES reaction.

Cow’s milk and soy are the most common FPIES triggers, but ANY foods can cause an FPIES reaction (even ones that aren’t typically considered to be allergens like rice and oats).

Common Symptoms of FPIES

Most FPIES reactions happen when a child is very young – just a few weeks or months old. Often it happens when the first formulas or solid foods are introduced (breastmilk doesn’t usually cause an FPIES reaction, even if the mother has eaten a trigger food).

Each child is different, but the most common symptoms of FPIES involve the GI tract and can include projectile vomiting and diarrhea, which means that it is often mistaken for a stomach bug. There is almost always a delayed onset of symptoms - often vomiting occurs 2 hours after eating a trigger food, with diarrhea following 5 hours after eating. Some children experience relatively mild symptoms, while others have such severe vomiting and diarrhea that they can become seriously dehydrated and go into shock.

Diagnosing and Treating FPIES

It can be difficult to diagnose FPIES because blood allergy tests only look for IgE-mediated responses. Usually a diagnosis occurs after repeated reactions. Keeping a food journal may be helpful in identifying triggers if you think your child has FPIES.

Treating FPIES varies depending on the child, their triggers and reactions. For infants with FPIES an elemental formula like Neocate is often used. For some children who have fewer triggers treatment is simply to avoid those foods. Introducing new foods slowly – one at a time and for up to three weeks – is extremely important to identify both safe and trigger foods. If your child has an FPIES reaction, it is important that they remain hydrated to avoid going into shock.

Outgrowing FPIES

Many children with FPIES outgrow the disease by age three, but this can vary based on how severe their symptoms are and which foods they react to. According to an article from Kids With Food Allergies, one study showed that 100% of children with FPIES reactions to barley had outgrown and were tolerating barley by age three, while only 40% of those with FPIES to rice, and 60% to dairy tolerated it by the same age.

To determine if your child has outgrown FPIES it is important to work with your doctor and evaluate it on a food-by-food basis. Atopy patch testing can help assess if your child is ready for an oral challenge in your doctor’s office or hospital (do not attempt without a doctor’s supervision!).

We hope this helps shed some light on an often confusing disease. If any of you have children with FPIES and can share your experiences, please leave a comment!

- Sarah

A friend told me she went to an office Halloween party as a peanut allergy. I wondered: What would you wear that says, “I am an allergy?” I still don’t know the answer to that question! Thinking about that made me wonder: Since babies don’t come with labels and can’t tell us what they experience, how do they tell us “I have an allergy?”

More and more, children are diagnosed with food allergies, with cow’s milk allergy being the most common. In fact, more than 100,000 babies each year suffer from milk allergy. There are multiple clues pediatricians look for that help diagnose a cow’s milk allergy that you can look for too. Below is a list of eight questions to help parents of infants identify a potential milk allergy, designed by Dr. John Moissidis, a Board certified pediatric allergist at The Asthma Allergy Clinic in Shreveport, La.

Milk Allergy Symptoms

1. Diarrhea Diarrhea is common in babies, but if it is persistent (an average of two to four times a day for more than five to seven days) and/or if there is blood or mucous in the stool, it could signal a more serious milk allergy.

2. Vomiting Babies often spit up bits of food, but vomiting beyond the typical mealtime regurgitation should be examined by a doctor. Reflux symptoms, such as spit-up and difficulty swallowing, can also be milk allergy symptoms.

3. Skin Rash There are many causes for infant skin rashes like eczema. Milk allergy is one possible cause, especially if the rash occurs along with some of these other symptoms.

4. Extreme Fussiness Every baby cries, but crying continuously and inconsolably for long periods of time is abnormal. When there is no apparent reason, this is usually called colic. Sometimes this extreme fussiness is actually caused by the gastrointestinal pain resulting from an allergy to the proteins found in milk.

5. Low or No Weight Gain Most infants double their weight by six months and triple it by 12 months. But when babies are not getting the nutrition they need because of excessive diarrhea and vomiting, they are unable to grow like they should.

6. Gassiness All babies have gas, but when it occurs along with several of these other symptoms, it can also signal an allergy to milk proteins.

7. Respiratory Problems Colds are common for infants, but wheezing, struggling to breathe and developing excess mucus in the nose and throat is not. For some kids, these respiratory problems can be the baby’s reaction to the protein found in milk.

8. Failure to Thrive Babies with milk allergy often suffer from a lack of proper nutrition characterized by dehydration, loss of appetite and lack of energy. This overall failure to thrive is often the result of the effect the other symptoms have on the infant’s body.

My baby has one or more of these symptoms – what now?

Babies with an allergy to cow’s milk protein cannot process the complex proteins found in milk-based baby formula, and many babies also react to soy-based infant formulas. Because of this, infant milk allergy is treated by either eliminating the milk proteins from the nursing mother’s diet or by replacing the regular formula with an amino acid-based formula.

An amino acid-based formula is safe for babies with milk and soy allergies because it is made using amino acids, the building blocks of protein. Amino acids are small enough that they won’t cause an allergic reaction in the way that complete protein chains or partly broken down proteins found in other formulas will.

The next step should be to schedule an appointment with your child’s pediatrician in order to receive a more thorough evaluation and diagnosis. Bring this information with you and ask your doctor if your baby might benefit from an amino acid-based formula.

What symptoms did your baby have that led you to suspect a milk allergy?

- Rob

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